Twistin, turnin, windin roads - Galway v Mayo 14/6/15

[Duine Eile]

Leitrim's James Glancy seems to be following his manager's lead:

From Hogan Stand:

James Glancy has accused Galway of systematically fouling Leitrim in Sunday's Connacht SFC quarter-final.

Kevin Walsh's charges committed 42 fouls during the course of the game - more than Tyrone and Donegal combined! - and former Leitrim attacker Glancy was not impressed by their cynicism:

"Their physio seemed to be in on the pitch numerous times. They were going down very easily and they were wasting time, particularly in the first half," he says in The Irish Daily Star.

"I was thinking about the GPS trackers, if there was one on the Galway physio, they were were probably moving more on the field than the Galway players.
In the second half, the stats speak for themselves. In the second half alone, they had 31 fouls. A lot of the fouls seemed to be in the middle third of the field.
The [Leitrim] centre back [Gary Reynolds] seemed to attack but every time he went forward he got fouled. It was at least ten occasions when he was fouled, not pulled to the ground though.At no stage did the referee feel there was need for a yellow card. They seemed to be nearly stopping the Leitrim attack before it started."

[Rossfan]

Whatever happened to the persistent fouling yellow cards?

[GalwayBayBoy]

Only got around to watching the full game there as I was away over the weekend and I'm struggling to see what Leitrim are complaining about. If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half. He could have actually kept his whistle in his pocket and let them play away on numerous occasions but kept blowing up which led to a very stop-start game with no flow to it and a big free count.

[galwayman]

If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half.

These were absolutely my thoughts at the time from watching it live.
It does seem like a high free count to concede but some of them were innocuous in the extreme.
The ref did Galway no favours at all.
The Leitrim manager would want to just keep his mouth shut. It doesn't reflect well coming out with that rubbish.

[An Fhairche Abu]

If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half.

These were absolutely my thoughts at the time from watching it live.
It does seem like a high free count to concede but some of them were innocuous in the extreme.
The ref did Galway no favours at all.
The Leitrim manager would want to just keep his mouth shut. It doesn't reflect well coming out with that rubbish.

Agree on all fronts, I thought the ref gave numerous very soft frees to Leitrim, at least two of them for what were (in both my opinion and the other people that I was at the match with) textbook dispossessions by using one hand to make contact with the ball and take possession away.
The phrase "may as well make it a non-contact sport" was used more than once during the match after some of the frees Leitrim got.
But I would add that if Galway have turned ultra cynical, then good, all the top teams play that way and we'll get nothing for sticking to an idealised vision of how Gaelic football should be played in the current championship environment.

[Syferus]

If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half.

These were absolutely my thoughts at the time from watching it live.
It does seem like a high free count to concede but some of them were innocuous in the extreme.
The ref did Galway no favours at all.
The Leitrim manager would want to just keep his mouth shut. It doesn't reflect well coming out with that rubbish.

Agree on all fronts, I thought the ref gave numerous very soft frees to Leitrim, at least two of them for what were (in both my opinion and the other people that I was at the match with) textbook dispossessions by using one hand to make contact with the ball and take possession away.
The phrase "may as well make it a non-contact sport" was used more than once during the match after some of the frees Leitrim got.
But I would add that if Galway have turned ultra cynical, then good, all the top teams play that way and we'll get nothing for sticking to an idealised vision of how Gaelic football should be played in the current championship environment.

In fairness ye trying to play blanket last year but ye executed it like you'd been handed the tactics two minutes before throw in.

[galwayman]

In fairness ye trying to play blanket last year but ye executed it like you'd been handed the tactics two minutes before throw in.

Watch the Connacht final in Castlebar last year again & show me evidence of Galway playing with a blanket defence?

[Croí na hÉireann]

Only got around to watching the full game there as I was away over the weekend and I'm struggling to see what Leitrim are complaining about. If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half. He could have actually kept his whistle in his pocket and let them play away on numerous occasions but kept blowing up which led to a very stop-start game with no flow to it and a big free count.

Where did you watch the full game?

[weareros]

I'd say Kevin Walsh was practicing the tactic of fouling up the field for the Mayo game. He'd have been hoping the game in Carrick only merited a few column inches in the papers, a typical lazy report of a Connacht game that didn't describe much, maybe with an odd error and player's name spelled wrong. Maybe a very brief one camera angle highlight on Sunday Game with a bit of praise for Galway's positive approach to the game, a young up and coming skillful team that would put it up to Mayo. He'd have thought Leitrim would have went off quietly to get bayten in the qualifiers. Who'd have thought the Div 4 outfit would have created such a stink? Now he'll have to revert back to that awful fancy dan stuff.

[Syferus]

In fairness ye trying to play blanket last year but ye executed it like you'd been handed the tactics two minutes before throw in.

Watch the Connacht final in Castlebar last year again & show me evidence of Galway playing with a blanket defence?

That was actually their worst attempt at it of all. I was at that one and it wasn't pretty how many men Galway had back and how many times Mayo players were left to run through unmarked.

[Jinxy]

If Galway are gone cynical we may as well give up altogether.

[Maroon Manc]

Only got around to watching the full game there as I was away over the weekend and I'm struggling to see what Leitrim are complaining about. If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half. He could have actually kept his whistle in his pocket and let them play away on numerous occasions but kept blowing up which led to a very stop-start game with no flow to it and a big free count.

How have you managed to watch the full game?

[GalwayBayBoy]

Only got around to watching the full game there as I was away over the weekend and I'm struggling to see what Leitrim are complaining about. If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half. He could have actually kept his whistle in his pocket and let them play away on numerous occasions but kept blowing up which led to a very stop-start game with no flow to it and a big free count.

How have you managed to watch the full game?

Got a copy of the DVD this morning. No television commentary on it. Just filmed from the one fixed camera.

[Maroon Manc]

Only got around to watching the full game there as I was away over the weekend and I'm struggling to see what Leitrim are complaining about. If anything I thought the ref gave them a lot of very soft frees especially in the 2nd half. He could have actually kept his whistle in his pocket and let them play away on numerous occasions but kept blowing up which led to a very stop-start game with no flow to it and a big free count.

How have you managed to watch the full game?

Got a copy of the DVD this morning. No television commentary on it. Just filmed from the one fixed camera.

I see, there was me thinking there's a website I'm missing out on.

[giveballaghback]

Was at the game Sunday and that second half was hard going, Leitrim got some handy frees  but even allowing for that the free count was high, Galway made hard work of beating a team that were unable to score, that said Galway are in the perfect position for their clash with Mayo, no one knows what Galway have to offer and where Mayo are after a change of management and an inconsistent league, could not be better set up and I am really looking forward to it, will be a good game of football, may the best team win.