Antrim Football Thread

[gallsman]

Has "realist" in his name. Isn't capable of being realistic.

[Na Glinntí Glasa]

first of all the coverage from our PRO was superb as always last night. being able to follow the game live at that stage was top notch. well done Sean.

Secondly free kicks is an utter bullshittery way to decide a game. if it finish level after extra time then its another replay. its not ideal for the time frame for the clubs or the club waiting them in the final but it seems fairly unanimous  that no one likes free kicks.

well that and the same 5 kickers just kept going and going which was nonsense.

What are the actual rules, the official ones for this situation?

Well done to Ciaran for coming out yet again and giving a reason for stopping the free kicks.

On a negative - the st johns boys will feel very aggrieved at this as they were told the final couldn't be moved back so they had to play their game when it was set

[imtommygunn]

I think the chairman deserves a lot of credit for this. If he hadn't done it I would expect the same people to be giving off about free kicks etc etc.

[Caesar]

Portglenone played 5 mins of the extra time unjustly with 14 men, with Ronan Delargy who had been sent off incorrectly before being allowed to return to the pitch.

Also, wishing a speedy recovery to big Pierce Fitzsimons who was stretchered off with what appears to be a knee injury.

[seanyb1]

Noticed one Portglenone player hitting his frees off the deck, is this allowed? You could hear a few Lamh Dearg boys protesting. I always thought it was out of the hands.

Stupid way to end the game anyway in all fairness

[Na Glinntí Glasa]

all proceeds of the 3rd game to go to charity - Deter MND and the Paul McKeever Cancer focus.

well done and great to see two charities benefit from this

[The Bearded One]

Morally the decision was a good one but that does not get away from the fact that rules were just created ad hoc last night and that has to be questioned.

Surely clubs were advised of the championship regulations in advance of this years competition? A quick glance at a couple of other county websites shows that they have theirs available to view, Antrim's most recent version is from 2017.

[Spike]

Regardless of the exact rules and regulations, it was a sensible call at 10.33pm.   Must be a better way to conclude these games though 

[The Bearded One]

I don't buy that Spike, there are either rules or not. I do not favour any form of free kick or penalty shootout but if that was the rules then so be it. What would be the outcry today if another team had lost a free kick shootout in an earlier round?

[AntrimRealist]

Has "realist" in his name. Isn't capable of being realistic.

Not sure what your point is there.  I agree that free kicks is no way to finish a game. However the regulations were set by the county administration. To then decide during a game that those regulations aren't fit for purpose is an absolutely shambles. Perhaps a bit more forethought before competitions start would avoid such scenarios. Another 5 minutes of extra time ew would have been done and dusted before the free kicks were finished. And if that didn't sort, a replay and reschedule the final. And perhaps letting Cargin know about the rescheduling before anyone else would have been nice too

[Cranfield]

Great to see proceeds of the replay are going to be split between two charities that mean an awful lot to people in the county

[Spike]

I don't buy that Spike, there are either rules or not. I do not favour any form of free kick or penalty shootout but if that was the rules then so be it. What would be the outcry today if another team had lost a free kick shootout in an earlier round?

I get your point but the two teams last night (who are the only ones relevant) 'appeared' to accept the decision.

Id ask where the referee was in all this, insisting on the additional 5 mins following the initial extra time.  The distance from goals for shooting last night didn't appear regulation either.  Whilst perhaps not a rule issue, the same 5 players taking the frees repeatedly seems a bit pointless.

[Calm Down]

Any idea when the replay is?

P.s. Great idea to donate the gate

[gallsman]

One thing I do disagree with was that all the commentary and reasoning from McCavana was around "that's no way to lose a semi-final" etc. In that instance I agree that rules are rules and they apply equally to everyone, and everyone should (although I acknowledge it's unlikely) have been aware of them in advance.

I'm surprised player welfare hasn't been mentioned at all from the CB as, to me, that's clearly a valid reason for McCavana taking the step he did.

[bannside]

Exactly Gallsman. Youll never please everyone but Ciaran made the right call and that was the concensus of almost everyone leaving the ground, from both clubs involved and neutrals alike.

Just saw the free take shoot out on Balls.ie Sean Kelly doing some job taking this drama to a wider platform and promoting Antrim GAA far and near. Top man altogether!!