Sligo V Antrim Division 3 Final

[Milltown Row2]

in reference to donegal game donegal beat themselves that day. Other than that what real teams have antrim beat.2 defeats on bounce against wexford sligo hardly suggests antrim are near top table. I think bradley needs to quiet it down a little!

well they are inhe same league as Derry and Tyrone so they are keeping good company!!

watch the game last night when i made it back and to be fair Sligo were playing good football,  showing for the ball a lot better, and hungier as someone else pointed out.

looking at it though i think Antrim played better this season without the Galls lads but in saying that the Galls lads sould have improved our performance. its a strange one and i'm sure this month before the big game at Casement, Baker will have worked these lads up for the match.

[Gold]

That's it exactly- since the gall's boys have come back antrim have declined. It's hard to change a winnin team but baker felt he had to do it due to the individual quality of the gall's boys. The thing is though that their quality doesn't mean it's good for a 'team.' niblock defo improves the team and it's great to have a strong squad but we've defo been upset by the gall's boys comin back. Cj is too individual for the team at the moment, at county you need boys who do the simple things 5 out of 5 times, not the boy who can kick an outstanding long eye of the needle pass 1 out of 5 times with the other 4 goin to the opposition.  Take the time in 1st half instead of passing to the runner off the shoulder (as team antrim have become accustomed to playin) he chose to shoot and kicked wide from in front of goal. He's talented but not a player for our system, maybe better utilised as an impact sub. We looked toothless apart from PC although Magills prob not fit at moment. Will rely on niblock alot to take the game to tyrone but whether he's fit enough after his lay off will be another thing.

[the goal was on]

same league next year so as i said have a lot to prove yet.

[longrunsthefox]

Antrim will be ready and waiting for Tyrone,have no fears about that and we will do well to get out of Casement with a win.

Antrim are not anywhere near Tyrone's level even with tyrone struggling a bit this year. The Ulster final was over in less than 20 minutes last year. Judging by last night their game in May won't even last that long. I don't think Tyrone will win Sam but they ain't that bad. 

[The Worker]

How did CJ stay on the field ?

He has yet to bring his st galls from with him when he puts on a saffron shirt.

[mattockranger]

Maybe he was played out of position....

trying too hard to impress...dosen't feel that pressure with his club

[JimStynes]

I wouldnt have Cj anywhere near the starting team until he gets his head out of his hole. The way he talks in his interviews you would think hes a 10 year veteran whos deciding to give the 'county' another go after hanging the boots up. There is doubt about his potential but he has done f**k all at county level so far to warrant the praise that certain reporters give him.

[The Worker]

I wouldnt have Cj anywhere near the starting team until he gets his head out of his hole. The way he talks in his interviews you would think hes a 10 year veteran whos deciding to give the 'county' another go after hanging the boots up. There is doubt about his potential but he has done f**k all at county level so far to warrant the praise that certain reporters give him.

I concur jim.

[Tony Baloney]

I wouldnt have Cj anywhere near the starting team until he gets his head out of his hole. The way he talks in his interviews you would think hes a 10 year veteran whos deciding to give the 'county' another go after hanging the boots up. There is doubt about his potential but he has done f**k all at county level so far to warrant the praise that certain reporters give him.

These certain (Irish News) reporters (with the initials BC) are family friends, allegedly. Handy having your very own PR machine on the books of the papers.

[haranguerer]

I thought Sean Kelly was poor on Sat night - surprised because hes generally very good. Loughrey had to be switched with him after 15 min, in fairness though this didnt curtail the sligo lad much, he had a very good game.

From what I saw it looked similar to what they (antrim) were doing against Fermanagh - too much f**king about out the field, only fermanagh are that bad it didnt make any difference. Its clear Cunningham will score or have a good go from anywhere, magills a decent target man, and cj also has quality, but the ball is very slow coming in. Too many men wanting to solo the ball - scullions a good tough whb, but he stands out for it in particular. If Antrim are going to be that slow on the ball, tyrone will annihilate them.

[A Quinn Martin Production]

Agree  haranguer about the slowness of ball summed up by an incident in the first half when Magill won the ball, Cunningham made a great run into 5 yards of space, Magill soloed and tried to beat his man, when he couldn't get past him he put the ball to where Cunningham had been five seconds earlier and the ball ran out over the sideline.

I got the impression that although the St Galls players have played at the very top in club football this year they are still off the pace of inter county football even at Div 3 level.  I was surprised at how slow, sluggish and ponderous Antrim were esp in possession of the ball.  Colin Brady (our best player last year) got the mother of all roastings, Sean Kelly and Terry O'Neill looked as thought on the whole they'd rather be elsewhere and CJ though he was ordinary to be fair he didn't get much service and was wasted on the 40 in the first half.  Not singling out St Galls players here, Aidso Gallagher may have played himself back into the Tyrone game, McClean did well until the Coen boy came on, and both McCanns, Magill and Crozier were off the boil.

On a different point I noticed a couple of Antrim players using the tactic of "palming" the ball down with both hands.  Presumably this is to try to get more control on the ball rather than the traditional one handed break and it becomes more of a pass??  However if you can get two hands on the ball why not catch it, esp in a game where you would get a mark

[Olly]

I think our manager deliberately played this the way it turned out. Antrim can now work up to the Tyrone game with no expectation. Brilliant again from Bradley.

[drici]

Sligo shine on Croker stage!

Sligo 0-19 Antrim 1-11

YES, they were that good.

While Sligo, en route to promotion from Division Three and now this section's champions, have thrilled or chilled their loyal fans by making life hard for themselves – can they do it any other way? – Saturday's slick five-points defeat of Antrim, 0-19 to 1-11, revealed a reborn attitude although one wonders how Antrim got promoted at all.

This was a Sligo team, guided assuredly by Kevin Walsh, taking charge of its own destiny – at no less a venue than plush Croke Park – and happy to do so.

New Sligo, basking in their new found identity, knew they were promoted irrespective of the outcome of this Allianz GAA Football National League fixture, their last in Division Three as they take on the steeper trails of Division Two in 2011.

Playing with purpose, Sligo's defensive interceptions and their flowing offensive moves delighted the followers who made the trip and those who opted to watch the action unfold 'live' on TG4.

Inspired defensively by irrepressible team captain Charlie Harrison, at midfield by Stephen Gilmartin, a Sligo U-21 last year but a mature revelation in a major fixture such as this, and in attack by Alan Costello, David Kelly and Colm McGee, the latter supplying five of Sligo's 19 points, Sligo went about their task as if winning meant everything. It did.

Division Four champions in 2009, Division Three champions in 2010, this result mattered alright. Not just in the context of completing this year's National League with a flourish, but in terms of showing where they are at with the Connacht Senior Championship, and specifically that quarter-final against Division One runners-up Mayo, coming up at Markievicz Park in June.

An often sublime display was summed up well by the various statistics. This was Sligo's fifth successive win, their second game to almost reach the 20-points mark and a rich return from an in-form attack – five of the six starting forwards scored and there were seven scorers in all.

Sligo had heroes aplenty. Those players mentioned above – Gilmartin, with three points, and Costello, who made dozens of clever passes, the standout performers – as Ross Donovan, Mark Quinn, Mark Breheny, Johnny Davey, Keelan Cawley and Tony Taylor each prospered marvellously.

Noel McGuire, composed again, and substitute Stephen Coen, who fizzed over three second-half points, also excelled.


Eamon O'Hara, Sligo's other second-half replacement, was also comfortable in a setting that he made his own back in 2001 and 2002 when Sligo spectacularly punched above its weight.

Antrim weren't just overwhelmed, they weren't even at the races. Corner-forward Paddy Cunningham apart – he scored six points, four in the first-half – Kevin 'Boxer' Bradley's side lacked direction and leadership although the loss of midfielder Brendan Herron via an early first-half injury was a mitigating factor.

Although they were ahead briefly in the first-half and three times level with their more adroit opponents, Antrim were, overall, the most feeble of finalists.

Indeed, the losers' one notable moment, Michael McCann's goal which suddenly suggested a much closer than anticipated finish with 12 minutes of normal time left, was mercilessly crushed by Sligo's tremendous response – three rapid-fire points from Stephen Coen (2) and Mark Breheny that turned a two-points lead into a five-points cushion.

To borrow boxing parlance, Sligo's ability to absorb punches and counter with devastating shots of their own was the ultimate difference. Four points up at half-time, 0-9 to 0-5, and only behind once, 0-3 to 0-2, when Cunningham hit a 17th minute free, Sligo immediately settled when Mark Breheny pointed after 64 seconds.

The move developed from perceptive passing – Francis Quinn and Kenneth Sweeney involved – and such movement, awareness of space and clever use of possession evolved into something that Antrim couldn't match.

Midfielder Stephen Gilmartin's ability to find the range with points – two in the first-half and one in the second period – Alan Costello's feverish distribution and direct running plus David Kelly's industry (he was the catalyst for numerous scores) were consistently notable features Meanwhile, Colm McGee and Mark Breheny each fired over Sligo's most eye-catching points, McGee taking scores with both feet, and Breheny contributed his finest point, his fourth and Sligo's 16th, in the phase when Antrim's goal was erased.

Sligo fans are smiling again, their faith fully restored. Why not? After last weekend's glorious show, anything is possible.

[SLIGONIAN]

Sligo shine on Croker stage!

Sligo 0-19 Antrim 1-11

YES, they were that good.

While Sligo, en route to promotion from Division Three and now this section's champions, have thrilled or chilled their loyal fans by making life hard for themselves – can they do it any other way? – Saturday's slick five-points defeat of Antrim, 0-19 to 1-11, revealed a reborn attitude although one wonders how Antrim got promoted at all.

This was a Sligo team, guided assuredly by Kevin Walsh, taking charge of its own destiny – at no less a venue than plush Croke Park – and happy to do so.

New Sligo, basking in their new found identity, knew they were promoted irrespective of the outcome of this Allianz GAA Football National League fixture, their last in Division Three as they take on the steeper trails of Division Two in 2011.

Playing with purpose, Sligo's defensive interceptions and their flowing offensive moves delighted the followers who made the trip and those who opted to watch the action unfold 'live' on TG4.

Inspired defensively by irrepressible team captain Charlie Harrison, at midfield by Stephen Gilmartin, a Sligo U-21 last year but a mature revelation in a major fixture such as this, and in attack by Alan Costello, David Kelly and Colm McGee, the latter supplying five of Sligo's 19 points, Sligo went about their task as if winning meant everything. It did.

Division Four champions in 2009, Division Three champions in 2010, this result mattered alright. Not just in the context of completing this year's National League with a flourish, but in terms of showing where they are at with the Connacht Senior Championship, and specifically that quarter-final against Division One runners-up Mayo, coming up at Markievicz Park in June.

An often sublime display was summed up well by the various statistics. This was Sligo's fifth successive win, their second game to almost reach the 20-points mark and a rich return from an in-form attack – five of the six starting forwards scored and there were seven scorers in all.

Sligo had heroes aplenty. Those players mentioned above – Gilmartin, with three points, and Costello, who made dozens of clever passes, the standout performers – as Ross Donovan, Mark Quinn, Mark Breheny, Johnny Davey, Keelan Cawley and Tony Taylor each prospered marvellously.

Noel McGuire, composed again, and substitute Stephen Coen, who fizzed over three second-half points, also excelled.


Eamon O'Hara, Sligo's other second-half replacement, was also comfortable in a setting that he made his own back in 2001 and 2002 when Sligo spectacularly punched above its weight.

Antrim weren't just overwhelmed, they weren't even at the races. Corner-forward Paddy Cunningham apart – he scored six points, four in the first-half – Kevin 'Boxer' Bradley's side lacked direction and leadership although the loss of midfielder Brendan Herron via an early first-half injury was a mitigating factor.

Although they were ahead briefly in the first-half and three times level with their more adroit opponents, Antrim were, overall, the most feeble of finalists.

Indeed, the losers' one notable moment, Michael McCann's goal which suddenly suggested a much closer than anticipated finish with 12 minutes of normal time left, was mercilessly crushed by Sligo's tremendous response – three rapid-fire points from Stephen Coen (2) and Mark Breheny that turned a two-points lead into a five-points cushion.

To borrow boxing parlance, Sligo's ability to absorb punches and counter with devastating shots of their own was the ultimate difference. Four points up at half-time, 0-9 to 0-5, and only behind once, 0-3 to 0-2, when Cunningham hit a 17th minute free, Sligo immediately settled when Mark Breheny pointed after 64 seconds.

The move developed from perceptive passing – Francis Quinn and Kenneth Sweeney involved – and such movement, awareness of space and clever use of possession evolved into something that Antrim couldn't match.

Midfielder Stephen Gilmartin's ability to find the range with points – two in the first-half and one in the second period – Alan Costello's feverish distribution and direct running plus David Kelly's industry (he was the catalyst for numerous scores) were consistently notable features Meanwhile, Colm McGee and Mark Breheny each fired over Sligo's most eye-catching points, McGee taking scores with both feet, and Breheny contributed his finest point, his fourth and Sligo's 16th, in the phase when Antrim's goal was erased.

Sligo fans are smiling again, their faith fully restored. Why not? After last weekend's glorious show, anything is possible.

I have to say Liam Maloney take a bow, that is a excellent account from a Sligo perspective of what happened. Thanks Drici.

[SambaSaffron]

  Sligo weren't that good, I mean we were awful yet they only pulled away in the last 15. I wonder what 'Boxer' Bradley reckons to the report.