Down Club Hurling & Football

[downjim]

For anyone who is interested in a good game.. Burren play Ballinderry in the Ulster league final on Saturday at 7 in the Athletic grounds.. I hope we can give them a better game than the last time they played Down opposition 

And the answer is ...... yous didnt. Ballinderry 1-13 Burren 0-10.

Looking forward to see what the five foot Kilcoo can do this year

[EagleLord]

Downjim, just wanted to give you a chance now to predict what will happen this Sunday, so that it gives you plenty of time to go back on it, contradict yourself, you know, change your arguement, like usual. Just to be clear on it, what is more important this Sunday, is it the match result or the performance? If the Bridge win, will you just say 'aye but its only the league, burren are a championship team not worried'. Or if Burren win, will you say that (even though Bridge played well), the result is all that matters?

[alba2]

What happened to the mighty Burren on Saturday night then?? good to see it. 

First round of the leagues this weekend - how do you think the following games will fare?

Bridge v Burren
Kingdom v Clonduff
Stone v Kilcoo
Ford v Ballyholland
Saval v Rostrevor

Hard to look past home wins in all the games except the last one which the reds should win...

[whitegoodman]

Dont understand why alot of u fall for that boys bait, i would have major doubts as to whether he is even from burren.

For the 1st division matches this wkend id say kilcoo will bt stone ( Gormley will be under a bit of pressure this year), ford will bt ballyholland comfortable, kingdom and clondduff to draw, saval to bt rostrevor and the last one dont no about, at a push id say bridge given its in the bridge.

Should be an interesting year, most people would agree that the top 4 is made up of bridge, burren, ford and kilcoo in no particular order.  Who comes out on top is anyones guess, i would put bridge & burren marginally ahead of kilcoo and kilcoo marginally ahead of ford ( despite ford bting them in championship last year).

Ya would have to fancy saval and ballyholland to be scrapping again but i fancy one of the 2 to say up ( prob saval ) with one of either stone or rostrevor being caught up in the mix.

My predictions for the year for what its worth;

Championship - Burren
League - Bridge
Relegation - Ballyholland/ Rostrevor

Division 2 promotion - Castlewellen/ Annaclone

After that my knowledge ( or lack of it some may say ) starts to depleat so I have no idea of other relegation or promotion

[umpire]

Unfinished business for the Kingdom
Kerry on right track to make amends for last year's championship let-down
Kerry 1-13
Down 1-11
Allianz Football League Div 1


Monday April 11 2011

Mid-term reports were signed off in Killarney where two of the game's central protagonists stopped to draw breath and measure the distance that they have travelled.

It ebbed and flowed like a good final league Sunday should. At one stage of the afternoon, Kerry were temporarily in a league final with Dublin as Cork briefly trailed to Armagh 55 miles away.

In the end, the head-to-head result between the great Munster rivals on the opening day of the league decided it, Cork's victory in Tralee nine weeks earlier proved their passport to Croke Park in two weeks' time.

For Kerry, there is repair and re-evaluation in Portugal next week, a warm-weather training camp that has been causing a fair degree of comment in the Kingdom but one that hasn't served them too badly in the past either.

Kerry may have been squeezed out of a league final, but it has been a satisfying league otherwise.

Five wins from seven -- both defeats by one point at the death -- represents a decent streak of form to take into the championship.

Jack O'Connor can feel energy radiating from his players that maybe wasn't always there last year, he suggested.

"The thing that has given me heart is that there is a lot of energy in the team, a lot of hunger and that always helps," he said.

"I think the lads will be looking forward to this championship because they felt we didn't do ourselves justice last year. There is great togetherness in the camp. I'm very happy with where we are," he admitted.

Down's visit to Killarney wasn't about revenge or setting the record straight from last year. It was to stoke something in themselves.

"We just wanted, more than anything, to show that we were a different team to the team that played in the quarter-final -- a more energetic team maybe; more coherent, more together than we were last year," O'Connor said.

"A few things came against us coming up to the quarter-final that didn't help us.

"I thought we were better prepared for this game, even though it was a league game, than we were for a quarter-final."

One of those "things" that disrupted them last year was indiscipline and it surfaced again 55 minutes in when Tom O'Sullivan struck out at Eoin McCartan who had just won a free off him.

Perhaps O'Sulivan felt McCartan, only on the field for Paul McComiskey eight minutes earlier, had made more of it than he should have.

Needless

But it was a needless act, "disappointing" in O'Connor's view and one that will rule him out of the Munster championship match with Tipperary on May 22.

The pity was that O'Sullivan looked back to his imperious best for much of the game, McComiskey's early withdrawal a legacy of that.

For Down manager James McCartan, the campaign has been something of a sobering experience.

They may have been just two points from being All-Ireland champions last September, but their travels has left him in no doubt as to who the top three in Gaelic football are now.

"It tells us where we are," figured McCartan. "Coming to the likes of Kerry, Dublin and Cork has been an experience for us. We haven't got any points out of them, but it leaves us under no illusions that those teams are probably a step ahead at the minute."

With numerical advantage and just a one-point deficit to chase after O'Sullivan's dismissal, Down looked poised for a first away victory.

But Kerry's control and retention of possession in those last 18 minutes or so was the measure of an experienced team that refused to panic.

At one stage they executed a move that must have featured close to 20 passes, but the finish from Tomas O Se didn't do the level of control justice.

Kerry led by 0-4 to 0-0 after only nine minutes with Darran O'Sullivan once again underlining how he is fast becoming indispensable at centre forward.

That may compromise the effectiveness of his namesake Declan down the line, but the injection of pace Darran O'Sullivan is giving Kerry right now is too hard to dismiss.

Colm Cooper was also to the fore early on but gradually Down settled and were level, 0-5 each, on 25 minutes when Brendan Kealy couldn't hold a James Colgan shot.

But by the break Kerry had surged again with Bryan Sheehan, on the field for the injured Paul Galvin (hamstring) after only 16 minutes, converting a massive 45-metre free that hugged the terrace sideline with the last play of the half.

Impact

Sheehan went on to make a massive second-half impact, landing two more long range frees and getting involved in all levels of play. Can Kerry really afford to be without a man who can deliver such precision and length from his frees off the ground?

Sheehan had an involvement in the Kerry goal that gave them further daylight on 38 minutes, providing the final pass after clever work from Colm Cooper to tee up Darran O'Sullivan, whose delicate flick beat Declan Alder.

Through Mark Poland and, chiefly, Martin Clarke, Down hung in and their persistence was rewarded on 54 minutes when Benny Coulter, subdued by the impressive Marc O Se for much of the game, batted a Conor Laverty pass by Brendan Kealy.

With Tom O'Sullivan's red card coming soon after, it set up a grandstand finish but also showed Kerry at their best as they held their nerve. They should also be happy with the progress of Shane Enright at corner-back, who wasn't lost in his pursuit of Clarke.

Man of the Match -- D O'Sullivan (Kerry)

Scorers -- Kerry: Darran O'Sullivan 1-2, B Sheehan 0-4 (3f), C Cooper 0-3 (1f), Declan O'Sullivan 0-2, A Maher, K Donaghy 0-1 each. Down: M Poland 0-5 (4f) B Coulter 1-0, M Clarke 0-3 (1f), J Colgan, C Maginn, C Garvey 0-1 each.

Kerry -- B Kealy 6; S Enright 7, M O Se 8, T O'Sullivan 7; T O Se 6, K Young 6, A O'Mahony 7; E Brosnan 7, A Maher 7; D Walsh 8, Darran O'Sullivan 8, P Galvin; C Cooper 7, K Donaghy 6, Declan O'Sullivan 7. Subs: B Sheehan 8 for Galvin (16), S Scanlon for Maher (61), A O'Connell for O'Mahony (62), K O'Leary for Galvin (64).

Down -- D Alder 6; G McCartan 6, D Gordon 7, B McArdle 5; C Garvey 7, K McKernan 7, D Rooney 7; J Colgan 6, K King 4; D Hughes 6, M Poland 8, C Maginn 6; P McComiskey 5, B Coulter 6, M Clarke 8. Subs: A Carr 6 for King (28), D Rafferty 6 for McArdle (42), E McCartan 7 for McComiskey (46), C Laverty 7 for Maginn (52).

Ref -- R Hickey (Clare

[DownFanatic]

I think there will be a split in Division 1 this year in terms of quality. Burren, Mayobridge, Kilcoo and Bryansford should be knocking about the top end of the table. Then it will be a scramble between the other 6 to avoid the bottom two places. Ballyholland and Saval would be expected to make the drop but if the Stone can't regroup soon they could be in the mix for the chop.

Division 2 is going to be very competitive this year. Castlewellan should surely be fancying their chances of a return to Division 1. Liatroim will be looking for a quick return too. Loughinisland, now that they are near back to full strength, should have a say somewhere along the line and Downpatrick, Annaclone and Warrenpoint would fancy taking scalps of the big teams too. Id be surprised if Drumgath stay up and one from Clann na Banna and Ballymartin could go down aswell.

Tullylish on paper are the strongest team in Division 3. It would be a major shock if they didnt make the end of season playoffs. Kilclief have enough experience to keep themselves around the top 3. Mitchels will be the team most likely to finish bottom and to be honest there is little to separate between the other 9 teams in terms of quality as was witnessed by the closeness of last year's league.

Bredagh and Saul are best equipped to get promoted from Division 4. Drumaness and Teconnaught will push although they migh'nt have the quality to trouble the top 2 come the business end of the season.

[ardtole]

I would say Glasdrumman, Atticall and Darragh Cross will challenge for the play-offs in div 3 this year as well. Do the top 3 or 4 make the play-offs this year.

[Banana Man]

I think there will be a split in Division 1 this year in terms of quality. Burren, Mayobridge, Kilcoo and Bryansford should be knocking about the top end of the table. Then it will be a scramble between the other 6 to avoid the bottom two places. Ballyholland and Saval would be expected to make the drop but if the Stone can't regroup soon they could be in the mix for the chop.

Division 2 is going to be very competitive this year. Castlewellan should surely be fancying their chances of a return to Division 1. Liatroim will be looking for a quick return too. Loughinisland, now that they are near back to full strength, should have a say somewhere along the line and Downpatrick, Annaclone and Warrenpoint would fancy taking scalps of the big teams too. Id be surprised if Drumgath stay up and one from Clann na Banna and Ballymartin could go down aswell.

Tullylish on paper are the strongest team in Division 3. It would be a major shock if they didnt make the end of season playoffs. Kilclief have enough experience to keep themselves around the top 3. Mitchels will be the team most likely to finish bottom and to be honest there is little to separate between the other 9 teams in terms of quality as was witnessed by the closeness of last year's league.

Bredagh and Saul are best equipped to get promoted from Division 4. Drumaness and Teconnaught will push although they migh'nt have the quality to trouble the top 2 come the business end of the season.

who's the south down teams in division 4? Aghaderg and who else?

[downjim]

Downjim, just wanted to give you a chance now to predict what will happen this Sunday, so that it gives you plenty of time to go back on it, contradict yourself, you know, change your arguement, like usual. Just to be clear on it, what is more important this Sunday, is it the match result or the performance? If the Bridge win, will you just say 'aye but its only the league, burren are a championship team not worried'. Or if Burren win, will you say that (even though Bridge played well), the result is all that matters?

I can see us winning comfortably .. the Bridge have been good servants to Down but they dont have the legs anymore and they have nothing in reserve to strengthen their squad!!
Byransford are the team I fear most while Saval and Ballyholland will be back in division two next season.. two clubs which are out of their depth at this level.. at least it cuts out the travelling and they are a handy 8 points

[general]

didnt get the irish news today, anyone see what time throw in for matches are friday?

lookin forward to a good season!!

[whitegoodman]

Matches are at 645.

Bridge and burren is at 430 on sunday according to irish news but 3 according to democrate, can anybody confirm this.

Democrat also gives a pretty decent preview of the league season ahead and went along with the general feelings on here about the top 4 and bottom 4 in the top division.  They went with the bridge for the title for what its worth.

Also seen benny has brought some of the kerry mind games home with him as he was saying in his column that burren are the team to beat.  If he really thought that id lick my own b@lls.  As a proud bridge man there would be no way that he would think burren are better than them!!

[EagleLord]

He knows what hes at!

[redandblackareback]

Do liatroim play Lisland tonight in division 2?? Can anyone confirm this?

[whitegoodman]

According to Irish News on tuesday its on this evening.

[Mid Down Gael]

Do liatroim play Lisland tonight in division 2?? Can anyone confirm this?

Yes. Throw in @ 6.45 in Fontenoy Park. Tasty fixture to get the ball rolling in this seasons league.