Monaghan v Kerry all ireland QF

[The Subbie]

MFR has 4 AI's , never called his medal collection into doubt. But again the fact remains that MFR leaves his guts behind him in Tralee or Farranfore when he heads for Dublin to take part in the proper part of the   championship , MFR is a super footballer when playing Waterford in Dungarvan , not when he is playing a more robust and commited  team, thats become clearer and clearer during the last 4 - 5 years.

Sure, what would a Monaghan man know about showing courage at the business end of the Championship.

Bottom line is the only chokers out there were from Monaghan....gutless and spineless when it came to the crunch.

But not as gutless and spineless as Michelle frank russell and F eoin a brosnan, as i said Mike , they leave their guts behind them in Kerry when they head for croker, and I'm not just saying this as a Monaghan man.I said it when they played Tyrone, Armagh,Donegal , Cork etc etc etc zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Face up to the reality of the situation , I know it may be hard and you are probably in denial but thats understandable. There is help out there , and you do have some great subs on the bench and even though football is over for those two for the rest of this year as no-one wants a windy cnut playing beside them although won't it make a great fundraising venture during the Autumn to have a treasure hunt round the Kingdom , I can see the posters now " Monster treasure hunt , starts 9am sharp @ Gleneagle hotel carpark, help us find MFR's and Eoins balls , we have no clues to give you but we suggest you look in left luggage Farranfore airport. Entry fee €10 per car , all proceeds to Kerry football holiday fund"

As for your attack on Peter Canavan cop on like a good chap undoubtly the best footballer I have ever had the pleasure of watching.

Now run along mike , have'nt you got a treasure hunt to organise 

[Romeo]

Good lord, what is it with teams in blue and white this year whinging about everything after a defeat?

[Fear ón Srath Bán]

Brolly's take on the match in today's Gaelic Life:

Farney finest the real deal

'Ifeel as if my heart has been ripped out," said Seamus McEneaney's after last Sunday's shattering defeat to Kerry. He didn't need to say it since the tears rolling down his face were evidence enough in themselves. He gets the managerial oscar for 2007 though it will be scant consolation in light of events. Rory Woods looked positively ill when receiving the man of the match award and found it impossible to concentrate on the questions being put to him by the RTE interviewer.

The Monaghan team and manager appreciate that at this level it's life or death and there is nothing for losers. They had come to beat Kerry en route to an All-Ireland and nothing less was going to suffice. They are a serious unit, fully deserving of our respect. It is obvious that they were psychologically ready to beat Kerry and advance to a semi-final against the Dubs which I feel it's likely they would have won. The fact that they were mentally ready to succeed is a testament to the excellent work of the regime. You can see from their sculpted physiques that all of the crucial conditioning work has been
done. Afterwards the Kerry boys spoke of how hard and often they were hit in the course of the game.

Seamus has also implemented an extremely effective gameplan which reduces the opposition's attacking area to a congested mess. His counter attack plan completes the jigsaw. He has demonstrated in the course of this year his tactical knowledge and versatility from the clever use of Damien Freeman as a sweeper, to the deployment of Vinney Corey at fullback or full-forward depending on the circumstances. He is also a passionate and charismatic leader. His Monaghan team are proof of the simple fact that if a team pursues the highest standards at all times, it will succeed.

Their catenaccio defensive web made it impossible for Kerry to play the expansive football they wanted to. Colm Cooper and Mike Frank Russell were peripheral figures throughout and the normally freescoring Kerry halfforward line were kept in a vice by Monaghan's carefully orchestrated traffic jam. Such an effective swarm defence does not emerge from a discussion in the changing room on the Wednesday before the game but must be carefully worked on night after night in intensive training games. Likewise their superb work on winning the kickouts, an area where they not only dominated Donegal and Kerry but where they gave Tyrone, themselves masters of the breaking ball, a lesson in the dark art.
In that Ulster final they won 23 kick-outs to Tyrone's 9.

Up front they have an extremely effective attacking spearhead but they discovered, perhaps to their surprise, that Kerry's defence is as mean and well organised as they come. This Kerry team have watched and learned from Tyrone and Armagh and swamped the defensive area themselves, so keeping Monaghan's tally down and ensuring opportunities were as scarce as hen's teeth. The powerful Rory Woods made headway running from deep but the other forwards, even the excellent Thomas Freeman were very well tied up. Any scores they did get were of the highest order because they had to be.

In spite of the fact that Vinney Corey played at full-forward, Monaghan did not suffer defensively and in Kieran Donaghy's 18-month tenure as the game's marquee forward, Monaghan's defensive work was by far the best he has encountered.
Again, Monaghan had carefully prepared for Kieran, with logic and common sense to the fore. They made sure that at all times he was taken when he came down, with a man in front and behind. It was a magnificent effort by Monaghan and it almost got them over the line. However, even without scoring himself Star creates pandemonium, and it was his presence that createdthe crucial score. Make no mistake Kerry needed that goal and without it would have lost. Even though Monghan scored the next two points, the goal had changed the spirit of the game and Kerry played with more freedom in thelast 10 minutes than they had done all day.

There is no point patronizing Monaghan's effort, Seamus McEneaney and his players are realistic enough to know that they lost the game because they lost the last 10 minutes. The fact that he was not interested in any after match suggestions that they had put up a great show suggests that this Monaghan side will redouble their efforts to win next year's All-Ireland.

Monaghan under Seamus McEneaney are operating at maximum capacity which is more than can be said for Derry.

[lynchbhoy]

....and brolly will get another big wad of cash for replicating exactly the same article in his newspaper column on sunday (I presume these are two diff media entities)

[Maguire01]

At least he did get around to mentioning Monaghan at some stage this year. Even if he did wait until they were out.

[Mike Sheehy]

But not as gutless and spineless as Michelle frank russell and F eoin a brosnan, as i said Mike , they leave their guts behind them in Kerry when they head for croker, and I'm not just saying this as a Monaghan man.I said it when they played Tyrone, Armagh,Donegal , Cork etc etc etc zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

2 points up...6 minutes to go...first semi-final in 22 years at stake and ye blew it....and you question the mettle of MFR and Brosnan...!!

Face it, you are just bitter about losing and you are trying to latch onto anything to have a go. Bit sad really...it would be more in your line to do question your own players and their lack of guts when it mattered.

[never kickt a ball]

At least he did get around to mentioning Monaghan at some stage this year. Even if he did wait until they were out.

He only noticed Monaghan were in the competition after Derry went out Maguire. 

[Mike Sheehy]

also, all slagging aside, (becasue Monaghan did put in a great effort which I will gladly acknowledge despite subbies provocations ) is there not a fierce double standard with Northern
commentators in the way they judge their own versus sides like Kerry, Dublin and Cork. Lets be honest, Brolly gave Monaghan a free pass there. He actually praised their mental strength..fair enough..but can you imagine what he would have said if kerry had lost with a 2 point lead and only 6 mins to go....jesus it would have been brutal. Every lazy insult to the charcater of the Kerry players would have
been trotted out.

Which would you  rather...to  have Spillane questioning your style of play or  Brolly questioning your character ? I'd take the questioning of style any day......If ye're honest you lads will see that you get off lightly really.  

[Seamus]

But not as gutless and spineless as Michelle frank russell and F eoin a brosnan, as i said Mike , they leave their guts behind them in Kerry when they head for croker, and I'm not just saying this as a Monaghan man.I said it when they played Tyrone, Armagh,Donegal , Cork etc etc etc zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Face up to the reality of the situation , I know it may be hard and you are probably in denial but thats understandable. There is help out there , and you do have some great subs on the bench and even though football is over for those two for the rest of this year as no-one wants a windy cnut playing beside them although won't it make a great fundraising venture during the Autumn to have a treasure hunt round the Kingdom , I can see the posters now " Monster treasure hunt , starts 9am sharp @ Gleneagle hotel carpark, help us find MFR's and Eoins balls , we have no clues to give you but we suggest you look in left luggage Farranfore airport. Entry fee €10 per car , all proceeds to Kerry football holiday fund"

How long have you being watching gaelic football? If for 5 to 10 years you were definitely not paying much attention. For the first 5 years of his career Mike Frank was one of the deadliest forwards in the game. The courage and conviction he displayed when going for scores were second to none. Along with Seamus Moynihan he was the only other Kerry player to emerge from the '01 Meath debacle with reputation intact. He may not be the player he was 5 years ago but he is still a great player, over 10 years of playing top class county and club football can take its toll. For me he will go down as one of the greatest forwards I have ever had to pleasure to witness playing. Here's hoping he will have a fifth AI medal in his back pocket come Sept 16th.

[The Subbie]

Seamus / Mike , I actually said in a post after the game that I want Kerry to go and win it now and I still stand by that , I also said that Kerry had a wee bit too much for us at the end and they did. The fact remains that MFR and Brosnan did hide during the match, all slagging and messing aside.

If you one or  both want to fill your heads with images of MFR in full flight 7 or 8 years ago , go right ahead , The main thrust of what i'm trying to say is that Brosnan and MFR are good footballers , thats a fact but there is a question mark over their abilities when defenders skirt close to the laws of the game vis a vis physical contact.

If Kerry are to win it they will have to beat the dubs first and I'm sure you'll agree the pillar won't be afraid to tell the lads what to do when they get the chance, not nice but again fact.

I've had enough of this now I'm away for a pint