Connacht FBD League 2011 Extravaganza - Official Thread Anseo

[Cosmo Kramer]

He got 1-6 according to Mid-West, but the Mayo Gaa lads broke down the scoring as

O'Connor 1-5
Ronaldson 1-0
McGarrity 0-2
Varley 0-1

[REDCOL]

Was at the game poor early season stuff, against the wind in 1st half David Clarke made a blunder for their goal. James Burke was the pick of the Mayo players in 1st half, Dolan picked up an injury early on. 1-1 to 3 at h-t, We had a lot of possession but overplayed the ball with Austie being particulaly guilty, Killer had a poor game. Second Half McGarrity took over Midfield and his dominance gave us a lot of ball, he kicked two nice points, although it was the first time I saw a point in an FBD game being celebrated. Of the Newcomers, Hallinan did fine, Cillian O Connor got 1-6 mostly frees apart from one cracking point when game was over, Campbell tried hard but lacked sharpness, Nestor Ok, Austie slowed up ball too much. A lot of work to do, but a winning start I suppose on a horrible night for football

[RedandGreenSniper]

A night where you could only praise those who played well and couldn't knock those who had a mare. Cathal Hallinan was solid right through and, to my mind, has what it takes to wear number 2 against Galway in June. James Burke was an unmarked wing-back and attacked with relish but his final ball let him down. McGarrity let  the shackles loose in the second half. Killer gave us a glimpse of his best and worst, Campbell did alright, was rusty but we'll see more and better of him. Varley did well, I only hope poor Kevin Dolan doesn't have the shortest ever inter county career.

Star man was the kid though. Cillian has it. In spades. Will be interesting to see how he is used. He has the wise head for  a young lad to be used often and not to suffer. His point from play, after taking receipt of a wonderful pass from older brother Ruaidhri, was worth the trip into the game in of itself. We have options in the forward line at least.

[moysider]

Dunno. Thought James Burke was the class act. Most of his passing was quality. Being left footed he gives great balance at 7 and is always making himself available. He s a big plus for me. McGarrity kicked points the forwards couldn't and bossed the game towards the end. There were other steady enough showings and I m not going to say anything negative about anybody. It s a start anyway. Cillian O Connor showed his quality too. He took his goal chance well from a rebound from the post and of the forwards he was the only one to score a point from play. And it was a classy score. It ll be interesting to see where Cillian ends up in a forward line. Thought Ronaldson brought a bit of craft when he came on and he knows how to take a penalty.

[ross4life]

Roscommon 0-7 Leitrim 0-5 FT good to get off too a winning start! though a game that won't live long in the memory.

Roscommon team

M Miley , Jason Carney John Nolan Seanie Mac ; Conor Beirne Niall Carty Donal Ward ; M Reynolds Kevin Higgins ; Fintan Cregg Conor Devaney S O'Grady ; Terence Kelly J Dunning D Hussey

Reynolds 0-4 ,Devaney 0-2 and Higgins 0-1

[SLIGONIAN]

Was at Sligo 0-12 IT Sligo 1-9 game last night, decent game, not near as intense as last weeks to be fair. Best for Sligo, M Quinn, A Taafe, B Curran, M Brehony.... danny cummins looked good for IT.

[RedandGreenSniper]

Dunno. Thought James Burke was the class act. Most of his passing was quality. Being left footed he gives great balance at 7 and is always making himself available. He s a big plus for me. McGarrity kicked points the forwards couldn't and bossed the game towards the end. There were other steady enough showings and I m not going to say anything negative about anybody. It s a start anyway. Cillian O Connor showed his quality too. He took his goal chance well from a rebound from the post and of the forwards he was the only one to score a point from play. And it was a classy score. It ll be interesting to see where Cillian ends up in a forward line. Thought Ronaldson brought a bit of craft when he came on and he knows how to take a penalty.

Yeah, I agree with you on Burke in the sense that he is very keen and a very good option. I'm maybe being hard on him re kickpassing but there was a few times in the first half when he just horsed the ball into the full-forward line. But, in his defence, the movement wasn't always great inside. I'd certainly like to see him get another few runs because he has something to offer.

[AbbeySider]

Dunno. Thought James Burke was the class act. Most of his passing was quality. Being left footed he gives great balance at 7 and is always making himself available. He s a big plus for me. McGarrity kicked points the forwards couldn't and bossed the game towards the end. There were other steady enough showings and I m not going to say anything negative about anybody. It s a start anyway. Cillian O Connor showed his quality too. He took his goal chance well from a rebound from the post and of the forwards he was the only one to score a point from play. And it was a classy score. It ll be interesting to see where Cillian ends up in a forward line. Thought Ronaldson brought a bit of craft when he came on and he knows how to take a penalty.

Would agree with a lot of that Moy. James Burkes distribution and passing was exceptional. Now I know that he was the free man due to negative GMIT tactics (who played a wing forward as a sweeper) but I was impressed with his decision making, work rate and as well as the nice balls into the forwards. Sometimes if the low ball wasnt on, he wasnt afraid to hit Cillian with the odd high ball which worked out. He did take on a couple of wild shots in the 2nd half but at that stage, the forwards were offering limited options and if I was in his boots I would have taken on the shot too. Himself and Cathal Hallinan were perhaps the stand out players for Mayo in the first half. Cathal hardly put a foot wrong and displayed good defensive qualities dispossessing and turning over ball and bursting forward. It was an impressive debut.

Ger Caff and Mick Nestor did their jobs nice and quietly and played Ok. Im not sure so ill have to wait for the reports this week to see if they kept their man scoreless from play, although I have a suspicion that the GMIT centre forward may have sneaked a point from play, he was certainly doing Ok with the frees. Alan Feeney did Ok defensively but gave away possession with 3 passes so things were not working out for him very well. The GMIT goal was a bit of a blunder from Clarke who fluffed a high ball and it broke to a poaching GMIT forward. Chris Barrett had a poor game and was frustrating to watch. Losing the ball in possession and giving it away and GMIT seemed to bomb up his wing and breeze and blast past him at ease. When substituted for Ruaidhri O Connor, things seemed to settle on that wing for Mayo and Ruaidhri did very well to pick out his brother Cillian for that impressive score of his left I mentioned earlier.

Cillian played well, especially in the second half. Ill be honest and slightly critical and say he did kick a couple of frees wide and sent two or three wide and into the keepers hands from play in the first half. He is the kind of player that you cant take your eyes off for a minute and popped up in the second half with about 1-02 from play including, arguably the point of the game off his left boot near the stand. It was a fantastic debut for him and he was many peoples man of the match. The only other players in the forwards worth a mention were Aidan Campbell and Enda Varley who looked lively, if a little greedy in possession. The forward play in general was very poor. Andy Moran and Kilcoyne were getting blocked down and running into trouble, which shouldnt be happening at that level with their experience. Austy simply couldnt kill the ball in possession and it bobbled off him a lot. Also he had two very poor attempts into the keepers hands in the first half and a couple of wides which was disappointing. We only managed to score 3 points by half time and you could tell that the forwards were not trying to make room for each other and were out for themselves and often playing with the head down. I know they may have being out to impress by taking on shots and were perhaps too eager but they should have been playing more as a unit. As the season progresses I hope they improve on what we saw on Saturday evening. 

Regarding midfield, McGarity came into the game a bit more in the second half. In the first we were probably been beaten at midfield and we were losing the break count. In the second McGarity caught some clean leather and got two great scores from distance. James Moran worked hard in the game and got through a lot of the grafting and donkey work. A bit more fitness and belief and he could make something.

The guys that came all did well. Ronaldson made good runs and good use of possession and worked hard for the time he was on. David Kelleen looked strong and solid and did well when tested with a couple of high balls as well as hounding and tackling well. As I said, Ruaidhri O Connor settled things his wing and linked up well and picked out Cillian for that score. Lee Keegan hadnt enough time to make an impression but his a monster shoulder along the sideline.

All in all its very early days and we can take mostly positives from the game. The debutantes all did well which was nice to see. Some of the older guys hadnt the best of games but its also worth noting that many of them wouldnt have kicked a ball since exiting last years championship and will be offering more as the weeks progress. There will be a good battle for places all over the pitch with a lot of last years panel to come back into the fold yet. I have a feeling that the likes of Jason Gibbons and a few more will be given a start on the upcoming FBD games too which will be something to look forward to.

[stephenite]

No pressure on you so young Cillian O'Connor, you have it in spades

[moysider]

Dunno. Thought James Burke was the class act. Most of his passing was quality. Being left footed he gives great balance at 7 and is always making himself available. He s a big plus for me. McGarrity kicked points the forwards couldn't and bossed the game towards the end. There were other steady enough showings and I m not going to say anything negative about anybody. It s a start anyway. Cillian O Connor showed his quality too. He took his goal chance well from a rebound from the post and of the forwards he was the only one to score a point from play. And it was a classy score. It ll be interesting to see where Cillian ends up in a forward line. Thought Ronaldson brought a bit of craft when he came on and he knows how to take a penalty.

Yeah, I agree with you on Burke in the sense that he is very keen and a very good option. I'm maybe being hard on him re kickpassing but there was a few times in the first half when he just horsed the ball into the full-forward line. But, in his defence, the movement wasn't always great inside. I'd certainly like to see him get another few runs because he has something to offer.

I ll go out on a limb here and say he is probably the best option for 7 we have, and maybe even the best half back we have available. I m delighted he has persisted with it and should have been in long ago. Badly treated in the past by management that didn't know any better.

[FL/MAYO]

No pressure on you so young Cillian O'Connor, you have it in spades

Yep, this sounds familiar to the Aidan O'Shea build up two years ago.

[moysider]

No pressure on you so young Cillian O'Connor, you have it in spades

Eh? Irony I assume?

[AbbeySider]

Dunno. Thought James Burke was the class act. Most of his passing was quality. Being left footed he gives great balance at 7 and is always making himself available. He s a big plus for me. McGarrity kicked points the forwards couldn't and bossed the game towards the end. There were other steady enough showings and I m not going to say anything negative about anybody. It s a start anyway. Cillian O Connor showed his quality too. He took his goal chance well from a rebound from the post and of the forwards he was the only one to score a point from play. And it was a classy score. It ll be interesting to see where Cillian ends up in a forward line. Thought Ronaldson brought a bit of craft when he came on and he knows how to take a penalty.

Yeah, I agree with you on Burke in the sense that he is very keen and a very good option. I'm maybe being hard on him re kickpassing but there was a few times in the first half when he just horsed the ball into the full-forward line. But, in his defence, the movement wasn't always great inside. I'd certainly like to see him get another few runs because he has something to offer.

I ll go out on a limb here and say he is probably the best option for 7 we have, and maybe even the best half back we have available. I m delighted he has persisted with it and should have been in long ago. Badly treated in the past by management that didn't know any better.

That is going out in a limb, very early days yet.
You have McGloughlin, Vaughan, Gardener, K Higgins all in contention for wing back positions.
To say Burke is probably the best option for 7, after an FBD game in January where he was a free man and hardly tested defensively is quite the call. 

[moysider]

Dunno. Thought James Burke was the class act. Most of his passing was quality. Being left footed he gives great balance at 7 and is always making himself available. He s a big plus for me. McGarrity kicked points the forwards couldn't and bossed the game towards the end. There were other steady enough showings and I m not going to say anything negative about anybody. It s a start anyway. Cillian O Connor showed his quality too. He took his goal chance well from a rebound from the post and of the forwards he was the only one to score a point from play. And it was a classy score. It ll be interesting to see where Cillian ends up in a forward line. Thought Ronaldson brought a bit of craft when he came on and he knows how to take a penalty.

Yeah, I agree with you on Burke in the sense that he is very keen and a very good option. I'm maybe being hard on him re kickpassing but there was a few times in the first half when he just horsed the ball into the full-forward line. But, in his defence, the movement wasn't always great inside. I'd certainly like to see him get another few runs because he has something to offer.

I ll go out on a limb here and say he is probably the best option for 7 we have, and maybe even the best half back we have available. I m delighted he has persisted with it and should have been in long ago. Badly treated in the past by management that didn't know any better.

That is going out in a limb, very early days yet.
You have McGloughlin, Vaughan, Gardener, K Higgins all in contention for wing back positions.
To say Burke is probably the best option for 7, after an FBD game in January where he was a free man and hardly tested defensively is quite the call. 

Happy to make that call. Unfortunately I dont know what the boss is thinking. But to have a left footer for the seven position is something most coaches dream about.

[AbbeySider]

Dunno. Thought James Burke was the class act. Most of his passing was quality. Being left footed he gives great balance at 7 and is always making himself available. He s a big plus for me. McGarrity kicked points the forwards couldn't and bossed the game towards the end. There were other steady enough showings and I m not going to say anything negative about anybody. It s a start anyway. Cillian O Connor showed his quality too. He took his goal chance well from a rebound from the post and of the forwards he was the only one to score a point from play. And it was a classy score. It ll be interesting to see where Cillian ends up in a forward line. Thought Ronaldson brought a bit of craft when he came on and he knows how to take a penalty.

Yeah, I agree with you on Burke in the sense that he is very keen and a very good option. I'm maybe being hard on him re kickpassing but there was a few times in the first half when he just horsed the ball into the full-forward line. But, in his defence, the movement wasn't always great inside. I'd certainly like to see him get another few runs because he has something to offer.

I ll go out on a limb here and say he is probably the best option for 7 we have, and maybe even the best half back we have available. I m delighted he has persisted with it and should have been in long ago. Badly treated in the past by management that didn't know any better.

That is going out in a limb, very early days yet.
You have McGloughlin, Vaughan, Gardener, K Higgins all in contention for wing back positions.
To say Burke is probably the best option for 7, after an FBD game in January where he was a free man and hardly tested defensively is quite the call. 

Happy to make that call. Unfortunately I dont know what the boss is thinking. But to have a left footer for the seven position is something most coaches dream about.

Fair play on the call, agree with the rest.
Out of interest, does Kevin McLoughlin favour the left?