Mickey Harte joins the Irish News

[SidelineKick]

It amazes me as to why the southern press seemed aghast at Tyrone dominating Kerry in this decade. When did a Kerry team last beat a Tyrone team at any level(and yes I know the semi final of the hogan cup this year) over this last 12 years in championship football. In all the games they have meet at all levels Tyrone have dominated. The minor replay of 97 in Parnell park. The all-Ireland minor in 2004. The Omagh Cbs Hogan cup team 2007, The dungannon Academy 2008 hogan cup team. Tyrone have no fear of Kerry and why should they with these statistics. Kerry may have won the odd one but overall Tyrone have dominated Kerry at all levels  Being from Armagh myself I would hope some of the Tyrone men on here would have the exact statistics.

Twas him who mentioned 12 years first not me.  His point is untterly irrelevant.

[SidelineKick]

Kerry take losing as an insult as if they have some devine right to All Irelands. When Sean Kelly gave the Sam Maguire Cup to Brian Dooher in 2005, he said, "Let there be no begrudgery this year." That was aimed at his fellow county men.

Fox, Tyrone now have that same attitude after THREE AIs.  I would dread to think of what we'd have to listen to if they had 35. Christ almighty!

[rionach 4]

Sideline kick the point is ,the majority of the current group of tyrone players have beaten Kerry in championship matches at various levels over this past twelve years beginning in 97 when micky harte took a lot of these guys to an all-ireland minor final and were beaten by laois . If I am correct i think they beat Kerry in a replay at Parnell park. Over the folowing twelve years this same bunch of players augmented by others have beaten Kerry three times at senior level.  Yet  many pundits still put Kerry as favs for the all-ireland not only this year but this past previous 9 or ten years. In college football they have dominated in their clashes both at vocational and grammar level . In minor they have held the upper hand. I know Kerry have that great history and are indeed a great football county but I can understand why Tyrone supporters feel  slightly aggreived  at not being named as favs for the all-ireland . For some of the media it seems as if Tyrone have only got in the way of Kerry and should as of right s be put in their place .

[longrunsthefox]

Kerry take losing as an insult as if they have some devine right to All Irelands. When Sean Kelly gave the Sam Maguire Cup to Brian Dooher in 2005, he said, "Let there be no begrudgery this year." That was aimed at his fellow county men.

Fox, Tyrone now have that same attitude after THREE AIs.  I would dread to think of what we'd have to listen to if they had 35. Christ almighty!

Aye but we accept defeat with a bit of dignity

[red hander]

Why would Tyrone have any fear of Kerry ... it's not like they ever beat us by 20 points in an All Ireland final 

[Mike Sheehy]

Aye but we accept defeat with a bit of dignity

bullshit. ye are still whinging about Meath 13 years after the fact.

[Tyrones own]

On the subject of whinging Mikey  .... when was it exactly we cheating ye out of the AI, ye never did get back to me on that

[Mike Sheehy]

2003, 2005, 2008

diving, cheating numpties...

[Final Whistle]

And a kerryman would never ever feign injury!!

Ps hope Jack teaches your boys how to tackle this year. Lassooing someone around the neck is not legal gaa play!!

Numpties!

[longball]

ANYONE ABLE TO POST PADDY HEANEYS ARTICLE IN IRISH NEWS 2DAY? GOT TO START READING IN ON TEA BREAK BUT HADA COME BACK TO DESK EARLY

[Minder]

I take it you mean Against The Breeze Longball ?

Backlash as 'the Breeze' blows away Kerry myths Off The Fence
with Paddy Heaney
14/05/09

Have your say on the sporting issues of the ?day 24-hour comment line: 028 9033 7457; text: 07642 802592 email: offthefence@irishnews.com

After nearly 10 years of writing a column in this newspaper I've come to realise that the dispensation of praise is the single greatest method of provoking a disgruntled response from the typical Irish News reader.

Such is the psyche of the Ulster gael. Harsh and forthright criticism tends to create sympathy. But if you really want to stoke the fires, then a bit of eulogising will always do the trick.

Provide five reasons why someone is a great manager and our readers will swiftly provide 15 reasons why the same individual is utterly incompetent. That's just the type of jealous, begrudging and contrary individuals you seem to be.

For this week's Against The Breeze, I seem to have killed Tyrone with kindness – it was totally unintentional of course.

Having watched Tyrone beat Kerry in 2003, 2005 and 2008, I was quite astonished to read Sunday's newspapers and discover that the overwhelming majority of journalists, pundits, and ex-players were tipping the Kingdom to win this year's All-Ireland title.

This led to a column in which I argued that the Red Hands have not been afforded the respect they deserve. The backlash was instant.

- 'Bogman' completely disagreed with the notion that Kerry are receiving the veneration which should really be directed towards Tyrone.

He wrote: "Of course Kerry are indulged by the southern media, but let's look at the facts. Tyrone do nothing the year after they win an

All-Ireland. Ditto all the other Ulster counties.

In fact, ditto most of the other counties from any province. By contrast, whether they win or not, Kerry are competitive every year.

Kerry get deserved plaudits for fielding good teams and winning titles; but arguably they do not get enough credit for their ability to come back hungry and focused every year.

"They mightn't always win, but if you make sure that you're at least competitive every year, then you're bound to win more than most.

That consistent discipline shows incredible resolve. "Arguably, that is Kerry's greatest achievement, and to date, no other county, and certainly not Tyrone, has been able to match it.

Based on previous form, Tyrone will mess about and do nothing this year."

And remind me who Kerry will play in the first round of the Munster Championship? Ah yes. That's right. They don't actually play anyone. They proceed straight to the semi-final.

But if they lose that game they might lose in the first round of the Qualifiers. No. Not quite. If they lose that game they play in the second round of the Qualifiers.

Compare that experience with Tyrone. If they lose to Armagh, they will play in the first round of the Qualifiers. Included in that first round draw will be the losers of Derry/Monaghan and Meath/Dublin.

It's easy to be consistent when you're from Munster. And if you're not convinced, look no further than Cork.

A good but limited side, during the past four years Cork have contested three All-Ireland semi-finals and one final. Could they produce such consistency if they were starting their campaign in Ulster every year?

- At least 'Bogman' tried to make a valid case. In contrast, 'Kieran from Randalstown' resorted to good old-fashioned mud-slinging. No facts. No evidence. Just generalisations and subjective experience, mixed in with a few low blows.

'Kieran' wrote: "Well, at least, Tyrone won't feel 'on their own' now that Paddy Heaney has upgraded his support from pale orange to bright tangerine.

"No doubt Tyrone deserve their place at the top of the new Millennium stats, even if they didn't appear on anybody's radar before that.

"They were only known locally, and for that matter, not very well liked, on the football pitch at least.

"I should say, at this point, that you couldn't meet nicer and more generously spirited people in Ireland than the Tyrone people.

"Just don't play or talk football with them! It seems to transform them into something else.

"You could imagine getting a warm 'sign of peace' handshake from a Tyrone man before Sunday lunch and wondering, a few hours later, if this was the same guy who was now intent on having a piece of you for his tea.

"As for Kerry, let me also bring my 'da' into it. He went to Croke Park to see Kerry play Cavan final in the first half of the last century and he always talked reverentially of the Kerry artists that day, even in the presence of the great 'Gunner Brady'.

"Kerry ruled in the last century, albeit in phases. It was great to see Down and Offaly, and then Donegal and Derry, have their time in the sun, but has this diminished Kerry? I don't think so.

"Yes, they've had to adapt their style, and it doesn't rest so easily with them, but they still look like the purest exponents of Gaelic football when they are allowed to show it.

"Tyrone's greatest claim to fame is that Kerry struggle to cope with their interpretation. "In conclusion I believe that while Kerry desperately want to win, they still hold great respect for the skills of the game and its ability to thrill.

"In Tyrone 'they're on their own' and winning any way you can is infinitely better than losing.

"Tyrone's greatest claim to fame is that Kerry struggle to cope with their interpretation."

You need help.

- 'Shane from Glenavy' agreed with the column, although he also pointed out that yours truly has also been guilty of worshipping the false gods from Kerry.

'Shane' wrote: "It's good to see that Paddy Heaney has finally seen the light (we never forget in Tyrone – he predicted Kerry to win on the eve of both finals in 2005 and 2008).

"The adulation of Kerry by hacks the length and breadth of the country is a truly head-shaking phenomenon.

"Unfortunately, the great unwashed (the public) have also jumped into bed with the Kingdom. Three times Kerry stood toe-to-toe with Tyrone and never once have they even managed to get within a goal of their northern nemesis.

"Not only that, in those two finals, Tyrone individually played Kerry off the park.

"With time, Tyrone's footballers will receive the rightful recognition of what they are – individually excellent and talented footballers, as skilful as any squad assembled over the last 125 years.

"Most are two-footed, all can exercise the highest disciplines of defensive and attacking football during the course of a match, and all know where the black spot is.

"At the height of their powers they play the game at breathtaking speed, yet with minimal errors. Man for man, they compare favourably with Kerry.

"A common analysis is that Kerry have the better individual players. Keep telling yourselves that fallacy. It works well for Tyrone.

"A final point. Canavan's goal in the 2005 final. If that had been Donaghy fielding the high ball in and laying it off to Walsh to gently steer it into the net, the papers on Monday morning would have been dissecting the 'move of the century' and elevating the protagonists to God-like status. But it was only a joiner from Cookstown and a small, bald teacher up the Ballygawley Road."

You were going well until that final paragraph exposed some of your Tyrone mania.

Canavan is the one Tyrone player who has been lauded by the southern press.

Just last week he was voted into the Hall of Fame by the GAA Writers Association.

The goal in 2005 was also highly praised. Sure Owen Mulligan got the man-of-the-match award just for that pass.

- Moving away from the Tyrone v Kerry squabble, we'll return to a controversy which should peter out after Manchester United ruthlessly dismiss Barcelona in the Champions League final.

Chelsea's failure to win a penalty in last week's semi-final may have earned them sympathy among some neutrals, but 'Tyrone fan' was not among them. He wrote: "I'm sick of hearing about the so-called penalty incidents in the Chelsea v Barcelona game. They were all borderline incidents for which it would have been harsh to award a penalty.

"Yet, this seems to have escaped the blinkered, pro-Premiership Irish and British journalists who seem to believe that the quantity of hyped-up, cry baby incidents can make up for the fact that none of them amounted to a hill of beans.

"In reality, Drogba should have been sent off for repeated diving and play-acting and Lampard should have been sent off for crimes against football. It also worth remembering that Barcelona should have had a penalty in the first leg.

"Most of all though, no team that sits back on a one-goal lead in the last quarter, or that can't pass or shoot better than Clabby United, deserves anything. Good ref, good day for football."

And Barcelona got a man sent off for nothing. And Essien's goal was a fluke. And if Drogba had to retire injured why was he able to chase the referee after the match? And who the hell are Clabby United?

- Chelsea's defeat and their inability to cope with the result caused feelings of much warmth and happiness for the vast majority of right-minded citizens.

Those euphoric emotions were perfectly captured by our very own Neil Loughran in our Dodgy Tackle column in last Saturday's edition.

It neatly summed up how Chelsea's loss was everyone else's gain as it provided "another insight (as if it was needed) into the absolute hatred that Roman Abramovich's nouveau riche machine inspires across the footballing board".

One unnamed lady caller, who relished every word of the column, contacted our hotline immediately after reading it to simply say: "Today's Dodgy Tackle has made my day and I don't even support any other soccer team."

n Staying with soccer, we'll bring matters closer to home and allow 'Stevie from Belfast' to vent his frustration following Cliftonville's defeat to Crusaders in the Irish Cup final.

'Stevie' wrote: "I don't want to be too hard on Eddie Patterson and the Cliftonville players, but coming out of Windsor Park on Saturday the feeling among the Reds fans was one of subdued resignation, yet again.

"We seem to get to Irish Cup finals and think: 'that's it, we've done enough.'

"Cliftonville seem to be the only team that plays football at these games and therefore get caught out by more streetwise tactics. This Irish Cup final was no different.

"Why did Cliftonville continue to play high balls into a very tall Crusaders defence when we had the more skilful footballers?

"Why did the Reds only start playing when there were 10 minutes left?

It is the same story all the time and many Reds fans left the ground feeling very angry and frustrated at the tactics they see at all these finals.

"Furthermore, what plans do the Cliftonville management and board have for the team? We seem to be going nowhere at the minute and the team's weaknesses are there for all to see.

"The 'Red Army' walked away from Windsor with their usual dignity, but very despondent at what they had witnessed. We see it all the time, but now demand some answers from the management and the board."

With one sentence you lament the fact that Cliftonville didn't play safe, percentage football, while in the next you complain that the Reds didn't utilise their "more skilful footballers".

Stretched by injuries and suspensions, were Cliftonville not just beaten by a better-organised and a slightly superior Crusaders outfit?

- Our next contribution will baffle some, amuse others and satisfy a few genuine marathon runners.

'John from Dromore' was extremely annoyed when reading about Benny Tierney's adventures in the marathon relay.

A veteran marathon runner, John was dismayed by the way the column gave the impression that Benny actually ran 26 miles.

This wasn't entirely Benny's fault as the headline and picture caption, which weren't written by Benny, simply referred to the marathon.

This was explained to John when he rang the sportsdesk last Wednesday, but he still felt compelled to send us an email.

John wrote: "I would like to point out to Benny Tierney that he did not run the Belfast Marathon. He ran a leg of the relay.

"While I realise that Benny didn't write the headline or caption, he still started his column by saying that he was one of 17,000 who lined up for the marathon which is a distance of 26.2 miles, but he did not run.

"Benny lined up to run a leg of the relay which is six miles – a slight difference!

"Benny also said that running a marathon would never replace the buzz of playing Gaelic football. How would he know when he hasn't run one?

"Finally, I cannot see why Benny's contribution of running six miles deserves so much newspaper space. After all, he is a man aged under 40 who has played football for most of his life.

"If you were in my running shoes, it would be different. I am 60 and ran the London Marathon the Sunday before Belfast in three hours and 50 minutes. I then ran the Belfast Marathon in three hours and 37 minutes. I will be hoping to see Benny in Belfast next year for the full marathon."

Benny never played football. He played in goals. There's a difference. That's like comparing the relay with the marathon.

Anyway, the greatest crime in Benny's column was the story about him helping Pascal Canavan over the line – the same Pascal Canavan who ran last year's Dublin Marathon.

[longball]

Cheers!

[Fuzzman]

Well said Shane from Glenavy.

That's Brolly, Tohill and now Heaney all converted.

Who's up next?

[muppet]

This is one stupid argument.

Kerry were in the 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 & 2008 AI Finals winning in 2004, 2006 & 2007. If you arrived from Mars and knew nothing about anything you could see that there is, at the very least, a reasonable argument for making them favourites.

There is obviously a reasonable case for calling a team that was in the 2003, 2005 & 2008 finals (winning all of them) favourites too.

This argument is not about Kerry people being upset that some people see Tyrone as favourites. The problem seems to be with some people who seem to see it as a slight at best or a conspiracy at worst, that others make Kerry favourites. Wise up. 

[Mike Sheehy]

lets face it, Tyrone dont have the guts to take up the mantle of favourites anyway. Anytime they are mentioned as favourites they come with the poor mouth i.e injuries, retirements blah,blah basically getting their excuses in early.

Kerry have the extra burden of high expectation that accompanies true champions. They dont have the luxury of taking a year off here and there to recharge the batteries. Things like that are anathema to us.