Doíre -v- An Iarmhí, Baile na Scríne, 15.02.2009

Croí na hÉireann · February 16, 2009, 12:10:46 PM

Surprised and disgusted with that scoreline, wtf happened???

screenexile · February 16, 2009, 12:33:56 PM

Hard to pinpoint really Croi. The first half was fairly competitive with Westmeath getting a few good scores but Derry pulled ahead by 5 just before half time. 2nd half was over as Derry completely over ran you for about 10 minutes and got a lot of scores in that time and then the goal totally killed the game with about 10 left or so.

It was hard to work out what kind of system you were playing. A bit like Derry last year you seem to funnel men behind the ball to win it back but then have no real attacking game plan other than try and get it to Dessie and Dennis. Our defence had them well sewn up so it just didn't work. Our gameplan involved breaking in 3's and 4's with speed from defence always creating an overlap and then we had 4 options up front to hit as well as men coming through which created too many options for Westmeath to deal with and meant we had 8 men on the scoresheet yesterday. I think O'Flatharta will have to look at how things went and change it up a bit for the next match.

Big top of the table clash for us now against Kerry in 3 weeks time wil be very interesting and I'm looking forward to it. We don't have to win the game but we do have to perform well for us to keep progressing. I'm at a loss to see how we will deal with Walsh though. Any chance Big Niall will be back?!

peterquaife · February 16, 2009, 12:52:31 PM

Is the Kerry game in the 'Screen as well?

PQ

Croí na hÉireann · February 16, 2009, 12:53:14 PM

How did young McDaniel get on? Any WH subs make any sort of impact??? Win against Mayo the next day is imperative now, looks like it's gonna be between us, them, Donegal and the Dubs for survival, even at this early stage...

screenexile · February 16, 2009, 01:04:04 PM

I didn't have a programme so I don't know who McDaniel is Croi sorry. None of the subs had an impact on the game really though.

Yes Kerry up in the 'Screen in 3 weeks time. I would expect a much bigger crowd next time round and a good battle for the top of the league!

Hoof Hearted · February 16, 2009, 01:08:15 PM

which gate will you be on screen and i will try to get free entry !

Will Hunting · February 16, 2009, 02:17:34 PM

Quote from: Croí na hÉireann on February 16, 2009, 12:53:14 PM
How did young McDaniel get on? Any WH subs make any sort of impact??? Win against Mayo the next day is imperative now, looks like it's gonna be between us, them, Donegal and the Dubs for survival, even at this early stage...

McDaniel was the young corner forward who scored the opening point of the game. A good score it was too, but it was almost all he did for the remainder of the match. Glennon looked like he could score from any angle when given the opportunity, but Dolan got tied up further out the pitch, and despite scoring three points never got into the game. Not sure of who the Westmeath subs were, but in the second half the game was over as a contest really, and they struggled to turn things around.

Duffy the midfielder looked good in the opening half, but i think he tired as the game wore on and Derry continued to dominate. He's a serious size of a man though. If yous can get Flanagan back (i assume he's injured?) then, that'll be a decent westmeath midfield, as o'donoghue is slighly limited here i think.

Croí na hÉireann · February 16, 2009, 02:32:01 PM

Thanks lads. Looks like our problem was getting the ball into the inside forwards so. Duffy is only coming back from injury and yes Flan is out injured. I would expect O'Donoghue to move to wing forward when they and O'Shaughnessey are fully fit as he's got a good delivery of the ball. For all of Smyth's workrate I would question his delivery, doesn't exactly put much pace on the ball. All to do for the visit to Mayo in 3 weeks...

Oakleafer1993 · February 16, 2009, 03:08:50 PM

Derry Sink Lakemen
It was Valentine's weekend and following a 14-point victory over Westmeath at Ballinascreen yesterday, the Derry players were certainly feeling the love. They entered the dressing-room at both half-time and full-time with heavy applause ringing in their ears. There was no doubt, the Oakleaf following liked what they saw.

And rightly so; because this was an excellent Derry performance. We'll not rush to package things up and place it in a box labelled 'Perfect', and God knows, February is not even close to being the time for waxing lyrical over a team's performance, but Derry are certainly on the right track. Oakleaf manager Damian Cassidy described the win as "encouraging", and this is probably the correct view to take after only the second league game.

The spread of scorers was a particularly pleasing facet of the Derry performance. Eight separate scorers overall. The full-forward line did all that was asked of them. Eoin Bradley led the line well, with himself and Paul Bradley both notching five points. Eoghan Brown's hard-working performance was rewarded when he grabbed the game's only goal. The industrious wing forward duo of Brian Mullan and Enda Lynn both got their names on the scoresheet. Lynn totalled three points and is proving extremely effective as a runner from deep, while Brian Mullan showed constantly to help Derry quickly release possession from defence. Paul Carton and Gerard O'Kane (two points) also added scores from their defensive positions. Put simply, Derry were not relying on one or two men to win a game.

The majority of Derry's scores came from close range. This is something Tyrone have perfected in recent times, and the 30 yard radius in front of goal was a hotbed of activity for Derry throughout yesterday's match. This is a clear part of Derry's new system of play; with the full-forward line leaving space for the half-forwards and attacking half-backs (who, at times, attacked in droves). Sounds simple enough, but the players must show the energy and intelligence to carry it out effectively.

A major talking point before the game was the inclusion of Barry McGoldrick at centre half back. The Coleraine man was outstanding yesterday in what has been a problem position for Derry in recent seasons. He made some telling interceptions, showed power and poise on the ball, and displayed his excellent range of distribution. He will be tried at centre-back again, when other sides may display more attacking intent, pushing him onto the back-foot and asking questions of his defensive abilities; but if yesterday's showing is an indicator, he has the potential to make this berth his own.

In praising Derry though, we must judge the performance against that of their opponents. Westmeath are a tough resilient outfit, but they effectively collapsed in the second period yesterday after putting it up to Derry in the first-half. Denis Glennon was their key threat, scoring three classy points, but his move out the field in the second-half symbolised the problems the Lakemen were experiencing. And it did little to ameliorate them. Derry continued to dominate possession and were able to match this with some clinical score-taking during a final quarter that resembled a training match.

Damian Cassidy will be content with the performance, but Derry's next outing won't resemble a training match. Kerry will be in town. They've had an impressive enough NFL start themselves, and after last year's Final they have a score to settle. That game might provide a more accurate reflection of how far Derry have really progressed so far this season.

DERRY: B Gillis; B Óg McAlary, S M Lockhart, G O'Kane (0-2); P Carton (0-1), B McGoldrick, C McKaigue; F Doherty, J Diver; E Lynn (0-3), J Kielt, B Mullan (0-1); E Brown (1-0), E Bradley (0-5), Paul Bradley (0-5, three frees). Subs: Paddy Bradley (0-1) for Kielt (43 mins), Patsy Bradley for Diver (49 mins), S L McGoldrick for Lynn (56 mins), Paul Young for Brown (59 mins), K McGuckin for B McGoldrick (62 mins, blood sub)