Donegal v Kerry - 2025 All-Ireland Football Final

[DaleCooper]

Spare a thought for Galway , Kerry a 21 point[?] Better team

[tbrick18]

Im doubtful there's a ploy to stop Ulster teams considering they bring fair support. In general the GAA probably worried about attendance and negativity amongst supporters.

Learn to kick points from 40metres, its not rocket science

Wouldn't be convinced on the anti-ulster reasoning, but to counter your "learn to kick points" quip, teams could have learned to play through a packed defence. That's not rocket science either.

[DaleCooper]

The best argument for two pointers and keeping them is forcing coaches to start to emphasise kicking skill. Look at the goal keeper kick outs.


In the environment county teams are in its inevitable shooting will improve with caveat the rules stay.

That's unless you believe Kerry are Ubermenschen. Tyrone dropped Paul Donaghy who does this routinely at club, whilst not the same its a skill now required.

Weve had crap all irelands before it wont be the last.

[Mad Mentor]

The problem with football wasn't a lack of competitiveness it was just boring. Lesser teams parking the bus and hand passing the ball around a massed defence didn't stop the better teams winning - it just looked worse. Tight games where nothing happened for long periods of time were what turned people off. If Donegal had scored a couple of two pointers at strategic moments yesterday it could have been a completely different game. But they didn't. That's on them. The narrative that these two pointers are a piece of cake just doesn't stand up.

Dublin's dominance was due to the quality of players they had. When the quality dropped so did Dublin. Kerry currently have the best footballers and it shows.

[Spiderlegs]

Until 7 months ago, every player in Ireland had grown up on a certain ruleset.

Kerry's and David Clifford's impressive 2025 Croke Park performances feel somewhat fraudulent to me as they needed lifetime rule changes to achieve them.

[Rossfan]

Mind boggles

[Captain Scarlet]

Kerry have a genius and lots of very good footballers who were absolutely ON IT yeserday. Gavin White was awesome and they all played like men possessed.

Donegal pottered up the field, and didn't really know what they were doing next at times. McBrearty came in and he could have got a big lift score but he missed it. Those moments drained Donegal as much as anything Kerry did.

I still don't know what their plan was. As I said O'Baoill who can kick 2s wandered up to the arc and then began the over and back. Just have a go!

[Captain Scarlet]

Until 7 months ago, every player in Ireland had grown up on a certain ruleset.

Kerry's and David Clifford's impressive 2025 Croke Park performances feel somewhat fraudulent to me as they needed lifetime rule changes to achieve them.

You are dead right, every player did - including the Kerry lads! Or did they get a sneak peek?! Surely FRC's Michael Murphy could have done the same.

I mean for God's sake, what were the FRC thinking?! County players had to learn to kick a point from 40 yards. Midfielders had to learn how to catch it over their heads. And don't get me started on the poor defenders who only had 7 months to learn how to defend one on one...

[Armaghtothebone]

3 sane sensible posts....

No. 3 posts that share the same viewpoint as you.

[Spiderlegs]

Until 7 months ago, every player in Ireland had grown up on a certain ruleset.

Kerry's and David Clifford's impressive 2025 Croke Park performances feel somewhat fraudulent to me as they needed lifetime rule changes to achieve them.

You are dead right, every player did - including the Kerry lads! Or did they get a sneak peek?! Surely FRC's Michael Murphy could have done the same.

I mean for God's sake, what were the FRC thinking?! County players had to learn to kick a point from 40 yards. Midfielders had to learn how to catch it over their heads. And don't get me started on the poor defenders who only had 7 months to learn how to defend one on one...

A blind man could see that Kerry/Clifford had been curtailed by a "System" allowed by the previous ruleset.
It's possible that they would have eventually found a way to overcome it. It's also possible that they wouldn't.
By the end of 2024 they hadn't.

Kerry had very little adapting to do for the new rules - they were designed with Kerry type football in Croke Park in mind after all.

[Captain Scarlet]

Designed with input from Michael Murphy!And Peter Canavan and Malachy O'rourke involved too...

[Blowitupref]

From Gaelic Statsman

Kerry Originated Scores

Own Kickouts: 0-12 (2tp)
Donegal Kickout: 0-6 (1tp)
Turnovers: 1-6 (2tp)
Throw In: 0-2

Donegal Originated Scores

Own Kickout: 0-11
Kerry Kickout: 0-6
Turnover: 0-2

[Tubberman]

Until 7 months ago, every player in Ireland had grown up on a certain ruleset.

Kerry's and David Clifford's impressive 2025 Croke Park performances feel somewhat fraudulent to me as they needed lifetime rule changes to achieve them.

Fraudulent performances ffs, I've heard it all now 

[imtommygunn]

Designed with input from Michael Murphy!And Peter Canavan and Malachy O'rourke involved too...

Exactly. It wasn't kerry people designed it. They're just currently better than anyone else and that's it.

Donegal definitely disappointed yesterday too but the much better team won. They might have kept the score down with old rules.

I honestly think McGuinness backed his team and his system and didn't account for kerry being as good as they were.

[Rossfan]

3 sane sensible posts....

No. 3 posts that share the same viewpoint as you.

Same thing.