Messages

If Francie does retire, he'll go out as a defender of high renown - a defender who just did the simple things well, a defender who put his team before himself always, who was teak tough, who was respected by all and feared by most.

He was quiet, umassuming, shy, retiring and above all honest.


I for one will really miss him as he brought toughness, physicality, honesty every time he went out on the field.

Ok, he sailed close to the wind on occasions but I respected his honesty, his will to win and his ability to use to the maximum the skills / gifts that God gave him. He tried to be the best he could be and tried his damnest every day. A great servant to Armagh and thank God for Joe Kernan - otherwise we might never have seen him.

All the best Francie if you decide to hand them up from the orange jersey.

I think your eulogy is way over the top. An average player at most. As for honesty, ask Micky Linden. Now there is a player who deserves the accolades and not what he got in Casement Park that day.

Yes, but I feel you taking the extremes at both end. Firstly, this was a division 2 game where teams actually want to win to gain promotion. secondly they are generally regarded as two of the best supported counties.
now lets take Division 1 games last weekend. Donegal/Tyrone..... 1,000. Derry/Galway... 2,000. Kerry/W'meath 2,000. Dublin/mayo....2,000. This was a beautiful Spring day.

Totally agree Tyurone Dreamer. County use the Mckenna Cup and national league aswarm up games and for experimental reasons with neither managers nor players oiverconcerrned about the result, managers claiming that they just want to avoid relegation. As far as the champiuonship is concerned, it really only hots up come the last 12 of the qualifiers with many teams competing in a competition they have no realistic chance of winning. Think your idea of two groups of eight is an excellent idea. also think that if we had a competition for 32 super clubs like the Heineken Cup in Rugby would really inject some new energy into the GAA world as the National league is so boring and the attendances at games bear this out!

Does the GAA need to review it'd competitions? I think that there is little importance being attached to a number of major competitions. the Railway Cups are dead in the water but still continue and my feeling is that the National League is heading in the same direction with small crowds, little publicity, particularly the first division with managers claiming that they have no interest in winning it and only using it as experimental. No one seems to perturbed when their county loses. How can things be spiced up like the rugby?

I was surprised that there wasn't a furore over the Armagh v Laois Melee? It was by any standards a mass brawl with substitutes and officials involved. Why would this be?

Agree totally with the above post. Was sickened by the personal attacks on Ryan McMenamin this past few weeks which were way over the top in my opinion. Some of the comments about O'Mahony last year also crossed a line from what I remember.

To be fair, apart from doire na raithe's comment, everything else I have read has been grand.  Would the comments be any different if you were chatting to people all over the country in a pub ?

And he is a student at  Queen's University!

Mockba where's your crayons?

As a past and proud Queen's student and Sigerson Cup Player and having read some of your past postings, I sincerely hope that you are not a student in our university.

With my reckoning, UUJ had a very small number of county players this year. Going on this weekends national league, I believe that Hughes of Monaghan and cavanagh were the onlyt players who started for their counties. Have never been impressed wiuth young forker, not a stop scorer nor creates many chances either. Maybe Big Joe bringing him in too young might have something to do with his lack of development. I was surprised at UUJ's defeat but when you read the NUIG team and saw trhe number of real established county players on their team and indeed on the other southern university teams, i realised that 3rd level football up here isn't what we might think.

 i was as proud as any armagh man/person when we the Ulster last year-- just pointing out that we didn't beat any of the big guns to do so. Also of the cross players who are missing- IMO only Aaron Kernan would make a difference.  point i'm trying to make is that we have slid down the pecking order and are no longer a serious thnreat for the bigger honours.

Is it not time that Armagh realised that they are not in the second division for the third [fourth ]year in a row for nothing. name a top eight team Armagh have beaten in the last 18 months? As regards the new rules, remember that Joe Kernan was a member of the committee who put them in Place.

Winnie, Armagh have not had a full squad for the majority of the last three league campaigns due to Cross's success.............are Dublin not in the top eight teams in the country, drew with AI semi finalists Cork last year. As regards the rules, personally I don't have any complaints as yet, most of the complaints on this thread have been about the way they were implemented last night.

Yes Dublin was the one. Name all the cross players - Paul hearty [ would he have made trhe difference] Aaron Kernan, Francie Bellew [long past his best] and stephen and tony who are not even sure of their place with Cross.  Let me remind you of the championship-- cavan relegated to Division 3--- Down-Division 3 -- Fermanagh-- promoted from Division -- Wexford -- promoted from Division 3.

Is it not time that Armagh realised that they are not in the second division for the third [fourth ]year in a row for nothing. name a top eight team Armagh have beaten in the last 18 months? As regards the new rules, remember that Joe Kernan was a member of the committee who put them in Place.

Whendoes Jordanstown play St. Mary's and where is it?

I have viewed a lot of the messages and read many of the reports of Wednesday's game. As a Queen's old boy, I must admit to being very disappointed at what I saw. I had been told that this was one of the best Queen's teams ever, they were outplayed in every aspect of the game and were out thought obviously before the game and during the game on and off the field of play. I was also disappointed with the behaviour of some the players when it was obvious that we weren't going to win, this was never the Queen's way! Also, would it not have been possible to have had a scoreboard and a path to the playing field that would not have had us covered in muc, surely we have lagged behind the times and have not moved on since my time and that is not today or yesterday.
Good luck to UUJ in the remainder of the competitrion, you looked a well trained and organised team.