Meath Vs Dublin, 7th June 2009

[Gnevin]

Was going to add an addendum to my earlier post about smart alec replies.... but forgot. Needless to say the usual suspects have come up trumps again.
I will say it again the Dublin team in the  last few years has a soft core which saddens me to say really cost us un the heat of Championship battle. I fear that the drift of the GAA to the suburbs/ middle classes in Dublin may be the cause of it and may be a permanent facet of our teams.

Crokes and St Vincents are 2 exceptions though and give me some hope for the future.

Very few teams ( if any) win AIs without at least a toerag or two on the team. In Tyrone and Kerry's cases these toerags are also good footballers..... hence imo their success.

Who in past greats would you say was a toerag? Just trying to make sure we are on the same page.

[INDIANA]

Was going to add an addendum to my earlier post about smart alec replies.... but forgot. Needless to say the usual suspects have come up trumps again.
I will say it again the Dublin team in the  last few years has a soft core which saddens me to say really cost us un the heat of Championship battle. I fear that the drift of the GAA to the suburbs/ middle classes in Dublin may be the cause of it and may be a permanent facet of our teams.

Crokes and St Vincents are 2 exceptions though and give me some hope for the future.

Very few teams ( if any) win AIs without at least a toerag or two on the team. In Tyrone and Kerry's cases these toerags are also good footballers..... hence imo their success.

I would simply say Canalman we aren't good enough thats the bottom line. I think we've a few hard men alright (Casey etc)- and its got us nowhere. Tyrone have simply outfootballed us. Its hard to know with leinster this year- think kildare and meath will be very hard to beat. We're just short in a couple of areas. the only thing I'll say is I think for future years we'll get 2-3 backs off this u21 team. Which is what we need.
Think the rest are in disarray- laois are in freefall from what I hear.

[The GAA]

casey was a pretend hard man. he wouldn't go for a break ball with his eyes open. whelan, christie and henry are / were hard men.

[Canalman]

Certainly won't name any one individual as imo a toerag. My definition as a toerag is a player who will do whatever it takes to cancel another team's / a marker's advantage....... and get away with it. The toerag is inevitably a brave man who gets it back in spades.

Have played club football with 2 toerags and was always delighted to have them as colleagues. Feel some people are getting a bit "highhorsey" about my opinion.

For the record I feel that Kerry have 4 of them on their team at the moment and Tyrone 2. Wish to God we had every one of them playing for us.

Have always had a soft spot for Paul Casey so I won't criticize him (he gets enough on another Forum). I wouldn't class him as a hardman/toerag by any means.

[Hardy]

I think that's Duff in the middle

[Croí na hÉireann]

Certainly won't name any one individual as imo a toerag. My definition as a toerag is a player who will do whatever it takes to cancel another team's / a marker's advantage....... and get away with it. The toerag is inevitably a brave man who gets it back in spades.

Have played club football with 2 toerags and was always delighted to have them as colleagues. Feel some people are getting a bit "highhorsey" about my opinion.

For the record I feel that Kerry have 4 of them on their team at the moment and Tyrone 2. Wish to God we had every one of them playing for us.

Have always had a soft spot for Paul Casey so I won't criticize him (he gets enough on another Forum). I wouldn't class him as a hardman/toerag by any means.

Brennan fits the bill for your definition of toerag Canalman. He was pushing Glennon in the back of the head and got away with it every time he ran by him on Sunday...

[Declan]

I think that's Duff in the middle

Presume you mean the Duffer from Balllyboden/Newcastle there Hardy

[Hound]

Dublin havent lost an important game because of a lack of toeraggedness for at least 3 or 4 years. Okay, you could argue that McConnell was too nice to be a full back but we've plenty of lads capable of giving hits. Tyrone were simply too good for us on the day last year - and it showed us up as relying too heavily on Alan Brogan to score our points when the pressure is on. The scoreboard would have looked differently had he stayed on, albeit the same team would have won.

Bastick is probably our biggest positive from the NFL. He's not the best in the country but he should be solid enough at 3 for the championship. Henry will definitely be 2, and its between Griffin and Hubbard for 4. Barry Cahill was our best player in the NFL in my view, so he's a cert for wing back. The other two places still in the melting pot a bit. Would be a bit worried that (by intercounty standards) we've 5 or 6 good wing backs without having a top class centre back.

Whelan had some very good games with some very mediocre games in the league. Looks heavy to me, but hopefully he'll be leaner come the summer. With Ryan not getting any starts and not being particularly effective as sub, and Fennell not getting a look in, it seems the other spot is between Magee and McConnell. Still not sure on either of them.

Brogans x 2 and Keaney should be certs for the forward line. Havent a clue who the other 3 will be v Meath! Connolly, Davoren, Andrews, Burke, Bonner, Flynn, Vaughan, Quinn, Sherlock, Kelly all in contention, and maybe even Cullen and McConnell, and I'm probably forgetting someone.

Upcoming Dublin challenge games:

Friday 17th April at Carton House, Maynooth at 7pm - the (inaugural!) Carton Cup
Dublin v Louth
Tickets prices: Adult E10, E5 for students/OAPs with under-16s in free.

Friday May 22 at Naomh Mearnóg at 8pm
Dublin v Mayo

Presume there'll be one or two more organised for in between.

[Declan]

Would agree with all of that Hound

[thejuice]

Meath will need a good few challenge games in the run up to the game. Unless we have seen the prefered full foward line-up (King -  ) Farrell, Sherdian, D Bray need game time. WIll keep an eye out for them.

[heffo]

Dublin havent lost an important game because of a lack of toeraggedness for at least 3 or 4 years.

Mayo 2006 - I know taking Ryan out of midfield at half time was stupid by Pillar - but there is no way Kerry/Armagh (at the time) or Tyrone would have lost that game - any other team would have suffered from systematic cramp, taking an age over sideline balls/frees, started a row or two etc (see Ciaran McDonald taking over 90 seconds to take a free from his hands with about two minutes to go)

[A Quinn Martin Production]

This game should be great support for the main event vs Antrim.  I would encourage as many Dubs (and Meath hurlers) to go down for earlier for the hurling, should be a big day for both teams and should be a competitive match as both teams will think they have a good chance of winning, though I must admit on current form the Dubs should savage our boys.

As for the football, I fancy the Dubs.  They have talent coming out their ears but they suffer from two things, i)  The media always build them up with the "this is the Dubs year" and "The GAA needs Dubs to win an AI" stuff, a pressure that no other county has to suffer.  ii)  There is a perception that the Dubs have a "soft underbelly" and other teams step up the physical nature of their game gainst them.  While the Dubs can cope with a Westmeath or Offaly doing this when it comes to the teams that can be physical and play a bit of football they seem to suffer.

[heffo]

I fancy the Dubs.  They have talent coming out their ears

It's news to me!

[Gnevin]

As for the football, I fancy the Dubs.  They have talent coming out their ears but they suffer from two things, i)  The media always build them up with the "this is the Dubs year" and "The GAA needs Dubs to win an AI" stuff, a pressure that no other county has to suffer.  ii)  There is a perception that the Dubs have a "soft underbelly" and other teams step up the physical nature of their game gainst them.  While the Dubs can cope with a Westmeath or Offaly doing this when it comes to the teams that can be physical and play a bit of football they seem to suffer.

Talking out of both sides of your mouth Quinn. On one hand your saying you fancy them on then on the other your saying they seem to suffer against physical teams .

[A Quinn Martin Production]

What I meant was I fancy them...to beat Meath on 7th June...after that