I got the impression that morale had improved since that league defeat then but the fact remains that there were plenty of scars left hanging around since the 2013 fallout when Kenny/Helebert departed.
The alleged sad truthā¦ the main reason AC is there is that he is cheap and that the reason the county board ratified him despite the players protests. Heads should roll in the county board over this fiasco also. They went over their players heads.
Iād like to see a dream team of Mattie Murphy, Sylvie and Gerry Mac.,
Donāt ever change, G-lol-way. Donāt ever change 
Cloonan seemed to be running the show this year on match days. Would he be acceptable to the players to step up as manager (if he was so inclined) or would he be tainted by being linked to the current regime?
Hopefully Cunningham will have the good sense to step down and not cause civil war to massage his own ego unlike that mercenary prick Justin.
Fact remains thoughā¦ They had a 3 point head start and 35 minutes to beat KK and failed miserably. They need a good look at themselves in all of this.
Some of them do anyway, especially the more senior players who showed no leadership when it was needed. 3 point lead is nothing, they could have been 8 up and still wouldnāt have won the way they played in the second half. This whole thing has a smell of Cork 2008 about it which is quite depressing. Players need to show leadership on the field not leading coups against management, but human nature being what it is, itās always someone elseās fault.
Well it seems they had no respect for Cunninghams opinion so they were effectively managing themselves in that second half.
Collins did have a good second halfā¦ But Smith, Canning, Tannian, Donnellan are the elder statesmen and they fell along way short.
There just seems to be something deeper going on. I cant put my finger on it but suffice to say whatever did or didnt happen in the dressing room at half time didnt have the required effect.
Not too many managers get the chance to have three bites at an all Ireland final. If 27 out of 30 players want him out heās doing something wrong. Time to go.
I assume the 3 Thomases lads are backing him so 
Iām reliably informed theyāre undecided. Doubting Thomases apparently.
Youād wonder if some of those players he has given a chance to really want him gone or if theyāre just following the leaders of the group. I canāt imagine young Whelan for example, given a chance when not many other managers would have given him a chance really wanting him to leave
Most players, especially younger players, just want to play and have little interest in politics. However they can be influenced if there are a few strong personalities involved. Obviously we donāt know the full extent of whatās going on but I would be surprised if all the younger players that have been given their chance by Cunningham now want him gone. They might be reticent to go against senior players though.
Iāve no issue with the players wanting him gone. 2 AIās fucked away. A train wreck last season.
Best of luck to him, but good luck Anthony.
Thatās a bit unfair. Heās got a county that hasnāt won an All Ireland in 25 or so years to two All Ireland in 4 years. In most games there is only so much a manager can do. I would say of the hurling matches Iāve played in my life, some at a very high standard in less than 5% of those matches the manager has been to blame when we lost. It also doesnāt help when some auld lad sneaks into your dressing room at half time to have a go at you. What do people think he should have done in the second half of this yearās final to win the game?
Thatās the question. The game was there to be won and required the players, especially the senior players, to grab it by the scruff of the neck and win it. They didnāt and now itās managementās fault, and by the way to rub it in we senior players didnāt want Cunningham all year anyway so its truly not our fault. In other words, had we had another manager we surely would have won. I donāt doubt the players intentions are good, but they are pointing fingers in the wrong direction here. If they want an AI medal then go out and win it when its there to be won (strangely enough like the man they are critical of did, twice in fact).
Andy Smith shat himself against Mick Fennelley and now as a āsenior playerā he wants the manager gone? Funny.
Thatās true. However, itās the managerās responsibility to ensure the correct attitude is there. The world and his dog knows that Galway hurlers are not resilient and are the most likely team in the planet to fold. Itās an army of psychologists we need not a manager. If he couldnāt motivate them for the most important half of hurling in the year, he has fuck all influence on them. No point keeping him there, itās not like we can find 30 (27) new player.
I really hope Cunningham digs in and drags the shit out of this.
Ger Loughnane has called the players āpatheticā.