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Dublin have maybe 2 lads to come back in that will arguably strengthen the team. They may start 5 different lads in championship but some would be no stronger than what played yesterday. The likes of Gough and McCrabbe would improve the team. With others its much of a muchness (assuming Rory O'Carroll won't be playing hurling again this year, and that David Tracey won't get back to near full-fitness). I think it says it all when they're still springing Liam Ryan from the bench. The panel really is limited enough.

I'm excluding Ryan O'Dwyer from that as I've not made my mind up on him. He looks decent, but his reputation for a strong ball-winner seems misplaced. He looked fairly tame under the high ball against Galway, though had a lot of other useful looking attributes.

Rollicking good game in the Sportsfield today, I've posed something masquerading as a match report here

that was a right good game. Dublin just need to learn how to defend now (which is the easiest thing in the world according to Tommy Lyons). It was a strange one though. Dublin's lineout ended up fairly unorthodox looking with 2 corner backs, neither of whom are corner backs (Kelly and Lambert), and as much confusion elsewhere as there. In midfield Durkin still looks not to be up to it at this level, but the forwards division is the one promising most. There was a lot of fairly slick link-up play leading to scores that the mighty Kilkenny would have been proud of. The disappearing act in the second half and the inability to cope with the high ball in around the square must be the 2 greatest causes for concern.

Dublin were probably near enough full-strength. Waterford not even close. Both sides will be happy enough with the outcome I'd imagine. Looking forward to seeing how Foley shapes up over the coming month. He looks like he has the ability to be the leader of that team for some years to come (no pressure or anything).

Galway-Wexford was awful tripe. Some of the basic errors Wexford were making have to be down to their training. Its not acceptable at that level (or many levels below) to be committing the mistakes they made. And if there aren't 2 better wing-backs in Wexford than the 2 they started yesterday then I think they may give it up altogether.

Not a whole lot to be read into the big curtain-raiser on saturday night either - other than that hurling is not a game to be played under lights. Its hard enough to play one half of a match facing the sun, let alone to be playing a full game facing 6 of them. The crowd was poor, the fare, while committed, wasn't really up to the standards expected of these 2 sides. And Tipperary's tactics were so elaborate that not even the Tipperary played seemed to understand them.

All in all a very mediocre weekend of hurling.

Kilkenny heading to Tipp to make up the numbers. Will be ate alive by tipp's second-string

Dublin should be good to bait waterford on the back of a good win against galway. Dublin are at their best this time of year (last year being the exception to that assertion)

not sure what course hes doing but I wouldn't have thought it too unusual. PJ Ryan of Kilkenny was a blocklayer. He went back to college because he couldn't get any work. He did 2 years in Carlow doing some sports management course or other, and played Ryan cup while there.

I reckon we'll see more and more of this in the years ahead.

Kelly worked in the bank in Kilkenny as far as I know. Not sure if he still is or not, or what hes doing in college now.

Is the Fitz cup round robin these days?

I saw some results during the week last week but it didn't seem like every team was playing. I'm particularly interested to see how my own alma-mater, DCU fare in their first year back in the competition since my own days in the college.

The forwards certainly have a better look about them with those 3 lads there. Ryan has come on a tonne since last year. The class he had back in the day is starting to show through again.

Galway were very disappointing. Their forwards didn't look that interested and most of their scoring was done out the field. But it was still a strong enough lineup.

The worry still with Dublin is that they were a good bit better than Galway on saturday (even when down to 14 men) but still only won by a point. They should have won by 5/6 points really, they were that dominant. Keaney was very average on the frees (missed as many as he scored I reckon) and they conceded a very soft goal.

O'Dwyer's goal was a thing of beauty though, and Dublin should/could have had a soft goal of their own before that.

good signs for january. With Kilkenny starting to reintroduce some of their first choice players you'd imagine they'll be favoured to win. Still though, I'm looking forward to that final in a big way.

I took a training session for a hurling team in the far mid-west a couple of years ago. 90% of the lads there were yanks. Some of Irish lineage, others ice-hockey players needing something to do in the summer, more responding to a local new station item that had been on the telly the week before.

It was an eye-opener for sure. They'd go through a wall for you. They couldn't hit the ball to save their lives but by jaysus they were a determined shower. They could teach the lazy shower of shites up in my club a thing or 2 about effort.

Don't know if any of them are in the army though. Probably  not.

Edit: As regards their hurls - the Irish lads bring a bundle over with them everytime they return home from a visit here. And one of the Irish-descended lads tried making his own. Shapely it was too but the grain was all over the shop.

The policies of the US government have nothing to do with these lads playing hurling.

ha ha.

this thread is hilarious!

any idea what Cody or Sheedy make of all of this then? Or Daithi Regan for that matter?

BRING BACK THE BAN!!

I was trying to wind up a few Corkmen (even though I believe everything I said).

they're wise to me. Can't wind up a Corkman that aisy anymore, sadly.

Ryall is a true hurling hero in my view. A man with limited enough ability, but more than compensated for this with his fearlessness and his drive. Attributes that Brian Cody rates very highly in any player.

My favourite memory of Ryall is from an obscure enough game. On easter sunday 2002, Tipp and Kilkenny played in a game, the winners of which got a free holiday to Spain (Kilkenny won but never got the time to go on the holiday as far as I know). Anyway, Ryall lined out at midfield, facing a former clubmate, none other than the great Denis Byrne. To say he tore strips off him would be an understatement. It was a great performance by Ryall, and spurred Kilkenny on to beat Tipp comfortably.

Ryall retired a few years back, stating problems with his ankles that left him in a lot of pain after intense games and training. Cody talked him into staying on, a decision that was vindicated by Ryall's performance against Cork in the all-Ireland semi-final this year. A lot of us though he'd get the nod for the all-Ireland final, and in hindsight, its a shame that didn't happen.

Best of luck to him.

I'm surprised they went and did this. Now the wider world will find out that Christy Ring was grand in his day but by today's standards was probably no better than average. Savage wrists, a bullet of a shot, a quare good sideline, but could he run? He'd probably make center-back on the Cork Intermediates.

just got this from my club

A Chara,

We are writing to advise you that Servasport Ltd., has informed the GAA that there has been unauthorised access to the GAA membership database.
Servasport  Ltd., a Belfast based company that develops and maintains the GAA membership database, has issued an unreserved apology to the GAA and to our members.



The GAA became aware of the data breach when it was informed on the 19th November 2010 that disks containing the database had been received by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner and the GPA, who immediately passed the disk to the GAA. The Information Commissioners Office in Belfast also received a disk.



An investigation is being carried out by the Police Service of Northern Ireland and in order to facilitate this investigation the GAA has been unable to inform members until today.
The database contains names and addresses of 501,786 members.

In relation to these members the database holds:



·         288,511 dates of birth

·         107,212 mobile numbers

·         63,695 landline numbers

·         30,171 email addresses

In the case of 544 members, the database contains a reference to a medical condition and the GAA is writing directly to each of these members setting out the information recorded about them.

167,157 of the members on the database are under 18 years of age. It is GAA policy that mobile phone or email details of persons under 18 years of age should not be stored on any database. The policy states that any such communication should be via the mobile phone or email address of their parent or guardian.No other GAA IT system is affected by this incident. The database does not contain financial or any other information.

This matter is being taken very seriously by the GAA:

·         The GAA is working closely with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, the Information Commissioners Office and the Police Service of Northern Ireland

·         Deloitte has been engaged to undertake an independent review of Servasport  and other suppliers of IT to the GAA

·         All clubs have been sent this email

·         The GAA has set up an Information Line

Any member or any parent/guardian with any questions, or who wishes to establish whether data relating to them has been affected by this incident, should contact the Information Line on Lo Call Number : 1890 987 807 or 0800 0114787 (from Six Counties) 8am to 8pm daily. 



The compilation of the GAA database is the result of enormous effort by our volunteers across the country. The GAA greatly regrets that this incident has occurred. We would ask for your help by informing your members of the contents of this email.
Páraic Ó Dufaigh

Ard Stiúrthóir-
GAA Communications Department
Guthán 1 / Tel 1: +353 (0) 1 836 3222
Faics / Fax: +353 (0) 1 836 8420
http://www.gaa.ie

GAA, Páirc an Chrócaigh, Baile Átha Cliath 3  /  GAA, Croke Park, Dublin 3

The GPA should follow the lead of the students and rally all the hurlers from weaker counties and march on Leinster house.

I'd like to see the riot squad take on the Cavan hurlers!

The Kilkenny footballers should go and show their support too

saturday week. I'm sure TG4 will cover it live.

thank god for tg4!