AI Club finals - the dates and times

[An Gaeilgoir]

Well done to Eoghan Rua who beat us on Sunday. A game not for the purist but 100% effort by both teams. Cant fault the result, we dominated most of the first half but kicked some terrible wides. Eoghan Rua finished the stronger team and best of luck to them in the final.

[bennydorano]

Congrats to Cross, they really are something special.  I heard as well that 4 or 5 of the team played with the 'bug', john McEntee being one of them - who had a fantastic game.

Have to mention the performance os Stephen Kernan, he was shocking, I've been one of very few who's being giving him the benefit of the doubt, but maybe he's jsut not going to make it.

[SuperDooperCooper]

Anyone know if the Crokes v Moorefield replay is on TG4 tomorrow?

[SuperDooperCooper]

Answering my own question:
13:55  GAA Beo
Craoladh beo ar Chluiche Leath Cheannais Peile, Athimirt i gCraobh Club AIB - Achadh Uí Mhórdha (Cill Dara) v Crócaigh Chill Airne (Ciarraí). Tráchtaireacht le Brian Tyers. Beo ó Páirc Mhic Dhonncha, An tAonach.
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Hopefully be heading to Croker with a smile on my face. Crokes will have to up their performance significantly but I'm hopeful they can.

[brokencrossbar1]

I didn't realise that there was a thread on this.  Since the gfecking change over a few weeks ago the computer is a wee bit tempremental(or maybe that is the wife).  Anyway,  I have to say it is some achievement for the boys to be back in HQ.  Ten years on from the first and they are still going strong.  It will be strange to watch it from the stand but I have had my piece of that cake so I am well and truly full  I was very impressed with young Hanratty and David McKenna.  The difference in this team and our previous ones is that there are so many more viable options for Management and there are more coming through.  To think that there are only 4 from the first team that won in Croke Park is a great testimony to the club structures and the undergae structures.

A few things on the game itself.  Mickey Mac was not in the square when the ball entered the square.  It was played across the square and he ran onto it.  Oisin possibly fouled the ball but this happens and balances itself out over a game.  

I thought the work rate of the team was excellent.  They tackled like demons and credit must go to my wily old training adversaries Califf and Donal on marshalling them so well.

Finally, Cross have for the first time in a number of years so many scoring options.  The pressure is no longer on Oisin and he seems to be thriving on it and playing much better football.  Also captaincy suits him.

Whoever comes out of the other game will be difficult to beat, so it will be a tough final all the same.  I will keep my opinion on it till closer to the time.

[Kerry Mike]

Well done to Crokes who will represent Kerry in the Senior final on the 17th March and Ardfert and Duagh who will represent us in the Intermediate and Junior finals also in Croker on the 10th March.

It will be a tough Ulster challenge for all 3 kerry teams but hopefully they can all turn in match winning performances and bring a few more All Irelands back to the Kingdom.

Ardfert won the Junior AI last year and its a huge achievement for them to get back to Croke Park to play for the Intermediate title the following year. Has anyone stepped up a level and won a another title.

In the senior final we have to go back to Laune Rangers in 1996 to see the last Kerry winner and before that to 1992 when Dr Crokes won the title, with An Ghaeltacht the only Kerry club to play in a final since then, losing recently to Caltra.

Pat O'Shea the Crokes and Kerry manager was a good corner forward on their last win in Croker and a certain Colm Cooper was the mascot that day, there was a bit of hassle before the game when some suit in Croke Park tried to stop him running out with the team.

Crossmaglen with their Armagh contingent and their great history in the competition will probably start the final as favourites and they will present a formidable challenge. The McEntees , McConville, Bellew have been around for what seems a long time but with the Kernan Clan and other young bloods there
is plenty of football in that team yet.

But Crokes will be no pushover with Gooch and Brosnan leading the way. Gooch's tussle on the edge of the square with the other Ginger wonder Mr Bellew will have a big bearing on the outcome. Crokes have strong competitors in the middle with Ambrose O'Donavan (yes he's the son of the legendary 1984 captain) and Mike Moloney playing well in the midfield region. Add in Kieran O'Leary a Kerry senior panalist from last year and Kerry sub goalie Kieran Cremin and they have a good solid line up.

Beaten for the last 2 years in the Kerry Championship final by South Kerry, they have a point to prove to earn recognition within the Kingdom at least, they have a typical townie arrogant approach and will put on a big battle to bring the Andy Merrigan back to the Tatler Jack pub in Killarney.

Hard game to call and its really down to the team that clicks on the day. My heart hopes for a Crokes win but my head is leaning towards a stronger looking Cross victory.

Will both teams change jerseys from their normal black and amber.

Should be a great day out, BC1 we will have to meet for a pint.

[brokencrossbar1]

Mike, sure I am heading up from Cork to watch it, we could go up together! 

I don't think the jersey's would be much of an issue, same colours but fairly different.  With all 4 provinces represented on the day there should be a fair crowd, Cross always bring a huge contingent.  What I have seen of both teams this year Cross should be starting as lukewarm favourites.  They have a great blend of experience and youth, but there are only 4 of the team that won the first one ten years ago on the team.   For many of the young lads on both teams it will be their first time playing in such a huge game and the result will depend on how they adopt to the occassion.  From a very selfish point of view it is a pity the football is the first game on as I think it might be difficult to keep fans off the pitch if Cross win. 

From what I have seen of both teams this year, the repective full back lines will be the winning and losing of the game.  Whoever can control the FF lines best will win the game.  As always MF is crucial and Cross have a very strong central zone.  Brosnan and O'Donovan will have to be very much at their best to influence this area.

All in all it will hopefully be a great occassion, and watching ti from the stands will be a very nice change.

[SlimShady]

bc, whats the average age of your lot? roughly...

i cant see Cross being beaten to be honest.

[ziggysego]

Something tells me it's Cross' name on the Cup this year.

I'm hoping for a clean sweep of Ulster teams this year

[brokencrossbar1]

Slim, I did a quick calculation on all the players used this year and it is about 23-24.  In the last game outside of the Macs, Hearty, Oisin, Francie, JD, and Stephen Clarke, all the players are under 25 with at least 4 of them under 21. 

I hope it is their year.  Recently there was an article in the Evening Echo about how Cross were good but nowhere near as good as Nemo.  I tend to disagree with the journalist!

[SlimShady]

jeez, that is not what i'd have thought! i was thinking around 28/29...

very young team then and with the experience from the others mentioned they'll be hard to beat.

[brokencrossbar1]

Over recent years all us older, fatter boys have moved on   The underage structure is great and producing 3-4 senior standard minors every year.  Two of the better players from last weekend were Johnny Hanratty and David McKenna, both are only 19 while there are at least 5 others who played on the u 21 team that won the county this year have played in this year senior championship.  There would also be another 4-5 squad players.  The rest would Aaron and Stephen Kernan, Brendan McKeown John Murtagh and Sean & Mickey McNamee.  They were all minors in 2001 so that would make them 24 maximum.

[Kerry Mike]

As one not really knowing the club standard in Armagh, what is Cross's record like in recent minor and U21 competition, is there a big conveyor belt of talent coming through and why are they so successful.

BC1 I know you are biased here and probably opening up a big can of worms here but has Crossmaglens dominance in the Senior title over the last decade been good for Armagh club football and their intercounty teams. Or has having too many from the one club stiffled some other young talent within the county.

[thebandit]

Any team that wins the ulster club championship without Francie and Aaron (2 of the finest defenders in Ulster) are some team.

We played Cross Bs recently and Gary McShane was MOTM - Cross have serious defensive options

[brokencrossbar1]

In 1993 we won the minor championship.  The team had the Mac's, Francie, Oisin, Hearty and Cathal Short who all went on to play for Armagh seniors.  There were 4 more I think went on to play in the first AI club winning team.  We won the U-21 1993-1996 and have won it twice since then I think, last year being the most recent.  The minors won it the last 2 years as well and in 2001.  The 2001 team produced 7 of the lads who played against St Brigids and the recent minor teams have 6-7 palying and squad members.  The underage structure in Cross is fantastic and has been worked on fro 25 years.  It is starting to really bear fruit and many posters on here believe that because of it the continued success of Cross in Armagh at least is nearly iron clad guaranteed.

As regards whether this is causing progression of other talent there are two trains of thought.

Many people argue that Joe Kernan unfairly shows bias to Cross players in picking his Armagh squad.  There are a number of clubs,eg Dromintee, Harps and the Lurgan based clubs who feel that they have players equal to or better than Cross players that Joe picks.  There may be merit in saying that Joe has a bias, but in recent times he has had his hand forced to pick other players for the League such as Charlie Vernon and Peader Toal of Armagh Harps, and Micheal O'Rourke of Dromintee so they have their chance in my view to cement their places.  As regards the club scene, at under age Armagh Harps and Pearse Ogs have been just as ,if not more,successful than Cross in the last 15 years but cannot translate that to senior level.  There are many factors, such as social factors that contribute to that, but in my view the main one is that in Cross football is everything, absolutley everything and the more success we egt the more we want and this breeds down throught the underage teams.  When they are coming out of minors they are coming into a winning mentality and this sticks, a bit like Kerry I suppose.

The other side to the argument, and this is my view is that Armagh's greatest period of success has coincided with Cross's.  Both of these are mutually beneficial and if Cross players are so good that they are better than everything else than they should get preference.  All in all I think the benefits of Cross's success far outweigh any negatives, and I firmly believe we would still be waiting for Sam if it hadn't have been for the Cross factor.