Munster Final 2011

[Fear ón Srath Bán]

....Its a cliché at this stage but I think these 2 will prove on sunday why they are the 2 main contenders for Sam....

It's not a cliché yet! The two of you haven't been that dominant together for that long! 

Tough one to call: if Kerry can get the ball as far up as the half-forwards with half decent regularity at all they'll shade it, otherwise it'll be Cork I'd say.

[Tony Baloney]

....Its a cliché at this stage but I think these 2 will prove on sunday why they are the 2 main contenders for Sam....

It's not a cliché yet! The two of you haven't been that dominant together for that long! 

Tough one to call: if Kerry can get the ball as far up as the half-forwards with half decent regularity at all they'll shade it, otherwise it'll be Cork I'd say.

So either Kerry or Cork? Are you sure now? 

[Fear ón Srath Bán]

So either Kerry or Cork? Are you sure now? 

Couldn't very well mention one and not the other, you know how that would go down! 

[Main Street]

Who are the good guys in this Final?

[Declan]

Any chance they could both lose?

[Zulu]

Cork will win this, possibly with a bit to spare. With Brosnan centre back and Sheehan midfield I can't see how Kerry can possibly win this game. The only reason Cork may not win this game is physiological, they can struggle with Kerry at times but if you match the two teams man for man then Cork clearly come out on top.

[AZOffaly]

Cork will win this, possibly with a bit to spare. With Brosnan centre back and Sheehan midfield I can't see how Kerry can possibly win this game. The only reason Cork may not win this game is physiological, they can struggle with Kerry at times but if you match the two teams man for man then Cork clearly come out on top.

I agree with thsi Zulu. I can't see Sheehan and Maher coming close to breaking even at midfield, and with Galvin and O'Sé missing, there's a lot of ball winning ability out of the Kerry side. I also don't think Brosnan will be at all comfortable playing centre back, and going backwards. Coming forward when Kerry are dominating, he will look the business. I don't think he will be able to stem the tide if Cork get on top around the middle.

Kerry's forwards are class, the best in the game in my opinion, but the thing about good forwards is you have to get ball into them. I think Declan O'Sullivan will be drawn back into a dogfight, and I won't be surprised to see Donaghy coming out the field as Kerry struggle.

Cork by 3 for me I think.

[AZOffaly]

My thoughts here

http://shane-sportsramblings.blogspot.com/2011/07/hurling-weekend-except-in-killarney.html

[SuperDooperCooper]

While I agree that this is Corks final to lose I still have questions over Corks midfield.
Alan O'Connor has never set the world on fire and is in my opinion no better than Maher.
Then we have the Aiden Walsh debate; how good is he? Or how good can he become?
He won a very soft all-star on the back of a very good second half in the all-Ireland final.
His foot passing is quite poor but this is compensated by his ability to win primary possession.

Bryan Sheehan has been the outstanding midfielder in Kerry at club level for the last few years while his engine is not as good as Walsh he is a better overall footballer.

The Kerry forwards are better than the Cork back but the Cork forwards are better than the Kerry backs; so Sunday probably does depend on who wins midfield.

I think Cork will want it more and will win by 3 to 6.

Note: the next Kerry team selected will have Galvin, Tomas and Sheamus Scanlon in so I would expect Kerry to improve after this game.

[Tatler Jack]

only reason Cork may not win this game is physiological

,

physiological or psychological  Zulu? I would have thought Cork are physically as  strong as Kerry if not stronger.

I still have questions over Corks midfield. Alan O'Connor has never set the world on fire and is in my opinion no better than Maher. Then we have the Aiden Walsh debate; how good is he? Or how good can he become? He won a very soft all-star on the back of a very good second half in the all-Ireland final. His foot passing is quite poor but this is compensated by his ability to win primary possession.

Bryan Sheehan has been the outstanding midfielder in Kerry at club level for the last few years while his engine is not as good as Walsh he is a better overall footballer.

Cork have a lot of midfield options; Nicholas Murphy and Gould can come in; they can move Pierce O'Neill there; Canty can also play midfield. Overall they have stronger midfield options than Kerry. Would not agree that Sheehan is a better overall footballer at midfield than Walsh - Sheehan may be a good club player in Kerry but he is very average at county level except for freetaking. Even a few years back I saw him playing U21 for Kerry v Cork and he disappointed. Walsh may have been a bit wild with his distribution last year but it improved as the year went on - overall he is a far more complete midfielder than Sheehan.

[joemamas]

My thoughts here

http://shane-sportsramblings.blogspot.com/2011/07/hurling-weekend-except-in-killarney.html

AZ, I completley agree, Bryan Sheehan was being carried for his incredible free taking, and rightly so. But, it will be a stretch to suddely convert him to a midfielder capable of competing with the best in Ireland.

Barring Kerry scoring three goals, I think the odds are way off, without Tomas O Se and Galvin and a recognized midfiield, Marc O Se has always had trouble with cork forwards namely Kerrgian. Cork could win this by six, and make no mistake about it, if they can win by six they will not slow down.

[Ciarrai_thuaidh]

My thoughts here

http://shane-sportsramblings.blogspot.com/2011/07/hurling-weekend-except-in-killarney.html

AZ, I completley agree, Bryan Sheehan was being carried for his incredible free taking, and rightly so. But, it will be a stretch to suddely convert him to a midfielder capable of competing with the best in Ireland.

Barring Kerry scoring three goals, I think the odds are way off, without Tomas O Se and Galvin and a recognized midfiield, Marc O Se has always had trouble with cork forwards namely Kerrgian. Cork could win this by six, and make no mistake about it, if they can win by six they will not slow down.

The bit in bold is gas...care to site these games where Marc has been in trouble. Kerrigan got 3 pts last year in Killarney, but it was a fairly even battle over the 70 mins. In Marc's whole career, I can't remember him being in serious trouble against Cork on any occasion, so as far as I'm concerned that statement is rubbish.
In 10 years of meetings between these 2 sides in munster, neither side has ever scored more than 1 goal by the way, but I expect the trend of tight games to continue and don't think either side is going to win by more than 4.

[Ciarrai_thuaidh]

My thoughts here

http://shane-sportsramblings.blogspot.com/2011/07/hurling-weekend-except-in-killarney.html

Good enough analysis on all games to be fair. Just 1 point, this little nugget that the Kerry "fullback line" cocneded 3 goals against Limerick. 1 of the goals was clearly setup and scored by Eoin Brosnans man Seanie Buckley in the 1st half, Seamus O'Carroll came on in the half forward line and got the 3rd goal, the only goal leaked by the full back line was Ger Collins goal. Now the latter 2 were scored after the 52nd minute by which time Kerry were up 1-18 to 1-6 and the game was effectively over, so although I share the concerns about the Kerry defence in some ways, the focus is entirely off from a large section of the media, with this lazy analysis. Not picking on you, but just wanted to make that point.

Your tips for most of the games I would concur with, I think KK might even cut loose a bit more as Brady is a massive loss for Dublin at the back.

[AZOffaly]

By their nature full backs concede the goals, just like the goalkeeper. Whether they are to blame or not is another matter entirely, and as you pointed out, and as I allude to in my analysis, I think the half back line is the bigger worry.

My point is that if Kerry struggle there, and at midfield, then the pressure on the full back line might be too much to handle, particularly as they conceded (Kerry) 3 goals in a game that was, as you said, won easily.

Will they tighten up in a closer game, or be even more vulnerable against better opponents? We'll see I suppose.

[Jinxy]

By their nature full backs concede the goals, just like the goalkeeper. Whether they are to blame or not is another matter entirely, and as you pointed out, and as I allude to in my analysis, I think the half back line is the bigger worry.

My point is that if Kerry struggle there, and at midfield, then the pressure on the full back line might be too much to handle, particularly as they conceded (Kerry) 3 goals in a game that was, as you said, won easily.

Will they tighten up in a closer game, or be even more vulnerable against better opponents? We'll see I suppose.

I remember I was full back in a schools game and my man scored 3 goals.
The fact that none of the other f**kers on my team could be arsed tracking their men meant every goal was a 3 on 1.
It's nigh on impossible to foul 3 lads at once.
Lord knows I tried.