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Anyone have a link for the game?
Can't make it to Brewster unfortunately. I know BBC are showing it later but would love to watch it live.
Any help greatly appreciated!

From what I have heard there is extreme disparity in the funding of our senior hurling and football teams, and rectifying this would at least go a small way to making more money available to our next manager.
And MR2, how about this idea? Everyone supports Club Aontroma by putting their hands in the their pockets. Do you? Does anyone else on here? I've said it before, the very innovative One Antrim scheme is a mere tenner a month, £2.50 a week. The price of a cup of coffee. Who can't afford that? If all the naysayers during Dawson's reign, all the keyboard warriors out there who are happy to sit behind a computer screen and bemoan our county's fortunes were to actually help the county by signing up to this scheme we might actually be in the  financial position to attract a manager of the status of Tony McEntee.

Agree that we need to set up a sub county committee delegated with the responsibility of finding a new manager. We don't want a repeat of the nomination fiasco which somehow resulted in one of the most unsuccessful and bizarre managers (still trying to get my head around a few of his media comments) of recent times being reappointed for another year. The committee should at the very least approach the McEntees, McGonigle, Banty, Rory Gallagher and John Rafferty. That is a very impressive list of candidates and I would be very confident of getting promoted and beating Fermanagh should we attain the services of any of those men. In particular we should do anything and everything in our power to get Tony McEntee or Rory Gallagher. I accept it is unlikely that either will be exactly jumping at the opportunity to manage our county, but we should at the very least contact them and make them as attractive an offer as possible. Pitch it like this; we have a very talented group of players who could mix it with the best in Ulster if all united and properly prepared. We have underachieved massively and the person who rectifies this will receive massive plaudits and exposure on the intercounty circuit if the job is done properly, which any good manager should be well capable of. We're looking for a modern, innovative manager who will have a professional set up and get the best players out and get the best of the players. Free up money from Dunsilly and the hurlers to put together a good package to attract these people, if it is indeed the case that the vast majority of the cash generated is being pumped into these two ventures.
It's a sad time when we have to attract managers and even players seem to need convincing to play, but we have to accept where we are and build the thing back up again. In reality I think we should accept that, rightly or wrongly, there may be a poor perception of the Antrim County Board out there after the Dawson fiasco and the general dire year we have just had, and thus we need to go out and court good managers rather than waiting for applications which may prove to be few and far between.

No real talk on here about the senior management for the footballers next season, I saw there the county board have asked the clubs for nominations. Who will be put forward? Adams, Harbinson? Anyone else?
A name that I haven't heard mentioned at all, and who I think would fit the bill perfectly, is Peter Canavan, if he would be interested. Took on Fermanagh at their lowest ebb in Division 4 after a disastrous season where many of the key players opted out due to problems with the management (sounds familiar) and got them promoted. From what I can see has all the best players in Fermanagh playing (albeit bar Quigley, who seems beyond management) and seems to have their team extremely fit, well prepared and playing to a solid defensive system. I believe he has done a very good job with them and would have had more joy in the Championship if the players at his disposal were more talented (in saying that beating a Division 1 bound Westmeath away was impressive). Seems to have squeezed the most out of a very limited bunch and should he come to Antrim I would say all the best players in the county would be out playing and he (well, more importantly we) would have much more success.

People seem very keen to berate the "modern game" these days as a spectacle. Personally I thought it was very entertaining. Brilliant to see two teams go at it hammer and tongs, to put their bodies on the line consistently and to keep up that level of intensity for 70 minutes, loved it. I thought Down performed brilliantly, really didn't think that group of players could perform as they did. In saying that they missed a massive chance to beat Donegal today. It had all the makings of an upset, with Donegal missing two extremely important players at the start of the game (and another two by the end of the first half) and being billed as some supermen world beaters in nearly all sections of the media. Down were set up perfectly and if it weren't for some largely unforced individual errors (O'Hare handpassing over the sideline, couple of misplaced passes from Coulter, a
couple dropped short) then it would've really went right down to the wire. I think the game also highlighted how heavily Donegal rely on McFadden and his scores from long range/tight angles to bring them over the line in tight games. McBrearty is very good but not at McFadden's level yet as a poacher and he was poor today. Murphy is a superb footballer and could probably play the poacher role, but he is not as well suited to it as McFadden. Interesting that you often see McBrearty and Murphy roam out the field at different stages of the game but never McFadden. If McFadden gets injured Donegal will be in serious trouble this year.

Fair enough Bannside about the money situation for the senior footballers, you seem to know much more than myself, had heard from several people just that that was the case. I do think however, that we both know that funding a manager these days involves more than financing the teams preparations, and certain personal expenses to the manager must be made available to attract the higher class of manager. I doubt Dawson asked for these, but I would be fairly confident ORourke is picking them up with Louth. The price you pay for success. I do believe that the county went after the cheapest option for senior manager position when deciding between the applicants. In terms of Aidan ORourke I'm well aware that no club nominated him. However, I distinctly remember him saying to the Irish News that he would be very interested if contacted or something similar (basically a come and get me plea to the county board). That not even a phone call was made to one of the best young intercounty managers around, who was clearly interested in the iob, shows a complete lack of ambition and it still would not surprise me in the least if the powers that be within the county didn't think we would have enough finance to fund his ultra professional set up. Can the county committee nominate candidates as well?
Don't get me wrong onefaircounty I would be delighted if we beat Louth, but I just think it would delay the inevitable and paper over the massive cracks.

I agree with crosskeys gael that something has to be done to drag the footballers out of the dire situation we are in right now. For me, this season is a write off, Dawson will be gone by the end of the year and we can hopefully acquire the services of a decent intercounty manager.
At the start of this year I said we should have been going for Aidan ORourke, Malachy ORourke, even Tohill or someone of that ilk. Aidan ORourke made it clear he was interested in the job. He had experience in various intercounty set ups and his day job is as head of GAA at QUB, meaning he lives and breathes GAA everyday, is based in Belfast and has come across many of our players through Sigerson. By all accounts they speak very highly of him and he would have had no problems in getting our best players out on the pitch (namely the large portion of St Galls players who arent playing, and he wouldnt have had the idiotic confrontations which Dawson has had which have managed to exclude some of our better players). He is a modern manager who would have installed a defensive system which would have been far more advanced than Bakers, and he would have got the most out of what is one of the most talented groups of Antrim footballers for generations. We only have to look at his time with Louth to date. He comfortably kept them up in Division 2, which is no mean feat, and they recently beat Laois by ten points (or around that) in the first round of the championship, bearing in mind Laois were in the AI QFs last year and are comfortably a top 12 side. After the match Justin McNulty openly conceded he was destroyed in the sideline battle, while the Louth midfielder Paddy Keenan commented that ORourkes set up is without doubt the most professional he has ever played under.
The reason ORourke was even as much as contacted about the Antrim job is money. To run a top intercounty side nowadays costs hundred of thousands a year. Tyrone can do it, Club Erne funds Canavan (who albeit lost today, but have IMO improved significantly under him) and neither of these two counties has the second biggest city in Ireland within its boundaries. Money is absolutely key, so the question I ask to all out there who are complaining about the disgrace that was last Sunday is this; how are you helping to fund our county? Have you signed up to the One Antrim scheme? Are you contributing to Club Aontroma every month? Or are you sitting behind a keyboard bemoaning the apparent fact that our potentially great county will never rise from the doldrums we currently find ourselves in? You may say any money we have (which is seemingly very little) is being pumped into Dunsilly and the hurlers. If this is indeed the case, and if you care about it enough, youll get involved with Club Aontroma and work to change it rather than complaining online which will help absolutely no one. There is no doubt that money is tight and the current economic situation has had its effect on most people. However, if you look at the One Antrim scheme it is 120 pounds a year, or a tenner a month, or 2.50 a week. Thats the price of a cup of coffee, an icecream a couple of bags of crisps or whatever. Is it really the case that the vast majority of gaels in Antrim cannot do this?

Any chance of getting a couple of tickets for this game anywhere? Going to be an absolute cracker, would love to be at it.

I hope to God that is a wind up Sam03/05. For the record Madden was a brilliant player when fit, always performed for Antrim and in my opinion could have undoubtedly mixed it at the likes of Mulligan's level if from Tyrone or a "bigger" county where he would have had the platform to showcase his talents at the latter stages of all Ireland competitions. But who honestly gives a flying f**k whether he has won All Ireland's or all stars or whatever? He is one of the most insightful and knowledgable pundits around if you ever bothered to listen to him rather than complain about his record at county level, especially considering he hails from a so called weaker county. As alluded to, if you analysed his individual contribution and performances for Antrim he was a class act. If he was born a few miles away in Tyrone would he then be worthy of your airtime? What makes your post even more ridiculous is the fact that his inter county career was cut short by well documented, very serious health problems. Lastly, in any experience I have had with madden he has been an absolute gentleman and a great GAA man, which is more than can be said about yourself judging by your comments here.

Wasn't able to make the game, although seems positive that we scored 1.08 without reply at one stage. Frustrating not to close it out obviously but seems like there's some positive signs for the league at least. Who were the good and bad for us Bannside? Think we have found any players for the league and any stabs at a first 15 for the Cavan game?

What's Jim Gavin like? Surely anyone they take in will be a step down from Gilroy?

Bit unfair to say those lads would only be interested in the job for the money, especially if you don't know them? Maybe a lack of money to properly prepare the team may be an issue. The main lure, as ck has stated, is intercounty experience with a pretty talented group of players, certainly the most talented Antrim have had in a long while. Perhaps AOR and the rest are a little over ambititous, but it can't hurt to try. Raises the profile of the thing to be linked with big names too. If it doesn't work out I'd be very happy to take Malachy O'Rourke or the like.

Martin Carney and Darragh Maloney should be on commentary for the final, both very good. TSG should be getting on more people like Ciaran Whelan who actually know a bit about the modern game and don't waffle on about nonsense. Spillane is a very poor analyst who thinks he can get away with a few sweeping statements backed up by a couple of random facts (he loves to quote which forwards have scored). In my opinion, the best analysts tell you what you don't already know and give you a different insight into the game that makes you interested. Most Sunday Game analysts, especially Spillane, McStay and Davis don't. There should be a radical revamp of the Sunday Game in my view as a lot of the analysts and the time give to the coverage of each game throughout the earlier rounds of the Championship is of a very poor standard.

Anyone know what the craic is between Club Aontroma and the Irish News? Really random notice in the paper today beside the Antrim article, seemed to hint at a dispute?

Have said this on the Antrim board, but I think we need Aidan O'Rourke, McEntee or Tohill. Young, aspiring managers who are very talented and would undoubtedley get the respect of the players. All capable of taking Antrim to the next level and I'm sure would all like intercounty experience at a decent level. With no disrespect intended to the likes of Harbinson, I don't think he's at these guys' level. I don't think Harbinson would be an improvement on Baker but the names mentioned above, or even the likes of Frank Dawson, McIver and Malachy O'Rourke as secondary options would be better than the names mentioned in the IN the other day. I'm a massive fan of Kevin Madden but think the job might be a bit early for him, and as we all know football has changed so much since White was last in charge. This is a massive appointment as we currently have a very talented group of players at our disposal who are definitely capable of beating anyone in Ulster (bar say Donegal and to a lesser extent Tyrone) on their day and perhaps mounting a decent challenge for Ulster. I don't mean to harp on about the McGourtys, but if the next manager can get CJ in particular to commit fully to Antrim, can him on weights programmes etc. and ensure he's a team player then he would be a fantastic addition to the squad as he is exactly the player we lack. Someone in the Jamie Clarke mould, a deadly inside forward with bags of tricks and skill who can win his own ball (remains to be fully seen at IC level but if he added a bit of beef his movement is very smart and he has pace).