Antrim Football Thread

[bannside]

Clinking final, best in years.  Football in the county as a whole has got complely reignited after the lengthy domination by St Galls and Cargin who by the look of things will be at the top table for a while!

DC has won 3 on the trot, and all three have been exceptionally close games that could all have gone either way. Good luck or good management, it takes a bot of both. The punters paying for his services wont be complaining how they were won.

Creggan looked totally shattered walking off the pitch, the Mc Nulty brothers Gerard and Thomas got their troops emptying the tank and thats all you can ask. When you consider Gerard has been at Creggan for 3 years and has never asked or received a penny you have to pay tribute to that level of committment.

[Bronco]

It was a great game,both teams gave everything. Creggan can take a bit of heart that they tried to go out and win it this time unlike the cautious approach 2 years ago. Ultimately as someone mentioned Cargin's deeper squad was maybe the difference. They had a bit more quality on the bench. It's been a great year for games in Antrim both football and hurling, long may it continue.

Clinking final, best in years.  Football in the county as a whole has got complely reignited after the lengthy domination by St Galls and Cargin who by the look of things will be at the top table for a while!

DC has won 3 on the trot, and all three have been exceptionally close games that could all have gone either way. Good luck or good management, it takes a bot of both. The punters paying for his services wont be complaining how they were won.

Creggan looked totally shattered walking off the pitch, the Mc Nulty brothers Gerard and Thomas got their troops emptying the tank and thats all you can ask. When you consider Gerard has been at Creggan for 3 years and has never asked or received a penny you have to pay tribute to that level of committment.

[Christmas Lights]

Will Cargin be happy enough with no Ulster Championship this year?  Have they ever won a game in it? 

[Bronco]

I've said previously it's ridiculous that there is no provincial and all Ireland club this year. It should have been prioritised over inter-county.

Having said that I don't think Cargin would be in contention to win it and the three in a row is a magnificent acheivement in itself.

[Bronco]

CJ in his heyday better than Close for me,but to still be deciding championship finals at Kieran's age is no mean feat. Took his goal well ,although the less said about his subsequent point the better!

All about opinions I suppose, but Kieran Close would be top of my pile by a distance if youre looking at the man who delivered time after time for Cargin, his greatest strength was to link up with others and his unselfishness. It was never all about him ( like the true greats like Gooch Cooper. It was about winning his own ball and getting the head up to provide killer passes to others. Close and Michael Magill were unstoppable in their pomp, and still doing it today at 37 coming 38 says it all. Changed the game in Cargins favour the minute he stepped on the pitch. IMO.

[imtommygunn]

He's had a lot of injuries over the years. The bench thing works very well for him(and for Cargin obviously).

Yeah agreed on CJ.

[Milltown Row2]

Will Cargin be happy enough with no Ulster Championship this year?  Have they ever won a game in it?

I don't know why there is a issue with competing in Ulster, they did eventually run the Donegal champions close the year they won it, after having a nightmare first half.

Cassidy I thought would have been that magic touch needed and Brennan before him, with that wealth of experience.. I year gone and it may not happen .

Cargin have won a match in Ulster and the next game was close (I think) but after yesterdays game they have the mental strength needed

[NAG1]

A good final to watch and again covered well by JQ a great service to the county.

The game itself, really poor standard of refereeing again. Didn't make the big calls at the end of the game when the game could have gone either way.

Creggan are getting a bit like PG1 at this stage, lots of decent nice footballers plenty of talent, but when heat comes on they are lacking that killer instinct that wins big games.

[Christmas Lights]

What club is Jerome Quinn affiliated with in Antrim?  I know he is an Omagh man originally but not sure if he still resides there?

[imtommygunn]

I thought he was more the down side of belfast. I know he is associated with east belfast gaels. I had thought Bredagh too but not 100% sure.

[Milltown Row2]

A good final to watch and again covered well by JQ a great service to the county.

The game itself, really poor standard of refereeing again. Didn't make the big calls at the end of the game when the game could have gone either way.

Creggan are getting a bit like PG1 at this stage, lots of decent nice footballers plenty of talent, but when heat comes on they are lacking that killer instinct that wins big games.

A bit harsh to say the standard was really poor on two calls that would have effectively cancelled each other out and had no bearing on the game.

The game was good because of the standard of the refereeing also, the players knew what to expect and as for big calls he could have given a wide and could have as easily given a point.. No players getting sent off between two clubs in the one parish is down to controlling the game also. Nipping things in the bud early, that was done.

In no way am I just defending ref's here, not the case, these games can be very hard to ref, never mind a league encounter but a county final between these two is as big as, us v Cargin or Dunloy v Loughgiel in terms of each team fears losing more than winning, if that makes sense

[bannside]

CJ possibly a bit more gifted alright, but KC has been doing it year in year out for 16 years at least. As out and out traditional corner forwards go, KC was the type of player Id want kids to see. Movement off the ball, proper decision making, great eye for a score, totally unselfish, and streetwise as they go. I dont see many that tick all these boxes, not even on the national stage.

You pay money to watch these qualities, like Micks fetches, Niblocks ball winning, Sean Kelly controlling a game. The youngest of these are 35 now, where are the next batch coming from that are going to replace this kind of quality?

[paddyjohn]

Just think of the team the Antrim masters will have in a few years!

[imtommygunn]

CJ possibly a bit more gifted alright, but KC has been doing it year in year out for 16 years at least. As out and out traditional corner forwards go, KC was the type of player Id want kids to see. Movement off the ball, proper decision making, great eye for a score, totally unselfish, and streetwise as they go. I dont see many that tick all these boxes, not even on the national stage.

You pay money to watch these qualities, like Micks fetches, Niblocks ball winning, Sean Kelly controlling a game. The youngest of these are 35 now, where are the next batch coming from that are going to replace this kind of quality?

To be fair shivers looks to be real quality. I thought Kevin small would be that type of player but doesn't quite seem to be as outstanding as underage. (Probably Quinn too).

[Bronco]

Totally agree on him being the type of player you want to see, there's a very old-school corner forward quality he has which is thankfully a million miles from the muscle-bound workhorses you often see these days. Niblock is another forward I really enjoy watching. Great hands and intelligent at laying ball off to a runner.

CJ possibly a bit more gifted alright, but KC has been doing it year in year out for 16 years at least. As out and out traditional corner forwards go, KC was the type of player Id want kids to see. Movement off the ball, proper decision making, great eye for a score, totally unselfish, and streetwise as they go. I dont see many that tick all these boxes, not even on the national stage.

You pay money to watch these qualities, like Micks fetches, Niblocks ball winning, Sean Kelly controlling a game. The youngest of these are 35 now, where are the next batch coming from that are going to replace this kind of quality?