Messages

never kickt a ball was right, they do look different and there's no nets!

We're well capable of raising our game to beat one of them, but I'm not convinced we can reach the level needed to beat both.

The draw means that if Donegal do it they will deserve it. Probably they could squeeze through with one great game against Armagh/Tyrone and one flukey win.

Boylesports odds for NFL round 2

                              Home   Draw    Away
Kerry vs Cork                    2/5    8/1    12/5
Tyrone vs Fermanagh      2/9      9/1       4/1
Limerick vs Dublin          7/2    9/1    1/4
Donegal vs Mayo       EVS       7/1       21/20
         
Laois vs Galway       8/15   15/2        15/8
Armagh vs Louth     4/7    15/2      7/4
Down vs Kildare      6/5     13/2      10/11
Derry vs Westmeath    3/10    9/1    3/1
         
Offaly vs Carlow         1/8    10/1    6/1
Clare vs Leitrim          EVS    15/2    EVS
Monaghan vs Longford    4/9    15/2      9/4
London vs Roscommon    14/1    14/1    1/100
         
Antrim vs Meath    2/1    15/2    1/2
Cavan vs Wicklow    4/11    15/2    11/4
Wexford vs Tipperary    2/9    9/1    4/1
Sligo vs Waterford    1/6    9/1    5/1

some scope here for a punt, how about a div 2b treble on Waterford, Tipp and Wicklow?

Good crowd in Newbridge on a ground that will shortly be demolished, perhaps we could buy the stand and put it somewhere in Armagh. Kildare were full of beans and came at Armagh in waves, this often resulted in a free, which Doyle knocked over. Kildare had a couple of half chances for a goal, but McKinney was well positioned. Except for a period towards the end of the first half Armagh couldn't get the ball up to the Kildare 45, having little success with kickouts and not much idea what to do even if they did win the ball. Mackin and Swift swapped places for a while, without much effect and Paul Keenan came on for Dyas (I think). There were some sad give aways of the ball by Armagh and neither side will win awards for accuracy. Big Joe seemed a bit agitated about the whole thing.

wide.........

feck it, I had a few Euro on the draw!

Tyrone's finishing poor, they will regret that if Dublin stay ahead.

Coverage is started on Setanta now at 6pm. The main lights aren't on yet, but there seems to be quite a few in the stands! There are some kids from each county with flags lining up to parade, it must be cold for them.

The big advantage of the GAA is that it can offer attendance at top games and it is good to see so many taking an interest. There should be a good atmosphere tonight. However I expect that Tyrone will be loudly booed when they take to the field, something that won't happen when the rugby takes place next week. While not a great admirer of Tyrone, I think the rugby approach is better.

Dún Laoghaire proper doesn't have a population anywhere near 100,000 and if you define it more broadly there are clubs like Cuala in the area.

kildare to beat armagh at 5/4... great value

Well on Betfair you'd get 8/5. Since Kildare people are not exactly strangers to betting, perhaps they know something we don't!

I think the Armagh camp will be happy enough with this game. It might have been important to Donegal to beat Armagh, but it doesn't have the same importance the other way around. With the McKenna cup final supposed to on the weekend when Cross' were playing in Mullingar, it wouldn't suit Big Joe and a lot of Armagh people, a big "derby" against Tyrone when so many players were unavailable didn't have that much to recommend it. It is much more important to say in Division 1. The league offers Joe a chance to try out any players that caught his eye in the McKenna cup campaign. You can't draw much by way of conclusion about the championship from this type of game, except to say that there are some prospects for the current panel and others who might make a decent team in the future when the old faces are permanently unavailable. The defensive work yesterday was sound, but the transfer of the ball forward was poor, while this is not a strong point of Armagh at any time the lack of organising figures like McGrane did not help the shape of the team. Some of these players could look better in a settled lineup.

On a lighter note, I see Paul Hearty scored a great point at the all-stars, could our Armagh's forward problems be solved!

He told me Down men never supported Armagh. EVER. Best advice any Down man could give his son. Advice I have always adhered to.

Begrudgery runs in families so. Note that Down's minor success in 1977 was cheered on by the large Armagh support present.

They single-handly revived the Dr. McKenna Cup.

their main contribution to the GAA, in fact.

Yes, in fact it should be renamed the Dr Tyrone Cup.

or perhaps the Tyrone doctored cup.

P.S. At least the NI flag is in the Ulster team's colours.

So is the Japanese flag. Perhaps the team should amend their colours to that of their proper flag.

That said Brennan was well out of line even if they guy he biffed was making sectarian comments. You can't have professional sports players leaping in the stand and clocking people, especially large rugby players who are almost by definition able to beat the crap out of a seated spectator.

No doubt, people with sectarian flags might also be capable of sectarian comments.