Kevin Cassidy is in bother with the boss.

[ONeill]

The captivating book that has the GAA world talking
Tuesday, November 08, 2011

THEY'VE been getting a little bit hot and bothered over a book up in Donegal, if you haven't heard.

Last week one of the local papers ran an extract from Declan Bogue's This Is Our Year: The Inside Story of A Football Championship in which All Star wing back Kevin Cassidy detailed some of the shortcomings of John Joe Doherty's management. By the time Cassidy landed back on Saturday morning for the Gweedore launch of the book after a week in New York, he'd learned one of Doherty's selectors, Tony Boyle, had issued a statement defending Doherty whileDoherty's successor, Jim McGuinness, called a team meeting to instruct his players to boycott the launch and refuse to talk to the media for the upcoming season.

While that furore couldn't spoil the resultant launch — with Joe Brolly as the guest speaker, it was hardly going to be anything else but a serious night's craic — it was unfortunate nonetheless.

Since the book was a fly-on-the-wall account of this year's Ulster championship, the author and publishers felt it would be only right to salute Donegal's capture of the Anglo Celt trophy by having a launch and night of celebration in the county itself.

McGuinness at least owed it to Bogue and Cassidy to read the book before so pointedly objecting to it.

No matter; one of the ironies of it all is that McGuinness is one of the heroes of the book, and while that might not concern the Donegal manager as how revelatory Cassidy was about the inner workings of the Donegal dressing room this year, McGuinness should bear in mind the book will only add to his cult, aura and his team in much the same way Donal Óg Cusack's contribution to Last Man Standing enhanced not just Christy O'Connor's classic book but the mystique of the O'Grady-Allen regime.

The comparison is an apt one because This Is Our Year is to football what Last Man Standing was to hurling, with Cassidy as its Cusack.

Over the last few years most of the major sports and its followers have been well served by books which offer a vivid insight into how elite sports people now work.

In rugby, Paul O'Connell, Ronan O'Gara and their colleagues graphically detailed to Alan English and in turn the nation how the 2006 Heineken Cup and 2009 Grand Slams were won. Hurling had Last Man Standing.

In the meantime football had only the accounts of Mickey Harte and Jack O'Connor to give us an insight in real time in book form as to what 21st century inter-county football really involves — and even then only from the perspective of the manager.

Bogue's book gives us an extraordinary insight into the commitment, fears and hopes that goes with being an inter-county footballer these days.

We meet the 33-year-old goalkeeper Mickey Conlan who packs in his job driving a bakery delivery van to try to make a Rocky-style comeback with Derry. Barry Owens returns from heart surgery and two cruciate ligament injuries only to find Fermanagh football at war with itself and that during a dispute Croke Park didn't know about the GPA never consulted the players that stayed faithful to John O'Neill, only those who walked.

Paddy Cunningham reminds us how little we know what's really behind the under performance of certain players; Antrim's ace free-taker went into his team's opening championship game against Donegal having been in hospital only three days earlier suffering with the inflammatory bowel condition, Crohn's Disease.

Dick Clerkin reveals the lengths Banty McEnaney's Monaghan went to in search of that elusive Ulster title, from all going on a radical Caveman diet to Clerkin becoming an overly-robust player, something he now regrets.

Ryan McMenamin isn't quite as apologetic about his own past misdemeanours but his likeable side shines through as does his respect for Mickey Harte; the moment in which Harte shows up in a team hotel for a Dr McKenna Cup game, just six days after burying his daughter, is just one of many captivating scenes throughout the book.

There are plenty of laughs as well, courtesy of the garrulous and philosophical Cavan manager Val Andrews and the hugely personable Cassidy. McGuinness and Doherty might not be happy with his candour in some parts but there's no one Cassidy is harsher on or more frank about than himself. He admits to trash-talking opponents and his own troubles with alcohol and how he is now estranged from his father who he sometimes sees stumbling on the side of the street, bottle in hand, as Cassidy drives home from work.

All through Cassidy and the book is raw and honest, just like football itself. For supporters who love the game and value a greater understanding of it, Bogue has done some service. This Is Our Year is an inspired title but his book could just as easily be called This Is Our Sport.




http://www.irishexaminer.ie/sport/gaa/the-captivating-book-that-has-the-gaa-world-talking-173162.html#ixzz1dDKQb8Ze

[OverThePostsAWide]

On a wider note, if there is an aspect of Donegal's play I find distasteful, its the introduction of the deliberate McMenamin-style mouthing off that Cassidy refers to. I certainly didn't like it when the likes of McMenamin would be screaming at Devenney or whoever to try and put them off. However, its seems to be an accepted part of the game now.

Distasteful gamemanship, blanket defence, systematic fouling and now a "kiss and tell" book spilling the inside track from a recent (nearly) championship campaign. They are Tyrone Lite!

[rogueryhill]

The captivating book that has the GAA world talking
Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Paddy Cunningham reminds us how little we know what's really behind the under performance of certain players; Antrim's ace free-taker went into his team's opening championship game against Donegal having been in hospital only three days earlier suffering with the inflammatory bowel condition, Crohn's Disease.

http://www.irishexaminer.ie/sport/gaa/the-captivating-book-that-has-the-gaa-world-talking-173162.html#ixzz1dDKQb8Ze

That puts a whole new perspective on things. I look forward to the research into the link between Crohn's Disease and hiding behind your man waiting for a soft free or a glory ball over the top. I hope they can find a cure before next year's championship.

[sheamy]

It just gets weirder and weirder...

'He then revealed his grand plan to beat Dublin, which came within 10 minutes of working as they put 14 men behind the ball for most of the game.'

i.e. They went ultra defensive...so Jim put the phones in a bag so noone saw that coming 
Someone must have forgot to tell Martin McHugh because I distinctly remember him saying that Donegal would be even more defensive.

'Every single day I think of Paul Galvin'   

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/gaa/cassidy-i-would-never-have-tried-to-get-a-player-sent-off-until-this-year-16075170.html

Whole thing sounds like a pile of crap cooked up for the xmas best seller list. Expect Cassidy back come McKenna Cup after a satanic ritual service in Gweedore.

[Man Marker]

Sheamy in red below

McGuinness goes ultra defensive again on this one. Cassidy will be back by the end of the McKenna cup, wait and see.
Cassidy has heart, work rate and passion.. qualities that were sadly lacking in McGuinness when he was a player.

What a complete dungbag of a post, what has his abilities as a player got to do with his ability to being a manager. It very clear that there were team rules. Cassidy choose to ignore them for his own personal gain at the expense of the team. He sound smore like a derry player the more I read. 

Moving on into a more expansive theory, is it possible they have agreed to make a big deal out of this to promote the book, Kevins pocket will swell as a result. Its not beyond the realms.

[OverThePostsAWide]

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/gaa/cassidy-i-would-never-have-tried-to-get-a-player-sent-off-until-this-year-16075170.html#ixzz1dDpDZtDW

"Every single day I think of Paul Galvin. I think he is the best looking wing-forward in the country and if we get to the All-Ireland final I hope we get them.

"I take a lot of pride in my own personal appearance and I want to come up against him. Every single day I think of him.

"If I'm at training and things aren't going well enough for me or even if I am training on my own and I want to get another few runs, I just think of him."

Truly bizarre. Even without my adding/changing just two words to make the meaning clearer (looking and appearance for the record  ). I didn't touch "training" as I think that might be an intentional Mills-and-Boon-esque euphemism anyway... 

[sheamy]

Sheamy in red below

McGuinness goes ultra defensive again on this one. Cassidy will be back by the end of the McKenna cup, wait and see.
Cassidy has heart, work rate and passion.. qualities that were sadly lacking in McGuinness when he was a player.

What a complete dungbag of a post, what has his abilities as a player got to do with his ability to being a manager. It very clear that there were team rules. Cassidy choose to ignore them for his own personal gain at the expense of the team. He sound smore like a derry player the more I read. 

Moving on into a more expansive theory, is it possible they have agreed to make a big deal out of this to promote the book, Kevins pocket will swell as a result. Its not beyond the realms.

yeah, saw that before MM. Just agreeing. It's the standard book selling thing. We had Jack O'Connor and Dara O'Se, we had Donal Og campin it up round Leeside etc etc.

[ONeill]

Erm, and how is Kevin going to make any money out of this?

[yellowcard]

Erm, and how is Kevin going to make any money out of this?

Exactly, its the author and the publishers who will most benefit. Sure Cassidy is only one of 9 contributors to the book. Could be that its just his style to shoot straight from the hip. I'm sure he didn't think 'to hell with the dressing room omerta if I can get a quick buck out of this book'

[mannix]

Why would you tell anyone that you were trying to get a man sent off?  I think Kevin better just stop talking before it gets messy.

[The Hill is Blue]

In today's excerpt, Cassidy admits to trying to get Connolly sent off in the semi, even though he didn't know if he had struck Boyle. Apparently you have to use every advantage possible.

Cannot support that and I would hate it had that played a role in getting us to the final. And if he is dumb enough to admit to it, then the GAA should punish him. I don't care how widespread it is. That type of cheating cannot be condoned or tolerated.

Fair-minded as always. Sound man, J70 

[JHume]

What a hanlin'.

"I knew if we watched Donegal for long enough this year, they'd finally do somehting entertaining," a southern pal quipped today.

I hope this is just a storm in a teacup, that McGuinness and Cassidy can sit down in the New Year and sort it out. Whether both men would be willing to do that is moot. Cassidy must be very sore about it. After all the effort he's put in since the manager bent his ear to come out of retirement, he gets dumped over a non-event like this.

I have only read the extracts of the book published in the press (it's sold out in my local bookshop!), but from what I can gather it's a complete overreaction from the manager. Are we really to believe that what's in this book will be more revealing that any smart manager will have seen with his own eyes in Donegal's performances this year?

As to Cassidy profiting from book sales, well that's just laughable. He might have got the odd cup of tea and a dinner with the writer. That'll be it.

The journalist who wrote it won't even make much on the back of it, other than a tiny royalty per copy sold. (Less than £1 per copy, I'd guess). The publisher won't even make much out of it. They'll get less than half of the cover price, and they will have had to pay the expenses (printing, design etc) out of their share.

Book distributors (Easons or WH Smith or Amazon or whoever) will take anything up to 60% of the cover price. They'll make a few quid from extra sales, but they'd make more profit from one day sales of Peter Kay's or Jordan's latest book than they'll make from all their GAA books combined.

The truth is, books sold exclusively in Ireland don't make much money. More of them probably lose money than make it and publishers are taking a chance every time they publish a new book.

I predict that this book will sell out its initial print run. And the publishers' big problem will be to get a reprint done and distributed in time for Christmas.

And after a couple of defeats for Donegal in the NFL Division 1 next spring, all the talk will be about the need to bring Cassidy back.

This time last year, McGuinness figured he needed Cassidy if he was to win Ulster. Cassidy had arguably his best ever season in 2011. Nothing has changed since. If Donegal are to build on 2011 - and win an All-Ireland - they need someone of Kevin's calibre on board.

I hope the break over the next couple of months serves his body well (he's 30 now). I hope he can put the humiliation this has visited upon him behind them. And I hope he's back in time for Breifne Park next May.

[mylestheslasher]

I think donegal are going to implode next season. This crazy stuff mcguinness is at is ridiculous. Who the hell does he think he is banning players from attending book opening, gagging players from giving info which is mildly interesting but hardly incredible. I have a contact involved in their panel and he has a load of them told to go to the gym 3 nights a week under supervision of a rugby trainer. They were told to be at this 3 weeks before the county final. He has fitness tests planned for them. I've been told a lot if them are sick of it and a few are skipping sessions which is not going down well. Mcguinness is going too far imo, these lads need to have some freedom and they don't need a 2nd father telling them what to do in their own time.

[rrhf]

Typical dub - believe all the hype.
By the way can anyone remember the  little blue book, battle of omagh etc.  Short memories.   

[screenexile]

"THE SKY IS FALLING THE SKY IS FALLING!"

Jesus the over reaction about Donegal here is ridiculous lads! Greece won the Euros a few years ago playing a shite brand of football, Jose Mourinho has won titles playing shite football but in the end the teams like Barcelona come along and restore faith in the world. What McGuinness did is no worse than what the boul' Trap is doing with Ireland (And will be given the freedom of Dublin should they qualify for the Euros).

People need to relax and realise that fads liket these will happen and upset the applecart for a while but quality teams will undoubtedly overcome it!!