Messages

Apparently Wille Dunphy is confirmed as been unavailable for this weekends game, absolute massive loss. I'd fancied CB to cause an upset but not now without Dunphy.

Hopefully C/B go on now and give the Leinster championship a good go as I think they are a well balanced outfit. They would have been disappointed not to get the chance to represent Laois in 2020, so fair play to them for coming back and winning it again. They showed massive guts to come out on top of the last two games against R/E and B/K where their backs were against the wall.

I believe they face Rapparees of Wexford in the opening round. Can't say I know a lot about them but they had a big win in their own county final so I'd imagine they're decent and C/B will have to be at their best.

Laois clubs are due a good run in the Leinster championship. There has not been much to cheer about in it over the last number of years so hopefully CB can curve that in a few weeks. It wont be easy though as Rapparees are a very good outfit!

How did BK manage to lose that one?? Huge credit to Clough Ballacolla to be fair, they seemed to never know when they're beating and that is something you couldn't have said about this team down through the years but they definitely seemed to have turned a corner.

The game itself was a belter, definitely the highest quality skill and intensity wise that I've seen in Laois in a good number of years. Every mistake and slight delay on the ball was punished to the last and that is what you want to see. Few things that turned to tide on Borris for me was their midfield just seemed to evaporate in the 2nd half after been so dominant in the first and Lee Cleeres performance on Aaron Dunphy in the 2nd half. After what happened in the first that battle needed to be won by Lee if CB were to have any hope and he was immense scoring 2 savage points to go with it.

Quick one on Adian Corby? Has he been called into the county yet or what is the story there? He is such an good player I don't think Laois can afford not to have him in the squad. From chatting to a few Ballacolla lads in the stand during the game he has made himself available but wasn't brought in. Without knowing too much about the set up I find that odd to be honest.

Did Doyle appeal his red card or bother? Hard to see anyway of getting off from initial viewing anyway.
Ballacolla also struck with Covid ?

What?? Hadn't heard that...any confirmed players to be missing?

Big step up from Under age to Adult. Camross have 2 or 3minor final won but have 26 seniors won. I know lads who have lots of talent at underage and never played with thee first Adult team in the club after. Best of luck to the Harps i hope it works out for them but it's not easy.

Wouldn't The Harps have been one of the main opposition along with RE to the Clough Ballacolla underage teams that won a lot during the 00's? I maybe wrong but I do have a recollection of a Harps team stopping a Ballacolla 3 in a row in a final at either u16 or minor.

They lost a lot of good players off that team in their early 20s if I remember correctly and a good few that played with Laois - Brian galvin, Sean Burke, 2 delahuntys, ciaran Fitz.. They seemed to have problems with their best players underage not fulfilling their true potential

There is a few names id forgotten. Brian Galvin was a great player, deffo one that could have featured more at inter county level if he was around.

Big step up from Under age to Adult. Camross have 2 or 3minor final won but have 26 seniors won. I know lads who have lots of talent at underage and never played with thee first Adult team in the club after. Best of luck to the Harps i hope it works out for them but it's not easy.

Wouldn't The Harps have been one of the main opposition along with RE to the Clough Ballacolla underage teams that won a lot during the 00's? I maybe wrong but I do have a recollection of a Harps team stopping a Ballacolla 3 in a row in a final at either u16 or minor.

How wrong I was.
Very poor from Rathdowney Errill, who will be disappointed with themselves.
Had a good view of the sending off incident. No arguments. He had to go.

Credit to Ballacolla.  That took serious digging in.

The only thing I found odd about the situation was I don't think he even carded the Rathdowney player for his initial strike in the incidence, I think the card went to the number 7. I thought it was going to be 2 straight reds....I said earlier on the forum that I didn't think RE would win as they haven't impressed me at all this year and it was the case again. So many of their top players seem off it, I know they rallied late and got the 2 goals but if CB had won't it by 7or8 nobody would have complained and that's not a good sign considering they played against 14 for the entire 2nd half.

Senior:
Think Camross will beat Borris/Kil if its a close one. I think Borris have better forwards but this camross team are improving and will fancy the battle.

Ballacolla have never done back-to-back and i dont think they will this year. Rathdowney will be missing Mark Kav but they'll be well up for this and I think if it's a battle; they have more in them and will want it more. They wont give Dunphy or Maher any space. That'll win it for them.

Premier Intermediate:
Very confident Ballyfin will win. Power and pace in the middle and scorers up front. I think this will be the only one-sided game of the weekend.

The other game could be close. Hard to call. I thought Portlaoise would win but I've heard rumours of injuries and maybe that might unsettle things. Ill go with Cha to get Ballnakill over the line.

Hope the two first teams win the junior finals. No offence to the second teams. Think trumera will but pickas could be in trouble if the ballyroan footballers release all their players to hurl with Abbyleix.

God I don't know where that confidence in RE has come from, I though they have been very poor for most of this year. Think CB will win it by 4or5...

I agree on the other game, Camross are slowly getting back into it the last few weeks and I think they will beat BK this weekend and win the final in 2 weeks!! You heard it here first....haha

Depressing to see the negativey  towards Rosenallis today and overall throughout the year in both hurling and football, They are the only senior dual club in the county, and should possibly be in a county semi final if they took their chances. I don't believe the crap RE were only in 1st 2nd gear. If the ref had any balls today ge should of let the last puck out happen instead of blowing up just after Rosenallis get the goal.

This is a club thats putting it up against the likes of the 2nd favourite team in RE in hurling championship and probably 3rd best team in football Championship O'Dempseys and their only training a quarter of what the non dual clubs are training and still there competing at the highest level. Fair play to the club and management of both sectors.

What?? Rosenallis are a credit to the county...what negativity was there here about them today?

Did anyone get to see the u-20s last night? Sounds like they gave a strong account of themselves?

My brother in-law was at it (a Kilkenny man) and was telling me it was an interesting one. He has seen a few encounters down through the years where a Laois underage side came close to taking a scalp off them but this was the only time he remembers a Laois team actually having the better technical players between the 2 sides. Big turning point was in the 4th quarter just after the water break Laois hit a glorious goal chance straight at the keeper which would have put them back 1 up and Kilkenny responded with 3 quick fire points.

I wouldn't know much about this team, but is there many of them underage for next year? I assume there is a decent crop coming up behind which have come from last years good u17 team (even though they didn't go well last year)

Yes, I was thinking that meself. Terrible to say it, but almost as bad as the football!

Looks like both Ryan Mullaney and Podge Delaney will be out of the half-back line for the next couple of games at least. In fairness to Whelan, he did all right on Sunday (except for nearly letting a Dublin lad through for a goal!), but it's an important line and we haven't an awful lot of cover there.

Its been played like football these days, loads of side to side 5 yard hand passes (that barley qualify as hand passes in my eyes) and then find a man in space who is able to launch it over from 100 yards now...absolute no direct ball going inside, the days of the lethal inside men (Kelly, Mullane, Power, Hayes etc) is gone!!

anyway back on topic with Laois...I don't think we can expect much more than what we are getting, the lads are clearly putting in the effort but the injuries are very costly to a team like us!! especially up front, Dunphy and Kavanagh are big losses...

Looked at Laois/Dublin, Cork/Tipp abd Limerick/Galway at the weekend and what a depressing sight all 3 were! Hurling has absolutely nose dived in that last 2 years, its actually becoming unwatchable in my eyes...

I suspect its heading that way alright.
Tom Ryan musing yesterday that the NFL and NHL might have to be dropped.
Add in the lack of protest from HQ about losing "elite" status and comments about being in no rush to resume activity etc.
Also a number of 2020 Club Championships unfinished.
Quite possibly end up with a Calendar of
May - finish 2020 Club Championships
June -August Club Championships
September - November Inter County.

Could be another wave in the autumn so I wouldn't count on it.

Jasus if we don't have a very high number of the population vaccinated by the Autumn we are doing something very wrong!

well that was some finish to an interview by Eddie Brennan on Woolie's podcast!!, what do people thing.

Whats this now. Did Brennan say something bad?

I am as we all are here huge Gaa people, but the only reason the plug was pulled so early by the Gaa was to save more bad press to save the inter county season & the money it brings from tv rights 💰.

On another previous point, Keyzer, agree, I've watched PJ Scullys goal, brilliant goal, brilliant ball from Foyle, most would have knocked it over the bar,
I was watching one of the BK coaches who was outside the barrier telling Scully & Dunphy to keep deep, obviously something they have worked on, as do Ballacolla

Feel it would have been a good final.

I agree, this was the point I was trying to make. Horan made it clear that the games weren't the issue which allows him to go ahead with the inter county scene. I do think something had to be done though as we have all seen some people were starting to take advantage of the allowances and it wasn't looking good for the GAA as a whole. I don't agree with his decision to go with inter county at the expense of the club, what happened to all in this together? What will the scenes be like if Mayo or Wexford win an All Ireland? 

Anyway enough on that. I was really looking forward to this county final. I felt the last few weren't hectic as a spectacle but I had a good feeling about this one! Thought BK would take it by 2/3 points in the end in a high scoring affair.