All Ireland Quarter Final Tir Eoghain V Dublin

[heffo]

I hate having to pay the 3.5 euro commission but what can you do especially given the short timeframe to get tickets.

Become a member of the GAA?

Heffo
I am and have been for more than 30 years but moved away from my home club area for work reasons - but am still a member of and have great loyalty to my club. The difficulty is with the short notice you have to weigh up travelling 50 or 60 miles for a ticket or pay the 3.5 euro to ticketmaster.

My apologies so ND - if you're in Dublin and you ever need a ticket let me know

[Fuzzman]

Fair play lads

I can appreciate some fellow Ulster Gaels are happy to support us and some have had bad experiences and are not so happy

I remember in 2002 when I just got back from Aus, I went to the Armagh v Dub match
Cheered for armagh the whole time as I never had any bad experiences with anyone.
Then in the pub afterwards I met a few lads and they said where U from anyway
When I told them they said we don't need yer support pal

We have our fair share of annoying fans & when I get excited myself I know I can be hard to listen to.
I've the Shirt on in work today and its getting quite a good reception with others saying bet you wont be wearing that come Tue (bank holiday here on Mon)

Will be in 308 lower Cusack if anyone fancies a pint there at end of Down game.

[Fear ón Srath Bán]

Will be in 308 lower Cusack if anyone fancies a pint there at end of Down game.

See you after the Minor game, I'm in 305 Lower Cusack 

[Quarterback]

Kieth Barrs Article in The Irish Indo - Great Read

I HAD to laugh: no sooner was the draw made than Mickey Harte appeared in the media talking up Dublin.

Who are you kidding, Mickey? Certainly not the bookies, who have sensibly made Tyrone clear odds-on favourites to complete their third crucial championship victory over Dublin in six years. It's impossible to look beyond such an outcome.

Harte is a sharp operator. He knows only too well that every season requires a different tweak. He also knows he has to deflect from the fact that Tyrone are overwhelming favourites to win tomorrow. Last year Tyrone looked spent when Cork overpowered them in the semi-final but this time around he has rested all his key men and Tyrone look to be improving with every game. Enda McGinley's return and Stephen O'Neill's recovery strengthen Harte's already powerful hand.

There is no point in fannying around about Tyrone's prospects -- a fourth All-Ireland is now tantalisingly close. They absolutely believe that by 5.30 tomorrow evening they will be one step nearer to that prize.

As onlookers, we are always trying to determine the long-term prospects of the top teams. Sometimes it's impossible. While Harte resisted the temptation to rush back his experienced players during the league, I mistakenly interpreted their form as that of a team in decline. Relegation to Division 2 and the perceived tensions between Sean Cavanagh and Harte seemed to confirm this.

This analysis, we know now, was misleading. As Tyrone tried all week to play up the significance of Dublin's victory at Healy Park in April, I would be more inclined to look at the Red Hands' late one-point victory over Kerry in March as the defining result of the spring. Beating Dublin in the league, even with relegation at stake, did not really matter to Tyrone. Beating Kerry, on the other hand, certainly did.

Despite what those associated with Tyrone and Kerry say, they do not fear Dublin. Besides having an unshakeable belief in their own ability, Tyrone feel that by silencing the crowd, denying Dublin chances and sowing the seeds of doubt in their forwards, they will almost certainly progress.

While I'm not a fan of defensive systems, Tyrone's ability to move at pace from defence to attack is frightening for opponents. To be honest, it's probably inaccurate to refer to it as a defensive system. It's a system where serious work-rate is the core responsibility of every player. Class and technique are expected but not at the expense of selfless work.

They are also extremely patient in their build-up, making sure they work the score efficiently. Rarely do you see a Tyrone player trying an aimless shot from distance. Having said that, Brian Dooher, O'Neill and Cavanagh are all capable of nailing a wonder score when necessary.

And that's what's really appealing about Tyrone's approach. They're not restricted by their system, they are empowered by it. The corner-back will run the field and stick it over the bar if he has to while someone covers for him; their forwards will rarely shoot outside the 'zone' but if they have to, they will. Tyrone players react to circumstances by taking responsibility and working for each other. You don't see them sulking or taking hissy fits.

So where does this leave Dublin tomorrow? Well, I know that I wasn't alone suffering a sinking feeling when Coman Goggins drew us out of the hat. In fact I thought Coman himself looked a whiter shade of pale after the event!

Let me be straight. No one expects Dublin to win. They are back playing honest football: workmanlike, with little flash and plenty of effort. They're trying to make it hard for the opposition by competing doggedly, as per the plan for the season. After their wobble in Leinster, when it looked as we'd lost faith in the plan, this is to be welcomed.

They haven't ditched all their old bad habits. The Dublin forwards are working very hard when they don't have possession. However, they must also work hard for each other when they have the ball and remain patient.

Alan Brogan, for example, cannot keep searching for his own score at the expense of a simple pass to a better-placed colleague; nor is the killer pass always on. Sometimes it's just about slipping the easy ball off and working to draw the defensive cover.

While you want your players to have the confidence to shoot, Tyrone will be more than happy if Dublin become restless at the crowd's behest and start forcing their efforts.

A change of culture is never easy to implement and Dublin are discovering just how difficult a task it is. Their image of being all style and no substance seemed to be exploited annually at this point of the season.

But Dublin cannot be accused of being 'fancy Dans' this year, not by a long shot. Without the frills and the hype, Dublin go in with nothing to lose. All they need to do is stick to their approach, make it as hard as possible for Tyrone and fight to the line, fight for the blue jersey that they are privileged to have on their backs.

If they acquit themselves honestly, then Pat Gilroy, given how he has set his stall out this season, can have no qualms. We did not expect to win an All-Ireland, only to lay the foundations for a new approach.

Tomorrow's climb looks too steep for an inexperienced Dublin team to surmount. Their opponents possess too much class and experience. When Tyrone players stand for the anthem tomorrow evening, the weight of their All-Ireland medals will anchor their belief.

For sure, this will be a learning experience for Gilroy's men like no other to date and hopefully they will emerge the better for it.

What I would like to see is what I saw all around me when I was fortunate to participate in occasions like this. When I played for Dublin, there were men who believed they were warriors, that every championship match was a battle. It shaped their approach, their commitment. It didn't guarantee against making mistakes; nor did it guarantee victory. What it did ensure was that those men left absolutely nothing behind them; they emptied the tank every time.

I knew when I committed myself to something on the field there was another man to back me up. Dublin's new system, whatever the pros and cons of the approach, is really based on players working for each other, for a bigger cause, not for themselves.

This is the first time in recent memory that there is no hype in the capital. The supporters may return tomorrow but they do so to back an honest team very much in transition and facing a daunting challenge.

As Dublin are now stripped of the weight of expectation, this is Tyrone's game to lose.

Irish Independent

[BennyHarp]

I've the Shirt on in work today and its getting quite a good reception with others saying bet you wont be wearing that come Tue (bank holiday here on Mon)

Fuzzman - are you Colin Hunt? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rj1SFtxRTg&feature=related

[rrhf]

Will Molly Malone be about the marra...

[Canalman]

Impending sense of doom about this game as it draws closer............ initial optimism fading away.
We need a display like we pulled out of the hat in Leinster Finals of 1983 and 1995/ Lgue Finals of 1987 and 1993 (replay) to beat Tyrone. Tyrone's subs makes sobering reading..............can't understand why McCullough isn't starting, I think he is class.

Oh ............it  would be nice for a change not to hit the crossbar  in a big game.

Anyway best of luck to the Dubs and safe journeys to and home for all.

Átha Cliath abú.

[Hereiam]

Just a word of warning to all Tyrone gaels traveling tomorrow. Watch ur speed along the Omagh-Ballygawley road as the RUC will be out in force to gather up a few pound.

[EC Unique]

Just a word of warning to all Tyrone gaels traveling tomorrow. Watch ur speed along the Omagh-Ballygawley road as the RUC will be out in force to gather up a few pound.

Aye noticed the scum out on the morning of the Ulster Final. Always in or around Kelly's Inn in the 50 mph zone. Any other Sunday morning and there would be no sign of the bastards.

[Mickeys beard]

Just a word of warning to all Tyrone gaels traveling tomorrow. Watch ur speed along the Omagh-Ballygawley road as the RUC will be out in force to gather up a few pound.

Aye noticed the scum out on the morning of the Ulster Final. Always in or around Kelly's Inn in the 50 mph zone. Any other Sunday morning and there would be no sign of the b**tards.

I think you're being very harsh-they're merely lending their support.  I could swear I saw a cop with a red and white hair-dryer the last day.

[Zapatista]

Will be in 308 lower Cusack if anyone fancies a pint there at end of Down game.

See you after the Minor game, I'm in 305 Lower Cusack 

That's gay.


 

I'll try to make it at some stage.

[Fear ón Srath Bán]

Will be in 308 lower Cusack if anyone fancies a pint there at end of Down game.

See you after the Minor game, I'm in 305 Lower Cusack 

That's gay.

Never crossed my mind, bitch! 

[Zapatista]

Got the Tyrone flag delivered to work like Fuzzman. Stuck it out the window got a great responce those Polish folk had no idea what it was all about. She flying from the fork lift now zooming about the yard. Looking good.

Will have it out the window tonight and expect a different responce from the neighbours.

[Fuzzman]

I just got my car plastered with Dublin posters and one says
" I love Jayo"

They all took pics of it and sent it around the office

I finally met the first Dub who thinks they're gonna win
He reckons the Brogans know this is their big stage and they owe us for 2008 shambles

I'm beginning to doubt a little now
If the Dubs get a good start and a head of steam built up, the crowd will follow and the pressure is on us then
Of course it could work the other way then that they question themselves then can they hold onto a lead or will they collapse as usual and the Hill get on their backs

I just hope its not a dramatic day with sendings off, penalty misses or umpire upset

[J OGorman]

Just done a bet on Hughes to score first goal at 25/1 and another at
Hughes to get last score of game at 25/1. with paddypower.  unfortunately couldn't do a combo!

MB, if you canny get a combo with Paddy Power online, ring the hooers and they will give you combo odds over the phone