USFC Round 1 : An Cabhan V An Dun

[bcarrier]

Wsa Benny that good ?

Sexton scored the two goals and hardly got a mention.

Murtagh was man who took responsibility ( twice) in closing stages.

Dan Gordon did lots of good stuff.

Carr is agood link man - brought others into game.

[ITOB]

RTE say replay next Sunday at Newry.

What a load of keight the Down full back line were.

[stew]

Come on Cavan!!!

[Pangurban]

Inept,ill-disciplined,laughable defending. If any of the 6 Down defenders played like that for their clubs,they would be dropped. I have seen under 14s display more awareness and tactical nous. The management cannot shirk responsibility for this debacle. Despite being a fan of Gordons i have to disagree with comments about him, he had an awful game and apart from one great catch at the end contributed little. We were cleaned out in the middle of the fiekd all day, yet Mickey continued to direct his kick-outs there. There must be changes in the full back line prior to the replay are our season is over,which would be a pity because there is potential which to date has been badly trained and managed

[charlie stubbs]

neutral opinion both defences terrible,easy to slate down not winning a game in the league doubt verymuch cavan would have did any better.hard see either team going any further.think cole would have start in the corner next week though he did score 2 points mccartan and mcguigan were useless the experiment of rooney at full back didnt work either.think mccomiskey should be worth a shout next week from what he showed, hughes was terrible added to the fact i backed him score 1st goal.carr got a bit of a slating earlier but though his link play was very good despite some wayward shooting.sexton was also very industerious.cavans terrible defence wasnt helped by the reluctance of the half forwards to track the attack minded half backs of down.would definately start lyng next week in some capacity and why johnstone was taken off ill never know

[cavanmaniac]

This comical match bordered on the farce.

I wouldn't fault Cavan too much at all to be honest. The best available defence we have at the moment was out there and they tried their best, but they're just not up to it wihtout a decent full back. Better tactics than leaving Benny one on one all the time will have to be sorted though.

I was actually pleased with how Cavan refused to die. We dominated the second half and although we undermined ourselves by leaking naive, schoolboy scores any time we let the ball past halfway, we still had the lion's share of the ball and possibly deserved the bit of fortune with the goal. If McCabe had played the posssession game in the last few minutes instead of trying to thread a pass through a narrow gap, we'd have won this game simple as that.
We've a bit of spirit and a much better attitude than recent years and that in itself is good to see.

McCabe was a colossus today but how in the hell is Mulvey as unfit as all that? We did well enough around the middle all day I think, if Walsh and Sean Brady come in from the start next week along with Lyng - he's a real rouser is Lyng, great to have him back - then we still have a chance. Really have to think up something to plug our pantomime defence though and I'm not sure there's too much we can do to be honest. Hopefully if Down score 3-8 next week, we'll score 3-9.

Not going anywhere in the Ulster scheme of things obviously but it'd be good to get more games and hang on as long as we can.

The minors, meanwhile, epiromise everything that is endemically wrong in Cavan football. We produce good footballers, a match for most, who simply cannot produce on the big day. Any team kicking 16 wides simply isn't right upstairs in the psychology department, how come other teams always seem to have calm and composed attackers who maximise the scoring return from their opportunities. The seniors have the same problem it's runing right through all our county teams, ridiculous to see, it's like we've the market cornered on producing chokers.

[BallyhaiseMan]

Shocked how heavy Mulvey looked,

He just wasnt fit to get around the pitch after Dan Gordon and was huffing and blowing all day.

McCabe rolled back the years,Great performance.Where would we be without him?

I thought Hannon actually done well on Coulter,as well as can be expected when one on one,

we need to withdraw a forward or two infront of him the next day and cut off the supply and turn it into a defensive game.

Forde got roasted today first by Aidan Carr then by Ronan Sexton who scored their 3rd goal.

Thought Ronan Flanagan was very good,possibely Cavans best performer alongside McCabe.

Pierson scored 3 but must have missed 6 or 7

Jelly scored one or two but missed 3 or 4.

Larry was brilliant for first 25 minutes,ran out of steam,but still busted himself to try and force something near the end.Gave it his all.

Disappointed in Gunner,Thought he would be fit to curtail Coulter a bit better.although he improved when moved off him.

Cahill got it hard marking the speedy Danny Hughes but was solid.

McKeever didnt impact the game that much.

Disappointed in Cullivan.


As for the minors
Desperate performance by a woeful team

Oisin Minagh outstanding,
Rory Dunne done well,but hes not a full back,he got skinned a couple of times because hes not a natural defender,But other than that i thought he was good.

the small number 2 from Lurgan was roasted.

Thomas Reily done well i thought,Daniel Graham was ok

Very disappointed in Barry Watters.
James McEnroe was non existant

Adrian Cole tried hard and was probably our best player
disappointed in Martin Dunne and McKiernan

Conor Smith done well
Mark Cunningham scored some great points and is a lovely footballer,
But hes no sharpshooter im afraid
Eugene Keating looks a class act.
Michael O Reily of shercock should have been on much earlier
David Givney the number 20 wasted a glorious goal chance near the end.
Worst Minor team in 5 years.
Diabolical stuff.

[AnDunYeGo]

5iveTimes, get your priorities right   

[Whitehair]

I see in the programme the UMFC match between Down and Monaghan is listed for next sunday in Crossmaglen, due to leaving cert commitments. Is this match likely to be refixed to preceed the replay on sunday? I'd imagine this would be the most logical decision and would make for another good double header!

[BallyhaiseMan]

dont want you Down lads and ladies(for you Caitlin) feeling left out    
My Analysis on Down

McVeigh made an awful balls for that goal.Kickouts good though

The Full Back line was diabolical.All 3 were very poor.
why in gods name was Martin Cole not in there?

Ronan Murtagh was outstanding,hes a lovely footballer
John Clarke got roasted by Larry Reily,
Martin Cole was very good when he came on.

Dan Gordon was outstanding,Probably the man of the match in my opinion,Covered every blade of grass,Fielding was majestic.

Jack Lynch battled well with McCabe but probably came out the loser in the battle,although he done well for his first championship game.

Aidan Carr,roasted Forde in First half,anonymous in the second.

Ronan Sexton, two lovely goals,classy footballer.

Daniel Hughes,i was expecting more from him,I rate him very highly,Didnt take on Martin Cahill at all,when i thought he might have the speed on him.

Packie Downey,done well in a slightly withdrawn role leaving Coulter isolated up front,Good performance in his champ debut.

Benny Coulter,i seen he was named man of the match on the Sunday Game,he took his goal very well and contributed 2 very good points also,but he also missed 2 or 3 relatively easy chances.He was good dont get me wrong,but how the Sunday Game experts thought he was better than Dan Gordon is beyond me.

Paul McComiskey kicked a marvelous score and was very lively when he came on,id say hes a probable starter for Down the next day

[Caitlin]

Well, from a Down point of view, a good day out and we would have settled for a win and draw if truth be told.
Fair play to Seanie Devlin's young fella for his free taking and the captain Digney is a James Colgan type captain- will the Monaghan game be the warm-up at Newry ?It was listed for Cross on Saturday but surely sense will prevail with the Ulster Council...but then again!
The Seniors stepped up a gear and I have a different view than most posters. We know that the defence is makeshift- that's why Ross was man enough to ask Grant back- but I saw a lot of honest endeavour. Mc Guigan was unbelievably niave to allow Jason inside him twice in the first half- the basic rule of defending is to stay goalside -but rather than respond to some 'supporters' and haul him off, Ross reassured him and he had a good second half. Rooney was a good leader but is light and did do the Keystone bit a couple of times- he now knows championship needs 70 minutes concentration. Daniel is limited but he's the corner-back for these games- all hands/knees/elbows and forwards hate it.Rony Murtagh was a strong contender for MOM- no cramp problems for him-Grant was a good link man and marked their play-maker Mc Keever well while Clarkey was off the pace and a brave and correct decision to replace him with Cole( suggest this came over the ear-piece!)who is our top defender.
Dan was excellent-  Pangurban,cannot agrree with you at all- he may have lost possession a couple of times but he got through serious work, caught some great ball and remember his partner is a division 3 player.Jackie spoiled McCabe and probably worth another start although Paul Murphy was excellent. Sexton confirmed amallon's predictions- hungry and reads Benny perfectly.Aidan Carr looks the part in every aspect bar confidence- if he played with some more conviction he could lead the line like Greg used to-but he needs to believe in himself to lift the performance.James Mc Govern was average- a lot of work but Kearney looked a lot livelier. Benny back to his best, Packie solid if unspectacular and Daniel has got his bad game out of the system.The management was excellent- all 4 substitutions worked out and were based on careful analysis rather than head-staggers.I would start Cole, move Daniel to RHF and start Mc Comiskey. Mickey should retain the number one shirt- one mistake but VG kick-outs- but Benny won't get the same space so Daniel, Packy and Mc Comiskey must make use of the extra space that will be there.5ive Times- get the daytrip to Athens- we need all supporters in Newry!

[Mourne Rover]

This was probably the strangest championship match in Ulster since...well, the last time Cavan played Down at Breffni. Mickey McVeigh was tremendous until the late error almost cost us the game.  Both full back lines were obviously poor, although Declan Rooney did pretty well, given that it was his debut, he was captain and he has no experience at no 3. Dan McCartan competed for everything, but missed a few balls as well, and Kevin McGuigan struggled badly. He is good going forward, but his positional sense was wayward. Brendan Grant was reasonable, with a few mistakes, and John Clarke could not cope with Larry Reilly at all. Martin Cole must start the replay, and Paul Murphy is also very much in the frame. Ronan Murtagh was just about MoM, as he restricted Reilly, pushed forward at every opportunity and scored two outstanding points, including the equaliser.

Midfield was another odd sector, as Jackie Lynch is limited but managed to largely blot out Dermot McCabe while he was on. Murphy looks as though he could do the job there, although he is a runner rather than a fielder. However, Dan Gordon caught almost everything and had his best game for years - probably since the 2003 drawn Ulster final.

James McGovern worked hard but probably did not contribute enough, while Ronan Sexton worked even harder, got two goals and very nearly a third. Both played very deep, leaving Aidan Carr to cover a lot of ground. He actually won the ball surprisingly well, passed  accurately but could not score.

Danny Hughes also won the ball well but had an off-day otherwise. Packy Downey took a long time to get into the game, but finished it reasonably well. Benny was the Benny we all love, but he will be very tightly marked next week.

Stephen Kearney looked promising enough, but Paul McComiskey was outstanding. Although he should be kept on the bench because of his age, he is a fantastic prospect.

Anything could happen in the replay, including another Down defensive collapse, but there are grounds for at least some hope there at long last. The use of our subs was a big plus, and we also have players returning to fitness. We have a long way to go, but we are on the road.

[ONeill]

An entertaining game if anything. Sometimes it's nice to watch a game where defences are not really adept at defending in numbers. Serious amount of mistakes, fumbles and misplaced balls though. Maybe nerves? At times Down looked like they'd finally translated the
1999/2005 minor form into senior but within a minute of scoring something sublime, their defence was running around like men who'd been repeatedly banged over the head with Mourne rock.

Gordon showed glimpses of old fashioned midfield play and even managed to spray the ball around intelligently when given room. Surely Clarke just had a bad day. Maybe his had wasn't in it and that's why Carr hauled him off instead of switching. He's a better footballer than that.

That young McComiskey is some talent. Apart from his point, he won a great ball, coming from the blind side of the Cavan defender, to set up a point soon after. You may have another Linden on your hands.

Although he was well marked, you still feel that there's more in Benny Coulter in championship football. He can field the ball and turn as good as Frank McGuigan but seems to play on the edge of the game. CHF?

[mylestheslasher]

From the INDO, I mostly agree with this report...

Cavan 2-11

Down 3-8

Ulster SFC

FORGET dour defensive dog-fights and that legendary blanket defence.

The Ulster SFC started not with the expected whimper but with a five-goal bang yesterday that certainly sent folks home sweating and looking forward to the sequel in Newry next Sunday.

Everything, right down to the late Dermot McCabe free that looked to have stolen Cavan's victory, followed by Ronan Murtagh's heroic injury-time equaliser, defied all the provincial stereotypes.

Cynics will inevitably point out that this sort of frenetic goal-fest is exactly why neither side is likely to dispute this year's Ulster final, and certainly, some of the defending and marking, especially from Cavan, was lamentable at times.

But no one in the small 13,505 crowd was complaining as they trailed home exhilarated and exhausted by a preliminary round rollercoaster which, though far from perfect, certainly whetted the summer's appetite.

That a draw was a fair result was the consensus, even though the home side showed more resilience by recovering three times after conceding goals, a predilection they're going to have to rapidly divest themselves of if they want to go further.

But recover they did, in brave style, most crucially when they went three points down with as many minutes remaining. No goal, therefore, was as important as the close-range one conjured up by substitute Jonathon Crowe on the stroke of official time.

And when McCabe then stood up 30 seconds later and coolly lobbed over a 35m free into the stiff breeze, the home fans went apoplectic.

Particularly

That McCabe provided the potential winner was particularly fitting. The free was won by 19-year-old wingback Ronan Flanagan but his 30-year-old teammate stood head and shoulders over everyone, bar Benny Coulter, yesterday.

But Down were equally thrilled and relieved that they hung tough enough to scramble a draw.

Their injury-time saviours were equally appropriate; two-goal Ronan Sexton finding wing-back Ronan Murtagh, a converted forward, who showed nerves of steel to score his second point of the day to earn the Mourne's reprieve.

What preceded the thrilling climax was as unpredictable as Britney Spears before rehab.

Down were still reeling from Daniel Hughes missing an open goal chance when Benny Coulter, for the first of many times, shook off Paul Brady to lay on Sexton's first goal for a two-point lead after eight minutes.

Jason O'Reilly tried too hard when he then had a great goal chance, which Kevin McGuigan blocked but Cavan, led by Anthony Ford, McCabe and two points from fast-starting Larry Reilly, recovered their composure quickly to pull a point clear.

Down were actually scoreless for 12 minutes but their second score was another goal, this time a brilliant one-two between Aidan Carr (son of manager Ross) and Coulter which the latter dispatched brilliantly.

Early substitute Martin Cole, a wing-back who roamed freely and scored scored two points before half-time, also played a key role until Michael Lyng came off the bench to mark him.

Cavan 'keeper James Reilly then had to make a great low save after Dan Gordon was allowed waltz through unmarked from midfield and at the other end Cavan got the break they needed when Jason O'Reilly and Seanie Johnston combined to set up Larry Reilly for his punched goal.

Down led by just a point (2-3 to 1-5) at half-time but had only taken half of their goal chances.

Cavan were guiltier of even wilder shooting from further out, with 9 to 6 wides by the break, but their big worry was one which has bamboozled many a team: how to stop the brilliant Coulter?

Michael Hannon provided the solution. Coulter was far less accurate and dangerous once he was switched onto him after 21 minutes and, under pressure, shot three wides in the second half.

But the Mayobridge genius was still on hand just four minutes after the re-start to pick up a ball from Packie Downey and feed Sexton for his second goal.

After a third body blow Cavan might have caved but they didn't. Jason O'Reilly got two great frees and subs like Lyng, Crowe and Sean Brady were central, the latter breaking a 14-minute spell without a score with a particularly inspirational point after 62 minutes.

Cavan only had two second-half wides compared to Down's eight but wasted numerous other chances, especially given that they got twice as many second-half frees (11-5).

Manager Donal Keoghan dropped Mark McKeever back to sweeper but when he moved forward again in the dying minutes he was also very influential in creating scoring chances and when Crowe got his he did not miss.

SCORERS - Cavan: L Reilly 1-2, J Crowe 1-0, G Pierson 0-3 (1f), D McCabe and J O'Reilly 0-2 (2f) each, S Johnston and S Brady 0-1 each. Down: R Sexton 2-0, B Coulter 1-1, R Murtagh and M Cole 0-2 each, D Gordon, J McGovern and P McComiskey 0-1 each.

TEAMS AND PLAYER RATINGS

CAVAN - J Reilly 7; P Brady 5. E O'Reilly 6, M Cahill 6; M Hannon 8, A Ford 6, R Flanagan 6; D McCabe 9, L Mulvey 5; R Cullivan 6, M McKeever 6, L Reilly 7; J O'Reilly 6, G Pierson 8, S Johnston 7. Subs: M Lyng 8 for Cullivan (42 mins), C Mackey 7 for Johnston (50), N Walsh 6 for Mulvey (55), S Brady 7 for Pierson ( 61), J Crowe 7 for Brady (63).

DOWN - M McVeigh 8; D McCartan 7, D Rooney 6, K McGuigan 6; R Murtagh 8, B Grant 8, J Clarke 5; D Gordan 7, J Lynch 6; J McGovern 6, A Carr 7, R Sexton 7; D Hughes 6, P Downey 7, B Coulter 9. Subs: M Cole 8 for Clarke (19 mins), S Kearney 6 for McGovern (48), P Murphy 8 for Lynch (52), P McComiskey 7 for Hughes (60).

REF - D Fahy (Longford).

[downredblack]

Well no one gave us an earthly going into this game so to come away with a draw and some flashes of good football has to be on the plus side . Our frailties at the back have been well flagged long before yesterday and we all knew that Cavan's forwards were going to have a field day . Brolly made the point in GL that Down have always been an attacking team that try to outscore teams rather than out defend them and Ross kind of made the same point in the IN today , stating that Down would never win low scoring games . That said definite tightening up needed for the next day big time .
Midfield , Big Dan had a stormer , won plenty of ball and his distribution was class . Jackie Lynch can be proud of his Championship debut as he let no one down and Murphy did very well when he came on .
Going forward we looked sharp and took our chances well , We missed chances for points and  overplayed it looking for goals a few times but I don't think we can be to critical of the forward lines .
Just like to say I thought Murtagh was our MOTM , seems to have time on the ball when others dont , looks for his pass instead of the aimless punt forward and knocks over the injury time point . I get the impression  that he is really proud to wear the Jersey .  Brilliant performance .