Connacht Senior Championship 2018

[Rossfan]

Not much talk about this game probably arising from a general feeling of anxiety around the County.
Also hard to predict what might happen.
Will the new improved super Galway blow us away like the Rhus did last August?
We'll hardly catch them like we did last year.
We have only played well in spurts in games all year.

Hopefully we'll not get blown away and that our bench will get us over the line in the closing minutes.

[An Fhairche Abu]

Both teams look to have improved from last year, the previous two years of championship form between the sides has shown that you'd be a brave man to be very sure of your prediction for this match given how wildly the result has swung from draw match to Roscommon hammered to Galway hammered.

[manfromdelmonte]

Roscommon failed to bury Leitrim like Galway did to Sligo
You'd have to say Galway's development has accelerated hugely over the winter and they should win this.
Roscommon actually have a poor record in the Hyde v Galway

[Rossfan]

Indeed. Must be as far back as 1990 since we bet them there in the Championship?
Then again I think our overall Championship record against them since is 2 wins, 2 draws and 8 defeats.
On the other hand Sundays game will be decided by what happens on the field  next Sunday not by the past.

[Jinxy]

How's the Hyde looking?
Are ye onto the 2nd cut yet?

[Blowitupref]

Roscommon failed to bury Leitrim like Galway did to Sligo
You'd have to say Galway's development has accelerated hugely over the winter and they should win this.
Roscommon actually have a poor record in the Hyde v Galway

Probably more to do with Sligo leaving themselves wide open at the back while Leitrim played defensive with the main aim to keep a clean sheet.

Galway put a lot of energy into the winter and spring months and they could have themselves burnt out by July. Meanwhile Roscommon gained promotion without needing to go all out.

Galway no question have improved especially in defence playing the best teams and players in Div one does that but i'd still fancy the rossies to win but only by the narrowest of margins this time. Key for Roscommon will be to keep 15 men on the field and to be more potent in attack than Mayo were against Galway on May 13th.

[An Fhairche Abu]

Roscommon failed to bury Leitrim like Galway did to Sligo
You'd have to say Galway's development has accelerated hugely over the winter and they should win this.
Roscommon actually have a poor record in the Hyde v Galway

Probably more to do with Sligo leaving themselves wide open at the back while Leitrim played defensive with the main aim to keep a clean sheet.

Galway put a lot of energy into the winter and spring months and they could have themselves burnt out by July. Meanwhile Roscommon gained promotion without needing to go all out.

Galway no question have improved especially in defence playing the best teams and players in Div one does that but i'd still fancy the rossies to win but only by the narrowest of margins this time. Key for Roscommon will be to keep 15 men on the field and to be more potent in attack than Mayo were against Galway on May 13th.

Good job this match is in the middle of June so!

[Blowitupref]

Roscommon failed to bury Leitrim like Galway did to Sligo
You'd have to say Galway's development has accelerated hugely over the winter and they should win this.
Roscommon actually have a poor record in the Hyde v Galway

Probably more to do with Sligo leaving themselves wide open at the back while Leitrim played defensive with the main aim to keep a clean sheet.

Galway put a lot of energy into the winter and spring months and they could have themselves burnt out by July. Meanwhile Roscommon gained promotion without needing to go all out.

Galway no question have improved especially in defence playing the best teams and players in Div one does that but i'd still fancy the rossies to win but only by the narrowest of margins this time. Key for Roscommon will be to keep 15 men on the field and to be more potent in attack than Mayo were against Galway on May 13th.

Good job this match is in the middle of June so!

July football is when Galway will be judged on not Sunday. They have reached a few All Ireland quarter finals in recent years and have gone no further they now need to be reaching All Ireland semi final this summer and then without question they have backed up a good league with a good championship.

[GalwayBayBoy]

Bit odd that it's the only football game on this weekend.

As for the match itself not easy to predict a winner but I don't think they'll be a repeat of Galway in last year's Connacht final where they brought zero intensity and workrate and pretty much stood off Roscommon from the first whistle and let them play and they have some very good forwards in particular if you give them time and space to get their head up, look around and knock the ball about. Defensive systems apart both sets of forwards look superior to most of the backs that will be marking them. Galway probably have a slight edge in midfield but they did last year too and didn't perform in that sector whatsoever either. So whoever gets it tactically right on the day will give themselves a great chance.

[Maroon Manc]

Bit odd that it's the only football game on this weekend.

Aye, considering there's 3 provincials finals next weekend. Munster Final should be this weekend.

[Rossfan]

Frank didn't want it interfering with the hurley stuff

[An Fhairche Abu]

July football is when Galway will be judged on not Sunday. They have reached a few All Ireland quarter finals in recent years and have gone no further they now need to be reaching All Ireland semi final this summer and then without question they have backed up a good league with a good championship.

I'm not sold that Galway need to be reaching the all Ireland semi final to have had a good championship. Galway making the last four, given the potential challengers that could comprise the 3 other teams in the round robin, would be an over achievement in my opinion.

They have not performed at all in either of the past two Quarter finals that they made, in fact Galway have been flat, poor in multiple lines of the team and easily beaten.
Given that Division One status was retained in the Spring, the remaining objectives this year are to (a) reach the Super 8s (preferably by winning Connacht next Sunday en route) and (b) perform well in the 3 round robin matches.
If Galway play well and that gets them to a semi final, fantastic. If they don't make it but have performed credibly in the Super 8s then I would consider that a good championship.

If they don't make the Super 8s or perform as badly in it as previous Q-final performances, or suffer from burn out during July as you've speculated, then the championship year will have been a failure overall.

[mouview]

July football is when Galway will be judged on not Sunday. They have reached a few All Ireland quarter finals in recent years and have gone no further they now need to be reaching All Ireland semi final this summer and then without question they have backed up a good league with a good championship.

I'm not sold that Galway need to be reaching the all Ireland semi final to have had a good championship. Galway making the last four, given the potential challengers that could comprise the 3 other teams in the round robin, would be an over achievement in my opinion.

They have not performed at all in either of the past two Quarter finals that they made, in fact Galway have been flat, poor in multiple lines of the team and easily beaten.
Given that Division One status was retained in the Spring, the remaining objectives this year are to (a) reach the Super 8s (preferably by winning Connacht next Sunday en route) and (b) perform well in the 3 round robin matches.
If Galway play well and that gets them to a semi final, fantastic. If they don't make it but have performed credibly in the Super 8s then I would consider that a good championship.

If they don't make the Super 8s or perform as badly in it as previous Q-final performances, or suffer from burn out during July as you've speculated, then the championship year will have been a failure overall.

I wouldn't, to be fair. Bar Dublin and perhaps (new, untested) Kerry, I think all other teams are of a muchness. Mayo are in general good enough to be semi-finalists, subject to prior rounds not taking too much out of them. Galway, by dent of their league displays, should be aiming minimally towards a last-4 at this stage. They are still on the improvement curve and personally I think some of their defenders will be badly exposed before the summer is over, but at this point it's hard to argue that there are at least 4 betters teams than them remaining.

Sunday could be about which KW shows up; the conservative one v Mayo, or the one who threw off the shackles v Sligo and produced a scoring blitz. Or as he says himself, Plan A B & C.

[Syferus]

July football is when Galway will be judged on not Sunday. They have reached a few All Ireland quarter finals in recent years and have gone no further they now need to be reaching All Ireland semi final this summer and then without question they have backed up a good league with a good championship.

I'm not sold that Galway need to be reaching the all Ireland semi final to have had a good championship. Galway making the last four, given the potential challengers that could comprise the 3 other teams in the round robin, would be an over achievement in my opinion.

They have not performed at all in either of the past two Quarter finals that they made, in fact Galway have been flat, poor in multiple lines of the team and easily beaten.
Given that Division One status was retained in the Spring, the remaining objectives this year are to (a) reach the Super 8s (preferably by winning Connacht next Sunday en route) and (b) perform well in the 3 round robin matches.
If Galway play well and that gets them to a semi final, fantastic. If they don't make it but have performed credibly in the Super 8s then I would consider that a good championship.

If they don't make the Super 8s or perform as badly in it as previous Q-final performances, or suffer from burn out during July as you've speculated, then the championship year will have been a failure overall.

I wouldn't, to be fair. Bar Dublin and perhaps (new, untested) Kerry, I think all other teams are of a muchness. Mayo are in general good enough to be semi-finalists, subject to prior rounds not taking too much out of them. Galway, by dent of their league displays, should be aiming minimally towards a last-4 at this stage. They are still on the improvement curve and personally I think some of their defenders will be badly exposed before the summer is over, but at this point it's hard to argue that there are at least 4 betters teams than them remaining.

Sunday could be about which KW shows up; the conservative one v Mayo, or the one who threw off the shackles v Sligo and produced a scoring blitz. Or as he says himself, Plan A B & C.

Are you seriously questioning what Galway turns up? Against a team that hammered them last year? This Galway team only come out to play when the opposition is vastly inferior as Sligo clearly were. Every other game they clinge to their Ulsterball system for dear life, even in situations where they have a numerical advantage like the league final and the Mayo match.

[mouview]

Maybe the Galway team that were 'unhammered' by Roscommon 2 years ago will show? Galway (KW) tend to be a horse-for-courses team, cutting their cloth according to needs. There was too much at stake v Mayo to allow the game to be open and free-scoring. When they had the extra man, they brought on another forward in place of a defender. Both sides played with most men back that day remember? Ditto the league final, I think Walsh largely wanted a trial run to see how the system ran against Dublin in a big game in CP. That they didn't win ultimately came down to Walsh's conservatism.

To repeat myself, Galway have improved defensively this year, not really because of Paddy Tally, but because they now have 2 ballsy defenders, Sean Andy and Kerin in the FB line, and they have dropped GOD from the HB line.

Which Roscommon team will show up Syf.? The one that hammered Galway last year or the supine one that surrendered to Mayo in the August replay?