Messages

Galway and Mayo due to meet again before the final, Roscommon have certainly been the main beneficiary from the draw in recent years not that they've taken advantage of it.

I'd be in favour of getting rid of the league if it meant a longer championship.

Run the provincial championships in March, start the championship in April with every team to play 6 games up until the end of July which allow every county to play at least 3 rounds of their own championship in that period.

Looks like we're going to go over old ground.

The main problem is that there is no appetite among players from "weaker" counties to participate in a graded system.

I'm not saying the players' opinions are the be all and end all but it's not a great starting point.

What about supporters from the so called 'weaker counties', I'd like to know what they think?

I'd have thought the County Boards from the weaker counties would be in favour as it theory they'd make more money on the gate.

As for the players they'd soon get used to it, the next generation wouldn't know any different as they'd have grown up with it.

Every county has a senior, intermediate and junior championship.
Junior clubs aren't up in arms that they don't get to play in the senior championship.
Inter-county football is the anomaly here.

Spot on, we get the odd shock but isn't enough to keep justifying the current format.

I think it will be back to the drawing board for Duffy & Co, I liked the idea of seeing more better quality games but in fairness to the teams who'd have little chance of making the final 8 it simply creates a bigger divide between the top and bottom.

I'd be in favour of a two tier championship and guaranteeing every county at least 6 championship games, would also like to see them shortening the league by a couple of games.

Cork apparently against the new structure, there's been a few rumours about a few county's who will vote against it. I think its unlikely it will get the 66.66% to get through at congress.

Kieran Shannon has an excellent piece in the Examiner today pointing out the big difference between the Mayo and Dublin forward lines and the ability of Dublin players to score with either foot.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/columnists/kieran-shannon/dublins-success-cultivated-by-the-team-pillar-caffrey-built-425114.html

Largely ignored by many of the Mayo contingent who get very defensive when you mentioned their lacking of scoring power from their forwards.

Portlaoise is some size of a place to only have one GAA club, I imagine I'm not the first to mention it.

I thought once Rooney had been dropped that the other manager would drop him too, the journo's are on his back now so the end is nigh.

The media are a pathetic, only a couple of weeks ago most were defending him. Lets see what his mates on BT have to say on him.

Huge couple of games coming up, I'd be delighted with 4 point.

Corofin are 1/10 to win in Galway and then even money for Connacht. Looking at the staring 15 and subs yesterday that is a very strong panel at this level.

I can't see any betting on the AI, anyone seen the odds anywhere?

I think we'd all have taken 7 points from the first 3 games. Looks like its going to be a really tight group with the top 4 all taking points from each other, Wales dropping points yesterday is a huge bonus. Win all the home games and pick up a point away from either Austria or Wales and I'd say Ireland will top the group.

I enjoyed it anyway, Coalisland took some great scores from distances especially in the 2nd half.

You'd think by now posters wouldn't take the bait.

Am I right in thinking Mayo will have no representatives in the Senior Club Championship this year?

MM do you really think many Mayo supporters would swap 26 year old Dean Rock for 24 year old Cillian? 

If we had 6 forwards who were kept scoreless from play for as long as the Dubs were we would be ridiculed from all quarters. But when the reverse occurs we are told to dump our lot and import the Dubs?

Hence why I said the 10 or so forwards on the panel, Mayo only have a few players of the calibre of COC whereas the Dubs have several more.

In the 3 finals where Mayo have been beaten in 12, 13 & 16 their forwards have a joint total of 9 points from play. That was the one off from the Dubs whereas the Mayo forwards have consistently not delivered in finals.