Down Club Hurling & Football

[Dubh driocht]

VG win and we're back at Croke for an all Ireland quarter final.James getting some return from these honest and committed lads, well done to Seamus and county board as well as Sean og, Jack,Eddie and the back room team.
Big Dan,Ambrose and Poly should be considered for All Stars if we get a result next week.ABC -anybody but Cork

[alba2]

Great performance today lads fair play to yas... Nice draw for quarter final and possibly the dubs in the semi.

[whitegoodman]

Firstly well done to James and the management team, their record over the 3 years stands up wit the best of them.

On today's game  it wasn't a classic but they did what they had to do.  Thought ohagen was motm, deceptively very strong for the size of him, a wee gem.  Gordon and Garvey did rightly although I would have preferred for the 2 to swap in the 2nd half as dan doesn't seem as comfortable in the half back line.

Ambrose mixed the inspirational with some poor play, particularly his tackling.  Still a good performance.

Poland was very good at times but also poor at times. Benny was very impressive, always showing and knocked over some fine points.

Now for the negatives.  There are more questions than answers coming out of the that IMO. The half backs and half forwards struggled, Carr, Mcparland, maginn and duffin were all below par and will be nervous bout next weeks selection.

Laverty and McCartan were also average, laverty needs to stay closer to goals as he near as effective out the field.

For the 2nd wk in a row the subs didn't work IMO, bringing tipp back into the game in the last 20 mins.

It was the best draw we could have got but I am not as confident about it as I might have been as I don't think James knows his best 15 with up to 5 changeable positions for next week.

But as I ve said well done to the boys and a league semi final and all Ireland q/f is already a success season..

[Mourne Rover]

It was a fairly strange game in Mullingar but the result was all that mattered and getting Mayo in the quarter final will have gone down well in the camp. Without getting carried away with ourselves, we can be quietly pleased that we are are the first team in 11 years and only the second in the history of the qualifiers to produce a win six days after losing a provincial final.


There was a strength of purpose about us from the start and hitting five points without conceding any in the first 15 minutes sent out a firm message. However, Tipperary are a fair side, and with a bit of help from the referee they came back well at us against the wind in the second quarter. If we had turned round at 6-4 to face the gale, they would probably have fancied their chances, so the goal was crucial. We should have played in more long balls with the breeze, and Duffin's drive looked as though it was bouncing over the bar until it hit the post and dropped into the square where Benny was ready to put the ball and half their defence over the line.


We looked the part again in the third quarter and were seven up, meaning double scores as well, with barely ten left. Our midfield began to struggle for the only stage in the game, and they kicked four points in a row but they really needed a goal. The last three or four minutes were quite impressive, as we held possession and picked off two fine points.


McVeigh had a good day, making an important save in the first half and only having a problem with one kick-out. He saw more of the ball in his hands than usual, and used it simply and well on most occasions, although he had difficulty picking out our midfielders when the pressure was on in the closing stages.


O'Hagan was one of our stars, consistently first to the ball and surging forward when he got the chance. He was up against a decent player but looks to have nailed his spot for Croke Park. Dan was just about man of the match, taking five great catches in front of goal and getting up to kick a point at the other end. Garvey has had better days, and played one horrible pass out of defence, but still used his experience when it was needed.


McParland started well but had problems judging the ball in the air and replacing him was the right call.  McArdle did well throughout, showing his pace and taking a point as well. Carr was reasonable and worked hard, but his handling error gave them a point and he gave away a free in front of the posts as well.


Ambrose, as ever, was outstanding, winning his own ball and picking out forwards all day. The point he kicked after outpacing his opponent was a gem. King, apart from taking the odd breather, was excellent, got his tackles in without giving away frees and kept playing short and sensible passes. His one-handed catch among a crowd of players was worth the admission.


Duffin is not a natural forward but brings strength and energy to the attack and kicked a fine point from a free. Poland was
everywhere, without quite being at his best, and his ability to retain possession was vital towards the end. Maginn always give us great balance, and he would be a serious player if he could manage the odd score/


McCartan was reasonable in the first half but was short on confidence and faded away after the break. Laverty constantly spotted passes which no one else could see and was always a danger. Benny just needs to watch his discipline, after another early yellow, but he always had the measure of his man and finished with 1-02 from play on a limited supply.


Of the subs, Doyle looked good and should be fit enough to start next time while Brannigan and O'Hare were reasonable without seeing much of the ball. McKernan was initially effective, but played a couple of dodgy passes and is not back to the form of 2010 yet.


The management got almost every call right, although Jerome may not be able to run across the field quite as often at HQ, and making the last eight is another fine achievement.

[5 Sams]

We need to stand back lads and be realistic and consider what we did today. We beat a very poor Tipperary team who took 20 minutes before they got a score. We then nearly let them back into it in the last 10 minutes. If we play like that against Mayo we'll get battered.

[whitegoodman]

Whilst I agree we need to be realistic and realise we are not at the level of cork, Dublin, Donegal or Kerry, I have little fear of mayo.  They are not close to the level of said teams and we have a decent shot at a semi final place if the right team is picked.

[Farrandeelin]

Whilst I agree we need to be realistic and realise we are not at the level of cork, Dublin, Donegal or Kerry, I have little fear of mayo.  They are not close to the level of said teams and we have a decent shot at a semi final place if the right team is picked.

Correct. Mayo aren't worth a damn, especially if we play the way we played against Sligo!!

[Mourne Rover]

It's true that Tipperary were limited today, but they have been on a decent run and we were coming off the back of a depressing second half display in the Ulster final. While we plainly need to improve, Mayo's form has been somewhere around our level as well. We beat them in Castlebar in the league and drew there when we really should have won the previous year, so we are capable of giving it a shot next weekend. If Danny Hughes should be available - and he was not even fit enough for the bench today - it would give us quite a boost.

[Gabriel]

Mixed the good with the bad today. Offered a five point win before the game you would have taken it no question, but Tipperary were poorer than I expected.  There were flashes of what we're capable of but we will have to raise it to another level against Mayo. Out of the three teams we could have been drawn against, Mayo are definitely the one we have the best chance of beating, but there are definite improvements to be made - the defence is still porous and would have been exploited by a better team today.

On a side note, disappointed not to have seen more of big Arthur McConville in the championship. He showed well enough in the McKenna Cup and league and think he'd offer more of a scoring threat as a target man than Eoin McCartan. His involvement in the championship has been limited to a few minutes at the end of the Fermanagh match.

(Also - Ambrose was magnificent at times today. Really led the team, making some trademark bulldozing runs and hitting a few excellent points. It's great to see one of the country's best midfielders back to his best.)

[tom,dick and harry]

Disappointing defeat yesterday but no time to feel sorry, let's get back at it and beat tipp and see what happens after that. We are an average side but on any given day these lads can pull of big results. A tipp victory and a hopeful quarter final against Mayo and you never no what can happen. But if we meet cork or Dublin we may say farewell.
Thought it was a disgrace to ask 3 panelists, recent call ups I must add, to make their own way to clones yesterday as there was apparently not enough room on the bus. That must gave them 3 some confidence going forward. Joke.

This is an absolute disgrace.  Why take players along to training and then not to the game - i bet there were some dignatries on the bus that are no more needed than the man in the moon.  Water carriers etc on the bus and no need for it.  Let them get taken to the game by car - but god forbid the secretaries son was to be out of the picture and not on the bus to the big game. Joke.  Im not surprised gerard mc cartan has left the panel to be honest - good honest player for club and county but gets treated unfairly to say the least.  He is a much better player than niall brannigan from kilcoo - but jerome will prob have Aaron and daryl on the panel soon enough too and maybe go back for mark and Janine as well.  People talk about family loyalty on this board through James - Jerome has his fair share of family playing too.  I honestly think the lads will beat Tipp and then as someone said if we got maybe mayo we could end up in a semi final.  Think the other 3 provincial champions might be step too far this year to be honest.  Big dan also retiring this year from intercounty.  Hard to replace...

for a boyo that knows so much you missed wee eug  {eugene}  are wee eug

Haha Jerome-is he one that never leaves wee james alone? Heard the down players call him SAT NAV cause hes always telling them what direction to run. needs a sat nav himself costing the county board 200 notes every time he runs on the field. Nice to see the down fans good money is being spent well. And i defo agree about Brannigan-hopeless

[Pangurban]

Job done albeit a mediocre performance, now onwards and upwards. The big negative from today was that we won no breaking ball in the middle third of field and were completely cleaned out. Some of the reporters here must have been at a different game than i was, as i thought Poland was Downs MOTM, and the introduction of Mc Kernan solidified the Down defence, at a time when they were coming under severe pressure. Most of our scores came from patient build-ups, holding possession until we got the right man in a scoring position. On the occasions when we resorted to lobbing the Ball in, hoping Benny would get on the end of it there was no return in terms of scores, yet we still do this too often. We have to accept that while still a great player, Benny is not as young or agile as he once was. In the wide open spaces of Croker against a team like ourselves who like to play good open football, we have more than a chance, if our Hb line and HF line start winning more dirrty ball

[extra time]

MOTM a toss up between Dan and Ambrose, with young O,hagen not far behind. Well done lads.

[lucan]

on reflection charlie tully i have chilled. incidentally the only coverage of the game was radio ulster [1341 medium wave]

[NP 76]

Have to say Down showed great character yesterday to come back from a big defeat last weekend. Tipperary threw everything they had at us and we with stood it and popped over scores to keep us out in front.When we built up any momentum they were lying down all over the pitch holding up the play and then starting a rucus to try and un settle us.Benny needs to settle himself abit and walk away from these as some day he will get too involved and will get the line.Ambrose and Poland must of covered every blade of grass on the field and Gordan was outstanding but i have to agree with WGM i thought Darren O Hagan was outstanding from start to finish.He won every ball that went in between him and his man and he was always bursting forward when the oppurtunity arose. As i said in previous posts he doesnt give the man a minute he  hassles and harries and puts the man under pressure as soon as he has the ball.Another quarter final is good going yet again we are in the latter stages of the Championship and hopefully back in Croke Park . This experience had been sadly missing for a number of years now with James we all expect to be there.On another point Dick and Harry is Jerome not the runner who is allowed on the field so surely this doesnt cost any money.Great support for Down yesterday good to see so many there after last week.

[snoopdog]

i seen that only a crowd of 3,500 was recorded. Now i was at it and it looked more than that, hoping for a sunday game next weekend. but they might throw us in with donegal Kerry on the sat. Thing all games have to be played at Croke park.