Messages

Who is this Brennan fella ye are lookin in WHB? As much as I don't like Casey and think he's a tr**p he's game to fire his head anywhere and he brings a bit of steel and aggression to the Dubs defence so I don't think he should be dropped.

What's the craic with Moran playing WHF? He's a defender through and through and I thought that with Goggins finally getting ousted from that LHB slot Moran would have been staraight in there. God knows he'd be better than Cahill in that position (Don't really see what Cahill brings to the team at LHB, or at all really) Are the Dubs freally struggling that badly for natural WHF's.

My own view on the match is that Derry have a much more well rounded team than Dublin. McConnell, Henry, B. Brogan, Vaughan and Bonner haven't really proven themselves at this level whilst the jury is still out as to whether Cahill, Ryan and Moran are playing their natural positions and are effective in these positions for Dublin to push on enough to win that AI that escapes them.

I think Dublin's system and the fact that they have 15 supremely fit lads bursting their hole's for the cause has kind of masked the fact that this Dublin team does not really have the talent or skill level required to win an All Ireland - something we have witnessed with Mayo and a reason why I think the Dubs will keep coming close but ultimately come up short come September...

As for next Saturday's game Dublin are well capable of beating Derry but as Paddy Crozier himself has said... at our best Derry will beat any team in the country whilst at our worst we can get beaten by any team in the country... I'm going for a 4 point win for the Leafers though!

Brennan is an aggressive defender with an eye for the posts (he scored a point against Laois just after coming on for Casey). He's a tighter marker than Casey.

Regarding Collie Moran in the half-forwards – his role is to scrap for ball in the middle third of the field and he's been pretty successful at that, and his overall contribution has been positive. His big weakness has been his shooting, and if he could get that right his contribution would be immense.

I have to disagree with you on Cahill and Ryan who were both contenders for man-of-the match against Laois.

Clucko
Henry  McConnell  Griffin
Cahill   Cullen  Brennan
Whelan  Ryan
Bonner  A Brogan  Moran
B Brogan Keaney  Vaughan

looks good to me 

Lynchboy

It's unusual not to have you in the Dub's camp in the build-up to a big game – but I suppose in the circumstances of this game, you're forgiven. 

I'd be interested in hearing what your views would be on the best Dublin starting line-up (what starting 15 would you most fear – from a Derry perspective). I suppose Declan Lally would be in there.   

... in fairness nobody went to the Armagh match but since then the support has been good with a massive crowd at Celtic park for Mayo and a decent crowd on Saturday past... long may it continue!!!

Sounds like a bandwagon – I thought the Dubs were the only ones with supporters like that. 

A few more:

Pat (Red) Collier (Meath)
James McCartan (Down 1960s team)
Charlie Gallagher (Cavan)
Peter Whitnell (Down)

Any three full forwards named so far put together wouldn't outweigh Pa Connolly (Kildare).

I'd like to put the late great John Timmons (midfield and full forward for the Dubs) on the opposite side of the scales to Pa Connolly and see which of them hit the ground.

Sure you can kill a man with a 1-inch punch.

Leave Geraghty alone - sure isn't David Henry grand. No after effects at all 

Isn't it refreshing to see the plethora of Mexican threads on the gaaboard page 1 these days.

You'd better get used to it O'Neill, as the once-in-a-century prominence of Ulster football begins to wane. Armagh are already consigned to history and will soon be followed by Tyrone. Then it will be back to Ulster's traditional role as the whipping boys of the All Ireland series. 

There's no better entertainment than the indignant Dub in full flight.

You're a fair man for indignation yourself, Hardy, when rubbed up the wrong way.

Geraghty is a boll*x 

I'm surprised that Cavanagh seems to be a unanimous choice at midfield without a mention of Ciarán Whelan – despite the fact that Whelan has come out on top on most of the occasions that they came up against each other.

congratulations,you do have the biggest population in the country and you never play a away championship game!

Charlie

Well I certainly remember playing Kerry in Thurles, Derry in Clones, Longford in Longford in the last few years.....its not our fault that no other ground can host the amount of supporters we have...

Back to our friends in Cork again ... they dragged us down to Cork for the replay of the 1983 All Ireland Semi-Final in the certain expectation that they would beat us. They haven't asked us back since. 

Cork have won 9 All Irelands in the same time Dublin have won two....And all you can come back at me is that you beat Cork in the semis....Talk about scraping the bottom of the barrell

Face up to it – when the Cork footballers meet the Dubs in the championship they always fold.

Dublin have won two All Irelands since 1983.........

.....and who did they beat in both semi-finals on the way to those All Ireland wins?   

..... or if Barney had put it wide it would have been some craic.

That was the big (what if) talking point after the game.  

Problem there is The Dubs think they own Croke Park and treat it as a Home venue

We certainly owned Croke Park on that day back in the 1980s when Cork walked off the pitch in a sulk and refused to play extra time. What a cheer when Barney Rock shot the winning goal into an empty net while the Cork team were on their way to the railway station.

One of the great days to be a Dub in Croker!

think I'll go marching up the Kings highways because we own them, will have a go at a few taigs in their estates that we have 'rented out' to these 'sharecroppers' - then after burning out a few of their cars and putting a few of their windows in, I'll call my pals in the ruc sorry psni to come along and arrest the dirty fenians for having the temerity for coming out to stand up to me - I show them who's boss - and a few months in the cells will help clean up the province (just hope their fathers dont come out to me though).

then a stroll down to the local bonfire, kicking in the doors in that nationalist OAP residence on the way down.
Lighting lundy on the bonfire  and downing a few buckfasts with the lads.
Finish off by starting a petrolbom/pipebom attack on the newly refurb papist chapel. Stupid bead jigglers, they should have realised that after last years buring out, they should not have wasted their money do'ing the place up again.They can fark eff back tae rome !

then back into the lodge to sacrifice a few catholics, goats and sheep - not necessarily in that order.
So all in all a quiet enough year. Wish we had a wild time like we did a few years ago to look forward to !
My record is getting 134 catholics arrested!

..... Makes you want to go out and burn down a few Orange halls.