I picked up the the Sunday Times on the train yesterday, very interesting articles on it and it got me thinking about GAA journalism.
What's the best weekend newspaper to buy for GAA?
Best paper to buy on a Monday for match reviews?
Examiner?
Irish Times?
Indo is pretty poor fare I find, with serious space lost with O Rourke and Paidí, never mind some stupid make-believe diary. Really loved the Tribune when it was still on the go, well-written articles, that felt like you were getting an insiders view.
Best journalists:
Keith Duggan
Malachy Clerkin
Enda McEvoy
Denis Walsh
Christy O Connor
Duggan is obv in the Times, but where do you find the rest of them?
I find the Irish Star very good. I buy it for the sport............ and don't read 3/4s of the paper!
I particualrly like to read Ger Loughnane after a hurling weekend. The man commands so much respect that I find myself reading his article in his unique Clare accent. The paper has about 20 pages of GAA cover age and one thing about it, unlike the Irish News that it covers GAA from north to south and east to west. The Irish News is very partionist and gives the vast majority of its coverage to the teams from the 6 counties. I do like to read Paddy Heaney on a tuesday in the paper though.
The Irish Star is very colourful with plenty of pics it also breaks down all the big games into match changing decisions at the column of their main report of the game. The Irish News just does this for Ulster games.
Stopped buying papers, especially if i've been to a game or seen it on the TV. They just end up regurgitating events with no insight or analysis.
From a preview point of view, i find the lowest of the low the Sunday World. Terrible muck. Spillane grabs a controversial theme and adds salt to it. Punch and Judy stuff. Roy Curtis throws his lot in, if the Pale (Dublin) or just beyond (Kildare and Meath) are involved or going well. And then there is ranting old fart Con Houlihan with his down memory lane stuff.
Christy O'Connor and Denis Walsh are in the Sunday Times, Keith Duggan and Malachy Clerkin are in the Times, Kieran Shannon in the Examiner is very good as well.
I know one thing, the standard of analysis by ex-players is generally awful. Ray Silke on the Examiner site this morning asserting that Kildare haven't made the last four under McGeeney.
Like, if a lad doesn't know who the All-Ireland semi-finalists were two seasons ago, how does he get this job in the first place?
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
Enda has a colums in
The Examiner on Saturdays, but only on the Saturdays when there is a big hurling match on that weekend.
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 12:46:42 PM
Best journalists:
Keith Duggan
Malachy Clerkin
Enda McEvoy
Denis Walsh
Christy O Connor
Duggan is obv in the Times, but where do you find the rest of them?
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 02:52:24 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
He did himself no favours with those tweets. Well out of order. Glad to see he had the good sense to delete them in the meantime.
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:03:00 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 02:52:24 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
He did himself no favours with those tweets. Well out of order. Glad to see he had the good sense to delete them in the meantime.
Yea he's an emotional guy when it comes to Kildare football and I admire him for standing up for his opinion on the Kildare Forum but he's not the most objective when it comes to Kildare or Dublin football (very anti-Dublin), very subjective in his writing. He actually has an account on this forum too.
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:09:33 PM
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:03:00 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 02:52:24 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
He did himself no favours with those tweets. Well out of order. Glad to see he had the good sense to delete them in the meantime.
Yea he's an emotional guy when it comes to Kildare football and I admire him for standing up for his opinion on the Kildare Forum but he's not the most objective when it comes to Kildare or Dublin football (very anti-Dublin), very subjective in his writing. He actually has an account on this forum too.
I seen his post on the Kildare forum last year about joining a Dublin club and then said "don't fancy walking into a dressing room with 40 locals who've known each other since they were robbing houses together at 7" - I enjoy his weekly power rankings though.
Quote from: Croí na hÉireann on July 02, 2012, 02:06:34 PM
Christy O'Connor and Denis Walsh are in the Sunday Times, Keith Duggan and Malachy Clerkin are in the Times, Kieran Shannon in the Examiner is very good as well.
Shannon and Walsh are the main drivers of the Cork PR machine.
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 12:46:42 PM
I picked up the the Sunday Times on the train yesterday, very interesting articles on it and it got me thinking about GAA journalism.
What's the best weekend newspaper to buy for GAA?
Best paper to buy on a Monday for match reviews?
Examiner?
Irish Times?
Indo is pretty poor fare I find, with serious space lost with O Rourke and Paidí Paidi couldn't write his own name let alone a column, so that can be ignored, but O'Rourke's column is always wel written and common sense IMO, never mind some stupid make-believe diary. Really loved the Tribune when it was still on the go, well-written articles, that felt like you were getting an insiders view.
Best journalists:
Keith Duggan
Malachy Clerkin
Enda McEvoy
Denis Walsh
Christy O Connor
Duggan is obv in the Times, but where do you find the rest of them?
Apart from the red comment above, would just add that I think the standard of GAA journalism is appalling with only Kieran Shannon and a few others rising above the muck-standard stuff you get from Breheny, Roy Curtis and a few other buffoons.
I get the Examiner on Monday as it has a really good GAA section and covers local games in Kerry/Cork aswell, but apart from that would rarely bother with most "articles".
The example someone gave above of Ray Silke is a good one..how the hell does he have a job as an "analyst"? Clueless. Eugene McGee (current chairman of the Development committee or whatever it's called) was on the radio before the Kerry v Armagh game in 2006 saying that Kerry hadn't beaten an Ulster team in the c/ship in 20 years...Martin McHugh claimed yesterday that Diarmuid Connolly is in "the top 3 forwards in the country" (also stated that Derek Savage was better than Mauric Fitz a few years back)...
Breheny was chairman of the Allstar committee that picked Canavan ahead of Brian Mcguigan in 2005, and wrote an article attempting to justify it...invalidates anything he ever says in my opinion....I could go on.
You'd wonder sometimes whether these "experts" actually watch games at all!
Like him or loath him...Liam Hayes was good. Darragh Ó Sé's making a name for himself in the Times during the week.
Quote from: Ohtoohtobe on July 02, 2012, 02:09:20 PM
I know one thing, the standard of analysis by ex-players is generally awful. Ray Silke on the Examiner site this morning asserting that Kildare haven't made the last four under McGeeney.
Like, if a lad doesn't know who the All-Ireland semi-finalists were two seasons ago, how does he get this job in the first place?
Agree, he hasn't a clue as a pundit/hack. I thought that for a long time. He's like a young Eugene McGee. Just a stream of nonsensical and nonfactual stuff which is also strangely compelling.
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 03:25:14 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:09:33 PM
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:03:00 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 02:52:24 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
He did himself no favours with those tweets. Well out of order. Glad to see he had the good sense to delete them in the meantime.
Yea he's an emotional guy when it comes to Kildare football and I admire him for standing up for his opinion on the Kildare Forum but he's not the most objective when it comes to Kildare or Dublin football (very anti-Dublin), very subjective in his writing. He actually has an account on this forum too.
I seen his post on the Kildare forum last year about joining a Dublin club and then said "don't fancy walking into a dressing room with 40 locals who've known each other since they were robbing houses together at 7" - I enjoy his weekly power rankings though.
Ironic, he's from Athy...
I really like his work on the game as a whole just think he was a major catalyst in the "Kildare are a top 4 team", which nobody who knows Kildare football should have put us. That creates it's own pressures, jesus just look at the fallout from the SJ saga, the Germans might have a word for it "Schadenfreude" but we have a whole culture devoted towards it.
Shannon is a good writer, people think he's influenced too much by American football, but he's usually very insightful.
Heaney is a good read on a Tuesday also, although he's the only decent writer in the Irish News, apart from O'Connor on a Thursay.
You'd nearly think yer man eamonn o hara is trying to write the next Illad or Odyessy. He tries to turn his pieces into works of art, but leaves me personally having to read each line a few times to understand what he means.
Quote from: Premier Emperor on July 02, 2012, 03:29:46 PM
Quote from: Croí na hÉireann on July 02, 2012, 02:06:34 PM
Christy O'Connor and Denis Walsh are in the Sunday Times, Keith Duggan and Malachy Clerkin are in the Times, Kieran Shannon in the Examiner is very good as well.
Shannon and Walsh are the main drivers of the Cork PR machine.
Shannon is very close to the Cork hurlers, he wrote Brian Corcoran's biography. He's also a sports psychologist which gives a great insight into these top athletes minds and comes across in his writing.
Quote from: Ciarrai_thuaidh on July 02, 2012, 03:31:17 PM
Martin McHugh claimed yesterday that Diarmuid Connolly is in "the top 3 forwards in the country" (also stated that Derek Savage was better than Mauric Fitz a few years back)...
That has made my day :D :D
The man is a walking talking c*ck.
The Examiner has some good people. John Fogarty knows his game. As much as it pains me to say, even Dick Clerkin (when not on a pitch) comes across as a perceptive and intelligent head. I enjoy McKenna too. He seems like a mad b*stard which is fine by me. Duggan at the times is about the best about though.
Quote from: sheamy on July 02, 2012, 03:40:36 PM
Quote from: Ciarrai_thuaidh on July 02, 2012, 03:31:17 PM
Martin McHugh claimed yesterday that Diarmuid Connolly is in "the top 3 forwards in the country" (also stated that Derek Savage was better than Mauric Fitz a few years back)...
That has made my day :D :D
The man is a walking talking c*ck.
The Examiner has some good people. John Fogarty knows his game. As much as it pains me to say, even Dick Clerkin (when not on a pitch) comes across as a perceptive and intelligent head. I enjoy McKenna too. He seems like a mad b*stard which is fine by me. Duggan at the times is about the best about though.
Overall I'd rate the Examiner sport as the best around at the moment with an honorable mention for Clerkin in the Times.
Quote from: 5 Sams on July 02, 2012, 03:32:07 PM
Like him or loath him...Liam Hayes was good. Darragh Ó Sé's making a name for himself in the Times during the week.
Ah c'mon 5 Sams..Hayes was just a WUM...still is. See him calling Kevin McMenamon useless before the Dublin v Wexford game, then giving him MOM!
I am biased but I think Darragh's articles are very good..gives a real insight aswell, not just the usual guff.
Also forgot the Gaelic life lads, which can be a very good read to be fair..very Ulster-centric obviously, but still good.
Quote from: Ohtoohtobe on July 02, 2012, 02:09:20 PM
I know one thing, the standard of analysis by ex-players is generally awful. Ray Silke on the Examiner site this morning asserting that Kildare haven't made the last four under McGeeney.
Like, if a lad doesn't know who the All-Ireland semi-finalists were two seasons ago, how does he get this job in the first place?
Silke is a dose on paper and on telly
Shocked to see Roy Curtis even mentioned in a thread about journalism.
Darragh O Sé's column on the IT is quite a good read, although I heard it's pretty much written by Billy Keane, don't know how true that is...
Christy O'Connor is a wee lying weasel...
that is all for today.
Has there every been a worse player to lift the Sam Maguire than Ray Silke?
Quote from: Ciarrai_thuaidh on July 02, 2012, 03:43:36 PM
Quote from: 5 Sams on July 02, 2012, 03:32:07 PM
Like him or loath him...Liam Hayes was good. Darragh Ó Sé's making a name for himself in the Times during the week.
Ah c'mon 5 Sams..Hayes was just a WUM...still is. See him calling Kevin McMenamon useless before the Dublin v Wexford game, then giving him MOM!
I am biased but I think Darragh's articles are very good..gives a real insight aswell, not just the usual guff.
Also forgot the Gaelic life lads, which can be a very good read to be fair..very Ulster-centric obviously, but still good.
You're just jealous because he thinks one of the greatest ever Kerry teams was average ;)
Tom Humphries :o
Quote from: 5 Sams on July 02, 2012, 03:48:04 PM
Quote from: Ciarrai_thuaidh on July 02, 2012, 03:43:36 PM
Quote from: 5 Sams on July 02, 2012, 03:32:07 PM
Like him or loath him...Liam Hayes was good. Darragh Ó Sé's making a name for himself in the Times during the week.
Ah c'mon 5 Sams..Hayes was just a WUM...still is. See him calling Kevin McMenamon useless before the Dublin v Wexford game, then giving him MOM!
I am biased but I think Darragh's articles are very good..gives a real insight aswell, not just the usual guff.
Also forgot the Gaelic life lads, which can be a very good read to be fair..very Ulster-centric obviously, but still good.
You're just jealous because he thinks one of the greatest ever Kerry teams was average ;)
Which team? I haven't read any of his stuff since he basically said Seamus Moynihan was rubbish a few years back. No time for him. Pity, cos his biog "Out of our skins" is one of the best books I've ever read.
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 03:48:54 PM
Tom Humphries :o
Now reviewing books for the Irish Times seemingly, I assume not Children's books.
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:35:26 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 03:25:14 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:09:33 PM
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:03:00 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 02:52:24 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
He did himself no favours with those tweets. Well out of order. Glad to see he had the good sense to delete them in the meantime.
Yea he's an emotional guy when it comes to Kildare football and I admire him for standing up for his opinion on the Kildare Forum but he's not the most objective when it comes to Kildare or Dublin football (very anti-Dublin), very subjective in his writing. He actually has an account on this forum too.
I seen his post on the Kildare forum last year about joining a Dublin club and then said "don't fancy walking into a dressing room with 40 locals who've known each other since they were robbing houses together at 7" - I enjoy his weekly power rankings though.
Ironic, he's from Athy...
I really like his work on the game as a whole just think he was a major catalyst in the "Kildare are a top 4 team", which nobody who knows Kildare football should have put us. That creates it's own pressures, jesus just look at the fallout from the SJ saga, the Germans might have a word for it "Schadenfreude" but we have a whole culture devoted towards it.
Every second blog that he was writing recently was talking Kildare up. There's far too much talk about where a team ranks in some mythical league when championship football is all on the day as we found out yesterday. The Indo were also constantly hyping up the team and crediting McGeeney with reinventing the wheel as regards football. I know people will say that all the media stuff goes over players heads but I'm not so sure.
However, I do respect MacKenna for sticking to his guns on the SJ saga when I get the impression that the local papers and radio are nearly afraid of speaking out for fear that they will lose access to the team and management.
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:47:10 PM
Has there every been a worse player to lift the Sam Maguire than Ray Silke?
I remember Silke saying a few years ago that he credits himself for Dermot Earley jnr's first All Star!
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:51:56 PM
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 03:48:54 PM
Tom Humphries :o
Now reviewing books for the Irish Times seemingly, I assume not Children's books.
He was a fantastic writer though, no one can take that away from him to be fair.
Joe Brolly, while he seems to have a fixation with courting controversery, can be quite insightful at times.
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:51:56 PM
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 03:48:54 PM
Tom Humphries :o
Now reviewing books for the Irish Times seemingly, I assume not Children's books.
He was top notch before things got to him some time in the middle of the last decade .
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:53:40 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:35:26 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 03:25:14 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:09:33 PM
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:03:00 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 02:52:24 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
He did himself no favours with those tweets. Well out of order. Glad to see he had the good sense to delete them in the meantime.
Yea he's an emotional guy when it comes to Kildare football and I admire him for standing up for his opinion on the Kildare Forum but he's not the most objective when it comes to Kildare or Dublin football (very anti-Dublin), very subjective in his writing. He actually has an account on this forum too.
I seen his post on the Kildare forum last year about joining a Dublin club and then said "don't fancy walking into a dressing room with 40 locals who've known each other since they were robbing houses together at 7" - I enjoy his weekly power rankings though.
Ironic, he's from Athy...
I really like his work on the game as a whole just think he was a major catalyst in the "Kildare are a top 4 team", which nobody who knows Kildare football should have put us. That creates it's own pressures, jesus just look at the fallout from the SJ saga, the Germans might have a word for it "Schadenfreude" but we have a whole culture devoted towards it.
Every second blog that he was writing recently was talking Kildare up. There's far too much talk about where a team ranks in some mythical league when championship football is all on the day as we found out yesterday. The Indo were also constantly hyping up the team and crediting McGeeney with reinventing the wheel as regards football. I know people will say that all the media stuff goes over players heads but I'm not so sure.
However, I do respect MacKenna for sticking to his guns on the SJ saga when I get the impression that the local papers and radio are nearly afraid of speaking out for fear that they will lose access to the team and management.
Mentally we weren't right yesterday, whether that was due to complacency and one eye on a Leinster final but somehow I can just imagine players texting each other on Saturday evening regarding the SJ circus, how the f**k can that prepare you mentally for a game. Also again I would question our training schedule as we looked very flat and tired physically (although that could be as much mental as physical), anyhow its all about small percentages at the top level and unfortunately Meath were spot on and we were well off. McGeeney has a lot of explaining to do, not that he ever those and we both stated that this SJ circus could backfire dramatically. They got it all so badly wrong.
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 04:11:39 PM
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:53:40 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:35:26 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 03:25:14 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:09:33 PM
Quote from: Donnellys Hollow on July 02, 2012, 03:03:00 PM
Quote from: heffo on July 02, 2012, 02:52:24 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
I hope he's alright. He was a no show for the Examiner water cooler today and he was last seen tanked up firing off scorpy tweets in the middle of the night.
He did himself no favours with those tweets. Well out of order. Glad to see he had the good sense to delete them in the meantime.
Yea he's an emotional guy when it comes to Kildare football and I admire him for standing up for his opinion on the Kildare Forum but he's not the most objective when it comes to Kildare or Dublin football (very anti-Dublin), very subjective in his writing. He actually has an account on this forum too.
I seen his post on the Kildare forum last year about joining a Dublin club and then said "don't fancy walking into a dressing room with 40 locals who've known each other since they were robbing houses together at 7" - I enjoy his weekly power rankings though.
Ironic, he's from Athy...
I really like his work on the game as a whole just think he was a major catalyst in the "Kildare are a top 4 team", which nobody who knows Kildare football should have put us. That creates it's own pressures, jesus just look at the fallout from the SJ saga, the Germans might have a word for it "Schadenfreude" but we have a whole culture devoted towards it.
Every second blog that he was writing recently was talking Kildare up. There's far too much talk about where a team ranks in some mythical league when championship football is all on the day as we found out yesterday. The Indo were also constantly hyping up the team and crediting McGeeney with reinventing the wheel as regards football. I know people will say that all the media stuff goes over players heads but I'm not so sure.
However, I do respect MacKenna for sticking to his guns on the SJ saga when I get the impression that the local papers and radio are nearly afraid of speaking out for fear that they will lose access to the team and management.
Mentally we weren't right yesterday, whether that was due to complacency and one eye on a Leinster final but somehow I can just imagine players texting each other on Saturday evening regarding the SJ circus, how the f**k can that prepare you mentally for a game. Also again I would question our training schedule as we looked very flat and tired physically (although that could be as much mental as physical), anyhow its all about small percentages at the top level and unfortunately Meath were spot on and we were well off. McGeeney has a lot of explaining to do, not that he ever those and we both stated that this SJ circus could backfire dramatically. They got it all so badly wrong.
When he took Doyle off in the second half, I couldn't help but think of the 2005 AI semi-final when Joe Kernan took McGeeney off in the last 10 minutes (I think Seán Cavanagh in a recent interview for the Sunday Indo, admitted his relief when Geezer was taken off) - it must have been a relief to the Meath backs no matter how well they had him under wraps yesterday.
Bringing Earley on in FF smacked of sheer desperation too - maybe he thought he was playing in the Leinster Junior Championship against KK again?
Quote from: Bingo on July 02, 2012, 03:45:06 PM
Shocked to see Roy Curtis even mentioned in a thread about journalism.
+1
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:51:56 PM
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 03:48:54 PM
Tom Humphries :o
Now reviewing books for the Irish Times seemingly, I assume not Children's books.
That's below the belt Dinny.
Humphries is probably the best GAA writer in the last 20 or so years...but has slipped under the radar after the shenanigans. No matter what he has alleged to have done I don't think there's any need for cheap shots like that.
Humphies was up there with the best.
Christy O'Connor was decent too.
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
+1 (re the Tribune). I don't know what Ewan is saying about SJ, but he has some 'outre' opinions alright.
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
Why do you say that about McKenna?
Quote from: 5 Sams on July 02, 2012, 11:11:09 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:51:56 PM
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 03:48:54 PM
Tom Humphries :o
Now reviewing books for the Irish Times seemingly, I assume not Children's books.
That's below the belt Dinny.
Humphries is probably the best GAA writer in the last 20 or so years...but has slipped under the radar after the shenanigans. No matter what he has alleged to have done I don't think there's any need for cheap shots like that.
Given what happened, long may the low blows rain down upon him. His journalism has been forever tainted and honestly I found it quite poor and comically myopic even before all this came out.
We don't need a judge to allow us to put two and two together; you're clutching at very tenuous straws.
Quote from: Syferus on July 03, 2012, 01:43:22 AM
Quote from: 5 Sams on July 02, 2012, 11:11:09 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 03:51:56 PM
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 02, 2012, 03:48:54 PM
Tom Humphries :o
Now reviewing books for the Irish Times seemingly, I assume not Children's books.
That's below the belt Dinny.
Humphries is probably the best GAA writer in the last 20 or so years...but has slipped under the radar after the shenanigans. No matter what he has alleged to have done I don't think there's any need for cheap shots like that.
Given what happened, long may the low blows rain down upon him. His journalism has been forever tainted and honestly I found it quite poor and comically myopic even before all this came out.
We don't need a judge to allow us to put two and two together; you're clutching at very tenuous straws.
I can't understand how someone would hold that view...his writing (especially on GAA) was excellent...some of the best I've read anywhere.
However, what has gone on with him and those girls (allegedly)....it sickens me to think of it. Also seems like its possible he is evading justice claiming "mental issues", which I hope does not stop a prosecution ensuing.
Quote from: ONeill on July 02, 2012, 11:21:44 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
Why do you say that about McKenna?
Do you follow him on Twitter? He's morally outraged by the SJ transfer and is obsessed with it, reminds me a bit of David Walsh/Paul Kimmage v Lance Armstrong. His articles and comments on it have all been very negative and in my opinion not particularly balanced not helped in his defence though by the lack of comment from the Kildare camp. Himself and McGeeney have now resorted to cheap digs at each other, this extract from his blog kind of sums up the direction his opinion pieces are taking.
When hearing the question though, McGeeney was calculated and cutting in his reaction. He gestured with a stirring motion and suggested that journalists were trying to make a name off the back of the story. It was the sort of arrogance from the manager that gives people a reason to undermine all the good work he has done.
I think Humphries brought GAA writing onto a new level in the 1990s. He was the best.
I used to love reading his Irish Times column every Monday.
But his more recent stuff wasn't as good.
Yes, Humphries may have done something decpicable and unforgivable, but that shouldn't take away from his artistry with the pen, a great writer and that can't be taken away from him, ever.
He filled alot of his writing with similes that were so long-winded and obscure that they entirely broke the flow of his writing. I just found it to be very egotistical stuff (and I promise you I felt this way long before everything came out) and he came across as rather unlikeable. Someone like Keith Duggan is more utilitarian but he sticks to the point and lets the story be the king.
I agree to a point with you there, he seemed to do it purely for the sake of it, but at his peak, he was, at times untoucable. His Monday column had me actually looking forward to the start of the week, but it became more hit-and-miss and regrettably a bit of a let-down.
The problem with journalism in the GAA is that a lot of players just stick to the auto-cue drivel they get from their managers, it's hard to get really insightful, honest interviews - would remind you of the scene in Achorman,
'You stay classy, San Diego. I'm Ron Burgundy?'
'Damn it, who typed a question mark on the teleprompter? For the last time, anything you put on that prompter, Burgundy will read!'
Quote from: Syferus on July 03, 2012, 11:53:45 AM
He filled alot of his writing with similes that were so long-winded and obscure that they entirely broke the flow of his writing. I just found it to be very egotistical stuff (and I promise you I felt this way long before everything came out) and he came across as rather unlikeable. Someone like Keith Duggan is more utilitarian but he sticks to the point and lets the story be the king.
Keith Duggan is very good.
I wonder what the great Paddy Downey would think of the standard of GAA journalism these days?
One of the most memorable quotes I've ever read, although not about GAA, it was a masterpiece, a review of a Scotland/Ireland game when two Scots tried to tackle Moss Keane,
"He handed off two Scots and left them spinning on the turf, rolling stones that gathered no Moss"
Tom Humphries has written some amazing books - i have a few of them, cant remember all of the titles but one is about the Kerry v Dublin (Blue and Gold?)....absolutely brilliant.
His columns in the IT were stuff of legend.
Keith Duggan is also a brilliant writer - in the lead up to the business end of the AI in both football and hurling, he makes a quare read with a pint of Guinness...
Paddy Heaney also writes stuff...
Quote from: qwerty123 on July 05, 2012, 01:50:45 PM
I wonder what the great Paddy Downey would think of the standard of GAA journalism these days?
One of the most memorable quotes I've ever read, although not about GAA, it was a masterpiece, a review of a Scotland/Ireland game when two Scots tried to tackle Moss Keane,
"He handed off two Scots and left them spinning on the turf, rolling stones that gathered no Moss"
That sounds like classic Con Houlihan who, unbelievably, someone here dissed this week.
I think Con was also the man who told us about Gerry McLoughlin crossing the English line "festooned with Englishmen".
Darragh Ó Sé's column is very good. Paddy Heaney is good most weeks. There are some hidden gems in local newspapers
I got this for a fiver in An Caife Liteartha in Dingle...
http://www.libertiespress.com/More_Than_A_Game/68/
Great read...
Quote from: 5 Sams on July 05, 2012, 05:34:43 PM
I got this for a fiver in An Caife Liteartha in Dingle...
http://www.libertiespress.com/More_Than_A_Game/68/
Great read...
A great little shop and a great little book.
Apart from Eugene McGee the Irish independent is badly served in terms of GAA journalism. Martin Breheny likes to label contributors to forums such as this as morons. Of course online forums do attract some moronic postings but these are far outweighed by genuine insight, wit and wisdom from passionate GAA supporters - Mr Breheny's prejudice seems to be based on his standing as a professional sports journalist being challenged by what he sees as amateur upstarts. Personally I'd rather read the musings of GAA followers on GAA Board and An Fear Rua than Mr Breheny's journalism.
Keith Duggan is the best. I respect Eugene and Con Houlihan, even though they do different things - McGee can't write like Houlihan, nor can Houlihan analyse like McGee, but they've made their bones and earned their place. A pity Houlihan is slumming it at the Sunday World, but such is life.
Malachy Clerkin is less than the sum of his parts. He appears to be insightful but when you look closer it disappears. McKenna is a bit too hysterical to be taken seriously and, as Donnelly's Hollow says, the power rankings thing only works for a league, not for a knockout Championship.
Of all the papers, I'd say the Sunday Times has the best combination of writers in Michael Foley, Denis Walsh and Christy O'Connor. Walsh can be a bit People's Republic of Cork-centric, but we all have our biases. O'Connor's insight and understanding very strong, though he wouldn't be the most poetic writer.
Think people are a bit harsh on Ray Silke. He's a great Gael. I remember Matt Cooper getting thick with him when Croke Park was opened. Silke wouldn't toe the party line that this was a great day for Ireland. I was proud of him for sticking to his guns.
Humphries could be outstanding, but on the days when mailed it in - the columns about how hard it is to write a column - he was pathetic. No mention of Gavin "Le Petit" Cumiskey so far I notice.
The man who could be the best of lot isn't even writing regularly. Dara Ó Cinnéide should be the voice of Gaelic Games for the next forty years. He's talented in every way you need to be talented to do that job. The fact that he's not doing it tells you a lot about how media prioritises in this country. Ah well.
Quote from: IolarCoisCuain on July 06, 2012, 12:12:17 AM
Keith Duggan is the best. I respect Eugene and Con Houlihan, even though they do different things - McGee can't write like Houlihan, nor can Houlihan analyse like McGee, but they've made their bones and earned their place. A pity Houlihan is slumming it at the Sunday World, but such is life.
Malachy Clerkin is less than the sum of his parts. He appears to be insightful but when you look closer it disappears. McKenna is a bit too hysterical to be taken seriously and, as Donnelly's Hollow says, the power rankings thing only works for a league, not for a knockout Championship.
Of all the papers, I'd say the Sunday Times has the best combination of writers in Michael Foley, Denis Walsh and Christy O'Connor. Walsh can be a bit People's Republic of Cork-centric, but we all have our biases. O'Connor's insight and understanding very strong, though he wouldn't be the most poetic writer.
Think people are a bit harsh on Ray Silke. He's a great Gael. I remember Matt Cooper getting thick with him when Croke Park was opened. Silke wouldn't toe the party line that this was a great day for Ireland. I was proud of him for sticking to his guns.
Humphries could be outstanding, but on the days when mailed it in - the columns about how hard it is to write a column - he was pathetic. No mention of Gavin "Le Petit" Cumiskey so far I notice.
The man who could be the best of lot isn't even writing regularly. Dara Ó Cinnéide should be the voice of Gaelic Games for the next forty years. He's talented in every way you need to be talented to do that job. The fact that he's not doing it tells you a lot about how media prioritises in this country. Ah well.
+1
Very good post
http://www.seangarvan.ie/brolly.pdf
go on the joe
Quote from: squire_in_navy_slacks on July 18, 2012, 10:08:52 AM
http://www.seangarvan.ie/brolly.pdf
go on the joe
Ouch. That's a good read. No punches pulled.
excellent stuff
Brolley referring to players as prima donna because they have dyed blonde hair? Is this the same clown who used to embarass the whole GAA world with his ridiculous blowing of kisses to the crowd when he scored a goal? Does he think Aidan O Se of Mayo is a primna donna (he of the same blonde highlights)? Well again Brolleys Sunday prediction was wrong. Breffni was certainly packed on Sunday but it was the away team who packed it and not with 'Cavan folk'. Incidentally, 2 weeks ago his headline prediction before Meath V Kildare was that 'Banty and Meath are a good match- they are both finished'. Again Brolley was spectacularly wrong. He has become the circus pony of the GAA, the clown who spouts nonsense in the belief that some day his nonsense will be proved accurate. Keep predicting Joe, throw enough sh1t and even you may make some of it stick.
Top class article from Brolly there. He is saying what a lot of us think, but something that most journalists feel they can not write.
Brolly isn't a journalist. He's a barrister by profession. He appears on TV and here in the Mail as a pundit, which is a different thing.
A journalist's job is to find out what's going in the world he or she is asked to cover, and then inform the public about what they need to know. A pundit's job is to either offer insightful analysis based on past experience and/or expertise, or else hop balls to get people talking and generate revenue for the media organisation.
In the best cases, you get someone who can be both - Darragh Ó Sé in the Irish Times is, for my dollar, hands down the best at both. He's tremendously insightful and very honest about the reality, other than the ideal, of football. And because he's a Kerryman he cannot but hop a ball every now and again. It'd be like asking a dog not to bark. But generally, pundits go for one or the other - knowing your stuff or acting the bollocks.
In soccer terms, Johnny Giles does the former, Dunphy the latter. In rugby, Pope does the analysis and Hook talks the bollocks. O'Rourke does the analysis on football and then Spillane or Joe acts the eejit. They're both making good pocket money from it so they certainly aren't actual eejits.
On the matter of this particular article, I don't think there's a true comparison between Seánie Johnson and Conor Mortimer, other than a certain degree of selfishness. That's not a unique trait though - if you're a scoring forward there has to be a certain level of selfishness, or else you pass it off and don't take your scores.
Otherwise though, there isn't a comparison at all. Conor Mortimer walked off a panel, and Seanie Johnson walked onto on one. Conor didn't want to play, Seánie wanted to play so badly that he can never go home again without this being thrown at him. Those seem like two completely opposite trait to me.
Unless there's another reason that Seanie is doing it of course, which I can't possibly imagine. But if there is, Joe didn't write it. Bit too interested in acting the bollocks than telling us what's going on, maybe.
Unless there's another reason that Seanie is doing it of course, which I can't possibly imagine. But if there is, Joe didn't write it. Bit too interested in acting the bollocks than telling us what's going on, maybe.
Delicious irony.
Quote from: IolarCoisCuain on July 18, 2012, 11:19:29 AM
Brolly isn't a journalist. He's a barrister by profession. He appears on TV and here in the Mail as a pundit, which is a different thing.
A journalist's job is to find out what's going in the world he or she is asked to cover, and then inform the public about what they need to know. A pundit's job is to either offer insightful analysis based on past experience and/or expertise, or else hop balls to get people talking and generate revenue for the media organisation.
In the best cases, you get someone who can be both - Darragh Ó Sé in the Irish Times is, for my dollar, hands down the best at both. He's tremendously insightful and very honest about the reality, other than the ideal, of football. And because he's a Kerryman he cannot but hop a ball every now and again. It'd be like asking a dog not to bark. But generally, pundits go for one or the other - knowing your stuff or acting the bollocks.
In soccer terms, Johnny Giles does the former, Dunphy the latter. In rugby, Pope does the analysis and Hook talks the bollocks. O'Rourke does the analysis on football and then Spillane or Joe acts the eejit. They're both making good pocket money from it so they certainly aren't actual eejits.
On the matter of this particular article, I don't think there's a true comparison between Seánie Johnson and Conor Mortimer, other than a certain degree of selfishness. That's not a unique trait though - if you're a scoring forward there has to be a certain level of selfishness, or else you pass it off and don't take your scores.
Otherwise though, there isn't a comparison at all. Conor Mortimer walked off a panel, and Seanie Johnson walked onto on one. Conor didn't want to play, Seánie wanted to play so badly that he can never go home again without this being thrown at him. Those seem like two completely opposite trait to me.
Unless there's another reason that Seanie is doing it of course, which I can't possibly imagine. But if there is, Joe didn't write it. Bit too interested in acting the bollocks than telling us what's going on, maybe.
I don't think Spillane is particularly intelligent. He comes across as quite limited in interviews beyond talking about football. Colm o Rourke has the smarts but Spillane doesn't.
Joe Brolly is a f**king bollix.
Quote from: trileacman on July 18, 2012, 11:53:42 AM
Joe Brolly is a f**king bollix.
That is why he is on the telly. The Sunday Game is all about role playing.
There is the serious one, the gobshite and the other one.
Same as all those talent shows that are spin offs of the one started by simon Cowell. There is the cruel one, the nice one and the other one and the Ant and the Dec characters who are thin and funny.
TV is pure pantomime.
Spillanes consistent interrupting of fellow pundits is very annoying and lives up to the old school portrayal of a 'GAH man' as a gombeen. Someone should have taught him basic etiquette as a kid.
Like all journalism it's subjective. The best sports writers and pundits, more often than not overcome their own background. With most their origins shine through and within GAA this obviously leads to rubbish comments about referee, 'opposing' player performances, calls for CCCC action/inaction and lazy analysis.
We all like Brolly's prose because we all know and been frustrated by the type and would love to have the platform for those sentiments. He is articulating what we feel.
The ultimate irony of the article is that the sentiments could be applied specifically to the author. if he were playing today, jedward would have to be triplets.
Brolly epitomised as a player the very traits he espouses to detest.
Quote from: DuffleKing on July 18, 2012, 12:54:32 PM
We all like Brolly's prose because we all know and been frustrated by the type and would love to have the platform for those sentiments. He is articulating what we feel.
The ultimate irony of the article is that the sentiments could be applied specifically to the author. if he were playing today, jedward would have to be triplets.
Brolly epitomised as a player the very traits he espouses to detest.
You have just wrote complete shite. The difference between Brolly and the players he was writing about is that Brolly delivered in the big championship games for Derry, while the players wrote about didn't. A seriously significant difference.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2012/0718/1224320305440.html?fb_ref=.UAadv06y9VA.like&fb_source=home_multiline (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2012/0718/1224320305440.html?fb_ref=.UAadv06y9VA.like&fb_source=home_multiline)
dara o'se stoking up the fire for sunday nicely
very good piece
Quote from: DuffleKing on July 18, 2012, 12:54:32 PM
We all like Brolly's prose because we all know and been frustrated by the type and would love to have the platform for those sentiments. He is articulating what we feel.
The ultimate irony of the article is that the sentiments could be applied specifically to the author. if he were playing today, jedward would have to be triplets.
Brolly epitomised as a player the very traits he espouses to detest.
You're confusing flamboyance and 'prima dona' tendencies. Not the same thing. For all his faults I don't believe Joe was ever that. Character and loyalty are the traits he spoke of I believe.
I'll beg to differ and I'm confusing nothing
Quote from: blewuporstuffed on July 18, 2012, 01:46:58 PM
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2012/0718/1224320305440.html?fb_ref=.UAadv06y9VA.like&fb_source=home_multiline (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2012/0718/1224320305440.html?fb_ref=.UAadv06y9VA.like&fb_source=home_multiline)
dara o'se stoking up the fire for sunday nicely
very good piece
Very interesting indeed.
Quote from: AZOffaly on July 02, 2012, 11:20:35 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
+1 (re the Tribune). I don't know what Ewan is saying about SJ, but he has some 'outre' opinions alright.
+1, although MacKenna was a massive weak link compared with Shannon and McEvoy.
Shannon's columns were routinely magnificent and I enjoyed McEvoy's despite them being about hurling.
Oh, and I would have one Paddy Bradley on my team ahead of six Joe Brollys.
Quote from: saffron sam2 on July 18, 2012, 09:13:35 PM
Quote from: AZOffaly on July 02, 2012, 11:20:35 PM
Quote from: Dinny Breen on July 02, 2012, 02:12:03 PM
I miss the Tribune - Shannon, McEvoy, Clerkin, even MacKenna who I might add is making a right tit of himself over the SJ saga...
+1 (re the Tribune). I don't know what Ewan is saying about SJ, but he has some 'outre' opinions alright.
+1, although MacKenna was a massive weak link compared with Shannon and McEvoy.
Think he's poor and ill-informed myself.
Quote from: sheamy on July 18, 2012, 01:47:24 PM
Quote from: DuffleKing on July 18, 2012, 12:54:32 PM
We all like Brolly's prose because we all know and been frustrated by the type and would love to have the platform for those sentiments. He is articulating what we feel.
The ultimate irony of the article is that the sentiments could be applied specifically to the author. if he were playing today, jedward would have to be triplets.
Brolly epitomised as a player the very traits he espouses to detest.
You're confusing flamboyance and 'prima dona' tendencies. Not the same thing. For all his faults I don't believe Joe was ever that. Character and loyalty are the traits he spoke of I believe.
You can't draw a line as easy as that. Blonde hair and pulling up your socks makes you a prima dona but blowing kisses means you are loyal and a big game player. Brolly is a slabber and if he was kicking ball now he'd be the attention-seeking gobshite he currently derides.
jeez that Brolly article was brutal,I am no fan of c.mort but you would swear he was the worst footballer to come out of Mayo and never played a good game in his life.Always look forward to reading D.OShea's article every week in the Times.Way ahead of any other ex player turned pundit and is never vindictive like Brolly.
Does anyone remember Kevin Cashman or know if he's still among us and philosophising about hurling? If ever there was a man intoxicated with the exuberance of his own verbosity ..
Quote from: Hardy on July 19, 2012, 09:38:09 AM
Does anyone remember Kevin Cashman or know if he's still among us and philosophising about hurling? If ever there was a man intoxicated with the exuberance of his own verbosity ..
If he is still around he would take a fine hatchet to puke football .
If you's like what O'Se does in the Times I recommend you check out the two new columnists on GAA.ie. They only started up last week.
Steven McDonnell is doing a football one - http://www.gaa.ie/gaa-news-and-videos/columnists/1807120946-point-taken-steven-mcdonnell-on-football/
Donal Og is looking after the Hurling end - http://www.gaa.ie/gaa-news-and-videos/columnists/1107121316-on-the-line-donal-og-cusack-on-hurling/
Quote from: seafoid on July 19, 2012, 09:45:58 AM
Quote from: Hardy on July 19, 2012, 09:38:09 AM
Does anyone remember Kevin Cashman or know if he's still among us and philosophising about hurling? If ever there was a man intoxicated with the exuberance of his own verbosity ..
If he is still around he would take a fine hatchet to puke football .
My god, Cashman was something else. I suppose he tried to paint a picture but it was hard reading for us mere mortals.
I really like Ó Sé's column, he had a great one this week on the Kerry-Tyrone battles he played in.
Quote from: seafoid on July 19, 2012, 09:45:58 AM
Quote from: Hardy on July 19, 2012, 09:38:09 AM
Does anyone remember Kevin Cashman or know if he's still among us and philosophising about hurling? If ever there was a man intoxicated with the exuberance of his own verbosity ..
If he is still around he would take a fine hatchet to puke football .
And puke hurling.
Quote from: squire_in_navy_slacks on July 18, 2012, 10:08:52 AM
http://www.seangarvan.ie/brolly.pdf
go on the joe
Had a read of this yesterday and initially thought, yeah way to go Joe. But after a bit of thought, a bit of sense hit in. Gaelic Footballers are amateurs. They do not get paid and give their free time. Some get sorted as Brolly digs at in his column about Parnells giving Mortimer a Job in their Gym, i see nothing wrong with this. It a sort of scratch back thing.
Anyway, he has picked on three so called culprits, Conor Mortimer, Seanie Johnson and Paddy Bradley. He tries to put all three under the
Prima Donna heading. I find these sort of character assassination uncomfortable. From my own personal point of view i was disappointed with Conor Mortimers resignation from the Mayo squad. He had let himself and the squad down. But nobody died, nobody was seriously injured, he did not stop anybody else from playing, he had no contract.
Seanie Johnson's case is also a mess. But with all the media attention you'd swear he was the first player to cross over and play for another county.
Paddy Bradley, what's that all about? Looking from a distance, Paddy seem to give 100% to the Derry cause, bar injury he there year in year out.
You see what has happened is that with the evolution of GAA into professional training, proffessional ticket prices, proffessional Jerseys and professional media coverage. We expect more from our plays and we feel we can treat them like professionals in assassinating their character, their appearance and their football skills.
As for people having Blonde highlights, white boots, tattoos, ear rings, beards, fake tans, shaved legs, thats their own business, Jez were not in 50's Catholic Ireland anymore. Which reminds me does anybody remember the unfortunate half time analysis of the Connacht final in 2006 by Brolly and O'Rourke on Ciaran Mac and Mortimer calling them Sweedish maids, boy did they end up with egg on face!
Brolly seems to go out of his way to be quite nasty in his analysis of certain individuals. Absolutely no need for it considering these boys are all amateurs and give thousands of people great enjoyment. Spillane can be quite tiresome but at least he tries to be constructive in his criticism, not that he achieves it very often. He rarely cuts as close to the bone as Brolly does. O'Rourke is the best of the RTÉ lads by a country mile. The likes of McStay, Carney and Davis are all fairly harmless. Someone needs to tell Brolly to tone it down a bit though.
Ó Sé's column is usually great reading on a Wednesday. The GAA coverage in the Examiner on Saturdays and Mondays is excellent. I rarely buy any national rags during the week anymore but would buy the few local papers most weeks. Breheny and McGee have been trotting out the same old guff in the Indo for years.
Quote from: From the Bunker on July 19, 2012, 03:32:08 PM
Quote from: squire_in_navy_slacks on July 18, 2012, 10:08:52 AM
http://www.seangarvan.ie/brolly.pdf
go on the joe
Had a read of this yesterday and initially thought, yeah way to go Joe. But after a bit of thought, a bit of sense hit in. Gaelic Footballers are amateurs. They do not get paid and give their free time. Some get sorted as Brolly digs at in his column about Parnells giving Mortimer a Job in their Gym, i see nothing wrong with this. It a sort of scratch back thing.
Anyway, he has picked on three so called culprits, Conor Mortimer, Seanie Johnson and Paddy Bradley. He tries to put all three under the Prima Donna heading. I find these sort of character assassination uncomfortable. From my own personal point of view i was disappointed with Conor Mortimers resignation from the Mayo squad. He had let himself and the squad down. But nobody died, nobody was seriously injured, he did not stop anybody else from playing, he had no contract.
Seanie Johnson's case is also a mess. But with all the media attention you'd swear he was the first player to cross over and play for another county.
Paddy Bradley, what's that all about? Looking from a distance, Paddy seem to give 100% to the Derry cause, bar injury he there year in year out.
You see what has happened is that with the evolution of GAA into professional training, proffessional ticket prices, proffessional Jerseys and professional media coverage. We expect more from our plays and we feel we can treat them like professionals in assassinating their character, their appearance and their football skills.
As for people having Blonde highlights, white boots, tattoos, ear rings, beards, fake tans, shaved legs, thats their own business, Jez were not in 50's Catholic Ireland anymore. Which reminds me does anybody remember the unfortunate half time analysis of the Connacht final in 2006 by Brolly and O'Rourke on Ciaran Mac and Mortimer calling them Sweedish maids, boy did they end up with egg on face!
Swiss maids ?.
Swedish maids are rough hallions.
Quote from: orangeman on July 19, 2012, 03:44:06 PM
Quote from: From the Bunker on July 19, 2012, 03:32:08 PM
Quote from: squire_in_navy_slacks on July 18, 2012, 10:08:52 AM
http://www.seangarvan.ie/brolly.pdf
go on the joe
Had a read of this yesterday and initially thought, yeah way to go Joe. But after a bit of thought, a bit of sense hit in. Gaelic Footballers are amateurs. They do not get paid and give their free time. Some get sorted as Brolly digs at in his column about Parnells giving Mortimer a Job in their Gym, i see nothing wrong with this. It a sort of scratch back thing.
Anyway, he has picked on three so called culprits, Conor Mortimer, Seanie Johnson and Paddy Bradley. He tries to put all three under the Prima Donna heading. I find these sort of character assassination uncomfortable. From my own personal point of view i was disappointed with Conor Mortimers resignation from the Mayo squad. He had let himself and the squad down. But nobody died, nobody was seriously injured, he did not stop anybody else from playing, he had no contract.
Seanie Johnson's case is also a mess. But with all the media attention you'd swear he was the first player to cross over and play for another county.
Paddy Bradley, what's that all about? Looking from a distance, Paddy seem to give 100% to the Derry cause, bar injury he there year in year out.
You see what has happened is that with the evolution of GAA into professional training, proffessional ticket prices, proffessional Jerseys and professional media coverage. We expect more from our plays and we feel we can treat them like professionals in assassinating their character, their appearance and their football skills.
As for people having Blonde highlights, white boots, tattoos, ear rings, beards, fake tans, shaved legs, thats their own business, Jez were not in 50's Catholic Ireland anymore. Which reminds me does anybody remember the unfortunate half time analysis of the Connacht final in 2006 by Brolly and O'Rourke on Ciaran Mac and Mortimer calling them Sweedish maids, boy did they end up with egg on face!
Swiss maids ?.
Swedish maids are rough hallions.
;D
A fella I know used to ghost-write a column for a well known experienced GAA figure who was getting a serious wedge for his 'column'.
Every week would be the same, he'd call him on the Wednesday before a game say between Mayo & Donegal:
Journo: Well Mister X how do you see Sundays game going:
Pundit: I like those two blondie lads
Journo: McDonald is gone from the panel a while now and Mortimer is out for the last few months with a knee problem
Journo: Any thoughts on Donegal?
Pundit: Haven't seen much of them to be honest and wouldn't know too many of their players
Journo: Mayo to win comfortably so? thanks for taking the call
Quote from: heffo on July 20, 2012, 09:29:30 AM
A fella I know used to ghost-write a column for a well known experienced GAA figure who was getting a serious wedge for his 'column'.
Every week would be the same, he'd call him on the Wednesday before a game say between Mayo & Donegal:
Journo: Well Mister X how do you see Sundays game going:
Pundit: I like those two blondie lads
Journo: McDonald is gone from the panel a while now and Mortimer is out for the last few months with a knee problem
Journo: Any thoughts on Donegal?
Pundit: Haven't seen much of them to be honest and wouldn't know too many of their players
Journo: Mayo to win comfortably so? thanks for taking the call
Heffo, I doubt a truer word was ever posted here. Fair play to you.
It was Kingsley Black.
Quote from: squire_in_navy_slacks on July 18, 2012, 10:08:52 AM
http://www.seangarvan.ie/brolly.pdf
go on the joe
I'm with you on that one, squire.
Onto f**k on a one way ticket.
I take exception to one of the allegations he made about Conor Mortimer.
"Dublin club Parnell's recruited him from his Mayo club last year having, coincidentally, hired him
as their in-house gymnasium supervisor.
They are already beginning to count the cost, as their championship ambitions are again in the process of turning to ashes."
Now, I don't need Joe Brolly's help if I want to think of valid reasons to call Conoreen a bollix. I got plenty of them to hand but I'd not go so far as to say he's the cause of Parnell's misfortunes.
You just wouldnt want to get on the end of Brollys tongue. He writes brilliantly but when hes on the form he takes everyone out. You could see more teams boycotting interviews over stuff like this.
Quote from: rrhf on July 20, 2012, 12:30:04 PM
You just wouldnt want to get on the end of Brollys tongue. He writes brilliantly but when hes on the form he takes everyone out. You could see more teams boycotting interviews over stuff like this.
Brolly is a jerk
Yesterday saw the passing of a great man who happened to write a bit too, Con Houlihan. Ar dheis lámh Dé go raibh sé.
Firstly, rest in peace to the man - he clearly touched alot of sports fans' hearts - but I have to admit I never connected with Con Houlihan's writing. His writing, and that of Billy Keane's (whose style is obviously very much reminiscent of, and deeply influenced by, Houlihan's) have always appeared to me, if I'm being completely honest, as poorly written.
Maybe he was better decades ago but when I learnt his general writing format was him writing a single sentence on one page of paper and then compiled by others it explained the jumpiness I saw in his writing, nothing ever seemed to flow together and it had a sort of drunken stream-of-consciousness quality to it, and by that I mean that it felt slower than it should, inelegant.
I know his ability to veer from GAA to boxing to soccer and back again in a few lines is held up as something special but it always gave me a sense of whiplash from the abruptness of it all.
And then so much of what he said seemed to be banal and obvious, actual insight or against-the-grain thinking looked to be almost entirely absent from his writing. He'd make quirky little old-timey similes but the felt somewhat at sea in articles about modern sport. It never struck me as witty. They seemed at times like an Ireland's Own article tucked away in a national newspaper.
I'm not dancing on a dead man's grave and I'd genuinely love to hear more opinions of fans of his work on what about his actual writing style drew them to him.
lolz at the heffo post.
Quote from: Syferus on August 10, 2012, 03:31:55 AM
Firstly, rest in peace to the man - he clearly touched alot of sports fans' hearts - but I have to admit I never connected with Con Houlihan's writing. His writing, and that of Billy Keane's (whose style is obviously very much reminiscent of, and deeply influenced by, Houlihan's) have always appeared to me, if I'm being completely honest, as poorly written.
Maybe he was better decades ago but when I learnt his general writing format was him writing a single sentence on one page of paper and then compiled by others it explained the jumpiness I saw in his writing, nothing ever seemed to flow together and it had a sort of drunken stream-of-consciousness quality to it, and by that I mean that it felt slower than it should, inelegant.
I know his ability to veer from GAA to boxing to soccer and back again in a few lines is held up as something special but it always gave me a sense of whiplash from the abruptness of it all.
And then so much of what he said seemed to be banal and obvious, actual insight or against-the-grain thinking looked to be almost entirely absent from his writing. He'd make quirky little old-timey similes but the felt somewhat at sea in articles about modern sport. It never struck me as witty. They seemed at times like an Ireland's Own article tucked away in a national newspaper.
I'm not dancing on a dead man's grave and I'd genuinely love to hear more opinions of fans of his work on what about his actual writing style drew them to him.
I think you put your finger on it there Syferus, unbeknownst to you. Reading the Sunday World or Herald stuff would be a bit like seeing Michael Jordan's final year with the Washington Wizards and wondering what all the fuss was about. Everybody is of their time.
Con Houlihan - Billy Keane.
James Joyce - John B. Keane.
what do the dashes mean in this case?
Somebody compared Con with Billy.
So because his pieces were not alined or conformed to a tangable format and because there was an element of tangengiality or ostentaciousness your questioning his writings,forgive me but i thought these were exactly the virtues in the literary world that set aside the geniuses from the everyday hack.
Quote from: mlcollins on August 10, 2012, 07:21:27 PM
So because his pieces were not alined or conformed to a tangable format and because there was an element of tangengiality or ostentaciousness your questioning his writings,forgive me but i thought these were exactly the virtues in the literary world that set aside the geniuses from the everyday hack.
The same could be said for this, though: http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php (http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php) (It's the article that begins half way down that page, and it'll only be available at that link until Sunday as they appear not to archive those types of articles)
Incidentally, he may have created the most verbose and pompous eulogy this side of Mark Antony.
I think the very best journalism comes from people who sense of self is secondary to the story or topic (something I'm not saying Houlian suffered from, an example of the above would be Tom Humpheries or Toy Curtis) and has a keen thoroughfare. I really don't think much of Houlian's writing had the latter. Excellent journalism doesn't really need to be eccentric, which is what Houlian's journalism clearly was.
I'll have to look more more of his older articles to comment on what it was in the 70's or 80's but that's certainly what the later writing suffered from.
Quote from: Syferus on August 10, 2012, 10:04:27 PM
Quote from: mlcollins on August 10, 2012, 07:21:27 PM
So because his pieces were not alined or conformed to a tangable format and because there was an element of tangengiality or ostentaciousness your questioning his writings,forgive me but i thought these were exactly the virtues in the literary world that set aside the geniuses from the everyday hack.
The same could be said for this, though: http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php (http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php) (It's the article that begins half way down that page, and it'll only be available at that link until Sunday as they appear not to archive those types of articles)
Incidentally, he may have created the most verbose and pompous eulogy this side of Mark Antony.
I think the very best journalism comes from people who sense of self is secondary to the story or topic (something I'm not saying Houlian suffered from, an example of the above would be Tom Humpheries or Toy Curtis) and has a keen thoroughfare. I really don't think much of Houlian's writing had the latter. Excellent journalism doesn't really need to be eccentric, which is what Houlian's journalism clearly was.
I'll have to look more more of his older articles to comment on what it was in the 70's or 80's but that's certainly what the later writing suffered from.
Who'd be your top three Syferus?
Quote from: IolarCoisCuain on August 11, 2012, 12:21:51 AM
Quote from: Syferus on August 10, 2012, 10:04:27 PM
Quote from: mlcollins on August 10, 2012, 07:21:27 PM
So because his pieces were not alined or conformed to a tangable format and because there was an element of tangengiality or ostentaciousness your questioning his writings,forgive me but i thought these were exactly the virtues in the literary world that set aside the geniuses from the everyday hack.
The same could be said for this, though: http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php (http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php) (It's the article that begins half way down that page, and it'll only be available at that link until Sunday as they appear not to archive those types of articles)
Incidentally, he may have created the most verbose and pompous eulogy this side of Mark Antony.
I think the very best journalism comes from people who sense of self is secondary to the story or topic (something I'm not saying Houlian suffered from, an example of the above would be Tom Humpheries or Toy Curtis) and has a keen thoroughfare. I really don't think much of Houlian's writing had the latter. Excellent journalism doesn't really need to be eccentric, which is what Houlian's journalism clearly was.
I'll have to look more more of his older articles to comment on what it was in the 70's or 80's but that's certainly what the later writing suffered from.
Who'd be your top three Syferus?
Hmm, if we're talking about true journalists (I think someone like Dara O'Se has a great football brain and is able to communicate it well in print, though who knows if it's ghost-written or not) it'd be Keith Duggan, Christy O'Connor and Liam Horan (http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/dermot-earley-as-close-to-perfection-as-a-man-can-be-123213.html (http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/dermot-earley-as-close-to-perfection-as-a-man-can-be-123213.html) would be a great example of some of his best, and even if it's on a totally biased topic for me I thought it was a wonderfully evocative eulogy).
All three share an ability to only lightly thread the fourth wall, their writing is unobtrusive but effective and I've always appreciated that tightrope walk most of all in journalism. It's seems easy for journalists to reach a point where then end up being self-parodies, swallowed by the success of their own careers and their egos being sated only by becoming more and more verbose and obtuse. I think those three have avoided that, so far.
Sorry, but what is a "keen thoroughfare"?
Quote from: Syferus on August 11, 2012, 01:14:57 AM
Quote from: IolarCoisCuain on August 11, 2012, 12:21:51 AM
Quote from: Syferus on August 10, 2012, 10:04:27 PM
Quote from: mlcollins on August 10, 2012, 07:21:27 PM
So because his pieces were not alined or conformed to a tangable format and because there was an element of tangengiality or ostentaciousness your questioning his writings,forgive me but i thought these were exactly the virtues in the literary world that set aside the geniuses from the everyday hack.
The same could be said for this, though: http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php (http://www.sundayworld.com/columnists/index.php) (It's the article that begins half way down that page, and it'll only be available at that link until Sunday as they appear not to archive those types of articles)
Incidentally, he may have created the most verbose and pompous eulogy this side of Mark Antony.
I think the very best journalism comes from people who sense of self is secondary to the story or topic (something I'm not saying Houlian suffered from, an example of the above would be Tom Humpheries or Toy Curtis) and has a keen thoroughfare. I really don't think much of Houlian's writing had the latter. Excellent journalism doesn't really need to be eccentric, which is what Houlian's journalism clearly was.
I'll have to look more more of his older articles to comment on what it was in the 70's or 80's but that's certainly what the later writing suffered from.
Who'd be your top three Syferus?
Hmm, if we're talking about true journalists (I think someone like Dara O'Se has a great football brain and is able to communicate it well in print, though who knows if it's ghost-written or not) it'd be Keith Duggan, Christy O'Connor and Liam Horan (http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/dermot-earley-as-close-to-perfection-as-a-man-can-be-123213.html (http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/dermot-earley-as-close-to-perfection-as-a-man-can-be-123213.html) would be a great example of some of his best, and even if it's on a totally biased topic for me I thought it was a wonderfully evocative eulogy).
All three share an ability to only lightly thread the fourth wall, their writing is unobtrusive but effective and I've always appreciated that tightrope walk most of all in journalism. It's seems easy for journalists to reach a point where then end up being self-parodies, swallowed by the success of their own careers and their egos being sated only by becoming more and more verbose and obtuse. I think those three have avoided that, so far.
Fair enough.
Wonderful tribute piece that by Liam Horan. Pity he didn't wait with the Independent, we'd have been spared Martin Breheny.
You can chalk it down.
We'd have been spared Keys as well, whose ambition in life seems to be just like Martin.
Quote from: RedandGreenSniper on August 11, 2012, 01:07:57 PM
Wonderful tribute piece that by Liam Horan. Pity he didn't wait with the Independent, we'd have been spared Martin Breheny.
Stevie McDonnell and Donal Og Cusack have been knocking out excellent columns for GAA.ie all summer
http://gaa.ie/gaa-news-and-videos/daily-news/2/1508120908-point-taken-steven-mcdonnell-on-football/
Cusack's articles have been refreshing and thoughtful. he's obviously a very bright guy that sees a lot of things with a slightly tangential andinteresting tview.
People dont like the Sindo..even more people dont like Eamon Sweeney.. I have to say he nailed it with his article about Mickey Harte today. Fair play.
Everyone knows that Damian Lawlor beats two short planks when it comes to relative density, but he takes the biscuit today. "One thing that can never be taken away from him (Teddy McCarthy), however, is his status as one of the GAA's finest dual players - he remains the only man to win senior All-Ireland hurling and football titles, achieved when Cork did the double in 1990."
Er, Jack Lynch, Jimmy Barry Murphy, Ray Cummins, Liam Currams.
Quote from: 5 Sams on January 13, 2013, 09:22:47 PM
People dont like the Sindo..even more people dont like Eamon Sweeney.. I have to say he nailed it with his article about Mickey Harte today. Fair play.
+1
Quote from: From the Bunker on January 13, 2013, 09:50:14 PM
Quote from: 5 Sams on January 13, 2013, 09:22:47 PM
People dont like the Sindo..even more people dont like Eamon Sweeney.. I have to say he nailed it with his article about Mickey Harte today. Fair play.
+1
What was said
Quote from: Plain of the Herbs on January 13, 2013, 09:32:12 PM
Everyone knows that Damian Lawlor beats two short planks when it comes to relative density, but he takes the biscuit today. "One thing that can never be taken away from him (Teddy McCarthy), however, is his status as one of the GAA's finest dual players - he remains the only man to win senior All-Ireland hurling and football titles, achieved when Cork did the double in 1990."
Er, Jack Lynch, Jimmy Barry Murphy, Ray Cummins, Liam Currams.
What yer man missed was that Teddy was the only one to win his hurling and football medals in the same year.
Quote from: theticklemister on January 13, 2013, 09:57:30 PM
Quote from: From the Bunker on January 13, 2013, 09:50:14 PM
Quote from: 5 Sams on January 13, 2013, 09:22:47 PM
People dont like the Sindo..even more people dont like Eamon Sweeney.. I have to say he nailed it with his article about Mickey Harte today. Fair play.
+1
What was said
http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/hartes-decency-shines-through-the-dark-days-3350309.html
Correct, Hardy. But what he wrote was factually incorrect due to carelessness and/or laziness.
Quote from: Hardy on January 13, 2013, 10:00:00 PM
Quote from: Plain of the Herbs on January 13, 2013, 09:32:12 PM
Everyone knows that Damian Lawlor beats two short planks when it comes to relative density, but he takes the biscuit today. "One thing that can never be taken away from him (Teddy McCarthy), however, is his status as one of the GAA's finest dual players - he remains the only man to win senior All-Ireland hurling and football titles, achieved when Cork did the double in 1990."
Er, Jack Lynch, Jimmy Barry Murphy, Ray Cummins, Liam Currams.
What yer man missed was that Teddy was the only one to win his hurling and football medals in the same year.