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0-04 to 0-03 to Cork at half time.

At 3 points to no score I believed we might go in at half time on top for the first time this year, but unfortunately it was not to be and normality has resumed.

Following Down long enough to know they always let you Down. Majority of time anyway.

Heart gets the better of the head every single time though.


Now 0-07 to 0-03.

Pitch inspections going on at the minute apparently. Looks alright in the photos to be fair.

0-04 to 0-03 to Cork at half time.

At 3 points to no score I believed we might go in at half time on top for the first time this year, but unfortunately it was not to be and normality has resumed.

Fair enough but I'd suggest neither the Abbey or St Colmans benefit hugely at post 16 from new blood and anyway when did secondary school education start at 16? The fact is schools like St Paul's are now making an impact because they don't see themselves as elite. Down football can't depend on the old establishment any more. Times have changed and if the u21 result v Armagh is anything to go by Down football really does need to have a good look at itself.

I'm not disagreeing with those points and I think effectively 'buying' a MacRory (or as close as a college can come to it) is not the right approach. Schools should be developing players from first year through to when they leave rather than trying to attract the likes of Mooney in at 16. I know virtually nothing about the College but I think the management at the Abbey needs a looking at also.

Academic requirements are usually waived if you're a good enough player at the age of 16.

Cornish hurling.

Looks like a good excuse for an almighty brawl.

The men and women who fought and died in 1916 did so for Ireland - Derry and Cork, Dublin and Belfast, Newry and Galway, and every other town, village and townland I haven't named. To ask the 'northern brethren' of their thoughts on the 1916 commemorations (are these 'Northerners' not Irish too?)  is an insult first of all to anyone living north of the border - as if the opinions of someone in Crossmaglen are different to those of someone in Castleblaney - and secondly to the very people the commemorations are about.

[when was it even trialed at adult level?]

The mark is passed. Aussie Rules is now our national game.

when was it even trialed at adult level?

I mean, come on?
this is ridiculous

In the league a couple of years ago, 2013? Years flying I've lost track 

Closer to 2003 than 2013 I think.

There's no point discussing this topic with you judging by your posts on the FG thread, but virtually any reasonably sensible party would be a better alternative to the shower

There are things about FG's handling of the austerity that can easily be criticised. But it has to be said that under their watch that austerity has ended and so things will improve.

Hopefully the opinion polls are wrong or there is a serious transfer of votes to the 'non-establishment parties' after the first count. If FG get back in at all in any form as the bigger party, watch the Irish Water prosecutions and the evictions mount up in the next 12-24 months.

Hopefully the Irish water prosecutions will start, as there are many people with plenty of money stealing their service.

We'll see if the austerity has finished or whether that was a nice sweetener of a budget to try and buy an extra few seats today. There are plenty of people without 'lots of money' being chased by Irish Water to pay up.

It appears that about 56% of people never learn.

Tell us about the great alternatives.

There's no point discussing this topic with you judging by your posts on the FG thread, but virtually any reasonably sensible party would be a better alternative to the shower that decided to protect the bondholders and the other shower who kept implementing the type of austerity which has led to a homeless crisis and left Ireland with the second worst healthcare system in Europe, after (IIRC) war torn Ukraine. I suppose generations of family voting were just too hard to break in the end. Hopefully the opinion polls are wrong or there is a serious transfer of votes to the 'non-establishment parties' after the first count. If FG get back in at all in any form as the bigger party, watch the Irish Water prosecutions and the evictions mount up in the next 12-24 months.

It appears that about 56% of people never learn.

Excluding SF it would have to be AAA/PBP and then the Social Democrats.

So it's a no then?

I'm sceptical as to whether there's enough in this deal to secure an 'in' vote. This idea of 'ever closer union' is very wishy washy and will surely be pounced upon by the out campaign. The early signs are that there will be no real reversal of EU encroachment onto British sovereignty - or whatever way you want to put it - aside from concessions on future immigrants, which might anger some people.

Are there any other apps for Irish? I thought it was ok. I did irish as far as a level and I forget it all now. So I thought it was handy enough for remembering words I'd previously forgot

I did it to GCSE but I thought that was what got me through the Duolingo 'tests', rather than actually learning new words, it was that I roughly knew what a word meant and the fact that it gave me options meant I copped on that it was an apple or a sandwich or whatever. I saw a series of podcasts once for learning "Ulster Irish", I'll see if I can find it here.


EDIT: http://www.easyirish.com/

There we go, based in Strabane. I'm gonna give it a lash soon.

Download duolingo app. Good for picking up basic words and phrases. Can use it fr other languages.

Found it useless myself, the lack of a vocabulary list to actually study and memorise lets it down.