Antrim Hurling

[north aontroim gael]

A good game in the end up although I thought we only hurled in patches.  It seemed like we managed to go last 10-15 minutes of the first half and first ten minutes of the second half without registering anymore than a point.  It took Dunloy going 5 points up for us to kick into gear.

Johnny Campbell and Eddie McCloskey both stood up massively when we went behind as did Joey Scullion.  Up until then there was limited work / tackles being made in the middle third and Dunloy seemed to have free reign with an extra man always available.  Both teams can take positives but I think both will see plenty to work on.

[theskull1]

Games won and lost in the last 10... if you're not up for driving on in that part of the game when its there for the taking then don't expect to come out the right side when your up against top opposition. We went 5 up and went to sleep. Overall Loughgiel the much more nuanced team who I'd say easy found their men with 30+ yard passes to the men inside 10 times more than we did. It takes the man inside to move for the ball (movement everywhere) and the man with the ball to know those type of moves are being made and then be able to deliver the right kind of ball to give his team mate the ball winning advantage. At the minute we are playing too may 50/50 balls to our forwards when is great when you get the right breaks but I think we have to work far harder to get our scores because the hard work isn't being done before the ball is delivered.

[Milltown Row2]

Games won and lost in the last 10... if you're not up for driving on in that part of the game when its there for the taking then don't expect to come out the right side when your up against top opposition. We went 5 up and went to sleep. Overall Loughgiel the much more nuanced team who I'd say easy found their men with 30+ yard passes to the men inside 10 times more than we did. It takes the man inside to move for the ball (movement everywhere) and the man with the ball to know those type of moves are being made and then be able to deliver the right kind of ball to give his team mate the ball winning advantage. At the minute we are playing too may 50/50 balls to our forwards when is great when you get the right breaks but I think we have to work far harder to get our scores because the hard work isn't being done before the ball is delivered.

I agree, skull, and this is something the great Dunloy teams had, great movement from defence, ball played to a free defender who gave the telling quick ball into the forwards. 50/50 balls nearly always favour the defender. I don't know if it's pure laziness on the part of the defender clearing his line or the forward not showing for the ball.

Drills in training need to reflect what you want in the game or how you'd like the game to be played. Loughgiel for their part have a great set up and manage to pick players at will, that's not luck it's basically playing a simple system of positional play.  They have runners off the man and they play cross field ball to runners who run on to the ball as oppossed to high balls in. 30 yard passes wher the ball is at chest height or the ball bounces into hand, hardest to defend against. I would go so far into say that they play like our senior footballers

[theskull1]

I takes good stick work for the man playing the chest height fast ball, but more importantly it takes confidence and belief in your team mate (because you know he's ready to take the pass) to make it the right pass. All parts of the jigsaw need to fit to make that game work well and that work needs to be done on the training pitch.

Most disappoint thing about last night was our reserves. Dunloy needs the reserve team to be pushing for places on the senior team. Bar the efforts of a few it was abysmal. Loughgiel reserves play the exact same as their seniors and their stickwork and fitness was not far off the same. No reason why we can't have 30-40 of the same (if the mindset was there).

[Milltown Row2]

I takes good stick work for the man playing the chest height fast ball, but more importantly it takes confidence and belief in your team mate (because you know he's ready to take the pass) to make it the right pass. All parts of the jigsaw need to fit to make that game work well and that work needs to be done on the training pitch.

Most disappoint thing about last night was our reserves. Dunloy needs the reserve team to be pushing for places on the senior team. Bar the efforts of a few it was abysmal. Loughgiel reserves play the exact same as their seniors and their stickwork and fitness was not far off the same. No reason why we can't have 30-40 of the same (if the mindset was there).

But as you well know skull, the stick work and confidence comes with winning championships and playing in the latter stages of the All Ireland series. Loughgiels bench as mentioned before is not too bad, even with regular first team players missing.

Makes good for championship this year, Loughgiel to shade it again

[theskull1]

Chicken and egg scenario MR. Id argue you don't win championships without having put the right effort into really improving stick work and team play (thereby developing confidence in your teams ability to win out on the big stage)

[Milltown Row2]

Chicken and egg scenario MR. Id argue you don't win championships without having put the right effort into really improving stick work and team play (thereby developing confidence in your teams ability to win out on the big stage)

Defo, Oh it's hard work being an internet warrior!!!!

[theskull1]

indeed 

[Seamroga in exile]

U21 final. 14th June at 7.30. In ballymena.

[pdiddy]

Games won and lost in the last 10... if you're not up for driving on in that part of the game when its there for the taking then don't expect to come out the right side when your up against top opposition. We went 5 up and went to sleep. Overall Loughgiel the much more nuanced team who I'd say easy found their men with 30+ yard passes to the men inside 10 times more than we did. It takes the man inside to move for the ball (movement everywhere) and the man with the ball to know those type of moves are being made and then be able to deliver the right kind of ball to give his team mate the ball winning advantage. At the minute we are playing too may 50/50 balls to our forwards when is great when you get the right breaks but I think we have to work far harder to get our scores because the hard work isn't being done before the ball is delivered.

I actually thought our ball distribution was poor last night. Too many times we were guilty of just hitting the ball aimlessly up field and not taking that extra second to pick out a pass. The 2 times the Dunloy full back line switched off we capitalised (which from our point of view was good to see). Those 2 incidents aside and Dunloy would have been good value for a victory.  As someone said earlier plenty for both tems to work on.

[theskull1]

I actually thought our ball distribution was poor last night. Too many times we were guilty of just hitting the ball aimlessly up field and not taking that extra second to pick out a pass.

Maybe from your perspective it was, but youse were trying to find men front more than we were. 

[north aontroim gael]

Games won and lost in the last 10... if you're not up for driving on in that part of the game when its there for the taking then don't expect to come out the right side when your up against top opposition. We went 5 up and went to sleep. Overall Loughgiel the much more nuanced team who I'd say easy found their men with 30+ yard passes to the men inside 10 times more than we did. It takes the man inside to move for the ball (movement everywhere) and the man with the ball to know those type of moves are being made and then be able to deliver the right kind of ball to give his team mate the ball winning advantage. At the minute we are playing too may 50/50 balls to our forwards when is great when you get the right breaks but I think we have to work far harder to get our scores because the hard work isn't being done before the ball is delivered.

Watched the clips of your goals last night and both came from fortunate breaks off high balls.  You coud aso argue it was good anticipation by PR and NE though.

[johnneycool]

Games won and lost in the last 10... if you're not up for driving on in that part of the game when its there for the taking then don't expect to come out the right side when your up against top opposition. We went 5 up and went to sleep. Overall Loughgiel the much more nuanced team who I'd say easy found their men with 30+ yard passes to the men inside 10 times more than we did. It takes the man inside to move for the ball (movement everywhere) and the man with the ball to know those type of moves are being made and then be able to deliver the right kind of ball to give his team mate the ball winning advantage. At the minute we are playing too may 50/50 balls to our forwards when is great when you get the right breaks but I think we have to work far harder to get our scores because the hard work isn't being done before the ball is delivered.

Watched the clips of your goals last night and both came from fortunate breaks off high balls.  You coud aso argue it was good anticipation by PR and NE though.

I've always thought that from high balls more are broken than caught cleanly and if someone attacked the periphery of an aerial duel at the correct angle of running they'd get more ball than 'luck' would suggest.

Galway beat Kilkenny in the Leinster final by being first to the breaking ball once they prevented the Kilkenny lads from catching it cleanly.

[theskull1]

9 times out of 10 Kilkenny would beat Galway. Kilkenny will not fear Galway as they are too reliant on that wee bit of luck to out gun them.

[NAG1]

Games won and lost in the last 10... if you're not up for driving on in that part of the game when its there for the taking then don't expect to come out the right side when your up against top opposition. We went 5 up and went to sleep. Overall Loughgiel the much more nuanced team who I'd say easy found their men with 30+ yard passes to the men inside 10 times more than we did. It takes the man inside to move for the ball (movement everywhere) and the man with the ball to know those type of moves are being made and then be able to deliver the right kind of ball to give his team mate the ball winning advantage. At the minute we are playing too may 50/50 balls to our forwards when is great when you get the right breaks but I think we have to work far harder to get our scores because the hard work isn't being done before the ball is delivered.

Watched the clips of your goals last night and both came from fortunate breaks off high balls.  You coud aso argue it was good anticipation by PR and NE though.

I've always thought that from high balls more are broken than caught cleanly and if someone attacked the periphery of an aerial duel at the correct angle of running they'd get more ball than 'luck' would suggest.

Galway beat Kilkenny in the Leinster final by being first to the breaking ball once they prevented the Kilkenny lads from catching it cleanly.

JC I highlighted the key word in your correct statement. Even at IC level our players if you watch, will stand around two players contesting a dropping ball waiting for the break to happen, therefore they are static as the ball breaks.

The player picking up the break must be moving to the contact area at pace and ready to jump on the break, if they do this they have effectively taken two opposition players out of the game, if this happens in the half forward line it creates a point chance, if it happens inside you are looking at a one on one with the GK.

Yes sometimes the ball will break in an unexpected way, but if the player moving to that area is doing so at pace they should still be the first to react to this. At the end of the day it comes down to work rate and reading of the game live.