Messages

Thought the Cross Castlebar game was superb.

Barry Moran lorded it for Castlebar in the middle of the park for Castlebar and they just dominated Cross in the second half. For me, the game was lost on the line for Cross, why did they leave it until injury time to introduce McKenna when Moran was so influential. He's the only player in the entire Cross squad with the size to match or negate Moran. If Cross could have broken an even or even 40% of the primary ball then they would have won such was the joy Clarke was having inside when the ball was going in.

Once again the old start a melee proved the surefire way to effectively run down the clock, that's not a slant on Castlebar either. Any team that has a serious notion of being successful at that level have to know how to bend the rules to their advantage, but when are referees going to clamp down on it and add the time on? It's the only way to combat and deter this which is becoming all the more commonplace.

How many of those Cross boys will join up with the Armagh panel now? Young O'Neill looks a big talent and Rushe at full back is definitely one to look out for. Actually felt sorry for Rushe today, very much a victim of the Cross arrogance/virtuousness in that he was left one on one on the edge of the square today with a guy who had a 3 or 4 inch advantage of him, maybe that's more of an indication of the modern game that I'm bemoaning that but I felt he did well under the circumstances.

Castlebar should win the final comfortably.

Ballyboden looked really average in the other semi.

Some of the players you guys are mentioning are good players no doubt but top class...Dunno.

For me top class forwards are players like

C Cooper
Pete the great
S O Neil
O McConville
SMcDonnell
B Brogan (Possibly)
M Murphy
B Coulter (Possibly)

I suppose a lot of it comes down to stuff they've won, or profile. Lads like Niall McNamee wouldn't have a chance of matching some of those lads for medals, but I guarantee you if you put him into th e forward lines they played in, he'd be seen as top class.

Yes i agree 100%...them men listed above was only my thinking of who a great forward is/was. Coulter was mentioned and prob should not be on the list as schkite said but it's only my opinion and def think Niall McNamee, M Forde, D Browne were great players but we'll never know what they'd have been like in an All Ireland semi or final under pressure with the country's best defenders hanging out of them...the guys mentioned above have done it and got the T shirt (Except Coulter...sort off but did play in an All Ireland final)

I agree with your point, but I think Mattie Forde showed enough of himself to be considered in that level.

Browne and McNamee were/are clearly talented players but there will always be that uncertainty about them through no fault of their own.

What's the next statement in this logical sequence?

Sean Russell looked for help from the Germans during WW2 when they were at war with a common enemy.
De Valera also sympathised with the Germans on the death of Hitler.

I went to Germany on holidays one time?

I thought it was obvious.

Openly forming a movement to embrace fascism is a bit different to seeking assistance from  the enemy of a common enemy who happen to be fascist.

[board]

Some amount of west Brits on this board... Jesus Christ..

Fixed that for you

Agreed.

You'd nearly think it is a Blueshirt forum with the denial and spin they put forward to everything.

Destro

I am not great at this internetting thingy .  Can you post a picture of a certain statue in Fairview Park ?

You want me to throw up a picture of vandalised statue to contrast it with a fascist gathering of the founding fathers of Fine Gael?

Quite a selective and edited view there.

Eoin O'Duffy wore many hats: he was a TD for Sinn Fein, Chief of Staff of IRA, leading figure in GAA, commissioner of newly formed Garda Siochana, leader of the Blueshirts, early leader of Fine Gael who soon distanced themselves from him and he went on to  launch the National Corporate Party, Irish Brigade, etc. He was a lot longer in Sinn Fein and the other parties than he was in Fine Gael (1 year). Sean Russell too was Chief of Staff of the IRA and he admired Hitler as O'Duffy did Mussolini/Franco. It could be argued that their fascism came from their Catholic Republican roots. There's always been a strong streak of fascism in that rather dark combination of Catholicism and Republicanism. The covering up of sexual abuse is yet another manifestation of that in modern day Republicanism.

Not selective at all. O'Duffy was a founding father of Fine Gael and The Blueshirts are intrinsically linked with Fine Gael.

Sean Russell looked for help from the Germans during WW2 when they were at war with a common enemy. De Valera also sympathised with the Germans on the death of Hitler.

[board]

Some amount of west Brits on this board... Jesus Christ..

Fixed that for you

Agreed.

You'd nearly think it is a Blueshirt forum with the denial and spin they put forward to everything.

Destro

I am not great at this internetting thingy .  Can you post a picture of a certain statue in Fairview Park ?

You want me to throw up a picture of vandalised statue to contrast it with a fascist gathering of the founding fathers of Fine Gael?

Gerry won hands down.

Took Martin to town when he was moralising about the O6.

What did Fianna Fail ever do for the O6? They stood by obsequiously while a foreign military raised hell on Irish soil in a sectarian statelet they were complicit in a situation they allowed fester. It's hard to listen to a guy talk about matters in the O6 when his party have no interest in them.

Fianna Fail were a party that introduced internment, so it's hardly surprising they are a bit warped on justice.

What whiskey or indeed whisky are you drinking !

I think it's the height of hypocrisy for politicians from the 26 who have no presence in the O6 to try and point score off The Troubles. They had a huge part to play in how the conflict festered and escalated and did absolutely nothing to intervene of protect the northern nationalists. They have never bothered to attempt to unearth the truth about the Dublin and Monaghan bombings but were willing to lock up republicans without a trial or any evidence.

Their party is shamed with interning republicans, sending them to death squads and allowing prisoners to starve themselves to death. The taste of power made them lose any sense of social conscience.

They have some f**king cheek to call themselves a Republican party, they have some bizarre interpretation of justice.

Gerry won hands down.

Took Martin to town when he was moralising about the O6.

What did Fianna Fail ever do for the O6? They stood by obsequiously while a foreign military raised hell on Irish soil in a sectarian statelet they were complicit in a situation they allowed fester. It's hard to listen to a guy talk about matters in the O6 when his party have no interest in them.

Fianna Fail were a party that introduced internment, so it's hardly surprising they are a bit warped on justice.

[It makes the Sigerson Cup unique in the football calendar and it would be of no interest at all, to anyone, if it consisted of non county players or U21s.]

So what if Universities are attracting counties players?? It makes the Sigerson Cup unique in the football calendar and it would be of no interest at all, to anyone, if it consisted of non county players or U21s. It's up to the universities who they allow onto courses and therefore anyone studying a course should be allowed to play. Its not the Universities job to develop players for county teams or nurture underage talent. A University's football club's objective is to win the Sigerson Cup - let them at I say!

It would predominantly be of interest to the players.
Just like it is now.
I couldn't care less who wins the Sigerson Cup.
This isn't America, Irish people don't have a massive connection to the university they went to once they're out of there.
Shag all people go to the games as well.

Excluding the best players from the thing that earns them scholarship money - one of the few tangible benefits of a sport now professional in all but pay - is reductive in the extreme.

So now you're for scolarships. Hard to keep up with your selective applications of your morals, Contradicterus.

Better leave Burns where he is at the minute as u21 will starting shortly and all the players currently in the senior setup will be heading off with them such as Brennan, Fox, McShane and Mulgrew.

Any word on the u21 panel for this year?

We should be pretty strong from 8-15 with McShane, Burns, Kavanagh, McGlone and Brennan added to guys like Daire Gallagher and Mulgrew still all underage but I think I'm right in saying that all our defenders from last year are overage this year?

Is Ruairi Kelly still u21? Surprised he didn't get a senior call up after his year with Trillick.

Turn it into an u-21 competition.
Problem solved.

Agreed.

They'll have 3 years to play Sigerson - you have to draw the line somewhere. This would prevent colleges trying to recruit well established county players to come and do masters courses at their establishment. I'm not against any mature student going back to college, good luck to them - they just aren't eligible to play sigerson.

I thought this had already been resolved, i.e Rules have been passed that you have 4 (or 5) years to play at college. So after freshers, each player would have 3-4 years at Sigerson. sligo could caught out on this last year regarding the Student Officer, as new rules limit the available years and prevent student officers.

Doesn't solve the problem of lads taking up nonsense courses as mature students for the sole purpose of playing football.

You mean a Masters or a PGCE are nonsense courses?

When the main reason they are in that college is because of the moneyhat they were given because they're good at football, yeah. Most of the big players would never choose to go to the UK and squander SUSI money if not for the money on offer.

FOAD you free state pig.

Plenty of intercounty GAA players from the 26 have gone over to university in England. Colm McFadden being one, Caoimhaoin King of Meath being another and I'm sure there are plenty other.

Now desist from talking out of your little weasel hole.

McFadden did his undergrad in NUIG and won a Sigerson with them in 2002. The point made was a valid one.

How so?

McFadden went to Liverpool to do a postgrad. What is the difference between him doing that and lads from the 26 going to universities in the O6 for the same purpose?

I think The Sigerson is a joke of a competition but there is plenty of hypocrisy flying round here. He was bemoaning the removal of sports scholarships as lads from Roscommon would not be able to attend university in Dublin. Yet he is morally outraged at UUJ attracting players with scholarships. His outright double standards are noticeable as is his spineless refusal to address them.

For post grads, fair enough. But he mentioned SUSI grants, so he was quite clearly talking about undergrads. And it's a fair comment, in my opinion, that very few prospective students from the 26 counties are likely to give up their option of cheap education that easily.

The Sigerson has problems for sure. I can't see, albeit from an outside view, how it can be so difficult to outline eligibility and base registration on that. However, it was and always will be a player's competition. I was one of those players once and I loved it. Within two years of leaving college I stopped looking out for that teams results, as my team mates had all finished. That's how it is.

But that's not necessarily true as Creggan pointed out.

You either fundamentally have a problem with universities being able to attract/entice players with scholarships or you don't.

You can't bemoan universities getting players due to scholarships on one hand then defend it on the other as he has done.

I personally feel county players shouldn't be playing university football as a lot of these guys have too much on their plate. I'd also have a moral objection to sports scholarships. These guys get benefits from their standing as GAA players, at the cost of who though? Other students who may have more of a claim to third level education?

But I would apply my own opinion fairly, across the board - evidently this is not the case here as one university is being singled out  for a practice that is seemingly commonplace.

Turn it into an u-21 competition.
Problem solved.

Agreed.

They'll have 3 years to play Sigerson - you have to draw the line somewhere. This would prevent colleges trying to recruit well established county players to come and do masters courses at their establishment. I'm not against any mature student going back to college, good luck to them - they just aren't eligible to play sigerson.

I thought this had already been resolved, i.e Rules have been passed that you have 4 (or 5) years to play at college. So after freshers, each player would have 3-4 years at Sigerson. sligo could caught out on this last year regarding the Student Officer, as new rules limit the available years and prevent student officers.

Doesn't solve the problem of lads taking up nonsense courses as mature students for the sole purpose of playing football.

You mean a Masters or a PGCE are nonsense courses?

When the main reason they are in that college is because of the moneyhat they were given because they're good at football, yeah. Most of the big players would never choose to go to the UK and squander SUSI money if not for the money on offer.

FOAD you free state pig.

Plenty of intercounty GAA players from the 26 have gone over to university in England. Colm McFadden being one, Caoimhaoin King of Meath being another and I'm sure there are plenty other.

Now desist from talking out of your little weasel hole.

McFadden did his undergrad in NUIG and won a Sigerson with them in 2002. The point made was a valid one.

How so?

McFadden went to Liverpool to do a postgrad. What is the difference between him doing that and lads from the 26 going to universities in the O6 for the same purpose?

I think The Sigerson is a joke of a competition but there is plenty of hypocrisy flying round here. He was bemoaning the removal of sports scholarships as lads from Roscommon would not be able to attend university in Dublin. Yet he is morally outraged at UUJ attracting players with scholarships. His outright double standards are noticeable as is his spineless refusal to address them.

Has Kenny ever came out and personally apologised for Ballyseedy?

[board]

Some amount of west Brits on this board... Jesus Christ..

Fixed that for you

Agreed.

You'd nearly think it is a Blueshirt forum with the denial and spin they put forward to everything.

Turn it into an u-21 competition.
Problem solved.

Agreed.

They'll have 3 years to play Sigerson - you have to draw the line somewhere. This would prevent colleges trying to recruit well established county players to come and do masters courses at their establishment. I'm not against any mature student going back to college, good luck to them - they just aren't eligible to play sigerson.

I thought this had already been resolved, i.e Rules have been passed that you have 4 (or 5) years to play at college. So after freshers, each player would have 3-4 years at Sigerson. sligo could caught out on this last year regarding the Student Officer, as new rules limit the available years and prevent student officers.

Doesn't solve the problem of lads taking up nonsense courses as mature students for the sole purpose of playing football.

You mean a Masters or a PGCE are nonsense courses?

When the main reason they are in that college is because of the moneyhat they were given because they're good at football, yeah. Most of the big players would never choose to go to the UK and squander SUSI money if not for the money on offer.

FOAD you free state pig.

Plenty of intercounty GAA players from the 26 have gone over to university in England. Colm McFadden being one, Caoimhaoin King of Meath being another and I'm sure there are plenty other.

Now desist from talking out of your little weasel hole.

How many of the UUJ team have been there since freshers?. Killian Clarke and Argue weren't.. Clarke was in AIT and Argue in DIT.. Paddy McBrearty was in Maynooth. Ryan McHugh was in Sligo It as was Evan Regan

Regan doing a Masters.

It's absolutely insane. UUJ winNing the Sigerson would make a mockery of the competition.

The Sigerson has been a mockery for a long time but that's what makes it interesting. Its purely about which Uni has the best players in any given year and watching a whos who of county players lining out for a team makes the games interesting. Tralee where at it years ago, DIT have been at it - UUJ aren't doing anything that they weren't doing 15 years ago. In my view the Sigerson is a competition that isn't taken too seriously, outside those that are taking part.

Nope. Vast majority of colleges don't field teams of players they nearly entirely poached from other colleges' courses. DCU got some abuse but they never did anything of the level of UUJ. What Jordanstown are doing is precipitating change by being so brazen in their abuse of the system.

Any evidence of this abuse other than the usual "dogs on the street" know.

If they were so brazen then why have they not been punished???

And a point of note;

UCD brought in scholarships to the GAA in 95-96, followed by DCU etc.
So is UCD's Sigerson win in 96 tainted? It must be, they had scholarship students, nobody else had!!!

Students transfer all the time, change of course, college closer to home etc, and if a student wants to go to a college to get a scholarship, then why not. And if UUJ is offering a good scholarship package, and a student want to avail of it, why the negative response. Surely everybody should be asking why their colleges are not stepping up to the plate in regards to scholarships.

This whole UUJ being the bad boys goes the whole way back to the 80's, when they had the audacity to enter the Sigerson. They were met with resistance from the established Sigerson colleges at the time due to the Jordanstown being a Poly and having HNDs etc. and the elite colleges at the time were not happy about it.

The fact that they are being focused on here, while giving other colleges a bye ball is a joke.

And finally, I'll go back to my first point. Any evidence of this abuse other than the usual "dogs on the street" know and if they were so brazen then why have they not been punished???

I wouldn't expect any sort of response,  this chap moral principles are skewed by parties involved. He doesn't even have the gumption to stand behind what he says. If you checked him out for a pair of balls, you only find a gaping fanny.

It's not so long ago that he was decrying Roscommon lads not being able to go to university without scholarships and now he's bitching about other universities offering sports scholarships.