Mayo v New York, Gaelic Park 10.05.09

[RedandGreenSniper]

Liam McHale was pretty much a full time basketballer in his younger days playing basketball before football, all winter/spring in Mayo and over to the States for the summer if Mayo had an early exit - he missed a Connacht Club match in 1985 to play hoops. Didn't hold back his development.

Yes it did. It was 1996 before we saw the best of him. He could have been that good at an earlier stage if football was taken more seriously.

[IolarCoisCuain]

You know lads, we beat ourselves up like nobody else does. I don't see any of the Kerryman holding the basketball against Donaghy. In Mayo, we're always looking for a flaw.

We saw it in the past few years over who'd be fullback. No matter how well a man would be playing, we'd all be waiting like crows on a telephone wire for a goal to be given away and then we say sure the craythur, he's no fecking good at all, at all. And here we are now looking for a reason why McGarrity is no good.

He's been an automatic selection since he came back from the States. We never had to wait for him to fit in as we had to wait for others, and are still waiting in some cases. Mc Garrity found his feet straight awsay, but it's still not good enough. Who's to say if he would have been a better footballer if he hadn't gone to States? Maybe he would have been worse? Who knows? The clock doesn't go back you know.

[stephenite]

You know lads, we beat ourselves up like nobody else does. I don't see any of the Kerryman holding the basketball against Donaghy. In Mayo, we're always looking for a flaw.

We saw it in the past few years over who'd be fullback. No matter how well a man would be playing, we'd all be waiting like crows on a telephone wire for a goal to be given away and then we say sure the craythur, he's no fecking good at all, at all. And here we are now looking for a reason why McGarrity is no good.

He's been an automatic selection since he came back from the States. We never had to wait for him to fit in as we had to wait for others, and are still waiting in some cases. Mc Garrity found his feet straight awsay, but it's still not good enough. Who's to say if he would have been a better footballer if he hadn't gone to States? Maybe he would have been worse? Who knows? The clock doesn't go back you know.

Spot on

Fair point RGS - although I think Ronan started taking football more seriously at an earlier age than Liam did. It wasn't until aroung '94 - '95 that Liam developed "the fear" of Mayo winning an All Ireland without him. He'd been on the go with Mayo a good while at that stage

[the Deel Rover]

You know lads, we beat ourselves up like nobody else does. I don't see any of the Kerryman holding the basketball against Donaghy. In Mayo, we're always looking for a flaw.

We saw it in the past few years over who'd be fullback. No matter how well a man would be playing, we'd all be waiting like crows on a telephone wire for a goal to be given away and then we say sure the craythur, he's no fecking good at all, at all. And here we are now looking for a reason why McGarrity is no good.

He's been an automatic selection since he came back from the States. We never had to wait for him to fit in as we had to wait for others, and are still waiting in some cases. Mc Garrity found his feet straight awsay, but it's still not good enough. Who's to say if he would have been a better footballer if he hadn't gone to States? Maybe he would have been worse? Who knows? The clock doesn't go back you know.

Well said ICC been away from the board for a few days but jesus lads are having a go at players Left right and centre. At the end of the day these lads give up a afull lot for football look at mc garrity and the way he came back so soon after battling cancer so lets behind the lads and stop finding faults with them ( there are enough of these supporters in mayo without us adding to them)

[kevmy]

You know lads, we beat ourselves up like nobody else does. I don't see any of the Kerryman holding the basketball against Donaghy. In Mayo, we're always looking for a flaw.

We saw it in the past few years over who'd be fullback. No matter how well a man would be playing, we'd all be waiting like crows on a telephone wire for a goal to be given away and then we say sure the craythur, he's no fecking good at all, at all. And here we are now looking for a reason why McGarrity is no good.

He's been an automatic selection since he came back from the States. We never had to wait for him to fit in as we had to wait for others, and are still waiting in some cases. Mc Garrity found his feet straight awsay, but it's still not good enough. Who's to say if he would have been a better footballer if he hadn't gone to States? Maybe he would have been worse? Who knows? The clock doesn't go back you know.

Jaysus I'm not having a go at McGarrity. He's a key player for us when on form and he is an automatic selection. In fact because he's such an automatic selection any loss of form he has is crucial. But some of the points remain valid - he hasn't an accurate kick (some believe that 3yrs playing solely basketball - McHale never went that long without playing, even if he was a basketballer first - held him back in that regard) and a lack of bulk (again not really his fault or the basketball's if anything he's done well to get back to where he is after the cancer).

I hope he finds top form as I reckon he's vital to us but putting our heads in the sand and saying McGarrity is always fantastic and deserves an All-Star every year is a bit too Kerry-like for me. Lets not forget theres plenty of lads down in Kerry who haven't a clue about football

[RedandGreenSniper]

On the McGarrity thing it was over romanticised at the time - a kid just back from a basketball scholarship in the States playing senior with his county before he ever played senior with his club - of course the papers are going to ate that up.

But it was a decent shout by the management to bring him in. Even if he had been a decent club underage player, he had been away from football for a considerable time and if he came along and was useless it would have been a stick for management to have been beaten with.

As regards if basketball held up his football development? I don't know. I don't think the physical question holds up - you need to be a strong mother f**ker to play basketball - but maybe his kickpassing is an issue. Still I'd much sooner we have Ronan McGarrity than not having him. His impact has been very positive and we could see a good summer from him yet. Perhaps the basketball is held against him a bit harshly. Certainly I don't think too many people would have an issue if Gavin Duffy came back playing in the morning. Its better to have them at some stage than losing them altogether. I'd agree with what Iolar says in this regard - we must look forwards, not backwards.

[muppet]

MCGarrity has been our first choice midfielder for 4 years. In that period we've been to two All-Ireland finals. He can't be that bad.

Rosnarun describes him as a heads up footballer and I would agree with that assessment. His foot passing is not a major weakness as has been suggested. However one problem, which Liam McHale also had in his early days, is that when you win the ball in basketball all the coaching teaches you to instinctively plant your two feet solidly or even to take a step backwards. Football requires you to hit the ground running, especially in midfield. Donaghy has this tendency also but it is less of a problem at FF.

IMHO McGarrity has got better in this regard over the years.

[rosnarun]

i see two things going on in thread i dont quit hold with. one is suporting mcgarrity and using that to have a go at liam mchale. the suprising thing about this is the tribal corner from which it springs.
the othe thing is the assumption mc garrity went  \is through going a crisis. hewas as good as we had in the league. one which after an awful start ended on quiet a positive not and ronan was as respondsible for that as any one.
i reckon he is the only? jersey jom doesnt have to even think about.

[Farrandeelin]

Christ lads, it's funny! This was about Mayo v New York but it's turned into a criticism of McGarrity thread. Back to what it says on the tin Mayo to win by at least 10-20 points. And P.S. lads, I hope McGarrity has a stormer of a game.

[moysider]

Christ lads, it's funny! This was about Mayo v New York but it's turned into a criticism of McGarrity thread. Back to what it says on the tin Mayo to win by at least 10-20 points. And P.S. lads, I hope McGarrity has a stormer of a game.

Only one poster had a go at McGarrity in fairness and he took his post down on reflection. The rest have been supportive of McGarrity.

[moysider]

i see two things going on in thread i dont quit hold with. one is suporting mcgarrity and using that to have a go at liam mchale. the suprising thing about this is the tribal corner from which it springs.the othe thing is the assumption mc garrity went  \is through going a crisis. hewas as good as we had in the league. one which after an awful start ended on quiet a positive not and ronan was as respondsible for that as any one.
i reckon he is the only? jersey jom doesnt have to even think about.

Not sure at all what s going on there Rosnarun? You might explain.

Nobody s having a go at Liam - at least I m not. Just that he might nt have allowed that silliness to develop about him discovering this gem of a player out of the blue. Let me remind people what the state of play was in early 2004. Midfield was seen as the biggest problem we had. There was nt a sign of a new midfielder and Brady had injury issues and Maughan had Brady issues. McGarrity was a godsend and his returning was well flagged for months in advance - locally at least. If Liam did nt know his potential already he should have - he was a county selector after all. And there was plenty around that would have told him anyway . All I m saying is that it was childish stuff by Mayo management and did nobody any good.

Liam was also convinced that the tall Vahey lad from the Neale would make it and he played some of the FBD league matches that Spring. Then Fergal Kelly came into it too. Midfield was a priority and anybody with McGarrity s abilities would come into the equation without any song and dance routine. Many suspected for years that he would be good enough if it were nt for his preference for Bball and it turned out he was.

[RedandGreenSniper]

Sure what was the harm in people thinking McGarrity came from nowhere? Which, by GAA standards, he did. It was a good story.

[rosnarun]

i just dont see why people are bringing up liam mchales name now with the general gist of it being that he doesn't deserve any credit for his role in Mcgarrity Playing for mayo. As that was a an inevitable event any way .
Even as you point out yourself Both  Varley  and kelly failed to make the grade long term about whom the same could have been said had the experiment gone well,  nothing in football is a forgone conclusion . and certainly a player picked out of left field like that needed a champion or else patience may have been very thin amongst other clubs with their own prospects. 
and despite  his great natural talent it was at best an unusual move moving im to be a senior player before he had played senior for ballina . 
my slightly satirical note is due to the reaction from ballina posters to any negative comments re stephenites players

[stephenite]

my slightly satirical note is due to the reaction from ballina posters to any negative comments re stephenites players

What reaction?

[RedandGreenSniper]

The north Mayo biys are rowing with each other again, I hope the Gardai are on standby for those senior group games