Messages

79 positive up north today.  That is some drop although there is some note on the stats about pillar 2 tests and I don't pretend to understand what that is so maybe more to come. However this last 2 days there has been a big drop of which is positive.

Likely to be a reporting delay. And numbers are always much lower on Mondays. Wouldn't read too much into these numbers.

There is a curious phenomena that I've noticed more in recent times. Especially in the US, but not only in the US.
- People on the far right are very quick to paint everyone on the left as being on the far left.
- People on the far left are very quick to paint everyone on the right as being on the far right.

Association fallacy.

It's difficult to deliver zingers to moderate, nuanced arguments, especially within twitter's 280 character limit.

Much easier to pretend that everyone represents the most extreme, and most easily refuted, version of their arguments and to plan your attacks from that perspective.

Not your blog, mate.

But seriously, couldn't agree more with #11. The forward mark is an abomination.

No effort to address the substance of the issue. Just some grammatical pedantry. I suppose some arguments just can't be sustained.

Does it matter if it's a direct quote or a summation or a paraphrase? The argument is the same.

Answer this: why do Dubs get so energised talking up their risk of defeat? Why is this especially prevalent following one of their routine 20+ point victories?

It's almost as if there's some concerted effort to distract from the f**king massive elephant in the room.

To revel in it too much would let the cat out of the bag. Never admit just how good you are. Just how much ahead of the field you are. How pointless the chase has become. I suppose that might sucker enough into thinking the whole thing is still a real competition.

Dublin have had some amazing matches with Mayo and Kerry over the last 5/6 years. Some of the greatest games there's ever been. I've no idea why Meath and Kildare are not as good as Mayo and Kerry.

The reason is that Dublin has smothered the Leinster Champonship for 15 years now.  15 years! The one title Meath won in 2010 they could not even enjoy.

Kildare and Meath teams are constantly chopping and changing squads to try to get the right formula. Consistency is huge when building a team. You can also image many good players not committing. Why would they?

Exactly. Players won't commit. Been happening all across Leinster for years now. Lads chuck it in before they should be peaking.

Players will always commit to a set up which they think is serious

Mayo never have problems getting players to commit, there is a fierce hunger to win in the county and that's reflected in the senior set up they have, that's their culture

Ironically it's all those All-Ireland final defeats that have probably done more than anything to foster that culture and turn them into a pure, driven football county, every child in Mayo grows up dreaming of finally winning the All-Ireland for Mayo, they believe its achievable

Meath, Down, Armagh, Derry, Cork and Galway got their All-Irelands and fell off the map, perhaps because those All-Irelands sated the whole culture in the counties and made them rest on their laurels

I'd say if Jim Gavin or Malachy O'Rourke or Mickey Harte took over Meath, they wouldn't have too many problems getting players to commit

Davy Fitzgerald had no problems getting Wexford hurlers to commit

When Mick O'Dwyer took over Kildare, he energised the whole county

Jim McGuinness totally changed the culture in Donegal

More patronising shite. Meath, Down, Armagh, Derry, Cork and Galway just don't try hard enough. If only they wanted it as much as the Dubs! f**k me.

As for the other stuff - Harte often had his struggles to get players to commit to his own county.

Wexford hurlers are irrelevant. There is no monster in hurling.

O'Dwyer was in Kildare when the Dubs were mortal.

McGuinness got in with Donegal just in time. Before the machine was cranked to full power.

This post is exactly the type of subterfuge you usually go to town on in other topics.

would Dublin beat an all ulster team.

Would this Dublin team easily beat the Tyrone team with Canavan, Stephen O'Neill, Dooher, McGuigan, Mulligan? That team had a great defence too.

I'm not putting down Tyrone because over the last 5-6 years they've been in and around the best team in Ulster, but they would hardly get within 5 or 6 points of that other Tyrone team. 

Leinster is boring. There's nobody putting it up to us.  Cakewalk. Part of it is certainly because this is the best Dublin team ever. But also part of it is because the current Meath and Kildare teams are nowhere near the best ever Meath and Kildare teams. Nowhere near.

Dublin have had some amazing matches with Mayo and Kerry over the last 5/6 years. Some of the greatest games there's ever been. I've no idea why Meath and Kildare are not as good as Mayo and Kerry.

But it's not just in recent years that the rest of Leinster has been cack.  We were waltzing through Leinster under Pillar and Gilroy and then getting whipped when we faced our first real challenge by the likes of Tyrone and Kerry.

It's been a freak that Dublin won the 5 in a row. We've certainly haven't been the best team in every game. The double OG game was absolutely freak luck that saved us. Mayo weren't slightly the better team, they were comfortably the better team on the day. They also most probably had us beaten the year Donie Vaughan decided to even up the numbers by doing something rather silly. 
Last year Kerry were the better team in the final. David Moran must still be kicking himself that after being the best player on the pitch he made an horrendous mistake at the end that helped Dublin sneak the draw. An easy ball to Tommy Walsh in acres of space with only Cluxton near him. Instead he dawdled and allowed 2 tacklers to dispossess him. And the rest is history.

I doubt the whiners would be as loud if we'd won 2 or 3 of the last 5. Dublin 3 Mayo 1 Kerry 1 (or even Dublin 2 Mayo 2 Kerry 1!) would be a fairer reflection of the the last 5 years than the 5-0-0 scorecard that resulted.

Full house!!

'Meath and Kildare should just try harder.'

'Sure, Mayo nearly beat us that one time.'

'Best ever Dublin 'team'. Once in a lifetime players - all 25 or 30 of them over the last decade.'

I see the line that thing wouldn't be as smooth once Gavin left has been dropped. At least that's something.

It never ceases to amaze just how oblivious Dubs are to the feelings of hopelessness throughout the country. It's so obvious to the rest of us that a well resourced, well organised Dublin is not compatible with a competitive intercounty scene. We can have one or we can have the other, but never both.

It would be stupid to suggest doing anything to jeopardise the progress the GAA has made in Dublin, so the resourcing and organisation will continue. But we need something seismic to rescue the intercounty scene. Splits or amalgamations seem the magnitude of action required. It's going to be painful one way or the other.

Are Dublin fans not bored waltzing through Leinster so easily?

Yes it's probably great your team is winning, but no matches are in any way competitive. No close games, no hard hitting, no end to end, edge of your seat stuff. You need games to get the excitement going, get the blood pumping

The All Ireland is the same way bar the odd close battle every 3/4 years.

Yes, Dublin are great at what they do, but I am so bored watching any of their matches. There's no point to it anymore.

The majority of Dublin fans just enjoy getting the chance to watch the greatest ever team play. Some of these players will go down as all time greats.

"the greatest ever team" is fine if its the same 15- 20 lads. The team that started today had 6 starters from the team that started the 2015 AI final. Id say if you started with the 2011 team you've probably already got close to 15 all time greats. I don't think anyone has issue with the players - they're class, but when the conveyor belt churns out 2-3 all-timers every year how can any team compete?

This is the difference between modern Dublin and the great teams of the past.

Those great teams had shelf lives. They were mortal. Their players got old, pissed off into the sunset, and other counties had their turn at winning things. There was a natural cycle.

Now Dublin are immortal. They continually regenerate, and every incarnation just reaches further ahead of the pack. There is no hope that time and old age will come to the rescue of the rest of the country.

This is an unprecedented crisis in the history of the GAA. Belief has evaporated in all but a couple of counties. The All Ireland championship is functionally dead as a competition.

We can't keep our heads in the sand with delusional arguments that it would all be fine if only everyone else just 'tried harder'. It's long past time for a grown up discussion about what happens next. There will be no coming back from this if real solutions are not pursued, and very soon.

[The U21 players might make a difference]

At least Ireland didn't lose, but they'll only be 3rd seeds for the world cup draw. Needed to win to get drawn as second seeds.

Does anybody know any genealogy experts with time on their hands during lockdown that could look up family histories for strikers playing in the UK and find an Irish granny or grandad. It's looking like the only way might find someone to play for us who can score a goal.

You profoundly don't get what is going on, do you?

Ireland drew 0-0 as far as I can tell it's been about 10 and 1/2 hours since Ireland scored a goal.

This is the same Irish side that scored 3 goals over 2 games in the last campaign against Gibraltar. One of them was an OG and another came in injury time at the end of the game.

Shane Duffy is Ireland's only attacking threat from set pieces as we are lacking creativity in midfield and quality strikers in the forward line.

Now if I'm mistaken in any of those points please enlighten me. Clearly you've seen something (except goals) over the last year that I didn't

If you think the FAI and Kennys response to a lack of form strikers is to go down the granny route you are willfully deluding yourself

That's your big profund enlightenment? Ah lad come on. I was expecting some yoda like tactical analysis of what I was profoundly missing. All I get is a childish you don't know what you're on about

I don't?

Kenny is a new broom, for right or wrong. Personally I don't see success with him, but you are on a different planet if you think he is going to not wait and see with the batch of U21 talent bubbling under

That's a long way from being profoundly wrong. If anything it's a vindication for my points so thanks for admitting that.

I want Kenny to succeed, but it's the weakest pool of players he has to to work with since the 1980s. Doherty, Egan and Coleman are the only established premier league players playing regularly every week and they are all defenders. Unfortunately Doherty & Coleman play in the same position. I refuse to include Jeff Hendrick as he offers nothing in an Ireland jersey. He should be a leader of the team with his experience but instead you only notice him on the pitch when he makes a mistake.

The U21 players might make a difference, but by the time they gain enough experience Kenny will probably have been sacked.

Beat by Iceland and struggled to beat Luxembourg

To be fair, that U21 team was gutted towards the end of the qualifying campaign. Had all players been allowed to remain at U21 level they almost certainly would have qualified for the finals, and would have gone down as the most successful Irish side ever at that grade. There is significant potential to come through from this age group, but there are a lot of pitfalls between potential and delivery.

[hammerings by Wales]

Im not wanting mccarthy back im just pointing out on the shit scale we seem to be on it was less shit with mccarthy than it is now. Kenny needed a good start. He didnt get it and lets all be honest did anyone actually predict it would be this bad. I doubt it. Maybe its all a master plan to get relegated to make qualifications for 2024 through a play off easier😅

By what possible critera was it better under McCarthy?

Er results the thing that actual matters as oppossed to pass completion % in your own half or whatever other stats are floating around in kennys favour

What results? He beat Gibraltar and Georgia - just. Ok, there were draws against Denmark and Switzerland but hammerings by Wales and Switzerland

That was under O'Neill, around the time his long ball shite was falling apart.

McCarthy tightened things up a bit, but there was no attacking threat under his leadership. 3 goals in 3 hours football against Gibraltar. 1 goal (a freekick) in two games against Georgia. A couple of respectable draws in the group, but draws get you no where in international football. You're not looking a scrape together a few points to stave off relegation - you need wins to qualify for tournaments. McCarthy's football was never going to deliver that.

Whatever the tactics they need changing from the last 7 matches. No excuses not to be scoring and getting a result against very average Bulgaria tomorrow.

Maybe you can explain to me why we should be so superior to Bulgaria tomorrow. We are playing a B team due all sorts of stuff yet you expect a result, based on what exactly? We dont have Robbie Keane or Quinn or Roy Keane etc anymore. We have what we have. Yes, with a full team we should be beating Bulgaria. I think we will do well to beat them tomorrow but I hope Stephen Kenny gets a break that he is due cos there are some amount of plastic paddys and coach potato English soccer team fans out there calling for his head that know absolutely nothing about the game.

Because the apparent dinosaur McCarthy sent out his second string against Bulgaria and beat them 3-0. Of course under Kenny we will be hoping for 0-0 as a best case scenario

This result has been brought up a couple of time in defence of McCarthy's record, so i did a quick dig about it. Some stuff discovered:

Bulgaria were on their second of three managers in 2019. This guy lasted four months.
Their goalie on the night was a 37 year old playing in his only and only international.
They handed out four more debuts in the fixture, including one to a 33 year old striker who, unsurprisingly, hasn't reappeared.
Only four men from that night are in their current squad.

Ireland had a second string out too. It was essentially an A international. Boys pulled from anywhere and everywhere (including the League of Ireland) to fulfil the fixture. Only the very most shallow of analyses would put this result forward as evidence of anything.

Appropriately enough, this auspicious friendly triumph was followed by a goalless draw with Georgia and a 2-0 defeat to Switzerland - the results that really screwed our attempts to qualify for the Euros.

[I used to love watching Ireland games,]

I used to love watching Ireland games, this week I watched the first 20 mins of the England game and actually watched none of last nights game. up to the end of MONs time id have never missed a game. the 1 thing I want out of an Ireland team is to be competitive, we aren't at all. Stephen Kenny wants to play a brand of football that he doesn't have the players for, its a cliche saying but you play the hand you're dealt. get a system in place and stick to it. for all his faults that's what Mick McCarthy done at every team he was at, if he had limited players he built the founds on hard work and dogged defending, get the ball into the opposition half then try work off knock Downs 2nd balls. not the prettiest but effective enough. I think Kenny will get the chance of qualification although in my opinion he's not the man, if he gets us to the WC then il gladly eat humble pie because well be in a major tournament. Throwing it out there, the next Ireland manager should be Sam Allardyce, gets a tune out of every squad he goes into with limited players. he's a perfect fit for our job I think

What gruesome form of self-flagellation is this?

I dont like watching Kennys teams lose trying to play football so lets get big sam in to do some route one football. If that is your cup of tea go and watch some 2nd Tier league of Ireland maybe?

Theres a myth about the whole 'route one' if your players aren't great get the ball into a position in the pitch where if/when they lose it the team is not exposed. if you play out from the back short kick outs etc then you are inviting pressure, irelands players aren't good enough on the ball to draw teams out and play through them and quite often give the ball away so the other team is on us but instead of them having to build from inside their own half they are already in ours.

get the ball forward early hitting the space and or centre forward and work from there. the best at doing it is probably Burnley, they are great at it, getting the ball quickly doesn't mean playing for territory it means getting the ball into an area where you can do damage and hurt the opposition, with all due respect to our players they are never gonna hurt anyone by keeping the ball round the back/midfield.

Burnley have Chris Wood and Ashley Barnes to hold the ball up for them. Who have we got to play this role?

For the slow learners - there's a reason the long ball football stopped working over the last three or four years: we don't have the players for it!

Walters retired, Long got old, McGoldrick tried for a bit - but it was a dying philosophy long before Kenny took over.

[Keith Duffy]

Who do those pining for the long ball days see playing centre forward in this set-up?

Luton Town journeyman James Collins and his five caps?
5 foot 7 Sean Maguire with his one international goal?
18 year old Troy Parrot on the back of a two month lay-off?
What age is Niall Quinn? Could probably still lump balls up at his big head. Allardyce would know how to make that work.

Perhaps it seems that we 'don't have the players' to play that sort of shite either now.

As Keith Duffy scores most of Ireland's goals (usually from headers) anyway, throw him up front.

Is there a punchline to this? Or is that the joke, they have the same surname? I mean, you could at least try to crowbar in a Boyzone pun or something. 2/10.

It's actually getting to be quite impressive how Angelo can be bothered with all these rows on different threads on an internet forum. He is going to need to give a man a start or employ a secretary to keep up with it all. Serious effort.

It looks that way at first.

Then you realise that every post on a topic is just a clone of the previous one - Big Pharma! Big Pharma! Big Pharma!

Sometimes it seems like a standard trolling exercise, other times you'd worry about him.

Who do those pining for the long ball days see playing centre forward in this set-up?

Luton Town journeyman James Collins and his five caps?
5 foot 7 Sean Maguire with his one international goal?
18 year old Troy Parrot on the back of a two month lay-off?
What age is Niall Quinn? Could probably still lump balls up at his big head. Allardyce would know how to make that work.

Perhaps it seems that we 'don't have the players' to play that sort of shite either now.