FERMANAGH V DOWN Preliminary Round USFC

[magpie seanie]

As if things weren't bad enough for Down, Ross Carr has come out and accused Marty McGrath of diving to get Aidan sent off!

Marty was pushed in the back or neck, and did not see it coming.  He got straight back to his feet and made no fuss at all.  I think Ross is letting himself down here.  Marty is a player who I hold in the highest respect, he is hardworking and honest in the Francie mould.

Also, Marty once got hit on the back of the head by a digger and he recovered ok, so Aidan Carr is the least of his worries.

Don't know if this is true or what but one thing is sure - Marty didn't cover himself in glory in this case. None of us want diving and play acting and he definitely embellished a harmless enough push. I have a lot of respect for McGrath but can we accept this kind of carry on? He didn't need to go to ground or maybe Aidan Carr is a lot stronger than he looks.

[INDIANA]

He was caught by surprise and he fell over. It was a stupid petulant act by Carr and he deserves exactly what he got. Typifies the complete lack of discipline in the Down team. How anyone can blame Mc Grath is beyond me.

[Mid Down Gael]

Watched sundays game again there on Setanta. That was absolutly shocking. No game plan watsoever only hoof high aimless balls into Benny and Pete against 4 defenders. How Aidan Carr was not subtituted i will never know. I said before he gets preference on this team, but on Sunday he should have been taken off. In his defence it was unfair to play him half back in the league then change him to the forward line for championship. Peter Turley had some good moments but if he faced a top forward he would be roasted. Danny Hughes deserves special mention for giving his all and being our best player by some distance. I just cant understand why Sexton, Murphy and Cole where not used. Ross and DJ have had 3 years and as soon as we are put out they should do the honourable thing and resign. Under ORourke Down where enjoyable to watch, under this management its very difficult apart from Tyrone tie last year. Michael Walsh proved yet again last night he is the top number 11 in Down scoring 0-5 against Castlewellan for the Bridge. This man along with John Clarke and James Colgan are in our top 15 players and should be drafted in for qualifiers to give us some hope. I would like to see the following team for the first round in 7 weeks. 1. B McVeigh 2. L Howard 3. C Garvey 4. D Rafferty 5 P Murphy 6 J Colgan 7 K McKernan 8 D Gordon 9 P Fitzpatrick 10. A Rogers 11. M Walsh 12. D Hughes 13. J Clarke 14 B Coulter 15 P McComiskey. The chances of this happening are nil I know but i think it would be much more effective from anything we have seen in Division 3 this year and in sundays dabacle.

[wanderer]

Very pleased after the game on Sunday. Would disagree on some points posted about the match, but am going to try to stick to the positives.

First off, was delighted with the showing from a team missing Gallagher, Goan, Owens, Kelly, Murphy and only getting a half each from P.Sherry and McCluskey. It would not be hard to argue that 4 or 5 of those players were among the most important to the cause last year.  The lads who came in acquitted themselves well and people like McElroy (x2) and J.Sherry stepped up to the plate for leadership (even if its only one game so far, it is definite cause for optimism).
Was glad to see the first 2 points being hit from distance, as there are plenty of fellas capable of it. Last year it was repeated that often, it got accepted that Fermangh couldn't shoot from distance, and the longer it went on the more you could see the players starting to believe it. Although was slightly surprised that Little hit the 45 in the first half.

[ExiledGael]

I've seen Little knock them over at club level but he's not a natural at striking the ball. Blobby could be given that responsibility but I suppose we don't want to overburden him. A few stray 50s and the confidence could plummit.

[FermPundit]

I've seen Little knock them over at club level but he's not a natural at striking the ball. Blobby could be given that responsibility but I suppose we don't want to overburden him. A few stray 50s and the confidence could plummit.

Daryl Keenan is a very decent free taker as well.  Blobby won't have the sole responsibility of taking all frees, just the ones that suit a left footed player.

[WhoAreYaWhoAreYa!]

Any fool could see Benny wasnt fit to play, bad bad desicion to play him.

[5 Sams]

A few different people have said to me that Ross and Co got serious abuse from some Down "supporters" after the game on Sunday. I was right behind the dugout where they were and never heard a word.....anyone else?

[Trevor Hill]

Ross and to a lesser extent DJ have taken a bit of stick during the league, though I didn`t hear anyone shouting abuse on Sunday. Are they not abusing us by sending out ill prepared teams week in week out?

[D4S]

I know a lot has been said about the quality of players available to Down, that is fine if the players arent there but that Down team on Sunday were not physically conditioned to last 70 mins of championship football. Why are they not fit at the end of May, what have they been doing since Christmas?  Question posed by MINDER

Sorry lads just wanted to put this post on this thread too, to see what discussion we might get.  My response to the question in bold is below.


Maybe the boys are tired/demotivated because they didn't get a break like other counties, as Ross + DJ called training a week after last years all-ireland final and they trained through november + december !  Not that this is an excuse for the display on Sunday but all small things can build up an lead to an unmotivated panel of players?! How the hell are they supposed to peak in the summer? We are not as good as but why can't we learn from the likes of Tyrone, Kerry, Dublin.  I'd be fairly sure none of these counties were training collectively in October, November, December!  County training takes up so much time these days, rush home from work + out the door, or rush straight to training from work.  Then after the training there's maybe a meal or a meeting.  Fellas need a bit of down time too with friends + family?  I'm sure some hated going out training in November + December, but did it because they knew if they didn't they wouldn't be playing championship football for Down this summer!  Not the only or even the main reason for Sunday's defeat but as I said before small things can build up and make a panel of players unmotivated + resentful!

One other thing that I haven't seen mentioned yet, I was behind the goals on Sunday and before throw in, the Down players spent 10 minutes shooting practice, kicking the ball into the goals.  We did this at underage level, I didnt notice the players at all trying to gee each other up, doing intense drills or looking like they were up for it.  The only time in the game Down looked like playing with any urgency was in the 1st 10 minutes of the 2nd half. I believe it comes down to the management to have a team psyched up+motivated before + during the match.  Why didn't these fellas play like a motivated team?

[spiritof91and94]

Any fool could see Benny wasnt fit to play, bad bad desicion to play him.

What was really the extent of his injury?

[T O Hare]

Any fool could see Benny wasnt fit to play, bad bad desicion to play him.

What was really the extent of his injury?

He pulled his hamstring on Thursday night!!!!!

[D4S]

Any fool could see Benny wasnt fit to play, bad bad desicion to play him.

What was really the extent of his injury?

He pulled his hamstring on Thursday night!!!!!

I had heard this on Friday, but when I saw him line out Sunday I thought it must have been another story/rumour.  Hope he hasn't done any further damage by playin!

[Trevor Hill]

From the Newry Democrat.

BENNY Coulter has admitted to the Democrat that it was a mistake to play in Sunday's Ulser Championship preliminary tie at Brewster Park.

The Down ace pulled a hamstring during Thursday's training session and, despite extreme physio treatment, the problem didn't quite clear up.

Still Benny felt he could do a job of some description.

But the injury curtailed his mobility, and against Fermanagh, he found he couldn't run or play to his potential.

Coulter also said that Sunday's defeat was one of the lowest moments he had every experienced in football.

Going into the match Mourne fans were optimistic that 2009 would be their year.

They were in the weaker half of the draw and missing giants such as Tyrone, Armagh and Derry until the Ulster final.

Now, although their dreams of a provincial triumph are shattered, there's still lots to play for.

After all when Tyrone left Pairc Esler last year with their tails between their legs, everyone wrote them off.

But an All Ireland title answered their critics.

Ross Carr and DJ Kane have six weeks to revive Mourne spirits, restore confidence and get the squad reinvigorated.

And the senior Down side can take inspiration from Mark Turley's mighty Minors who looked stunning as they knocked Fermanagh from the Ulster Championship.

[wanderer]

I've seen Little knock them over at club level but he's not a natural at striking the ball. Blobby could be given that responsibility but I suppose we don't want to overburden him. A few stray 50s and the confidence could plummit.

Daryl Keenan is a very decent free taker as well.  Blobby won't have the sole responsibility of taking all frees, just the ones that suit a left footed player.

Have seen Little take them plenty of times, but he never really convinces me. Keenan and Carson would both be decent at them but I can see why maybe they were kept clear of them on their debuts. If memory serves me right, is Ciaran McElroy not quite handy from 45's as well?