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Burren will win the PRFC...CPN have a decent team but there were only a few teams that could win the PRFC...Burren are the best team by a street, Kilcoo and Clonduff next. CPN have played nobody decent until Carryduff. Burren will walk the final, their seconds would beat most senior teams...loads of U20s playing and that was a lot of the team who came through unbeaten in the whole of underage football. Burren people have never been more confident and they all say they will win the SFC and PRFC this year...they won't be beaten again this year at senior level...

Haven't heard anything in Burren about not being beaten again this year from the locals. So don't know where this is coming from. If anything quite a few are quite pessimistic about the championship.

Like everyone they are looking at Kilcoo thinking there might be signs of a dip in form and with injuries they might not be the force they were, but also know Kilcoo will be a different proposition come championship.

There seems to be very little between the top 4 or 5 teams in the league this year so should be interesting championship.

Lotto your shameful and faceless dig should have resulted in a ban.

I am trying to purchase tickets for Saturday's match for the children, can these be got online?

No idea what ticket allocation will be like or how many will be allowed. I hear the Down supporters club are running a bus/buses.

Its near Wednesday afternoon, you would think the public could be informed

Heard 2000 allowed in total.

By the time Croke Park, Provincial and County Boards take their cut for sponsors etc. Players/Coaches and their families get their allocation there could only be a few hundred left for general sale.

With so few they might just distribute them all through the clubs - keep an eye on the Down social media is best bet.

Has this Burren team ever lost lost a game at this age group?

I can't remember it happening.

Won u12 league u14 league and champ, u16 league and champ and now u17.

Plus county and national feile u14. U16 mcgirr.

Only blip was u16 league  - but that was an unusual situation in that they entered 2 teams (split their 'A' team players evenly between the 2 teams) I think in the league stages 1 team drew with Bredagh and one lost (can't remember exactly). The 2 Burren teams met in semi and them won the league.

But when the full team was together they haven't lost a game that I can remember.

As for S&C - don't think Burren would do any more than any other club (but could be wrong). But most of these boys are in county squads and school teams. So the combination of S&C over 3 squads might make a difference I suppose.

But bottom line - they're all good footballers - and extremely well organised.

You should've read both posts and seeing as you're such a know it all surely you can answer the question.  One organisation?  One set of rules?

What did the Ulster Council tell you on friday night?

FWIW, each county can have its own bylaws which were published prior to the championship..

The thing to understand is that it's not the GAA who define a Covid 'outbreak' and the resulting containment protocols.

So the Down CB set a 72 hour rule which applied to RGU (unfortunately for them).

But in the 6 counties the PHA is the body that will decide if players have to self isolate.

I don't know what the exact situation was in the case of RGU, but the PHA must have deemed enough players to be close contacts or tested positive to have caused RGU not to be able to field.

Similarly in the case alluded to in an earlier post with Burren minors a player tested positive but was deemed to be a casual contact  - so the team could play on (although they postponed a game while waiting on PHA advice),but the player and his close contacts would have to self isolate. Also I heard ML Connolly (BBC health journalist) who's son plays for Bredagh recount exactly the same situation as the Burren one to a health expert on the BBC last week with the same outcome.

Ultimately the PHA don't care if you're a GAA club or a choir or a tiddly winks club - they'll just look at the evidence and advise accordingly.

Would anyone have the team and scorers from Saturdays league game in Tullylish? PR for underage football in Down is brutal when you look at likes of Antrim, Tyrone etc

u17s starting lineup:

1. A Murdock - Burren
2. F McEvoy - Saval
3. P McCarthy - Burren
4. O McCrickard - Liatroim
5. C Rogers - Kilcoo
6. R Magill- Burren
7. W Kelly - Clonduff
8. O Murdock - Burren
9. J Howlett - CPN
10. J Morgan - Kilcoo
11. N Toner - Burren
12. O Cunningham - RGU
13. J Duggan - Burren
14. O Savage - Loughinisland
15 Z Murdock - Burren

Can't recall all the scorers.

Didn't see much of the u16s so couldn't give you the team.

Any idea what Clubs they are all from?

Think that's right - apologies in advance if I've got any wrong.

Would anyone have the team and scorers from Saturdays league game in Tullylish? PR for underage football in Down is brutal when you look at likes of Antrim, Tyrone etc

u17s starting lineup:

1. A Murdock
2. F McEvoy
3. P McCarthy
4. O McCrickard
5. C Rogers
6. R Magill
7. W Kelly
8. O Murdock
9. J Howlett
10. J Morgan
11. N Toner
12. O Cunningham
13. J Duggan
14. O Savage
15 Z Murdock

Can't recall all the scorers.

Didn't see much of the u16s so couldn't give you the team.

[St Colmans will keep good footballers even if they academically under achieve @ GCSE whereas Abbey would not - although I'm not sure if this is still the case - definitely was throughout 80s 90s and 2000s.]

I see St Colmans are into semi final and have a great chance in getting to a final. A question for the south Down members. Is the abbey a smaller school and do the college get the first pick in players. It seems as if the college always get better teams, why is this?

Numbers wise they're roughly the same.

Reasons why St Colmans do better - probably a few.

St Colmans have a larger and more rural catchment (this probably comes from the fact it was a boarding school in the past) - the decline of football in Newry can't help Abbey.

St Colmans have the tradition - even when Newry football was strong St Colmans did better than Abbey.

With that St Colmans have the coaches who have been there and have the know how to win McRory.

St Colmans will keep good footballers even if they academically under achieve @ GCSE whereas Abbey would not - although I'm not sure if this is still the case - definitely was throughout 80s 90s and 2000s.

This year has definitely opened up with Omagh getting knocked out - Omagh thrashed St Colmans in the McCormack they'll be glad to see them out. Very open McRory now.

The only comment I'll make here is that the bit on bold couldn't be any further off the mark if an Abbey forward needed to kick it to win a MacRory knockout match.

Nice retort had a chuckle at Abbey forward line.

But have to say I went to Abbey. My brothers went to college. So think  I have a good insight to what was going on in both establishments around that time.

Everyone knew round Newry that the college would try their best to keep footballers. And the abbey let a lot of good footballers go.

I'm not saying the college never got rid of a good footballer but they would try their best to keep them.

As I said I don't believe that is the case more recently.

The coaching was a bigger factor I think though. A lot of potentially good Abbey teams were managed very poorly.

I see St Colmans are into semi final and have a great chance in getting to a final. A question for the south Down members. Is the abbey a smaller school and do the college get the first pick in players. It seems as if the college always get better teams, why is this?

Numbers wise they're roughly the same.

Reasons why St Colmans do better - probably a few.

St Colmans have a larger and more rural catchment (this probably comes from the fact it was a boarding school in the past) - the decline of football in Newry can't help Abbey.

St Colmans have the tradition - even when Newry football was strong St Colmans did better than Abbey.

With that St Colmans have the coaches who have been there and have the know how to win McRory.

St Colmans will keep good footballers even if they academically under achieve @ GCSE whereas Abbey would not - although I'm not sure if this is still the case - definitely was throughout 80s 90s and 2000s.

This year has definitely opened up with Omagh getting knocked out - Omagh thrashed St Colmans in the McCormack they'll be glad to see them out. Very open McRory now.

Has anyone got a copy of the Abbey team because I believe they draw players from the biggest clubs in South Down and South Armagh?
Am I right to say they have not reached a final since 2006?

5 Burren
3 Ballyholland
2 Killeavey
1 Silverbridge
1 Mayobridge
1 Warrenpoint
1 Belleek ans 1 I don't know

Not sure about 2006 but sounds about right. Think the Abbey have only ever won it 6 or 7 times in total

The Burren lads are only 6th year.

If they don't make the later changes next year then questions should definitely be asked.  Questions should be asked anyway given the ultra defensive football they play under Gormley.  Sickening to see 16 and 17 year olds playing to this sort of system.

Correct Burren lads are 6th year as is McGovern, but that shouldn't be an excuse at this age. Enniskillen won it last year with quite a few 6th years (which makes it surprising that they got knocked out too).

In fairness to the coaches the Abbey haven't been overly defensive this year - maybe the criticism from last year has had an effect. If anything Armagh were more defensive yesterday.

The biggest reason they lost yesterday was that McGovern went off injured after 15 mins or so. Their forwards are pretty ordinary without him.

To be fair this age group have been average enough the whole way up - next year will be telling. That group won D'alton, Brock and got to Cor Na Nog final. Could be their standard once in 20 year opportunity to get somewhere in the McRory.

[he is still only 20]

Neither of our midfielders are naturals for the position but they ran themselves into the ground  and disrupted Derry's supply lines all night. We are likely to be missing Mooney for quite a while so other options need to be explored. While Kerr is a fine prospect, he is still only 20 and introducing him in the second half as the game opens up is probably the best approach. We have got ourselves into a decent position in D3 after two games and we will have a clearer idea about our prospects after the trip to Cork.

Kerr was minor same year as Clifford and O'Se I think - so age shouldn't be an issue. If he's good enough deserves a start. Based on performance Sat evening I think he deserves a start next time out.

Well said. In the 6 counties I feel half year makes sense so i would go 13.5, 14.5 etc. to let fellas play with their pals. Not sure what way school works in 26.
[/quote]

the half year grades only make sense until the end of primary school in the north anyway.

Once you go to secondary school it gets all mixed up - you could be the only one in your class from your club if you're from a rural area.

Yewtree is back banging the same old drum, apparently Burren goalkeeper had a great game but still a terrible result for the town, interesting to see if Carryduff will match the mighty Burren, did you get over the Kilcoo result but now I think your a Burren lad and not one from the point

I think the problem isn't an east v south thing (stupid argument anyway). It seems to be a town issue - Newry is in same boat as Castlewellan - Downpatrick not far behind.

Good to see Bredagh and Carryduff bucking the trend.

And you're right about Burren v Carryduff - will be a close game - think predicting a Burren u21 championship win was a tad premature.

[You might wish to believe that your own club is different.]

With the greatest respect WGM, you're missing my fundamental point. I'm not in any way suggesting that Kilcoo were right to appeal. I'm suggesting that if placed in an identical situation, just about every club in Ireland would appeal.

You might wish to believe that your own club is different. But I expect it's not.

Anything goes in Gaelic Games. We have a serious cultural issue. Kilcoo are a symptom, not the cause.

This is a fair point - I can't think of any time a player has been suspended by their own club because of an on the field disciplinary issue and I do think while it is easy to take the high ground when it isn't your club. I'm not sure any club would have voluntarily suspended one of their most important players before a county final.

Clubs/coaches maybe in effect 'suspend' players for missing training or breaching a no drink ban etc, but obviously this is just called 'being dropped'.

I do think we have to remember that this happened at underage level though and no matter what clubs/county/provincial boards etc did in this matter in regards to applying and lifting sanctions, the one thing I can say is that as a parent, I can categorically state, that if it was my son who did something like this, he would not have been on that field yesterday.

While there are those who may question the Co board for getting involved if it wasn't in the ref's report. Equally, if they didn't do anything and guilt had been admitted they would face criticism.

Given that I think everyone would agree that the verbal abuse was unacceptable I don't think the boards suspension is excessive and will be a lesson to others about this sort of behaviour.

Yeah, the problem is the lesson for some might be to never admit guilt and/or apologise.

While I don't disagree with the ban if its based on official evidence, I do have concern about precedent for future events.

It's a dilemma for the CB really, but I don't think they could have sat by and ignored this.

I suppose the obvious comparison is the legal system - while pleading guilty may get you a more lenient sentence it does not exonerate you.

I guess the CB should be more open about their process if that is the case and release a statement to the effect that a suspension of say 12 weeks was applied but reduced to 8 (or whatever it is) due to admission of guilt/ remorse/apology etc.

That would go some way to demonstrating that admitting guilt or apologising will be taken into account.