Messages

I don't think his means had longevity. They would have had were there a conveyor belt of talent coming through every year(not a dig at Dublin but with training the hard I don't think you can do it with more or less the same group of players year on year)

Exactly, McGuinness was very clear when he wanted the Donegal job it was an Olympic cycle. That's why they didn't want anything to do with him at the start they didn't understand what the hell he was on about!

if the government put a lockdown over xmas and people adhered to it, you would be on here saying their prediction were wrong and we should have opened up..

i am not sure most people are adhering to the rules and my in laws are case in point. recent close contacts, the person who has covid didnt isolation or stay home from work when told too but did visit the in laws 3 times before testing positive for covid. He told them he was a close contact on the 1st occasion but they still let him into the house after that.

his wife has gone food shopping with the kids since her husband tested positive. An in law went to the local shop yesterday instead of isolating as she got a negative anti body test, didnt have pcr test as no symtoms as yet, doesnt think she done anything wrong.... i imagine they arent the only people acting like this... i read of people stopping for coffee on the way to tests recently too

This is exactly what has been fuelling the whole thing, this whole time. Not these mass of house parties that people seem to think exist in every town.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-55341779

Well done to the people of Milan.

[Hopefully this will be the last lockdown, but it will depend on what we do after the lockdown that will decide that.]

So the lockdown loonies are now saying lockdowns don't work.

You really could not make it up.

I don't think anybody is saying "they work". There isn't anyone fond of these lockdowns in fairness. Just some of us hate them more than others.

They do, annoyingly, provide the greatest short term option relief and that's now when they've went from being the last resort, to the only as track and trace is dead, an epic failure.

This one has to work, everybody is kinda hinting towards this being the last one. At this stage, keep it closed until end of March. Do whatever needs to be done. I don't see any point now in opening anything (talking about us in the North) at this upcoming review, whenever that is. Just keep it closed, get your acts together and let that be the end of it when this one is done.

The vaccine is the only option now. Give them 10 more weeks. We should be.......please God, ready to return to "normal" (as can be) then.

Lockdowns only work when we are locked down. There is no point trying to blame lockdowns for numbers increasing after lockdowns have finished and "normal restrictions" have resumed. The fact this actually needs to be spelled out is incredible. Hopefully this will be the last lockdown, but it will depend on what we do after the lockdown that will decide that.

That is where track and trace was supposed to fill the gap. However, anecdotally, I know of ones met up over Xmas, of course passed the virus to each other (all ok thankfully). Uploaded the status to the app and it did not alert the partner of one, for example who was not there and is clearly a close contact (she ended up not getting it, one of those strange Covid examples).

If track and trace is a busted flush, like it appears. We run the risk of another lockdown. It won't be the publics behaviour, (the vast, vast majority of people are behaving, we are being told we aren't and it wears a little thin with me) it's the nature of this virus and the inability of the West to actually get track and trace to anything other than a window dressing level.

So the lockdown loonies are now saying lockdowns don't work.

You really could not make it up.

I don't think anybody is saying "they work". There isn't anyone fond of these lockdowns in fairness. Just some of us hate them more than others.

They do, annoyingly, provide the greatest short term option relief and that's now when they've went from being the last resort, to the only as track and trace is dead, an epic failure.

This one has to work, everybody is kinda hinting towards this being the last one. At this stage, keep it closed until end of March. Do whatever needs to be done. I don't see any point now in opening anything (talking about us in the North) at this upcoming review, whenever that is. Just keep it closed, get your acts together and let that be the end of it when this one is done.

The vaccine is the only option now. Give them 10 more weeks. We should be.......please God, ready to return to "normal" (as can be) then.

With all the disruption keeping children interested could be a problem.

This will be the end of some clubs. Some were hanging on as it was. I've heard a few lower Junior clubs losing players already to bigger neighbours.

I really don't see us being in a position for club football to start in April or May

Nah not a chance at the minute, maybe end of May. May hope these next two weeks predicted aren't as bad, if not....maybe. If so. We'll do well to see club football by summer.

Lenny your own club team are brutal at the 15 men behind the ball, infact imo you lost the county final as you had no attacking strategy when you went behind. It was only when you realised the game was gone that you looked like a team who if they had of came out earlier may have had a chance. And the disappointing bit is you have the players to be more adventurous.

However  agree Mc Guiness showed teams another way, his tactics and then Dublins restart strategy has made the game alot more thoughtful. Teams have to really plan how to approach games now as a direct result.

Why do you think I hate that type of football? I said it had trickled down to all levels of club football. I've had to watch some rubbish games over the last few years. There's no issue when the other team leaves gaps at the back and we can counter attack at pace. When the other side sets up defensively it becomes incredibly tedious to watch. These tactical battles are sucking the life out of the game. It's a possession game nowadays and many games are virtually non contact because players avoid contact and risk at all costs.

Not sure what club you are from Lenny. But I'm assuming its Magherafelt by the talk of negative tactics and Final loss?

I mean look Magherafelt are a big club, they probably could go another way if they wanted - I played against that team about 2 or 3 years ago in a friendly, they have damn good players. I was more thinking the smaller clubs, with the smaller picks when I meant about giving them a blue print for success and giving them a way to compete.

I don't agree with this type of tactic being brought into youth games, maybe naive of me, but at that age - send them out to win, sure. But if they lose, it's not the be all and end all. The key is to keep them happy and into the game. Come minor and up, it's a bit more serious, tactics are part of the learning process when you get to the proper age. I've seen a few u14 and u16 games myself over the past years....two and three sweepers. Absolutely brutal.

I agree with Angelo, it's not his fault if lazy managers basically try and clone his tactics poorly and send men out to basically get behind the ball when we don't have it. Any eejit can make a living off clubs doing that (many do!). It's more the complete turn around in those players that McGuinness lit the fire under to get them to buy completely into what they were going to be about. It was an outstanding feat.

Jim and Harte will be remembered in 10/15 years time as the men who nearly destroyed football with their defensive crap. It's taken a great, skilful, resilient Dublin side to restore our faith in the beautiful game. Hopefully Kerry will return to their more attacking flair game and will provide with another great rivalry. I do think Tyrone will be a lot more attacking without Harte and they have some very good forwards also.

Is this sarcasm?

I think what McGuinness did was nothing short of remarkable. He turned a bunch of party boys into champions in the space of two years.

I'm from Tyrone, have to agree. Like Paddy Heaney said in the documentary Jimmys Winning Matches, to paraphrase it was  the most remarkable turn around he's seen in sports.

Donegal were a mess before, I think with the Kevin Cassidy Laochra Gael show recently it brought it back up again but what McGuinness did (with damn good players....) was absolutely unbelievable.

Someone pointed out McGuiness is a master of self promotion, that is also true. It's always the players take the pitch...

I think McGuinness changed the game for the good - Of course the tactics thing, look, you have to cut your cloth accordingly. I accept some cant' stand it, I suppose being from the North, McGuinness didn't do anything Harte or Kernan didn't do. Tactics evolve...but they are basically someone else's ideas with your own twist.

But what he did was give even the smallest clubs belief, if they got this system right....they could do great things. And we've seen examples over the past ten years or so, club teams buying into this way of playing and giving it a hell of a year. Isn't that what the GAA is about?

Barrett, another warrior gone for Mayo. Very 'underrated' player. Most people didn't really rank him until 2017ish I suppose.

Great player.

https://www.irishnews.com/sport/gaafootball/2021/01/15/news/10-years-on-the-jim-mcguinness-legacy-2187404/

Thoughts? (If you can't open try "incognito mode"

Great article by Cahair O'Kane

[I didn't see that on the news or in any of the papers.]

I see Sweden have gone past 10,000 deaths due to Covid and their PM is facing calls to resign.

Can anyone confirm if it's true that 50% of patients in hospital with Covid got it in hospital. I didn't see that on the news or in any of the papers.

Hopefully with the Modena vaccine approved the rate of vaccinations can speed up here and around Europe. It's interesting that Germany have sourced their own supply of vaccines outside of the EU allocation to speed up the process of vaccinating everyone. When Paul Reid of the HSE was asked on Newstalk this morning wold Ireland source their own supply like he wouldn't be drawn on the idea but didn't sound like it was something Ireland would be doing.

There is a very good reason for that. Can't very well be saving the NHS/Health Service if the media are reporting that.

No idea if it's true, anecdotally, it would appear there is some truth but you'll never hear from any media source.

LumiraDx SARS-CoV-2 Ag test

97.6% positive accuracy / 96.6% negative accuracy.

Been trialled apparently by Belfast Trust (1 of 5 sites).

If this is accurate, it is massive.

Is that the rapid testing?

12 minute test yes.

Robin Swann mentioned it yesterday in his briefing, that's where I heard/read.

LumiraDx SARS-CoV-2 Ag test

97.6% positive accuracy / 96.6% negative accuracy.

Been trialled apparently by Belfast Trust (1 of 5 sites).

If this is accurate, it is massive.

I take it he's gone from Bryansford?