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Cheers for the heads up on this. You can't have too many good GAA podcasts on your phone for walking the dog. My favourites at the minute are the GAA hour and The Pff The Ball podcast from the show. I try to listen to the Second Captains but I find them all the most unlikable bunch of edjits in the country. I tried out the Indo one this week but yer man from Rory's Stories trying to shout over everyone made it hard to listen to.

I wouldn't know the exact numbers and ages but looking at both teams it looks like Donegal had a lot more players aged 23 and under and would imagine 7 of that Donegal team that started would have less than 5 championship appearance to their name.

I paused the video where they named the teams and they had the players ages, and we (Tyrone) had an average age of 26.07 starting the game yesterday compared to Donegal's 23.93 so just over two years older per man on average.

That 26 year average has to be near perfect and what you'd want. We seem now to have a great mix of older experienced players with McCarren and Sean Cavanagh in their 30's and Colm Cavanagh 29 and then a lot of these young lads from Mulgrew at 19 right through.

Exciting panel this year but with Sean packing it in after this summer we really need to get as much out of his experience as we can this summer.

Herself is a cavan woman and she text me there to say she heard Oisin McConville was in the running. Not heard yet where she got that from.

It's a balls if you live away from your home county that these couldn't be more flexible. I live in Sligo and go to more of their league games than Tyrone's but I'll try to get to a few Tyrone games and if they get to Croker I'll go for the league. Would be great if I could get a one to use for Sligo's league and Tyrone's championship.

As I've been saying on boards, it doesn't matter if Tyrone beat Mayo, the same questions will be being asked as what are now after beating Donegal. If we lose then it'll say a lot, but if we win then it'll be put down to it being a poor Mayo side who've had a very bad season. Nothing will be answered about this Tyrone team unless we get to the final and even then if we lose to the Dubs we're in exactly the same place probably rated 3rd in the country behind Dublin and Kerry.

It's going to take beating one of those two to prove any credentials. Back to back Ulsters could show more consistency next year but even then the winners of Ulster are facing Dublin in the semi final should both get through the quarters so that's no easy path.

I see a lot of Cavan fans were critical of Terry and were calling for him to step down but personally looking in from the outside I think it's a mistake. He was doing great work with you and had you playing good football again. Very close to taking our scalp in the drawn game and heads probably went down in the back door but the Derry result shouldn't have happened anyway.

Got you up to Div1 and I think he deserved a crack at it next year.

Baffles me as well why Tyrone are such overwhelming favourites. Apparently league form but don't think any Div 2 team would live with Donegal either. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe Donegal are done and Tyrone are brilliant... 

Most people seem to be picking Tyrone but only by the odd point too which I suppose is important. It's not like anyone is saying Tyrone are going to batter Donegal. Someone picking a winner by 1 or 2 points is really saying it could go either way.

I think a lot of people are thinking Tyrone are favourites because we looked very strong v Cavan the 2nd day out.
We have been putting up big scores all year I suppose and so people see us as having a much stronger attack than in previous years.
The problem in previous years though we have struggled against teams like Donegal who really clamp us down and so I think that's why Donegal will revert back to what they do best and that is restrict us in a war of attrition.
They know we have a lot of pace so I can't see them leaving big gaps even when they push forward to attack.

In the league....

Fermanagh restricted us to 1-9
Armagh restricted us to 0-13
Galway restricted us to 1-11
Cavan restricted us to 0-10

None of those scores will be enough to beat Donegal on Sunday imo and they'll have a meaner defense than any of those 4 sides.

Over the last few games in the Championship Donegal have scored...
2015 - 1-13
2013 - 2-10
2012 - 0-12
2011 - 2-6


Wastefulness cost us in pretty much all of those games. The last two being in Ballybofey put us at a big disadvantage to being in Clones is a help.


We've put up decent scores in a few games like Derry and Cavan replay but we've been held in other games too. OK two of those games were after the league final position was wrapped up already so they wouldn't have been giving everything like they could have done. Donegal will have a plan for our running game and I really hope we have a plan B and don't resort to taking pot shots from all over the field. I'd expect us to have at least 6/7 score-able free's from distance and it'll be whether we can finally get someone to put 5/6 of those over the bar will determine the winner. No way does Murphy have such a bad game from dead balls again for Donegal so us scoring ours is an absolute must. Personally I'd have Morgan take everything (not in Ballybofey so the grass will hopefully be cut) outside of 30 yards. Let him take a handy one or two as well to get the confidence up because he seems such a streaky kicker. Let Sean take everything inside that.

http://gaeliclife.com/2016/07/ulster-says-tyrone-will-win/

Interesting, all but one of the 7 County players from the other 7 Ulster counties are calling it for Tyrone.

It's so strange to be favorites in this game given our recent history. Worrys me a lot.

It appears Padraig McNulty has gone dissident and formed a breakaway club in his own name. Fair play to him.

lol well spotted/

If you were to list off the top 5 most dastardly acts to ever take place on a football field, Tyrone players would occupy at least three places.

All Ireland Champions 2003
All Ireland Champions 2005
All Ireland Champions 2008

Coming down here, taking our championships??

Do Clare have any big man in the inside forwards? If they do then you'd imagine just bombing ball in would be the tactic and try to nab a few goals.

Nah Cavanagh's was no where near as bad. If you're going to say that then pretty much every pull, drag, intentional foul in the game is worse than someone diving to get a penalty. That's a nonsense.

You could argue that McCann's was worse because he was trying to get a man sent off, but for me a dive for a penalty is always the worst kind of cheating in a game.

Do you think ud be able to buy tickets on the day or is it likely to sell out by then? Hoping to head along but wont know for sure until Sunday morning

You'd normally get one from someone in Clones if you asked around but it's a risk.

Which is worse, punching a man in the face or having an affair with his wife?

Depends on the wife.

Because contact is part of the game, pulling a jersey sometimes is an automatic or even accidental thing a player does in the heat of the moment. A dive is not, it's a sneaky thing that only a certain type of player/person will do.

It's the most obvious and clear form of cheating. Comparing it to a jersey pull is kinda like comparing it to claiming a 45 when you know your not due one. One is gamesmanship, the other if cheating.