Antrim Hurling

[johnneycool]

You'll miss the neutral venue of casement really jc 

Yeah it is not often you hear of a hurling match being scoreless for a half so must have been bad. the worst weather in the antrim final as at half time when it really wasn't good. Loughgiel ran out for the second half and ran right back in again!

Back in the day when Casement wasn't available we'd make do with Corrigan.

I'd say its Owenbeg or Armagh depending on availability!

[Seamroga in exile]

Congratulations to the Loughgiel players and management staff. Both sets of players played out of their skin. I think we did enough to win it without any qualms.  At the start of the second half the Cushendall backs started getting the upper hand but their forwards didn't take advantage of chances created. A couple of mistakes, the short puck out straight to Maol being one, gave us back the momentum. Eddie's run and point was total class also. Tc, Duck, Eddie, Tony, Winker, Shay all could have got motm without much argument. Special mention to young Damon McMulan and Maol Connolly who were both excellent also.

I thought Owen did a good job in what was never going to be an easy game to ref and was fair enough to both teams. It was good to see the game being let go rather than blew up every 30 seconds. I'm just about feeling human again. 

[north aontroim gael]

Congratulations to the Loughgiel players and management staff. Both sets of players played out of their skin. I think we did enough to win it without any qualms.  At the start of the second half the Cushendall backs started getting the upper hand but their forwards didn't take advantage of chances created. A couple of mistakes, the short puck out straight to Maol being one, gave us back the momentum. Eddie's run and point was total class also. Tc, Duck, Eddie, Tony, Winker, Shay all could have got motm without much argument. Special mention to young Damon McMulan and Maol Connolly who were both excellent also.

I thought Owen did a good job in what was never going to be an easy game to ref and was fair enough to both teams. It was good to see the game being let go rather than blew up every 30 seconds. I'm just about feeling human again. 

I'd have given MOTM to Donal McKinley closely followed by Shay Casey or Tiernan Coyle.

[Seamroga in exile]

Congratulations to the Loughgiel players and management staff. Both sets of players played out of their skin. I think we did enough to win it without any qualms.  At the start of the second half the Cushendall backs started getting the upper hand but their forwards didn't take advantage of chances created. A couple of mistakes, the short puck out straight to Maol being one, gave us back the momentum. Eddie's run and point was total class also. Tc, Duck, Eddie, Tony, Winker, Shay all could have got motm without much argument. Special mention to young Damon McMulan and Maol Connolly who were both excellent also.

I thought Owen did a good job in what was never going to be an easy game to ref and was fair enough to both teams. It was good to see the game being let go rather than blew up every 30 seconds. I'm just about feeling human again. 

I'd have given MOTM to Donal McKinley closely followed by Shay Casey or Tiernan Coyle.

aye. He played well too.

[Usain]

Any idea of an attendance figure? I'd reckon that was one of the largest attendances at county final in the post Casement era.

[btdtgtt]

Couldn't get to the final but skipped through both games on a kindly supplied DVD so can post now!

Dunloy were clearly the better side in the minor game and the result never looked in doubt.

Cushendall got a dream start with their goal - but then hit a wall. Loughgiel pegged them back with well worked points then hit a purple patch before half time with the goal and gave themselves a buffer. One which Cushendall could never get back. A deserved win for the shamrocks who seemed to move better throughout.

Hard to tell through the DVD but does that seem fair?

Slightly different point - more than one person commented that conditions and being exposed to them - throwing in umbrellas hindering viewing - all makes us realise how much we need a genuine county ground to host these games. I hope Casement is agreed and isn't far off we have waited much too long already.

[theskull1]

I'd rather watch a county final getting a soaking and struggling to see past a sea of golf umbrellas than sit in relative comfort in an near as damned it empty stadium

[paddyjohn]

I'd rather watch a county final getting a soaking and struggling to see past a sea of golf umbrellas than sit in relative comfort in an near as damned it empty stadium

You'd be on your own in that one. Tell that to my 6 year old daughter who got 2 soakings at the weekend despite the fact we had brollies etc.

It's an embarrassment in this day and age that we have to play county finals in places like Ballycastle and that's no slight on the the McQuillians club as they are a credit.

We need a county ground with a covered stand.

[btdtgtt]

I'd rather watch a county final getting a soaking and struggling to see past a sea of golf umbrellas than sit in relative comfort in an near as damned it empty stadium

Would you have preferred that game in ballycastle than in the old Casement?

Can you see that others - particularly young or older people - certainly would not?
Before a couple of people told me their views on the game their first comment was about someone sliding down a hill as people laughed, getting so drenched they couldn't enjoy the match, and not seeing long spells because they could see past umbrellas.

Yet you think Ballycastle is a better venue than the old, or a new Casement?

I for one find it just more evidence that we need a proper county ground - and I find it very curious that there's a need to actually state something so obvious.

[theskull1]

I'm not arguing that we don't need a county ground with better facilities (i.e a covered stand). I'm saying, as bad as it was (and it was that bad), I would rather get drowned as sit in a stadium that has not been designed to suit the needs of Antrim and its support base. A redesigned Casement will be built for Ulster football championship matches. I believe the atmosphere will be terrible for games involving Antrim teams because we lack the supporters to fill it to any decent level. We need a 10-15K sized ground for Antrims needs

[imtommygunn]

I would say a lot of people would disagree with the last two posts. I personally would much rather have the county final in the likes of ballycastle than in a half empty stadium.

The atmosphere for county finals outside of casement has significantly surpassed anything in casement that I can ever remember and i have been to quite a few.

It's an embarrassment we don't have a county ground yes and it is a pain getting that big a soaking at these games but not up to clubs to provide a stand. Old casement would have been great if it were filled but it never was for a club game. (or an antrim hurling game)

[north aontroim gael]

It's been said to death on here but an Owenbeg type development in a central location is exactly what we need.

Does anyone know approximate cost to construct Owenbeg?

[theskull1]

It hasn't been said to death at the right level though has though has it ... thats the problem

[btdtgtt]

So you guys would prefer that game to have been at ballycastle on Sunday - than at the old Casement?

I would suggest the players wouldn't, and the majority of supporters wouldn't.
The atmosphere at Casement on county final days was excellent.
The facilities for supporters were light years ahead of club grounds like sunday.
I don't any players that didn't love hurling in Casement.

If ye can't see it for yourselves - open you mind and think of the hundreds of people soaked (some had to leave early) and young & old who paid £10 to not to see long spells of the game.
Does every other county with a proper ground leave it sitting and have their county finals at smaller pitches for supposed better atmosphere? No chance.

Sorry guys - ya's are full of it.

[imtommygunn]

So you guys would prefer that game to have been at ballycastle on Sunday - than at the old Casement?

I would suggest the players wouldn't, and the majority of supporters wouldn't.
The atmosphere at Casement on county final days was excellent.
The facilities for supporters were light years ahead of club grounds like sunday.
I don't any players that didn't love hurling in Casement.

If ye can't see it for yourselves - open you mind and think of the hundreds of people soaked (some had to leave early) and young & old who paid £10 to not to see long spells of the game.
Does every other county with a proper ground leave it sitting and have their county finals at smaller pitches for supposed better atmosphere? No chance.

Sorry guys - ya's are full of it.

Yes good argument we're full of it. All the players would rather play there. Can you tell me how many players you surveyed?

The atmosphere for the last 2 county finals has been significantly better than most, if not any, I can recall in casement. When it was not full, which was pretty much every game in it, then the stand was too far from the pitch so it didn't generate an atmosphere like you would get with players close to the pitch. Also you only ever got one side full.