Down Club Hurling & Football

[behind the wire]

it doesnt take a genius to work out it was wrong. if it had been a tyrone/armagh/dublin man that kneeled on an opposition players face you would probably be calling on him to be suspended for 6 months or a year, but because he is one of our own you think he should learn from it. what is there to learn from kneeling on someone's face when they are lying injured on the ground?

despite yesterdays scenes in parnell park the garvey incident is still by far the worst incident of foul play i have seen this year.

im surprised more down posters havent spoken out against this.

[Uladh]

Agreed GY. I have always thought that watching down through the Paddy era and nothing has changed over the last two years. as an armagh man i can afford to chuckle at down's naivety at times and how blunt and fumbled any attempt to adapt has been in games where that has been tried. Wee Pete will be the next down boss when what down actually need is someone who has a more modern tactical awareness, but that would probably mean an outsider going by club football in the county.

[off the laces]

goldenyears i very much hope you are wrong. On the one hand you talk about moving forward then you say pete may be back. how can you talk about moving forward and tactics when you seen what happened to the u21s on saturday. the man may have led down to all irelands but that is just a no brainer now. on sat he took off one off our best forwards when we where needing scores/frees. he lets the second half start then 2-3 mins in he makes a sub. He watches by as down ponse around with the ball fist passing to each other going nowhere then get turned over 3pts came from this towards the end off the match.
Half backs/ midfielders are there to get the ball and deliver it as early as possible then support the play not run with it into blind alleys with two men closing you down.
rant over
feel better

[Uladh]

otl - i'm sorry to have to point out to you that GY does not say he wants pete back, just that he thinks that's what'll happen. in fact, i get the distinct impression that he's arguing against that very idea.

[bcarrier]

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[off the ground]

if we all put a few pound together we Could buy Marty Clarke from Collingwood?

[FermPundit]

Really enjoyed the game yesterday and it was pleasing it get our first win in Newry in over 20 years. From a neutral perspective it's sad to see a proud county like Down stuck in division 3 for another year. You should have beaten Fermanagh by at least 5 or 6 points. Barring 6 or 7 regulars it was a second string Fermanagh side. Down are impressive going forward and will give most counties a game but your defence and in particular the full back line is letting you down badly. I think I saw in the IN today that Down have conceded 10 goals in 7 games. Given that the standard in division 3 isn't great this has to be a worry. I was also disappointed by Ross Carr's comments today. Yes, there were a few debatable decisions and there was a obvious push for the Fermanagh goal but at the end of the day Down should have put Fermanagh away long before the end. Whilst this all sounds negative I wouldn't rule out Down doing pretty well this summer. You have the talent and if the management can some how tighten up the defence a good crack at the Ulster championship or a long run in the qualifiers isn't beyond Down.

[amallon]

On the UTV news tonight they reported that the Down logistics van was stopped by customs on route to Pairc Esler and was found to be running on 'washed' diesel.  They had to pay a fine before being allowed on their way.  You couldn't make it up! 

[Leo]

On the UTV news tonight they reported that the Down logistics van was stopped by customs on route to Pairc Esler and was found to be running on 'washed' diesel.  They had to pay a fine before being allowed on their way.  You couldn't make it up! 

2 points on this:
(a) There's more than the van needs new diesel
(b) seriously, Co Board statement needed on who is responsible for this grossly irregular conduct in our name and what is being done about it.

[Pangurban]

Conor Garvey let himself and the Co.down, what he did is inexcusable, and the full weight of disciplinary proceedings should be applied. As for the overall performance, you cant fashion a Co.Team with 5 or 6 Co.standard players. The others work hard and do their best but they just dont have what it takes. We remain where we belong, in Div 3, and until the standard of Club Football is raised within the Co., there we will likely remain. As those for those advocating the adoption of negative defensive tactics like Armagh or Tyrone, well neither of them are going to win anything this year. All we need are defenders who can clear the ball, at least out of scoring distance. Playing football in your own half, just adds to the pressure on yourself, and a management team that allows this to persist should not be there.

[thewobbler]

All we need are defenders who can clear the ball, at least out of scoring distance

You're showing your age there Pangur Ban if you really believe this is the answer.

For what it's worth, myself and GY have been echoing his earlier comments for the best part of 4 years on here.

The single biggest reason Paddy O'Rourke had to be removed was because after 4 years under him, Down had shown no sign of moving forward. His team selection generally might have been fine, and his players might (sometimes) have been fired up, but the defensive frailties, breaking-ball problems and one-dimensional lines of attack that were apparent in his second season never improved, only got worse.

And it would seem Ross and DJ are paying little or no attention to resolving these issues either. And if they're not going to, it's nearly time they stepped aside. This is not a vintage crop of Down footballers, but it is no bad crop either. They need harnessed, need organised.

Bringing extra players back is not about negativity, it is about practical realities.

[thewobbler]

Oh and by the way, did anyone read Wee Pete in the IN at the weekend proudly extolling the virtues of running up to the Big Stone for GAA training? Surely that in itself is enough to rule him out of a return to the Down job. I just don't get it.

[Pangurban]

Strongly disagree Wobbler, when HF track back they bring HB with them, creating even tighter situations. The threat emanating from long quick balls out of defence, discourages attacking wing backs for venturing forward, and moves ball into an area from which you will not concede scores. Armagh and Tyrone enjoyed some success from their novel negative tactic, but Kerry demonstrated that a reversion to the simple long ball was the answer. Of course you need forwards capable of winning their own Ball, for this to succeed, and i think we have such forwards

[Down Gael]

Pangurban, you are wasting your time on thewobbler. He knows everything there is too know about football. He`s from Ballyholland you know.
I hear he played a bit too 

[thewobbler]

If your defence is slower and smaller than the opposition forward line, the answer surely is not to leave them exposed to one on one situations very often.

By the way, Paul Galvin and Sean O'Sullivan are amongst the hardest working wing-forwards you'll ever see.

On another note, even though I think you're getting misty eyed about their style of football, Kerry have 8-9 of the best players in Ireland in their team. They could play whatever way they like and it would look like the de facto way to play Gaelic football.