Armagh v Wicklow

[Aaron Boone]

Fair play on the rules.
I can see hurling being on first on Sunday Game this week, with the qualifiers getting a run at 10.30pm after the adulation of the Dubs 49th Leinster.

[Throw ball]

Were do you start. Armagh were absolutely dreadful in the first half and it is possibly the worst I have ever seen them play. They looked like a team who had only just been introduced and the Wicklow number 8 was winning everything in midfield and Glynn was giving Andy Mallon a torrid time. On saying that IMO the referee over the whole game was even worse than this. He had a bad day at the office. I will not dwell on the decisions as I am still in bad form!
After half time Armagh were a different team. I think it is worth noting that from 9-2 down Armagh went to the end of the game scoring 17 points (only 1 free I think) while Wicklow scored 6 times (2-4). Two of these scores were more than dubious goals. Armagh also had numerous wides and the Wicklow keeper made 2 outstanding saves from Murtagh and Clarke (hope TV shows this run and safe as it was class all round). This would suggest that if Armagh play to their potential they should win.
Must say that I thought MOR was more than a little unfortunate to be taken off. Best on the day for Armagh were Donaghy, McKeever, AK , Vernon (ET), Stevie and Clarke. For me MOM was Mackin in ordinary time and AK in extra time. Also thought it showed a great attitude for a young fella like McParland to take the final score in normal time. Also thought he was fouled when going for a winner shortly after.

[Etienne Lantier]

Yeah would agree with a lot of that throwball. Like you, the anger is clouding a lot for me, I've had to take a heavy dose of depressants (cans) to take me down off the annoyance I felt when I first carried the door off the hinges when I walked into the house. I do think the referee was no more that averagely bad. I was waiting for both goals to be whistled up, but they weren't and that's what you have to live with. It's going to be worse down in Aughrim, what with the Micko gushing that's going to be spewed on the Sunday Game. Armagh have a serious job on there hands down there and the odds really aren't in their favour this time.

[mountainboii]

Thoughts, probably drunken, but whatever:

The first half spawned the most insipid, pathetic and embarrassing half hour of championship football that I have ever seen from an Armagh team.

We were the better team for the next 55 or so minutes, but failed to take chances to put away a dogged and hard working opposition.

I now understand what the 'Micko factor' means - total influence over the referee.

It would also seem that Micko has embraced the blanket in his old age. POR took an age to figure this out and was blessed that the 'stick the big man in FF and hoof the ball into him' plan came off, with Mal Mackin putting in a performance of a lifetime.

Both Wicklow goals should have been disallowed.

The Armagh substitutions made a huge difference, bar one notable exception.

Johnny Murtagh - what's the point?

How James Lavery lasted the whole 90 minutes beggars belief.

Kevin Dyas and Brian Mallon were also huge disappointments.

The likes of Declan McKenna and Gavin McParland are well worth a run in the team. They're no worse than the men they're replacing, but have the potential to far exceed the abilities of these very average players.

Jamie Clarke lives up to all the hype, and very nearly scored what would been the best goal I have ever seen at intercounty level.

Charlie Vernon is the most frustrating player the county has produced in years. Looks like Sean Cavanagh one minute, looks like an eejit the next.

The Cullyhanna boys have more balls than most, and without Mal Mackin we'd have nothing but next year's McKenna Cup to look forward to. Superb effort all year from a much maligned player.

Wicklow should be favourites next weekend. Little to suggest that their midfield won't dominate again, which will give their very decent FF line plenty of ammunition to work with.

[Groucho]

Get your Xmas money early....and lump on Armagh next week

[BerfArmagh]

I think Ye are being a bit hard on Vernon, granted he spilled a lot of ball in the first but by god he tried his heart out particularly in et. Livery really struggled but again never gave up. The wicklow mid field were huge men. AK had some great scores, but his man caused havoc for 70 mins. Duffy was so far off the pace it was ridiculous. Tk & hanratty really improved the forward line & mf. What was with the kick and hope tactics into the ff line .... ridiculous...... I have been giving por the benefit of the doubt all year but the first half was the worst I have seen in 30 years following armagh....

[Rufus T Firefly]

Were do you start.

That was exactly how I was going to start my post!!     Where do you start?!?!??

The first thing to say was that the Athletic Grounds looked magnificent last night - in over forty years of going there, I've never seen the pitch looking better. There was a feeling of it being a really unique occasion - Wicklow, in the Championship, on a lovely Saturday evening in Armagh. Wicklow too had a few hundred, very vocal supporters up which lent to the occasion.

After that, the occasion threatened to turn into a nightmare. As others have stated, Armagh produced the most embarrassng performance I think I have ever see from them, and believe me, I've seen a few. There seemed to be absolute lethargy, with our play dominated by basic, basic errors. Furthermore, there seemed to be little semblance of what I would call a gameplan to our play. We were absolutely clueless. Wicklow coughed up a series of wides over that period that would have seen them out of sight.

The second half started along the same lines and again Wicklow had chances to put us away. Their number fifteen took Andy Mallon on the outside, twice in a row - he scored a point with his first effort and Hearty made a smart save with his legs for the second effort. This save was the turning point of the match for me - if that had gone in we were gone. We absolutely owned the ball for the next twenty minutes, reeled Wicklow in, took the lead, but ourselves missed great opportunities to put Wicklow away.  I felt there was an element of us thinking the work was done, as some of our misses were terrible.

That meant that Wicklow were still within touching distance as time was almost up. I couldn't actually believe that the ref let the goal stand. The forward appeared to be bottled up, and turned at least twice to get space, carrying the ball what I would guess were at least a dozen steps. To be fair, the team didn't panic and Mc Parland's equaliser was an absolute peach.

Exta time started of in a similar vein to the end of normal time, with Armagh dominating but not being able to put Wicklow away. Again we had opportunites but couldn't convert. That again left us open for the sucker goal, which duly came, but again our lads didn't panic, got the equaliser and looked to be heading for the winner when the ref blew for time. A fella near us had a stopwatch on it, and claimed he blew for time about a minute and a half early, and that is not taking into account stoppages, of which there was at least one lengthy one.

The whole thing I have to say was a rollercoaster ride - you would struggle to get a more exciting sporting spectacle anywhere.

Best for me on the night were Mackin and McKeever. Veron, Aaron Kernan and Jamie Clarke also showed well in patches, and most of the subs made contributions. On the flip side, the Dyas experiment did not work, and I'm afraid Brian Mallon has had his chance. A question I would ask though, was Billy Jo Padden injured? I assume he was, as too McKeever when getting taken off?

When all is said and done, we are a First Divsion team, and Wicklow are playing in Division Four. I would expect more from us than to be lumping a high ball in on top of a big full forward to try and win a game. Maybe circumstances dictated that, as there was an element of throwing caution to the wind.

Still, I think we'll be up against it big time in Aughrim.     

[Rufus T Firefly]

I stand corrected, although, amazingly, having just read the official guide, it is perfectly possible for a point to be given as square ball in the following circumstances. I didn't think the ball was wide myself, so I'll be interested to see this on the Sunday Game.

The ball went wide - we were standing on the Drumarg side, and were in absolute line with it - it went narrowly wide of the post - I was amazed the umpires gave it to be honest.

[Sandy Hill]

Was the point not ruled out on the basis it was about three foot wide?

As for AK I thought he was mom for two reasons.  1. He was the only player who came close to performing in the first half and 2. He seemed to have a hand in most scoring attacks. Mal Mackin was very good last 55 mins but was non existent first half.

If you cast your mind back you'll recall the umpire came out, after being instructed by the referee, and crossed the flags. This is the signal to indicate a square ball. Again, never have I seen a point and one from over 20 metres out for that matter, ruled out for square ball in all my born days. The Wicklow ones were only making the wide gestures because they knew the ref was looking to strike out the point. Even they must have been pretty amazed it was for square ball.

I believe that's the signal to indicate a cancelled score for any reason although I may be wrong

No, you are correct and right!

[ardtole]

Aughrim is a great town for the football, its well off the beaten track, the pubs are great crack but its a nightmare trying to get a result there as down foud out to their cost. Id be surprised if Armagh got through.

[David McKeown]

Picking up on something Rufus said there, the ref bottled it last night big style in terms of timing. I was timing the match and by my clock he blew up normal time 45 seconds early (2.15 into at least 3.00 minutes of injury time) when Armagh should have had a free in which to me looked like a dcision that had been influenced by the recent Dublin v Kildare game. After this he awarded Wicklow a free 15 seconds past the end of time in the first period of extra time despite the fact no injury time was indicated. Finally after Armaghs equaliser he consulted with an umpire and blew the match up 12 seconds before the end of regulation time. I thought refs didn't play for draws? Last nights clearly did.

Having said all that it would have been Armaghs ineptitude and not the ref that would have been the biggest influence on the result last night. I don't expect Armagh to play as poorly the next day either and would therefore think we could get a result in the replay

As to venue I thought the tannoy said last night that the replay was to be held next Saturday at a neutral venue to be announced? Don't know why that would be but I was pretty sure that's what I heard and my brother who was listening on the radio said he had the same thing

[Smokin Joe]

Finally after Armaghs equaliser he consulted with an umpire and blew the match up 12 seconds before the end of regulation time. I thought refs didn't play for draws? Last nights clearly did.

There should have been close on 2 mins injury time in the 2nd period of extra time.  There was absolutely no play for about 90 seconds at the end when 2 Wicklow players went down injured.  I couldn't believe it wen he blew up right on (or even short of) the 10 minutes.

[Sandy Hill]

Was at the game last night but can't remember McParland's equalising point; where did he score from and was it a foot or fisted score?

[The Worker]

maybe the ref was saving armagh from another sucker punch of a goal?

they should count themselves lucky to get a 2nd chance.

[Smokin Joe]

Was at the game last night but can't remember McParland's equalising point; where did he score from and was it a foot or fisted score?

Left foot from about 21 yards out but fairly close to the Drumarg stand; it just about crept over the bar.