Tír Eoghain vs Áth Cliath '08

[Tyrone Dreamer]

I couldnt believe the amount of people who were looking rid of Mickey Harte this past couple of months. People have to understand that you cant win the All Ireland every year and with injuies like Tyrone had in 06 and 07 an All Ireland was probably always going to be out of reach. Harte did a decent job to squeeze an Ulster out of the team last year in difficult circumstances. He has done a wonderful job this year in bringing a team without a top quality scoring forward capable of hitting 1-5 a match to the semi finals. He still has a big job ahead of him though. It will be difficult getting the team to play with the same intensity 2 days running especially after going from heavy underdogs to heavy favourites. Competition for places should help him though. As usual when things are going well the bench looks very strong. All the following players would be pushing for a starting place:
McConnell
McGee
Carlin
PJ Quinn
McCaul
Hughes
Mellon
C Cavanagh
Penrose
Mulligan
Mulgrew

[BerfArmagh]

As much as it pains me, I have to say Tyrone were excellent on saturday. They just completely blew the Dubs away. I for one did'nt think they had that type of performace in them & 1 - 15 won their positions all over the field. The Goals were excellent. I must say, I felt very sorry for Dublin, they add a huge amount of color to the championshio every year and certainly did not deserve a 12 point mauling. Best of luck to Pillar.

Kerry will be getting a bit worried by a case of deja vue coming up!!

BTW it shows what a sizeable pack of gombeens there is in Tyrone, the abuse and criticism Micky Harte has had to take in that county (& he is the best manager in ireland, bar none) is ridiclious. Come to Armagh Micky, we'll treat ye better.

[easytiger]

Hey lads – just thought I'd bung in my own tuppence worth.

Personally, it was the most disappointing day I've ever had in Croker – and believe you me, there's been a few over 25 years.

The manner of our defeat was the worst thing about it. I don't believe that we are that bad. But a few factors played against us.

The weather doesn't particularly suit our style of play. Alan going off was a big blow. And a lot of our bankers, guys who'll always put it in, no matter how bad things are going, didn't have it on the day. Tactically, we got it wrong on the line. And mentally, again, I'd say we didn't handle the occasion.

But the biggest factor was that we came up against a side that no matter what the tactical system employed, believed in themselves and their ability to execute. Some of the football played was absolutely scintillating – how many times did they work space with a couple of handpasses, followed by a cutting 20 yard foot pass leaving a Tyrone forward with acres in front of him on the half forward line. They were tight in defence, they were fluid in attack and I don't believe many teams could have lived with them.

Puke football is a phrase I have never used about Tyrone. I still rate their 2005 performances as the most complete of any team this decade. I think Dublin's performance still leaves a little bit of a question mark as to whether they are quite at that level yet. I hope that the next two games show that they are.

The Tyrone fans I sat near where passionate and vocal – and magnanimous to us as the game neared its end. I wished them well and that goes to the Tyrone posters on this board as well. But no one I was sitting near was baying for a red for Whelan, just as we weren't going mad for Cavanagh's head. This was a brutal day, poor conditions, with two big, hard men, taking it and dishing it out. That for me is the way football should be played.
Yellows for both seemed about right.

And if it is Ciaran's last game – well perhaps it is a compliment to him that so many outside the county dislike him – for me, he was a footballer who always gave it his all for his county, and gave us far more happy memories than disappointing ones. He's not the first Dublin footballer to end up without an all Ireland medal and won't be the last – but, if he leaves, he'll always be remembered.

Besides, as Ronnie Drew's death, the news of which swept around the stadium, shows it was only a football match that was won and lost and there are more important things in life.

Good luck to Tyrone for the rest of the championship.

Up the Dubs.

[ONeill]

Come to Armagh Micky, we'll treat ye better.

That's not what Stevie McDonnell would say!

[BerfArmagh]

 

[Zapatista]

Stop with the crap. This is the same shit being spouted all the time and there is little or no fact in it. Some (very few) were questioning his ablility to take Tyrone back to the top after being at the top twice. This is normal in any situation when things look like they are not as good as before. Eveyone in Tyrone knows what he has done for football there and they are all gratful for it. They have a right to question him sometimes. Question him is all they were doing and very few were actually calling for him to quit. A big song and dance about nothing. There was no way he was going to quit and no way he was going to be sacked. It was probabley a romour spread by Harte to generate motivation after winning two AIs. I have heard Cavanagh talk about it but I have no idea why he thinks Tyrone people do not have faith in them. WE do not have blind faith but we do have faith.

[ziggysego]

Come to Armagh Micky, we'll treat ye better.

Yeah, Joe's four years were nothing but bliss from fans and supporters.

[lynchbhoy]

to answer screenexile- theres no way I'd include Griffin or Cahill on your list of 'not good enough's' !

I'm not having that lb... Maybe I'm  being harsh on Griffin but he got taken to the cleaners against us last year and now yeserday too.

I've always argued that there's no real football in Cahill having played against him at Club level a couple of times. He didn't stand out for Brigid's and he doesn't stand out for the Dubs... he wouldn't make many other decent teams in the country is what I'm geting at I suppose. Limited footballer. Having said that if people had never seen Moran at his best they'd be saying the same thing... he was very close to going on my list too as he has done very little for the Dubs in the past few years!

the difference is that while I had a similar appraisal of Cahill when he first featured for the Dubs - more of an athlete than a footballer, he has really come on a lot and is a far more skillful player than he once was (he was always skilled at underage, but seemed to lose this a bit when he went into senior football for a few years). Scored three points in the championship which is a good return for him. However, Dublin should play him at CHB.
Griffin looking poor in a poor full back line. Has always been good in prev years with club and county imo. Just not this year.

[ONeill]

Stop with the crap. This is the same shit being spouted all the time and there is little or no fact in it. Some (very few) were questioning his ablility to take Tyrone back to the top after being at the top twice. This is normal in any situation when things look like they are not as good as before. Eveyone in Tyrone knows what he has done for football there and they are all gratful for it. They have a right to question him sometimes. Question him is all they were doing and very few were actually calling for him to quit. A big song and dance about nothing. There was no way he was going to quit and no way he was going to be sacked. It was probabley a romour spread by Harte to generate motivation after winning two AIs. I have heard Cavanagh talk about it but I have no idea why he thinks Tyrone people do not have faith in them. WE do not have blind faith but we do have faith.

I think people really doubted whether he had it in him to inspire his troops to a third simply because of the same-voice syndrome, going right back to the minors of 97/98. Even All-Ireland winning managers like Kernan and McGrath hinted at this in recent articles. Much of the county were also beginning to consider this theory as a possibility but Mickey has risen above us all and got Tyrone to an All-Ireland Semi-Final for the third time in his 6 years at the helm. This year's feat has been the most remarkable.

[Canalman]

Lads a reality check is in order here.

Tyrone had 15 men on fire (will never happen again as imo it has never happened before) and Dublin had a collective nightmare when everything that could go wrong went wrong.

[lynchbhoy]

Also thought Tommy McGuigan , Collie mccullagh and the two mcmahons were immense for Tyrone - imo as deserving of the motm award as Dooher.
I suppose that indicates that it was a real team game - which,lets face it , is what Gaelic football is all about - the best team wins.

well done tyrone, mickey harte - genius.

Dublin really need to be careful about their next managerial appointment

[ONeill]

Lads a reality check is in order here.

Tyrone had 15 men on fire (will never happen again as imo it has never happened before) and Dublin had a collective nightmare when everything that could go wrong went wrong.

I don't think anyone is going overboard. Tyronnies (and others) are simply basking in the glory of a wonderful performance, be it the start of an Indian Summer or a one-off. Give us that pleasure...it has been a wee while.

[orangeman]

Lads a reality check is in order here.

Tyrone had 15 men on fire (will never happen again as imo it has never happened before) and Dublin had a collective nightmare when everything that could go wrong went wrong.

I don't think anyone is going overboard. Tyronnies (and others) are simply basking in the glory of a wonderful performance, be it the start of an Indian Summer or a one-off. Give us that pleasure...it has been a wee while.

And to be honest, given all the injuries and bad luck etc, I think this Tyrone team deserved a wee bit of good luck for a change.

[T Fearon]

Where was the Tyrone support last Saturday? I reckon Armagh had at least twice as many down the week before for the Wexford game.

[Zapatista]

Where was the Tyrone support last Saturday? I reckon Armagh had at least twice as many down the week before for the Wexford game.

Good man yerself.