Should Antrim just field the whole St Gall's team...?

Hurler on the Bitch · October 20, 2008, 10:06:32 PM

Discuss...... worth a try?

dodgy umpire · October 20, 2008, 10:08:13 PM

things couldnt get worse so why not

Minder · October 20, 2008, 10:12:17 PM

Probably wouldnt be any worse than what we have but there is a huge difference in club football and inter county. Aodhan Gallagher for example (a player i have a lot of time for, the anti- Kevin Mc Gourty if you like, puts the team first and never stops working) has probably been one of St Galls best players the last couple of years yet has been nothing more than an average inter county player. St Galls are super fit and have great pace in certain areas,their workrate overpowers teams, but at inter county level pace, workrate and athleticism come as standard.........

imtommygunn · October 20, 2008, 10:19:55 PM

While st galls are an excellent team Mick McCann, Paddy Cunningham, Justin Crozier, Kieran Close and a few others are superb players and couldn't be overlooked for a county team.

imagine · October 20, 2008, 10:39:40 PM

You would need a goalie unless Gallagher tranfers

screenexile · October 20, 2008, 11:20:55 PM

It's not the goalie it's a mindset. Nobody can sit there and tell me Antrim don't have the players of course they do. For me I think the St. Gall's contingent have their head up their hole and don't commit to the County team the way players in other counties do and the other half of the team have been in the doldrums for so long that it's just hard to get the winning mentality back. Until you get someone in who can sort that out Antrim wil be perennial underachievers!

Gold · October 20, 2008, 11:51:34 PM

It would do no harm. they are winners. They are the best ball handlers bar none in the country. You could chase Kieran McGourty and Kelly all day and literally not get a hand on them. PRoblem is a few of the players think they are superior than players from other clubs in the county(they are i suppose) and wont row in with them for the County team.

The 3 McGourtys simply have to play for the county team, they are all good in their own ways but Kieran is necessay as he makes things tick and is one of the most controlled footballers in Ireland--he has never given the commitment to the county and i dont think he will. Those boys dont need a manager, they all know how to play without being told what to do and simply wont accept authority from anyone, especially none of those 4 candidates. I cant see those boys playing for the County. If they all did and gave it the heap, the whole heap, then there is no reason why they couldnt put it up to Donegal, Down, Cavan, Ferm and maybe Derry and Mon. Antrim are lacking big tall Midfielders but then Tyrone won without any giants.

St Galls forwards are not prolific although Karl Stewart can be deadly when he wants to be. Noone in the county could begrudge St Galls having 15 on the squad--but i fear there would be an outcry. A few years back St Galls had 8/9 on the panel and people from the other clubs were giving out going mad--i couldnt understand why--where are all these other hidden gems??

Ive watched plenty of Antrim Div 1 league matches involving clubs other than the Galls and they are played at pedestrian pace, where people can waltz past players with a defender barely making any attempt to tackle, real lazy, pansy boy stuff--the only time one of these 'hard men' hit is when the man is past him and he hits him a slap from behind. St Galls will hit you hard as nails all day, like you would get in the Tyrone or Dublin leagues, physical contact where you have to be strong as an ox to break the tackle--so many players in Antrim are not capable of matching this intensity--but look at Fermanagh--if 15-20/24 men can commit and knuckle down (albeit with a few exceptional footballers like McGrath, Owens, Maguire, Little, Clucker and Murphy) then Antrim can with McGourtys, Kelly, McClean and the rest rallying in with no biting, bitching, just one, two years of giving it everything, as they do at the club--to make a bit of a breakthrough and showing young ones what work needs to be done and what can happen if that required work is done.

Antrim Abú

Newbridge Exile · October 21, 2008, 09:02:28 AM

Quote from: hardstation on October 20, 2008, 11:57:03 PM
Quote from: Gold on October 20, 2008, 11:51:34 PM
Kieran is necessay as he makes things tick and is one of the most controlled footballers in Ireland--he has never given the commitment to the county and i dont think he will.
You have my attention. Go on..

There is no doubt of the skill level of the St Galls boys ,but it very much seems that it is Club first and foremost(not saying thats wrong) with the County a distant second

A Quinn Martin Production · October 21, 2008, 11:04:12 AM

Big difference between club football (even at a high level) and inter county championship e.g. The Moy with both Cavanaghs, Jordan and Mellon (players Antrim would give their eye teeth for), lost the Tyrone Intermediate Championship Final...to Jody's old club Trillick.

Our Nail Loney · October 21, 2008, 11:13:25 AM

Quote from: Minder on October 20, 2008, 10:12:17 PM
Probably wouldnt be any worse than what we have but there is a huge difference in club football and inter county. Aodhan Gallagher for example (a player i have a lot of time for, the anti- Kevin Mc Gourty if you like, puts the team first and never stops working) has probably been one of St Galls best players the last couple of years yet has been nothing more than an average inter county player. St Galls are super fit and have great pace in certain areas,their workrate overpowers teams, but at inter county level pace, workrate and athleticism come as standard.........

From what I have seen of KMG he is a very hard working footballer...

saffron sam2 · October 21, 2008, 03:42:31 PM

Idiotic thread, but since the second thousand has started here goes.

A very valid point Hurler and one need only look at the example of Armagh where they play the Crossmaglen senior team en masse. They have won seven Anglo-Celts and one Sam Maguire as well as all their club success.

Idiot.

Quote from: hardstation on October 20, 2008, 11:57:03 PM
Quote from: Gold on October 20, 2008, 11:51:34 PM
Kieran is necessay as he makes things tick and is one of the most controlled footballers in Ireland--he has never given the commitment to the county and i dont think he will.
You have my attention. Go on..

Kieran is only available when Celtic aren't playing and his girl lets him go out on his own.

Although having seen him at the weekend, it appears that he is going down the beardy route of McMahon, McMenamin, Gourley et al. Maybe he feels that is time for the "other brother (is there a third boy? what's he called? does he play?)" to answer the call to arms.

thebandit · October 21, 2008, 05:25:30 PM

There's Kevin, Kieran and Conor (CJ)

milltown row · October 21, 2008, 09:06:25 PM

to say the galls boys dont commit is daft, they have been going full pelt for years and when the dont commit for the tommy cooper cup they are given the biggest stick of all yout derry hack in the irish news, what a ball bag. friends of the ex manager and obviously phoned him that night. Sean Kelly is a great Antrim servant and was treated very badly by some tyrone money grabber and some of the posters that use this site and others

brokencrossbar1 · October 21, 2008, 10:03:41 PM

Go on the Galls, best team in the country bar none!!! Who do they beat(sorry play) in the next round of the Ulster Championship? Whoever it is they would need nothing more than this self indulgent shite as motivation!

Minder · October 21, 2008, 10:09:29 PM

Quote from: brokencrossbar1 on October 21, 2008, 10:03:41 PM
Go on the Galls, best team in the country bar none!!! Who do they beat(sorry play) in the next round of the Ulster Championship? Whoever it is they would need nothing more than this self indulgent shite as motivation!

Funny i was thinking that BC1, has there ever been as much written/discussed about a team that has won one provincial championship?