The Psychology of it all

[stephenite]

Watched the Tyrone Donegal match last night on the laptop before turning in for the night, couldn't sleep for an hour thinking about it so thought I'd open it out to the forum.

What are the little things that turn a game in Gaelic Football, do they have a bearing on the end result,could it have gone differently?

What I mean in a nutshell is, if Donegals first goal had rightly been allowed to stand, added to Cassidys second strike a few minutes later - would it have made a big difference to the final result? Would Tyrone have carved them open so easily? Would it have made a substantial difference?

I know that the signs for Donegal around the middle were ominous from the throw in but if they opened up the lead with the goals could they have kicked on?

Probably a load of old bollox but it's something I've become more interested in and wondered what others thought

[The Real Laoislad]

You spent an hour thinking about it afterwards?...Im surprised you weren't asleep by half time i thought it was a awful game

[mannix]

Great point, its been on my mind for a while too.I always wonder what makes kerry that much better than donegal or mayo.Is it in the mind?Waterford too seem to have a mental block in hurling when they should be well able to win any game,kilkenny have a tiny population and can beat any county easily, why?
Meath are another that intrigue me, they are a poor team of that there is no doubt,yet they always give dublin a tough time and will be eaten alive by a donegal or mayo in the qualifiers,again,why?

[ONeill]

I think in terms of long-term achievement, the winning mentality needs to be there in a squad of players from underage. I don't know who groomed this current set of players although Mickey seems to have had a hand in the majority of their successes from minor, U21 to senior.

They say that Coleman made you believe you were a better player by repeatedly telling you that and that's fine when you have winners to work with. It didn't really work in Longford.

As for yesterday's game and that pivotal moment - you can't read into it. If McFadden's goal had been allowed, the whole mentality changes on both sides. Subsequent events would not have happened as the order of events are now different. Maybe Tyrone relaxed after being let off the hook. Maybe Donegal felt an injustice that spurred them on for those 5-10 minutes. Maybe if McFadden's goal had been allowed, Tyrone would've turned the screw earlier.

You spent an hour thinking about it afterwards?...Im surprised you weren't asleep by half time i thought it was a awful game

That Ulster game was real football. What you saw in Leinster was a mediocre Division 1 team v a division 2 team. Here, you shoot first.....no your turn.

[rosnarun]

 the difference is hype V Class. any team playing at 100% fueled by hype can beat any other team for most of a match but if the class is lacking the thruth will outusually before the end of a game. thats why it so important for the underdog to get a good start and why they  are usually hammered in replays.
Donegal lack any real Class. and when they hype bubble of the league was busted they went into meltdown and Flattered an ordinary enough Tyrone team. Remeber it was luck that had them there yesterday in the 1st place. and when you see ryan Mcmenamen refusing to take a dive when the ball was thrown in his face you know not only have you lost but that tyrone were nearly sorry for them yesterday

[rrhf]

such a shitty wee post from a shitty wee poster.  Mc Menamin has never dived in his life. Now it appears tyrone cant win they are being accused of diving and not diving. 

[maddog]

and when you see ryan Mcmenamen refusing to take a dive when the ball was thrown in his face

He thought about it though, you could see him starting to go down and then caught himself on. Maybe he thought the ground would be a bit hard on his knees if John McEntee's neck wasnt there to soften the blow.

[ziggysego]

What I mean in a nutshell is, if Donegals first goal had rightly been allowed to stand, added to Cassidys second strike a few minutes later - would it have made a big difference to the final result? Would Tyrone have carved them open so easily? Would it have made a substantial difference?

They came back from 9 points down in Ulster Final against Down in 2003, to take it level. Then they came back again from 3 points down.

Whether or not they could have yesterday, we'll never know, but history suggests they have it in them to do it.

[rosnarun]

he was just about to do a Rivaldo when i think he thought of the consequences of being 'knocked out Cold' but a 4' 11 man who weigh 4 & 1/2 stone

[rrhf]

maddod and rosnarun would you please get out of Ryan Mc Menamins head.  He is entitled to keep his thoughts to himself.

[brokencrossbar1]

The psychology of the game is often the winning and losing of the game.  If you look at most teams at any level there is very much a par in regards to physical preparation.  Some teams are bigger, some teams fitter, some teams faster but generally the physical attributes even out. 

In regards to skill levels and game plans these are things that are team specific and can be worked on with drills and good coaching.  Players with poor basic skills can be made look great players with specific coaching and a proper game plan.

The mind is a very delicate one though and if it is not right then a team with all the necessary physical attributes and skill levels can fail.  Little things can happen in games which individually may not seem much but in the holistic view opf the game can be the winning and losing of it. How players react to it is key to how the game unfolds.  The classic one is in a tight game a goalie or a defender stops the forward scoring with a save or block, the ball is sent down the field and a goal or point is scored at the other end.  This can break a weak team, and I would say there are a number of teams who would fall into that category.

Enda McNulty is developing a career out of sports pyschology and the reason is that it is an area which is under developed here.  Some teams have the winning mentality based on history, like Kerry or Cork and that is worth a few scores before a game starts, others have to develop it and if you do not approach it correctly then more harm than good can be the outcome eg players believing they are the best without really knowing why, and thinking they can just turn it on.

[mannix]

I have played with a few county players in the us and dublin and they never seemed to be that great,just believed they could do it and wanted to beat their man every time.A longford player told me he was so fit he could jump out of his skin,yet he also said that he was sure they would never win leinster because they were not good enough, realist or pessimist?
Offaly win hurlling and football titles with the same type population base as longford for each sport, mental strenght at play in a big way.

[corn02]

One of the things I can not understand is a team not fancied to win coming out all guns blazing. As stated a match can be won against better opposition with good tactics and a good gameplan. Dublin are the worst team for coming out and trying to over run a team in the first twenty minutes and then running out of energy and ideas in the second half.

[Pietas]

This discsussion will soon revert to the, 'Why can't Mayo win the All-Ireland?' theme.

Given the nature of that debate, I think we should call it off.

[mick999]

Stephenite ,
Not really on topic, but just interested in your experience with Setanta Broadband ..

I am in the same neck of the woods as you and I tried it last year a few times, but the quality was shite .. always buffering ..
I am on Bigpond cable 15 Mbps, so internet speed my end is not the problem, but my impression was that the streaming servers couldn't cope.
Are you on the monthly plan or paying per match ?

The last time I tried, it was so bad I had to jump in the car and head to Scruffys. Last night, I was in PJs, twas good crack !!

Interested to hear your views