Antrim Football Thread

[glens abu]

Any views on the new team that the Baker has around him for the new season.

[bannside]

Paul Mc Flynn was a class act on the field, and is an absolutely brilliant fella off it too. The players will really love him being around the squad. Geroid could play a bit too, and will also be very popular. He wears his heart on his sleeve and also a great person to have in the management team. An Antrim man to the bone, will be there for all the right reasons.

Andy Ward captained Ulster rugby team to the Heineken Cup, so I wouldnt think he would be short on leadership outside of his strength and conditioning role. All in all, I think they are three fantastic appointments and would see great team morale emerging again as a result.

Its make or break time for Baker though. To my mind anything short of getting out of Division three will be an underachievement given the players at his disposal. His tenure has been a real mixed bag to my mind - we`ve seen a bit of everything!

[imtommygunn]

I think Paul McFlynn, while inexperienced in this role, could be a great addition. His intelligence on the field is something I could very much see feeding into this kind of role very well.

Also I think we are ok in terms of cardiovascular fitness but I think a lot of our players lack the strength that a lot of other county teams develop through winter weight training and years of conditioning work. Andy Ward will hopefully be a great addition who will have a completely objective view on things.

Not sure what Adams has done from a coaching perspective but always like him as a player so hopefully he'll bring to the backroom what he brought to the playing side of things.

Baker has had a mixed bag alright. Last year wasn't too great. There was a brief glimmer of being able to beat Down but that was quickly wiped out and the Donegal game wasn't too hot on top of the league games. Realistically division 3 is probably more our level though and the objective should be to push for promotion. We haven't great depth and hopefully with more players available next year we'll be more successful. It'd be good to blood a bit of youth in the league.

[4father]

While the rule is in place (for both) then it will continue.

I'd prefer that it didn't happen. In Juvenile it's been banned in Belfast, a lot of clubs not happy namely St Johns.

While we have had some lads come and play for us, I'd say none of them would have made a big difference in us winning what we have had lately.

But those players have certainly solidified your dominance though, wouldn't you agree?

No not really, have been to many Galls games?

Well off the top of my head, I can think of The Gallaghers from Fermanagh and Michael Pollock who came in to your team to solidify your dominance.  I know there are others aswell.

I also know that St Galls dont need those players to be where they are at and would do well enough with their own players but in terms of making them more dominant in Antrim football then I would stand over what I wrote.

[Milltown Row2]

Pants, if none of those players (good lads that they are) played for St Galls we would still have won as  many as titles. If you have  any knowledge of local teams or St Galls then you'd know that that.

that team won 5/6 minor titles plus 6 odd under 21 titles together, long before other players came along.

[DearyMe]

Backed you last time 4father, but youre talking as if you dont know what youre talking about!

Was involved in a debate the other day about this and was left with egg on my face!

Ronan Gallagher - 8 years now, Rory Gallagher and Mickey Pollock a few years at club.  The rest have been there practically all there lives. This notion that galls are a team of blow ins is ridiculous (and thats what we're getting at).  It is up for debate, as MR2 has stated, whether or not these guys have consolidated anything.

But regarding players going to other clubs - i could name you a lotta teams who have had many a fella join them!  The difference being - it goes under the radar because they prove unsuccessful!

That is the difference, and unfortunately for st.galls, they are in the public domain and under scrutiny at everyturn in the wonderful but cynical world of the GAA!

[saffron sam2]

Pants, if none of those players (good lads that they are) played for St Galls we would still have won as  many as titles. If you have  any knowledge of local teams or St Galls then you'd know that that.

that team won 5/6 minor titles plus 6 odd under 21 titles together, long before other players came along.

Off you go then.

List all of the St. Gall's teams that have won championships without any blow-ins.

There are members on every St. Gall's championship winning team who have played their entire careers with St. Gall's, others poached / joined at underage level and others who joined as seniors. I've seen it my place of work, where any able-bodied male member of staff is approached (the most recent a high profile Errigal Ciaran player) and where pupils are lured with the promise of great success.

To suggest St Gall's would have been as successful without the blow-ins is pants.

[Man Marker]

Mark Mc Rory (Armagh) played midfeld in how winning teams? Ronan Gallagher & Rory Gallagher (Fermanagh), John Rafferty (Armagh), yer wee man from carrickmor last year, did Short from Crossmaglen play also, it rings a bell, could be wrong, all thats off the top of my head without any indepth research into it

[Milltown Row2]

So we would not have won without them? Is that what you are saying Sam? Of the teams that won those under age championships how many where not St Galls players right through from under 12?


Ask your work mate and he will give you a better more educated response.

Team that won the All Ireland

St Gall's -- Ronan Gallagher; P Veronica, A McClean, C Brady; S Kelly, A Healy, M Kelly; S Burke, A Gallagher; T O'Neill, Kieran McGourty, Kevin McGourty; C McGourty, K Niblock, R Gallagher.

Are you saying had we not had those players in those positions we would not have won? All the other lads won right through juvenile together. There is not a club in the land that over the course of their history not had outsiders/blow ins in their team. We live in a city with no boundaries it happens. It's not a wee village parish somewhere in South Armagh

As for a list of all Championships without blow-ins I did, 5/6 minor and under 21 championships in a row were won by St Galls lads. Out of our control when someone leaves a club and wants to join a club. We have had many a good player leave the club and will continue to do so to join other clubs.

[Gold]

Theres no doubt a player like Pollock helped solidify St Galls at the top. A player like him would make a huge difference to any other team in the county. If he was added to the LD line-up in the final rather than the Galls it may have made the score closer--but no doubt St Galls have plenty of others to call on like CJ who didnt start, his brother Kevin, Ciaran Gallagher etc etc.

Galls are top class, freak group of talent who came together/were born at the same time--such a group that your opinion on who is their best player might change after every game if they played 365 days in a year.

Others who played for them during the last decade from other clubs/counties were Ciaran McCrossan (winning goal in Ulster final 2005), Gary McGirr, Damien McDonnell (all Tyrone), Eunan Ferguson (Ferm), John Kane (Down) etc. The reality with those aforementioned players is they all went to university in and settled in Belfast and didnt want/couldnt travel home to play for their 'birth' clubs. They now have a new home in Belfast and played for a team there--coming along through a friend, due to Galls reputation or whatever

The same has happened and will continue to happen in all clubs in Belfast and cities were people migrate to work. Reality is that Galls have more than a core of Gallsmen, there since birth (or just after!) playing senior football who are top class--the addition of 1 or 2 players from hasnt made them class but may have added somewhat.

Name me a club in Belfast who doesnt have someone from 'outside' who's moved into an area and played for a club, joining from another club.

Clubs aren't gonna turn people away who go and train with them and ask to play/transfer. How could a club say "no i dont care that you live here now but your originally from Fermanagh 80 to 100 miles away, if you wanna play football drive home after work 2 hours to drive 2 hours back to train with your 'old home' club" ?? Ridiculous.

The only thing thats hard to understand is how Rory Gallagher continues to play for Galls whilst living in Killybegs. He won an all ireland its mad to think of the travelling he does for a club game. Club must have made some impression on him. You'd think he'd be a candidate to give something back to his old home club in Beleek now he's living not too far away

[ONeill]

St Galls are masters at trawling the city for talent at Primary or just Post-Primary age. Wasn't young Terry O'Neill an example of systematic poaching or was that Burke? Or both?

[Milltown Row2]

Why don't you ask them O'Neil?

[ONeill]

Jaysus you'd know better than me. I could be completely wrong.

[gallsman]

Burkey joined from McDermotts at U12 I believe. He was a year behind me so may have still been U10.

Darren Harbinson joined at U16, below that played with Aldergrove because they live in the back of beyond. However, as Lenny's son and a cousin of the McGourtys, I don't really see any issue with it.

Wouldn't be familiar with St. Brigid's senior team at the minute but I know a few years ago they had the likes of Chris McCann and Decky O'Hagan who came in from other clubs. Obviously considering the relative youth of the club and their location, their first generation of senior teams had plenty of "non-natives".

The Clarkes from St. Galls moved to St. Johns, although that was nothing to do with recruitment or anything. Horsey McKillop joined St. Johns from Sarsfields. Players move around at underage in Belfast all the time.

[Milltown Row2]

Jaysus you'd know better than me. I could be completely wrong.

Exactly

Primary age? What are we talking about aged 5-6-7-8....?

These lads won under 12 football and hurling championships right through to under 21

Are you saying that you can tell at the age of 5 that the lad is going to be a cracker? I know loads of kids who showed great early promise and were crap at senior.

Come down to the club on a Saturday morning and see for yourself the effort and commitment show to over a hundred kids under the age of 10. There is no systematic poaching as you put it.

When I grew up there was no parish teams, and there still no parish teams in West Belfast, it's hard for country folk to get their heads around that but sure