NFL Div 2 2020

[Pugwash]

No I'm not taking anything away from the work Ross does to keep himself in top condition/shape, I'm merely pointing out that you can't compare like for like when one player is what 15/16 stone and 6ft 3 and other is well under 6ft and what 12 stone or so.

It would take far longer and requires more time/effort for Donie to stay fit than someone like Ross no question and maybe his body has had enough and simply can't take the demands anymore?

There are club teams in Laois back training already, it's practically a year long season now and I'm not surprised lads in their late 20's are packing in intercounty in their droves.

Something needs to be done asap.

[Laoiseabu]

Next thing we will have lads packing in for their clubs let alone intercounty 😂.  What clubs In Laois are back training already ? Surely they should have the rest of 2019 off and start from a clean slate in 2020

[Giovanni]

No I'm not taking anything away from the work Ross does to keep himself in top condition/shape, I'm merely pointing out that you can't compare like for like when one player is what 15/16 stone and 6ft 3 and other is well under 6ft and what 12 stone or so.

It would take far longer and requires more time/effort for Donie to stay fit than someone like Ross no question and maybe his body has had enough and simply can't take the demands anymore?

There are club teams in Laois back training already, it's practically a year long season now and I'm not surprised lads in their late 20's are packing in intercounty in their droves.

Something needs to be done asap.

I don't think there's any pyhsiological evidence to suggest it's easier for a small person to get fit than a tall person. Brendan Quigley has always managed to keep himself in great shape. Same for Evan O Carroll. Of course it's easier for a fit person to stay fit than an unfit one to get fit but that's a different argument.

I take the point that there are heavy demands on people to turn up for training etc. but isn't sport supposed to be something that is enjoyable for the participants? Of course people might have competing interests, which is fair enough, but I would have thought that that the default position for any player (especially good players) would be that they play if they can. In that sense, I can only assume that most of the lads who pull away are doing so because they have competing interests (whether its work, family, or other demands on their time) and not because it's too tough.

[les Antiques]

Don't think we could have asked for a tougher start in two weeks . Roscommon have some serious forwards who tend to prosper in the league . It's going to be interesting to see the make up of our full back line .

[Laois Rising]

Have you heard something to the contrary Chrimtain. The new mark rule for championship this year is made for a player like Kingston. 

[Giovanni]

Very sorry to see that Brendan Quigley has called time on his inter-county career. He gave great service to Laois and was certainly one of the best fielders of a ball that I have every seen. Right up there along with Dara O Se in that aspect of the game. Would like to thank him for the memories and wish him well in the future.

[The Boy Wonder]

If we were to choose the standout Laois midfielder over the past decade Brendan Quigley would get my vote.
Looking back I reckon Padraig Clancy was the Laois midfielder of the noughties (just edging out Noel Garvan).
Barney Maher was definitely our standout midfielder in the 1990s and back further we had great fielders in John Costello (80s) and Bobby Millar (70s).

Brendan Quigley certainly served his county well. Not alone could he pluck balls from the clouds, he was an excellent ball carrier who could take a score.
He was a very talented and stylish player. Hopefully another one or two midfielders will emerge in this new decade to keep up the proud tradition.

[on the hop]

Niall Corbett; Trevor Collins, Mark Timmons, Gearoid Hanrahan; Sean O'Flynn, Robert Pigott, Patrick O'Sullivan; John O'Loughlin, Sean Byrne; Michael Keogh, Colm Murphy, Eoin Lowry; Mark Barry, Kieran Lillis, Evan O'Carroll.

Team along expected lines, not much in the way of options at present owing to unavailability and other players only coming back. interesting to see the subs to see who made the cut. Lillis will hardly stay in full forward with the new mark?? Poor Sigerson lads not getting a rest before their final.

[les Antiques]

Beat Tipp in a challenge last weekend quite well with Lillis doing quite well in the full forward line with the mark .
Brody , Benny Carroll , Healy and Dillon all on the panel for the league .
Tomorrow will be difficult particularly if Roscommon come out of the blocks flying .

[Unlaoised]

Great result o carroll was outstanding

[Blow-in]

His rolling around on the ground lets him down every game though.

[Tony]

Excellent performance and result by the lads today, and still missing a good few from the starting 15 like brody and dillon etc. Massive work being put in and great to see the likes of hanranhan and healy back. wasn't very optimistic about the year but by all accounts the training and the setup has been top notch this winter with the lads having good things to say about mike and background team. Can't get carried away after 1 match but the signs are promising for a decent year. These group of fellas are trying their best and we are happy with that, well done all

[on the hop]

real smash and grab, to be honest it didn't look likely after the penalty and Timmons black card. we had been poor for a lot of the second half but had hung in their with ross getting a few scores. Roscommon have themselves to blame trying to play down the clock instead of going for it with the extra man. Evan's goal started the comeback but also caused them to panic. He was having one of those days where he could miss a free, kick a point from the corner ,then lob one into the keeper and then kick a 45 and unforgivingly miss a one on one with the keeper. He has having a good tussle with the full back but spent as much time falling on the ground as he was standing up but probably didn't get half the frees he deserved. Maybe due to the battle he was having, was that he just let fly when the goal dropped in on him. it was some goal, a rocket. somehow we were back in the game and evan won the free on the half forward line for the second goal. After a conversation with the ref, ross took the free and screwed it in. in the middle of the bodies Lillis got it and lashed it into the corner and that was that.

We started well but missed three easy options before they scored from paly. it went toe to toe after that, we didn't commit many forward at times and kept them guessing changing our shape in the forwards. We really worked the mark well and one pre planned move saw lillis switch in, and immediately a ball was pinged into his chest and a good score from a mark. We made a lot of silly mistakes and they scored from a few. they sucked us in with the defense playing a very high line and a ball in behind saw smith score a goal. from the stand you could see it about to happen. They were far more aggressive in the second half and had the majority of possession. Their goal came from another mistake, lillis didn't hold a kick out and they broke fast through the centre, healy who had come on, was caught in two minds and didn't get the through ball and Timmons gambled on the tackle and got the black card. we didn't create a whole a lot until the last five minutes. Solid performance and good heart shown. Corbett didn't do a whole lot wrong and went on a solo run that brought him into the other half. backs in general were ok. Collins and o Flynn I thought were ok, hanrahan probably drew the short straw with their best forward. As usual the two midfielders did a lot of work, JOL got a right belt in the head and sat more in the holding role with Lillis bombing forward. He kicked some lovely scores. Byrne switched in and out of the area. Forwards were a mixed bag, Keogh got a nice score but appears very one sided, Barry handled a lot of ball and could be a good link man and murphy couldn't really get into it. Their were a number of subs with Ross kicking a few frees, it was great to see Healy back but he has a good bit to go and you would have to question his introduction. He ended up getting booked for a free and I thought he should have got to the ball for the goal but hopefully with improved fitness he will get better. Another tough game with ARMAGH NEXT WEEK.

[Giovanni]

Great report on the hop. To pull that result out of the fire in that way should do a lot for morale. Great leadership being shown by a few of the lads it must be said.

[APM]

Armagh calling! Taking a point off Roscommon wouldn't have been expected.  I thought you were missing a number of strong players and that things were a bit flat!

How will you do against Armagh on Saturday night? Not much love lost there and Laois is a real bogey team for us - we probably owe you at least one!!