John has another hard luck story to go with this result.
So we have Antrim in Carrick.A winnable game you would feel.Hopefully we havenāt lost to many from the panel since the Galway game.A good chance for the lads to show what theyāre made of,are we going to roll over and die cause Galway gave us a beating or are we goin to man up and go for it.
The mood is to go for it. Dean McGovern back fit will add a bit of bulk and see us get 40+ minutes out of Shane Moran. The Saffrons are no pushover as we know historically, but drawing us away will have shattered the resolve of many of them. Iām predicting a hard fought 3 point victory with the scoreline being along the lines of 1-08 to 0-08 in a dour encounter given our inability to exceed 12 points.
āLookitā we could have gotten a harsher draw at an away venue and that would have punctured the bubble.
I would imagine that coach Andy would be all about this competition and this would have been instilled in the panel.
The lads need a focus thatās somewhat within reach. We have the players to turn over Antrim and see where that takes us. A full-on team performance is required by all invested parties - squad, management, executive and most of all the supporters. I expect weāre going to see the kitchen sink thrunā at this.
Is it time to put McGovern at 6 I donāt think the other 2 have worked out.Weve conceded way too many goals in league and championship so far.And what about our great white hope Moran.Wheres his best position? Weāve tried him at FF a few times will he play there against Antrim? Midfield is settled,thatās as good a pairing as weāve had since McCloskey/Carroll.Antr will be tough but I feel at home we could match them especially after our first half against Galway.
Could we have a McGovern Dolan Rynn Moran diamond around midfield?4 big men all good on the ball.
Well Beirne, after his spell on the bold chair will return at 11. It looks like Plunkett back to 6 as his dalliance at 11 hasnāt caught fire. His form has been ropey of late but heās wasted at 6 but at least if offers a frame to build around. Moran is far from fit, he hasnāt featured really this year - 30 minutes to start for me. The problem from day 1 is the lack of physical, abrasive defenders. Mind, the clubs arenāt churning them out either. Itās an opportunity for a bit of inventiveness and I think weāll see something novel from Coach Moran. Itās the hope really that fucking kills youā¦ā¦
What weād give for a McGuiness McKeown Reynolds full back line now.
For so long our problem was the forwards. Our backs were reasonably ok. Its the opposite now.
Thatās the problem of having a small pool of players
Itās frustrating because we clearly have a more talented bunch than weāve had in a while.
Our full back line has been a problem all year.We have plenty of outfield players but we donāt have a proper full back and have only one proper corner back who Iād rather see in the half back line.
Iād be happy enough with Oisin McCaffrey (SoH) in the full back role. Solid all through the county championship and in the 26 the last day*. Weāre getting places now - Him at 3 , Paddy at 5, Plunkett 6 and Jack Heslin at 7. At least the half-back line offer solidity with strong attacking options.
The Leitrim Gaels duo can fight over the 4 jersey as presumably Diffley will be retained at 2.
Weāre gonna attack this thing aggressivelyā¦ā¦
*Subject to confirmation.
Didnāt Coach Andy experiment briefly with Ryan OāRourke in the half backs in the second half against Tipp?
Obviously decided against it subsequently.
Thatās a great HB line,funny enough we started with Paddy at 5 and Jack at 7 again Sligo.Jack actually got 1-1 in that game and Paddy made some great attacks down his wing causing all sorts of bother before being put into full back cause we were wide open back there.
I was at that and yeah Ryan played very deep that day but heās wasted back there.
He brought Ryan back when Jack Heslin got injured. A move Iād imagine to add an attacking dimension in much the same style as Iāve advocated above. Itās one thing having attacking wing backs but bringing Ryan back to play that style is counter-productive. Too valuable at the top end.
Is there any reason that Mark Diffley and not our captain was in Croke Park today to launch the Tailteann cup?