Tyrone V Donegal

[Over the Bar]

It took them until the Dublin replay to start looking the part in 2005 and that was purely down to volume of games played.

Cant sayI agree.  In the cavan replay and the 2 ulster final games they looked the part. Blew Armagh out of the water for most of both games.

[DUBSFORSAM1]

I think the biggest problem Donegal had against Armagh was that the Armagh defenders were physically as strong if not stronger than the Donegal forwards and that this led to a lot of stop start play - I don't think Tyrone have the physique to stop them like Armagh did and this will boost Donegal's chances considerably..

[MoyMan]

Interesting Paddy Heaney article today.  In a twisted heaney - esque way is he trying to get Mellon 8/12 weeks and ultimately get his revenge on the Moy letterwriter who questioned his jouralistic integrity not even 2 weeks ago. 

Any chance of someone posting this article??

[onlyonefut]

Against The Breeze By Paddy Heaney

Ban Looms for Mellon' ran a headline in yesterday's Irish News. 'Yippeee! More trouble for Tyrone', thought thousands of readers as they gleefully tore into the story hoping to discover what further disaster lay in store for the Red Hands.

The headline and accompanying picture of Ryan Mellon suggested that the Moy man could be in a spot of bother after he was sent off in the Tyrone county championship. But one sentence blew the story out of the water.

Readers were informed: "If the offence warrants anything longer than a four-week suspension, then he could be banned from county and club football.''

I laughed when I read this. I don't know what precisely Mellon did. I could make a few phone calls to find out. But that's unnecessary.

Maybe he was guilty of an attempted strike with minimum force. Or maybe he bit the referee's ear off.
It doesn't really matter, because we can say with some confidence that the Tyrone County Board will come to the conclusion that the offence doesn't warrant anything longer than a four-week ban. I firmly believe Mellon will be available to play against Donegal.

The paranoid Tyrone fans now grinding their teeth and preparing a 55,000-word response to this column should calm themselves down. This is not a criticism of the ethical standards of the Tyrone County Board.

When it comes to crime and punishment, the overwhelming majority of county boards act in the same manner – there is one set of rules for club footballers and another for county players.

This double-edged disciplinary system has resulted in fudging and deceit on such a grand scale that it would make an Italian mafioso blush.

For years referees have played a complicit role in this process. Some whistlers are such dedicated fans they refuse to show red cards to county players.

My neighbour Jody Gormley recounts a yarn about one such official who used to referee in Tyrone. The individual concerned took charge of a game involving Trillick.

Jody, who was in the Tyrone team at the time, had committed one bad foul and was skating on thin ice when he committed another. When the referee beckoned him over, he thought an early shower beckoned. His fears were unfounded.

"Now, Jody,'' said the referee, "I'm sorry, but if you keep doing that, I'm going to have to book you.''

On the few occasions when referees have thrown a wobbler and actually sent a county man off, we have watched county boards put their diplomatic machine into action.

The referee is approached. He's asked to consider what he's going to put in his match report. A county official might ask: 'Was it really a forearm smash? Maybe he was just trying to push him away with his elbow?'

The referee will mull over these helpful suggestions. He'll think about his All-Ireland tickets, the big games he wants to take charge of, and future mileage expenses. He'll ponder it all – and then realise that he made a terrible mistake.

What was he thinking giving the player a straight red when it should have been two yellows?

The most obvious example of county board revisionism occurred in 2004 when Darragh O Se received a straight red when playing for An Ghaeltacht.

Under the rules, O Se should have missed the upcoming All-Ireland semi-final against Cork. By the time the Kerry County Board had completed its disciplinary process, O Se was free to play.

Much was written about the aforementioned case and there was a great deal of caterwauling and criticism. But again, if we're brutally honest, the story would only have really shocked us if the Kerry board had acted differently.

O Se's case was amusing because it highlighted the self-serving culture of the GAA in glorious technicolour. While everyone complained, everyone also understood.

Most supporters would have expected their county boards to act in exactly the same manner. In the GAA, we place a high premium on success. You do what you have to do to get your best team on the field.

And this is why Paddy Bradley's expected absence from this Sunday's first round clash against Antrim has baffled the entire country.

The Derry County Board's decision to serve the senior team's best player with a three-month ban could have disastrous consequences in Casement Park at the weekend.

Bradley, who has an impeccable disciplinary record, got sent off in a recent club game. To compound matters, he got entangled with the referee after the official announced the incorrect result.

In other counties, something would have happened. An agreement would have been brokered which included a version of events that would have allowed Paddy Bradley to continue representing his county.

But not in Derry. The county board slapped him with a 12-week ban. The reaction to these events has been interesting. If the Derry County Board thought they would receive applause and credit for 'doing the right thing' they've been mistaken. People outside Derry are even more mystified and

confused than those living within the county.

Needless to say, it's a major talking point in the county. Many regard the decision as a self-inflicted wound. It hasn't gone unnoticed that Tyrone's Owen Mulligan received three reds in 18 months but was fit to play against Fermanagh because his county board appealed his red card against Mayo.

Meanwhile, Paddy Bradley gets one red card and will miss three months of action BECAUSE of his county board.

The whole episode involving Paddy Bradley is intriguing because it casts a spotlight on our sporting ideals. In the GAA, we don't believe that there is any reward in virtue. Success comes from bending the rules, and breaking them if necessary. This is the accepted culture.

Well, it's the accepted culture of 31 counties.

But maybe the 'Paddy Bradley saga' could spark a sea change. Maybe Derry will beat Antrim and then Monaghan or Down without their top scorer. And maybe they'll win the Ulster final with a suitably penitent Paddy leading the attack. Maybe then the rest of the country will come to see that virtue does bring reward.

Yeah. And maybe Waterford will beat Kerry at the weekend, Antrim will win the Liam McCarthy Cup, and Ryan Mellon will get a 12-week suspension from the Tyrone County Board. Maybe.

[MoyMan]

Cheers onefut

[ExiledGael]

Bit paranoid to read a sinister motive in that.
Sounds reasonable, if anything it's putting pressure on the Derry County Board

[J70]

Noel McGinley's Donegal career was essentially finished when the Donegal County Board upheld a red card he received in a club game. As far as I remember, it came in the run-up to the '03 quarter or semi-final. Now maybe the situation might have been different had Brendan Devenney or Adrian Sweeney been involved, but then again John Gildea got a lengthy ban in the late 90s for playing in the states, and he was one of our top players at the time. I think he only missed the league though. Fair play to Derry for having a bit of integrity, even if it only brings sniggers from other counties.

[loughshore lad]

Have you got over the Cookstwon game yet ? Hard to believe - what you think ?

No still gutted about last Friday night. The writing had been on the wall in the lead up to the game - the Killeshil performance was actually worse. Its the attitude of the players that is the hardest thing to take. How do you go from from hammering Errigal with a highly charged display of tough quality football to losing to Cookstown in that manner? I saw one or two players coming out of the changing room after the game and one in particular who was playing was actually laughing and joking - I couldnt believe it, I was gutted and wasn't even playing.

[orangeman]

They need to get back to basics then ? Back to whatever the Errigal performance was made up of - Cookstown barely deserved the victory either  - maybe this will be the final wake up call that is needed - but then again, maybe not ?

[loughshore lad]

They need to get back to basics then ? Back to whatever the Errigal performance was made up of - Cookstown barely deserved the victory either  - maybe this will be the final wake up call that is needed - but then again, maybe not ?

Well it is sink or swin now - it will either make or break this particular group of players. They have a fair few league games left this year to retain division 1 status and to build a team for next season. Major surgery and work is needed. I hope the current manager stays - they chop and change managers too much, the majority of reports about Keenan are excellent and hopefully he will stay on and mould a team.

[Fuzzman]

he got entangled with the referee after the official announced the incorrect result.


What does this mean Mr Heaney?
Was the Ref a octopus that couldn't decide who won the match?

[supersarsfields]

Sorry to put this on this thread but I was hoping either J70 or Fear on Strath Ban or any other poster up that way might be able to help me out. Heading to Lifford's pitch on Thursday nite but unsure were it is? Can any of you's help with directions at all?

[orangeman]

Let's hope they react positively and they all get behind each other. Major surgery needed ?

[loughshore lad]

Let's hope they react positively and they all get behind each other. Major surgery needed ?

I think changes are required, do you not? We need a full back, centre half back and a half back/forward line capable of securing primary possession and driving forward. Too many players are poor on the breaking ball, too easily turned back and look for the handy option of playing laterally instead of playing directly and getting the ball to the inside forwards.

[orangeman]

Very interesting assessment - the ball is definitely being held up too much and inside forwards can be marked by the time the ball gets their length.