Antrim Hurling

[Tony Baloney]

Very frustrating not to get the draw at the end and I really think the ref should have have shown a bit of common sense and blown after Neill's free. So important to stay playing at this level, and ultimately it probably will come down to games against Offaly and Laois. If we do end up in bottom 2 it means a playoff which will be a huge game.

Beating Laois next week is a hard ask away from home and they did well on Saturday v Galway too.

If we end up us v Laois in a playoff, anyone know if we would be at home given the regular league game against them is away?

Thats also the first time in ages that an Antrim game had to be delayed to allow the crowd to get in - I was glad I had bought my ticket in advance!

The weather definitely helped. We tried to buy tickets the day before but it seems the GAA ticket site only sold them until midnight on Friday. Antrim had a poor end to the first half and a storming end to the second so overall I think a draw would have been the fair result and the ref should have blown it up. It would have felt like a win for Antrim.

[Craigyhill Terror]

Very frustrating not to get the draw at the end and I really think the ref should have have shown a bit of common sense and blown after Neill's free. So important to stay playing at this level, and ultimately it probably will come down to games against Offaly and Laois. If we do end up in bottom 2 it means a playoff which will be a huge game.

Beating Laois next week is a hard ask away from home and they did well on Saturday v Galway too.

If we end up us v Laois in a playoff, anyone know if we would be at home given the regular league game against them is away?

Thats also the first time in ages that an Antrim game had to be delayed to allow the crowd to get in - I was glad I had bought my ticket in advance!

If it's the same regulations as last year – a big if – Antrim would be at home because they had two matches at home during the League while Laois had three

[old timers]

Strange game and how we nearly managed to get a draw ill never know, i thought in the first half we where awful bar Neil. Forwards where totally non-existent and only for fouls we would have been out of sight. Start of the second half wasn't much better.

Was good to see they didn't give up though and fought till the end, Overall the backs done rightly bar a couple imo, midfiled was poor, young McNaughton made a difference when he came on. Up front was the usual antrim, our forwards scored 4 points from play and Neill scored 3 of them.

Great not getting hammered in these games but its important not to get carried away, the Laois game will tell us more of where we are at and i hope the confidence gained from these two games will help us.

Horse was not in the match and stayed on?? Could have been easily taken off or maybe not-McCambridge gave the foul for the Dublin point to win. Does that come from not being a forward regardless of where he played for the Dall.  Hurling is about scoring and if there's is only one doing it then the others shouldn't be fitted in somewhere else on the pitch IMO.  One person can't carry a team. Thought Sheedy would have had a bigger input but obviously not. Nepotism did spring to mind yesterday but that's just my view.

[BrendanAntrim]

. We tried to buy tickets the day before but it seems the GAA ticket site only sold them until midnight on Friday.

The cheaper pre match tickets were available in O'Neills up to COB on Saturday.

[Last Man]

Strange game and how we nearly managed to get a draw ill never know, i thought in the first half we where awful bar Neil. Forwards where totally non-existent and only for fouls we would have been out of sight. Start of the second half wasn't much better.

Was good to see they didn't give up though and fought till the end, Overall the backs done rightly bar a couple imo, midfiled was poor, young McNaughton made a difference when he came on. Up front was the usual antrim, our forwards scored 4 points from play and Neill scored 3 of them.

Great not getting hammered in these games but its important not to get carried away, the Laois game will tell us more of where we are at and i hope the confidence gained from these two games will help us.

Horse was not in the match and stayed on?? Could have been easily taken off or maybe not-McCambridge gave the foul for the Dublin point to win. Does that come from not being a forward regardless of where he played for the Dall.  Hurling is about scoring and if there's is only one doing it then the others shouldn't be fitted in somewhere else on the pitch IMO.  One person can't carry a team. Thought Sheedy would have had a bigger input but obviously not. Nepotism did spring to mind yesterday but that's just my view.

Square pegs in round holes as far as the midfield went, think it was Burke who conceded the free at the end but it would be harsh to be over critical of him for it. McCambridge being introduced to the forwards was a strange one all right. Would have liked to see him in the defence after Maskey went off. Few of us have any insight into the dynamics at training so we can only speculate but it's hard to see nepotism being a factor.

[NAG1]

We are basically lacking classy forwards of the right age profile.

We have loads of decent backs but we have no fire, we dont really even have someone to hold the ball up for, never mind create something.

[MoChara]

Ciaran Clarke would go a long way towards that

[Megaman]

Ciaran Clarke would go a long way towards that

Cracking player, where is he anyway. 

we have plenty of classy forwards, unfortunately they are a bit small and light, which i think is why Ryan was put on in forwards,  to help win some ball, it most certainly was not nepotism as he would be ahead of a couple of defenders that start IMHO

[north_antrim_hound]

Ciaran Clarke would go a long way towards that

Cracking player, where is he anyway. 

we have plenty of classy forwards, unfortunately they are a bit small and light, which i think is why Ryan was put on in forwards,  to help win some ball, it most certainly was not nepotism as he would be ahead of a couple of defenders that start IMHO

Clarke is injured but on the panel

[old timers]

We are basically lacking classy forwards of the right age profile.

We have loads of decent backs but we have no fire, we dont really even have someone to hold the ball up for, never mind create something.

Dont know that I would agree totally with that although what was on show on Sunday would make you think that.   Murphy and Maol both on the bench and McCambridge goes on as a forward ??  I thought Carson held the ball up well enough in forwards on Sunday  not a lot of pace but a physical presence to knock the ball down.   I watched Murphy last year against Armagh who between him and McNaughton came on and won the match and then I watched him down here in Cushendall where he proved to be a half decent free taker.  In McGurk cup matches he was scoring- granted a different  type of opponent and hes Maybe not the biggest but has speed and an eye for a ball, from what I remember??   As for Maol he is a good hurler and I didnt think he did a lot wrong last week in Galway and could have easily came on against Dublin.  IMO

[north_antrim_hound]

We are basically lacking classy forwards of the right age profile.

We have loads of decent backs but we have no fire, we dont really even have someone to hold the ball up for, never mind create something.

Dont know that I would agree totally with that although what was on show on Sunday would make you think that.   Murphy and Maol both on the bench and McCambridge goes on as a forward ??  I thought Carson held the ball up well enough in forwards on Sunday  not a lot of pace but a physical presence to knock the ball down.   I watched Murphy last year against Armagh who between him and McNaughton came on and won the match and then I watched him down here in Cushendall where he proved to be a half decent free taker.  In McGurk cup matches he was scoring- granted a different  type of opponent and hes Maybe not the biggest but has speed and an eye for a ball, from what I remember??   As for Maol he is a good hurler and I didnt think he did a lot wrong last week in Galway and could have easily came on against Dublin.  IMO

Agree on murphy, he seems very effective when some space appears in the last ten
Mc Cambridge had an influence on making the ball stick up front so I could see their logic.
Thought Carson was poor enough, struggles in the air and first touch was bad
TBH we have very little ball winners and midfield was poor to Mc Naughton came on
We were lucky that Sutcliffe, Ryan,Keaney  and Rushe had no matches prior to the game
Mc Manus did an serious amount of fire fighting in our weak positions
Why are we so bad in the air as well

[Milltown Row2]

Why was there a small amount of Loughgiel men on that team?

[NAG1]

Why was there a small amount of Loughgiel men on that team?

Who would you have on MR2 and where would you put them?

Young McNaughton is a talent no doubt, my point was that there isnt that group with the right talent at the right age for county hurling.

Well the management are putting McCambridge on ahead of the other two lads mentioned that maybe tells you about their opinions on them and they see them day in day out.

[Milltown Row2]

Why was there a small amount of Loughgiel men on that team?

Who would you have on MR2 and where would you put them?

Young McNaughton is a talent no doubt, my point was that there isnt that group with the right talent at the right age for county hurling.

Well the management are putting McCambridge on ahead of the other two lads mentioned that maybe tells you about their opinions on them and they see them day in day out.

I'm not sure to be honest, but they haven't fallen away that much to have so few players that would be able to show their skills at county level? 

You are right NAG if the management see things the way they want then that's their prerogative. I just asked the questions as to why so little from that team..

I was with a Dall man and his son on Sunday and I thought i only picked out 3 or 4 players from Cushendall at the start, obviously more came on, injuries to players and tactically changing the game, which we nearly drew..

We have been a relatively small team for years, and that's been a downfall in my book when you look around the other teams, certainly Dublin and Galway would be the biggest physically about, that's why is hard to field balls and take the hits, which will reduced the strength of the smaller lads..
That's not taking anything away from the players, like myself that is vertically challenged lol. They have the finer parts of their game that they work on that a larger player will struggle with. But pumping aimless balls into a small corner forward is not going to win games

[Last Man]

Why was there a small amount of Loughgiel men on that team?

Who would you have on MR2 and where would you put them?

Young McNaughton is a talent no doubt, my point was that there isnt that group with the right talent at the right age for county hurling.

Well the management are putting McCambridge on ahead of the other two lads mentioned that maybe tells you about their opinions on them and they see them day in day out.

I'm not sure to be honest, but they haven't fallen away that much to have so few players that would be able to show their skills at county level? 

You are right NAG if the management see things the way they want then that's their prerogative. I just asked the questions as to why so little from that team..

I was with a Dall man and his son on Sunday and I thought i only picked out 3 or 4 players from Cushendall at the start, obviously more came on, injuries to players and tactically changing the game, which we nearly drew..

We have been a relatively small team for years, and that's been a downfall in my book when you look around the other teams, certainly Dublin and Galway would be the biggest physically about, that's why is hard to field balls and take the hits, which will reduced the strength of the smaller lads..
That's not taking anything away from the players, like myself that is vertically challenged lol. They have the finer parts of their game that they work on that a larger player will struggle with. But pumping aimless balls into a small corner forward is not going to win games

Forgetting the size aspect its also kind of pointless when its a 4 on 2 or 3 on 1 in the ffwd line, more work needed on how we create more realistic scoring chances.