Armagh v Cork

[brokencrossbar1]

I am only going by the team as lined out the uladh and that is why I had them in there.

Don't start about the championship   There was nearly another strike over them.  Originally they had been fixed for this weekend.  With the refixtured Armagh Dublin game all games were actually brought forward a week until last weekend.  All the senior clubs objected and refused to play.  The way the results went it meant the game between Armagh and Cork became a non event so the games were out back to the original weekend but tinight instead of tomorrow.  A lot of clubs are dual clubs, like ourselves and the hurling had been set for the May bank holiday.  Normally tehre has to be 2 weeks clear between hurling and football fixtures.  On top of that the Cork hurlers head to La Manga on Monday for a week and that would mean that clubs like Douglas and Na Piarsaigh who have senior county hurlers who play on their club football teams had to have their games this weekend. 

They have to have the first round games played off this weekend as the losers then go into a relegation playoff which has to be finalised before the next round of championship fixtures.

I hope this makes some sense, because it made no sense to me when I first came down.

[bennydorano]

Duggan is good but young.  Will probably pick up O'Rourke, Lynch and Canty are not the plyayers they were and in any event are better suit in the HB line.  Clarke and McDonnell will have the pace and strenght to match them and I think they will shade it.

No clarke or McDonnell bc.

You sure you're not looking at the wrong line up, Rufus's team was a suggested team, the actual team is:

Ciaran McKinney

Paul Kernan;Bellew;Finnian Mo
Brendan Donaghy;Aidan O'Rourke;Kieran McKeever

Paul McGrane; David McKenna

Veron;PMcKeever;Brian Mallon
McDonnell;Clarke;Miceal o'Rourke

Unless you know otherwise?

[Uladh]

na sorry, thought rufus was gospel!

[naka]

surprised Oiisin isnt starting

[Orior]

Glad Oisin isnt starting as we need 15 players on the field. I have not been impressed with Paul Kernan at left full back. Hopefully he will prove me wrong.

[TacadoirArdMhacha]

Ciaran McKinney

Paul Kernan;Bellew;Finnian Mo
Brendan Donaghy;Aidan O'Rourke;Kieran McKeever

Paul McGrane; David McKenna

Veron;PMcKeever;Brian Mallon
McDonnell;Clarke;Miceal o'Rourke

I'm pretty happy with that team. Its a good blend of key starters, players who need another look and players who haven't really had much of a chance yet. Glad to see Miceal O'Rourke getting a run. Certainly deserves his chance and I'd be fairly confident he's at least as good an option as Tony Kernan. Really hope Mallon can come back into a bit of form. Be interesting to see how McKinney plays and if a good showing is enough to win his place on the championship team.

Really don't care about the result although I think we'll go and win. Much more important to see how the likes of Francie, Charlie Vernon, Brian Mallon and Miceal O'Rourke play though.

[armaghniac]

At the start of the season I would have said that Miceal O'Rourke was worth a look. However he didn't impress when brought on against Westmeath. Not unlike the other MOR he showed considerable energy, but he didn't use it to good effect in Mullingar. Hopefully he has a better day this week. Vernon, Mallon and McKeever can stake their claim, providing competition for places. 

[Armagh4SamAgain]

I don't think vernons good for mid field.

[charlie stubbs]

glad see mallon get his chance this weekend think that he scored 1-6 in the first league game against tirnanog and though he is not directly replacing him woulld be a muh better option that tony kernan at 15 come the championship.  Good to see McKenna get a chance at midfield.  McGrane you would presume a certain starter along with ANother for the championship, a solid performance from mckenna can put his name in the frame. 

Have liked the way mcdonnell has went about the campaign giving new players a chance something that joe was often criticised.  Would expect an Armagh win tomorrow!! 

Does anyone know if all club fixtures have been put back to 1800 tomorrow night?   Was talking to a portadown man today and he said their game against keady is at 1800?

[heganboy]

A draw!
from BBC:
Armagh 0-13 1-10 Cork 

Armagh boss Peter McDonnell was content with his team's display

Armagh ended their Allianz NFL Division 2 campaign by drawing with Cork.

Cork hit the opening two scores but two points apiece from Oisin McConville and Aaron Kernan helped Armagh lead 0-6 to 0-4 at half-time at Crossmaglen.

Armagh led 0-8 to 0-6 and 0-9 to 0-7 but Nicholas Murphy's 58th-minute goal helped Cork move into the lead.

Aaron Kernan was sent off after getting a second caution but Cork's Conor McCarthy was then dismissed as Armagh fought back to force a draw.

any eyewitness reports would be very welcome

[stew]

I don't think vernons good for mid field.

Thanks for your input shane!

[Our Nail Loney]

I don't think vernons good for mid field.

What do you base this on?? Have you seen him line out for QUB the last year or so because he has been immense. Still only young remember...

[Smokin Joe]

Game played at very much pedestrian pace, until the handbags of the last 10 minutes.

Hard to gauge much from the game other than to say that yet again our midfield was non existant (that's about the 3rd game in a row).  Nicholas Mutphy gave a masterful display.

We have big problems there - we seem to have no settled partner for McGrane, and he himself has been continually struggling since his suspension.

Heganboy, you will be pleased to hear that I think Paddy McKeever did enough today to ensure that the number 11 his his for the start of the summer.

[Sandy Hill]

A draw!
from BBC:
Armagh 0-13 1-10 Cork 

Armagh boss Peter McDonnell was content with his team's display

Armagh ended their Allianz NFL Division 2 campaign by drawing with Cork.

Cork hit the opening two scores but two points apiece from Oisin McConville and Aaron Kernan helped Armagh lead 0-6 to 0-4 at half-time at Crossmaglen.

Armagh led 0-8 to 0-6 and 0-9 to 0-7 but Nicholas Murphy's 58th-minute goal helped Cork move into the lead.

Aaron Kernan was sent off after getting a second caution but Cork's Conor McCarthy was then dismissed as Armagh fought back to force a draw.

any eyewitness reports would be very welcome

I'm just not sure that he should be! What has been learned from today that he/we didn't already know? Would it not have been a good idea to have put out his strongest championship team (excluding injuries) and have provided them with a last real match scenario prior to June15? If he doesn't know by now, give or take a few, what this team is, when will he know? I was hugely impressed again today by K McKeever who is probably playing the best football of his career. Philip Loughran showed once more that he doesn't have the heart for inter county football and Oisin, though well past his best, can still deliver critical scores. My team for June 15;

McKinney

McNulty
Donaghy/Bellew
Mallon

Kernan A
O'Rourke A
McKeever

McGrane
Toner/Lavery

O'Rourke M
McKeever
Mallon

Vernon
Clarke
McDonnell

[Benny Barnaveld]

Agree totally with the comments on McKeever. He has been the most consitent Armagh player for a while now. Was awesome last week against Dublin too.

I thought Vernon was better at half forward than in midfield as last week. He is great when he has the ball, just struggles to get the ball in his hand for some reason, droped some ball today. Very powerful though when running at the opposition

Just think too Mc Grane's partners in midfield this year

Toner, Lavery, Swift, Vernon, Mc Kenna! lol. Worringing when really by next season 2 off the above will be the best we have.
Though McKenna played as well as any of the above, scored 1 and set up 2 or 3.

We are really struggling for the second full back position, did not think Kernan was great in there today.

Michael O'Rourke done ok, unlike swift, how really looked uncomfortable in that position.

We should have won by at least 5 points, wasted a lot of fairly routine chances.