USFC Qtr Final - Armagh V Down - Athletic Grounds 28th May 7:30pm

[Cold tea]

good win for armagh tonite but alot of the armagh posters on this site should be ashamed of themselves with what has been written the past few weeks regarding some of there players and especially the management team. Probably going to get slated for this but armagh fans are some of the worst for putting down their team that I have ever come across  on this board                                                  

Dry them.

[ck]

Left work early in Sligo, rain, crowds, traffic... why did I feckin bother. Then I get to Morgan Athletic grounds and it all became worthwhile. WHAT A GAME! Two terrific teams playing in a free open positive manner (Jim McGuinness take note!!!!)

I thought Down slightly shaded it in terms of posession but Armagh were the more efficient and clinical. Clarke was worth the journey on his own, pure class. Padden totally surprised me too. Wee James got a few decisions on the line badly wrong. I can't understand why he plays Dan his brother. A very average looking player.
Armagh deserved it all. Paddy O'Rourke and his management team needed that badly.
Down far from finished yet though!

[bigpaul]

good win for armagh tonite but alot of the armagh posters on this site should be ashamed of themselves with what has been written the past few weeks regarding some of there players and especially the management team. Probably going to get slated for this but armagh fans are some of the worst for putting down their team that I have ever come across  on this board                                                 

You're probably right,but more to the point,your/our boy done well !!!!!!!

[Leo]

Great win for Armagh, against 16 men too, ref was feckin awful. Minor game was also a great spectacle, probably the best game I have witnessed at that level, young McGeown showed a calm head to help haul them to victory.

Hard to tell what went on with the Down players, honestly expected them to win by at least 2/3, the hunger from Armagh was unreal though. Great win.

Is that the same ref who failed to give Benny a free when he fielded the ball superbly and was pummelled to the ground by two Armagh players?
Is that the same ref who filed to give  a penalty when Benny was blatantly pushed in the back on the square in front of goal?
You were a better team and won at a canter.
Leave the childish ref-baiting out of it.

[balladmaker]

Is that the same ref who filed to give  a penalty when Benny was blatantly pushed in the back on the square in front of goal?

The push was outside the area by several yards, so no penalty was neccessary ... a free in at most

[thebuzz]

Great win for Armagh, against 16 men too, ref was feckin awful. Minor game was also a great spectacle, probably the best game I have witnessed at that level, young McGeown showed a calm head to help haul them to victory.

Hard to tell what went on with the Down players, honestly expected them to win by at least 2/3, the hunger from Armagh was unreal though. Great win.

As a neutral I didn't think he had that bad a game. I was watching it again on RTE's deferred coverage and heard McStay saying he had a great game. I never rate what McStay says too highly so maybe I missed something.

[bigpaul]

When at the game I thought the referee made seven mistakes,having just watched the match on television it is clear he only made three,the biggest being Brendan Donaghy's push on Benny Coulter just outside the large box!

[Leo]

Is that the same ref who filed to give  a penalty when Benny was blatantly pushed in the back on the square in front of goal?

The push was outside the area by several yards, so no penalty was neccessary ... a free in at most

Well at least you acknowledged the push - which the "biased" ref didn't - point made I think.

[ross matt]

Great match. Well done Armagh. Delighted for Padden. Even though a Rossie I always admired his attitude and work ethic. Vernon fairly stood up and was counted at the end.

[Leo]

A wee Down perspective on an Armagh night:
B McVeigh   6   Good on the basics, serious issues on the kick-out
D McCartan   3   Brother where art thou? Sometimes passion just isn't enough.
D Gordon   5   Time to end this silly experiment – back to the centre where he is direly needed
B McArdle   6   Could do a job at 3 – gritty performance
D Rooney   6   Curate's egg stuff, good & bad – would put him at 6
K McKernan   6   Same old story we all ignore – great going forward, defensive nightmare, we can't afford a marquee player at no. 6
G McCartan   5   There is surely better outside Burren - but he was not the worst
K King      3   When he is bad he is very very bad but when he is good he is wicked – he was wickedly bad tonight , game lad but it was not game on tonight
P Fitzpatrick   3   Don't want to be too hard on a good prospect but did he turn up?
D Hughes   5   POR did his homework well – without Hughes we are toothless – a few forays but otherwise man-marked out of it
M Clarke   6   Still mixing the brilliant with the bizarre
M Poland   7   It defies all logic that he should be so good but he is
J Clarke   3   Great club player, lovely lad, great in the winter leagues – come May he is lost - would he get anywhere near the Cork team? No, didn't think so.
B Coulter   8   One leg or two he is the business, why oh why was he playing half back for half the first half? That gave Armagh the start they built on.
P McComiskey7   He knows if he even scores a hat-trick he will be taken off
C  Maginn   7   Big impact
The rest of the substitutions owed more to panic than tactics

So my man of the match didn't even  play three quarters of the game....
Time for bed

[bigpaul]

How do you only award your two midfielders 3? Bizarre in my opinion!

[ONeill]

He's right about Benny though. Coulter was wasted for the majority of the game. Maybe it was an experiment.

I think Derry will be comfortable enough against Armagh. Brennan has more brains in his sock the POR has as a manager.

[David McKeown]

Is that the same ref who filed to give  a penalty when Benny was blatantly pushed in the back on the square in front of goal?

The push was outside the area by several yards, so no penalty was neccessary ... a free in at most

Well at least you acknowledged the push - which the "biased" ref didn't - point made I think.

I didnt think the ref was biased I just thought he was quite poor, having now seen the game again on the TV I might have been a little harsh, although as I said earlier there were a large number of times he seemed very far away from the action and quite a few times he seemed to have turned his back to the play

[bigpaul]

He's right about Benny though. Coulter was wasted for the majority of the game. Maybe it was an experiment.

I think Derry will be comfortable enough against Armagh. Brennan has more brains in his sock the POR has as a manager.

Why would one carry one's brain in one's sock?

[GAA_Junkie]

McCartan's deluded loyalty to his 'adopted' club Burren cost us the game tonight.  The Anton McCardle  substitution took the complete piss.  I'm sure his intro must have deflated the other 14 players on the field.  5 points down and time running out and who do we bring on? Anton McCardle not even a decent Burren player.  6 Burren players played. 
I'd have left Benny Coulter on, on one leg before I've have brought any of the other forward subs on.  Jerome and James need to ditch their club and family loyalties if Down are to have any sort of a half decent summer.