Down Club Hurling & Football

[Gaa for life]

very interesting reading in dannys piece. he is not a million miles away with this article!
on a separate note is there anyone out there not on the panel, excluding past players that the management set up might have missed or who could stake a claim for next years squad? paul grennan kilcoo? he certainly wouldn't be fearful of marking either of our midfielders from the previous few game's? sean dornan form my own club castlewellan? an exciting talent who loves to run at defenders, tall fast and has full of potential.

[downup]

Danny may have hit home on a few points but it isn't that long ago that all he done in his column was take a swipe at the previous management. If he is a player with previous county experience, which he thinks needs to be got more involved, then I would like to see in his column what he would do different. Lay out his plan for all to see. I am as much disheartened as anyone at the recent results but just complaining about it isn't going to fix things. Bringing in Ex county players to each of the age groups certainly is not the answer, in fact this in the past may have been part of the problem. Too often ex players were given these roles without any real significant management/coaching experience. Off course other ex players did serve their time and maybe deserved a shot at it.
I certainly don't have all the answers and maybe people reckon I'm talking through my hat but I really believe that Down will improve when club football in Down improves. Club football needs to be competitive at all times, county players need to be released far more often and championship needs to have that knockout edge to it. County footballers are wrapped up in cotton wool once the county training starts. Now that Down are out county players will play far more football in 3 months than they have in the last six which is what they need. Good hard matches to show they are consistently the best in Down or chances for others to show that they deserve a shot. County managers have far too much control over these lads, the club are completely forgotten about and training and challenge matches are not going to improve these footballers. Why not let them play away and if they are at a superior strength and level of fitness then they will stand out. County subs end up becoming completely disillusioned as they are getting even less competitive football than a club player and their performances suffer as a result.
My last point, and one which unfortunately I don't see changing, but clubs in Down need to start playing a better brand of attacking football. Most clubs are far too negative. So much so that the art of defending is dying a death and fast flowing attacking play is being replaced with the 13/2 formation and the ball being short passed up the field and nearly walked over the bar. How are players supposed to develop at underage if they are taught this negative football, this will be carried through into senior and remain with us to endure for years to come. Yes it might mean that teams get beat now and again which off course they wont like but why not test yourself toe to toe rather than 10 men crowding space so 6 men can't shoot. Football is becoming very hard to watch, attendances are falling, atmosphere is dying and skill levels are reducing. Is the fear of loosing to do with other benefactors eg paid managers, sponsors etc, maybe so!! Club football needs to be improved right across the board, proper coaches promoting traditional gameplans need appointed and the county board need to stop worrying about giving work to county players (some of who only turn up when it suits them) but to invest their time and effort into firstly not bowing down to county mangers dictatorships and secondly to put more emphasis on club football.

[rosskarr]

 Well put together piece of analysis there from downup.

[snoopdog]

Can anyone post Danny's comments. Don't  have the paper from Wednesday but would be interesting reading.

http://www.irishnews.com/sport/2015/07/01/news/down-are-a-county-in-mourning-155423/

thanks for the link.  Nearly a week on from Wexford park and it's depressing reading about the state of Down football. Danny would know more than most being involved in club and at county level,  guys like Danny need to be involved in the future of development squads.  Unfortunately we all know we will be having the same discussion this time next year, it's the Down way.

[Mourne Rover]

It has been a dark period for Down football, not for the first time, and it has been particularly depressing to read the posts demanding that  we sack the county board, the manager and most of the players without suggesting who might replace them. Some of the contributions have been much more thoughtful, and recognise that we are sadly a county with limited playing and probably more importantly financial resources. Reviewing our structures will be a long-term project but others have managed it and it is a question of establishing whether the will for change really exists.

Having said that, we should never be losing to a bottom league team in the championship. McCorry deserves full credit for achieving a promotion to D1 which very few thought was possible but he must also take responsibility for the Wexford performance.  There has been a lot of talk about players who were not included in his squad from the start, and that is a subject for another day, but it is hard to accept that we got the best return from those who were actually available to us.

Peter Turley did not feature at all in the championship, Madine appeared only briefly and Mallon left after it became clear after Croke Park that his likely role was as an unused sub. If these three capable and physically strong figures had been in central positions in Wexford, we might well have had a different result.

Instead, our skillful but light players were repeatedly brushed aside when Wexford pushed forward and we struggled badly when it came to line breaks at the other end. While positions switch rapidly in the course of every game, five of our six starting forwards noticeably lacked height and weight. Two or even three might have been sustainable but five non-ball winners was asking for trouble.

We have plenty to think about before a very tough league starts next February, but our biggest single concern is probably the lack of potential in our under-age teams of recent seasons.

[thebar]

After reading the last few posts and after the horror show and standard of football produced by Down this year has the GAA setup in Down been in a worse position? No county teams at any grade performing at any decent level. Football as poor as I have ever seen. No path / direction / focus provided from the anyone (from County Board level down). Poor Football across the county. Personal attacks on people. The minor manager (if it is) responding in kind....what the hell kind of set up is this? I know I don't have all the answers (who does) but the current set up is all wrong and I sure wish someone would grab the bull by the horns and give this county the shake it needs. Who or what that is I don't know but at the minute with the current set up we are heading no where. 

[thewobbler]

Samfever, Paul123, you fellas have genuinely lost the plot in a mire of self-importance if you actually believe it's incumbent of public figures to use anonymous message boards to discuss anything at all, let alone to help peddle rumours.

Catch a grip.


Ardtole, apologies for pushing you as a county board basher in an earlier post. Got a few wires crossed in the sea of rubbish that was being pouted on the board at that time.

[snoopdog]

Have posts from last night been removed?

[Dubh driocht]

Don't know why my post was deleted

[imagine]

Any thoughts on the pilot scheme Down are thinking of in relation to age group changes,going to be discussed st Thursday's County Board Meeting?

[supersub]

Any thoughts on the pilot scheme Down are thinking of in relation to age group changes,going to be discussed st Thursday's County Board Meeting?

First thought is what is the point of it? Genuinely. Why do they see this need for change?

[Gaa for life]

what type of changes are being proposed? personally don't think changing age groups will have any effect on anything at all. 

[PAULD123]

Samfever, Paul123, you fellas have genuinely lost the plot in a mire of self-importance if you actually believe it's incumbent of public figures to use anonymous message boards to discuss anything at all, let alone to help peddle rumours...

Don't think it is fair that my answer to this post keeps getting deleted when this post is allowed to have a go at me but i am not allowed to answer.

I'll try again:

I have never questioned the minor management or their contribution as I don't know enough about our minor players or minor football in the county.

I raised  a reasonable query which was deleted, But I object to this comment being left on the board without any context to judge it by. There was no self-importance in my post whatsoever.

[PAULD123]

Back to sensible matters now,

What did anyone think of Benny's article in the Democrat. I certainly think he pulled no punches. Hard to see him playing any part in the county setup next year if Jim is still in charge given the pretty open criticism of him, even implying that the fact he isn't from Down is also an issue.

[Pangurban]

Why is Mc Corry still there. If he had any integrity he would at least resign and re-apply for post