monaghan v donegal

[ziggysego]

Pipe down Windmill

[gwan-ye-boy-ya]

Donegal have all the ace cards here I think - they can't lose !

donegal can and prob will lose.. they just dont have the same fight in them as monaghan have.

well well well.... i was right,, a stoned hippy would have more fight in him than donegal..the oriel men were pure class all over the pitch and ill give hanners a mention after quiet games against derry n tyrone.. he came on tonight and played a stormer.

and by the way omagh is a f*^kin nightmare to get out of... sitting still for nearly 2 hours killed the buzz.......

[Maguire01]

Omagh was a bit of a disaster!  It's a lovely ground and a great pitch, but had far too few turnstiles and a very serious lack of toilets.
There were also turnstiles that only accepted either euro or sterling - is it too difficult to be able to do both at the one gate?

As for parking, i parked in one of the town centre car parks about 10 mins away from the Gortin Rd and had no problem getting out. I know from experience of even small matches that you don't go near the Gortin Rd.

Don't believe the hype, Monaghan are the same as Fermanagh, a few back door wins will help improve their self esteem. But when it comes to the business end of the championship they will be found lacking. By all means enjoy your victory, but leave it to the big boys to decide where Sam resides for the next 12 months. With any luck you will be able to see him as he travels through Monaghan town & Emyvale on his way to Aughnacloy and another 12 months with Cuthbert

As for this, it's rubbish. We are at the business end of the championship. We have beaten Down, Derry and Donegal comprehensively. We gave Tyrone a scare in the Ulster final too. And please don't belittle Fermanagh's runs through the qualifiers - they were there on merit just as Monaghan are now. Teams come and go in cycles. Tyrone haven't been world beaters that long don't forget! (And despite your cockyness, i think you'll find that the vast majority of Monaghan people have been very vocal in their support for Tyrone over the last few years - and if Tyrone get further than Monaghan, i expec we still will be.) Arrogance however, is not an attractive quality.

[thebandit]

Unbelievable performance, I'm seriously hoarse today!

Duffy - Kickouts fairly good, no chance for goal.
Dessie - Young Player of the year. Outstanding. Has seen off Coulter, Bradley and now Devenney.
Flanagan - Rock Solid throughout.
Strimmer - Much better performance.
D Freeman - Hampered by a calf injury, still won a lot of breaks.
McQuaid - Could impose himself more, still played well.
JP - A bit off the pace, looks happier at 3rd midfielder to be fair.
Spindley - Won the midfield battle
Dick - Worked very hard
Jap - Caught a lot of vital ball after the Donegal goal. Fed the ball in well.
Rory Woods - Playmaker in chief.
Manzie - Didn't look out of place at this level.
Jinxy - Quiet today, will have a stormer in Croke Park.
Vinnie - Unstoppable
Tommy - Outstanding.

Hanratty - Was threatening, takes too many steps.
Darren Hughes - Shored things up.
Paul Meegan - Finished up playing wing back, didnt shirk the challenge.

All credit to Banty and McElkennon, they were very well prepared, level of fitness was very impressive. Donegal threw in the towel.

We were late getting there, abandoned the car at Lidl and took a taxi! Finished up walking out past all the traffic afterwards 

[J70]

Happen to be home at the moment, so I went along to Omagh for my first championship game for three years. How little things have changed! Still the same hot and cold forward, still the throwing in the towel when things start to go wrong. At the time, I reckoned the likes of Gaoth Dobhair Abu were a little premature with their optimism back in February and March - it gives me no pleasure to say "I told you so!"

The game reminded me a bit of the Derry-Mayo match: we were blessed to be only three points adrift at half-time (Monaghan have a few issues with their free-taking!). At the start of the second, we got the equalizing goal, put a stranglehold on midfield, and proceeded to hit a series of appalling wides before Monaghan got their second goal. After that, Finlay cleaned up at midfield and it was only a matter of what the final margin would be, as Donegal fumbled and footered and could get nothing going in terms of forward play. I don't think Devenney or McFadden won a single ball all night, in contrast to Freeman and Cory who were constantly showing and making runs (Lacey tried manfully, but found Freeman a serious handful with the quality of some of the ball being put into the corners). How McIver could wait until midway through the second half to make a change in the full-forwards was beyond me, although the usual slow build-up and wall of Monaghan men to counter it didn't help matters.

Hard to know where we go from here. Its unlikely Sweeney will be back, while the likes to Devenney and Hegarty may be considering their options. We still have a big problem at full-back, and while Murphy looks to have the makings of a decent target man, he's not the quickest. McFadden will always be inconsistent, especially with the manner of the supply he gets, while, with the exception of Rory Kavanagh, the half-fowards have not contributed enough, although the injuries and chopping and changing did not help. Its no surprise to see McIver step down, as there's probably not much more he can give or get from this very inconsistent squad of players. Who'll get (or want) the job now?

Good luck to Monaghan from here on. I didn't see any triumphalism (although I left a few minutes early ), but I'd be celebrating too if my team had emerged from nowhere like they have.

[orangeman]

It did seem that Donegal threw in the towel from early in the 2nd half - did they ?

[Maguire01]

Donegal did seem to throw in the towel with about 15 minutes left. Monaghan were playing with them from then on.

As for trimphalism, what's the problem with celebrating getting to the quarter finals for the first time? It's not like it was an 'in your face' sort of thing - by the time of the final whistle there can't have been more than a few hundred Donegal supporters left in the ground.

Bigger teams seem to think you should only celebrate when you win the AI final - see the reaction (i.e. lack of) when Tyrone won the Ulster a couple of weeks ago, and similarly with Kerry when they win the Munster. For the 'traditionally' smaller teams, getting to these final stages is a big deal - why would anyone begrudge us some celebration?

[balladmaker]

Fair play to Monaghan!  All of a sudden an All Ireland semi-final could beckon, the dreaming can begin for them.....

As for Donegal, they just don't cut it at the business end of things, that is apparent from the last number of years. 

[J70]

What was the story with the refusal to accept sterling at the turnstiles? I had relatives with me from England, and they had to borrow euros from me to get into the game. The match was played in the UK, so why wouldn't the GAA accept the local currency? They even advertised the admission fee as 20 euro or £17. Madness.

[new devil]

typical GAA i suppose  sure isnt 20euro not worth about 14pound

[Maguire01]

What was the story with the refusal to accept sterling at the turnstiles? I had relatives with me from England, and they had to borrow euros from me to get into the game. The match was played in the UK, so why wouldn't the GAA accept the local currency? They even advertised the admission fee as 20 euro or £17. Madness.

You could pay in Sterling - i did - but only on certain turnstiles. They were clearly marked as such. I can't understand however, why all couldn't manage to deal in both sterling and euro.

[FL/MAYO]

I did not see the game yesterday but if Monaghan play like they did in the Ulster final...hitting hard and throwing their bodies around to good effect they will be a handful for any team that's left. The problem now will be the hype and expectations from their supporters that will have to be controlled somehow before it affects the team's performance in the next game.

[Maguire01]

I did not see the game yesterday but if Monaghan play like they did in the Ulster final...hitting hard and throwing their bodies around to good effect they will be a handful for any team that's left. The problem now will be the hype and expectations from their supporters that will have to be controlled somehow before it affects the team's performance in the next game.

In truth, i don't think Monaghan's supporters are too demanding - nor do we expect miracles. Don't get me wrong, i think Monaghan can go further and will put up a mighty challenge for whoever they meet, but there's no unrealistic expectations.

[FL/MAYO]

I did not see the game yesterday but if Monaghan play like they did in the Ulster final...hitting hard and throwing their bodies around to good effect they will be a handful for any team that's left. The problem now will be the hype and expectations from their supporters that will have to be controlled somehow before it affects the team's performance in the next game.

In truth, i don't think Monaghan's supporters are too demanding - nor do we expect miracles. Don't get me wrong, i think Monaghan can go further and will put up a mighty challenge for whoever they meet, but there's no unrealistic expectations.

I would love to see them progress... as I said they just need to keep their style of play and you might be suprised how far they go.

[Windmill abu]

I did not see the game yesterday but if Monaghan play like they did in the Ulster final...hitting hard and throwing their bodies around to good effect they will be a handful for any team that's left. The problem now will be the hype and expectations from their supporters that will have to be controlled somehow before it affects the team's performance in the next game.

In truth, i don't think Monaghan's supporters are too demanding - nor do we expect miracles. Don't get me wrong, i think Monaghan can go further and will put up a mighty challenge for whoever they meet, but there's no unrealistic expectations.


I would love to see them progress... as I said they just need to keep their style of play and you might be suprised how far they go.

It is time to put up or shut up for Monaghan. The underdog tag has worn a bit thin at this stage. Either you have ambitions for an all ireland or you don't.

Gallant losers are just that "LOSERS"