1 out all out.
1 in all in.
Thats the motto.
Very sad news to hear of that alright, he must have got a serious kicking.
Don’t know the full details of it, but i believe a few fellas have got a kicking back for it since, from our law enforcement that is. Think some of them were actually from Limerick, as well as Cork.
Needs 2 or 3 reads, but the bould Mickey could be onto something here. Not sure how much this would affect the club structures, but at least someone is thinking fair.
The seed of an idea for fairer Qualifiers
By MICKEY HARTE
As the new Championship season gets underway, the debate as to whether the provincial series have been devalued because of the current Qualifying system gathers momentum.
The fact that both last years All-Ireland finalists came through the non-conventional route, allied to the statistic that shows in the eight years since the inception of the back door system, four qualifying teams (Galway in 2001, Tyrone in 2005, Kerry in 2006 and Tyrone again in 2008) have actually won the Sam Maguire.
The two counties who could most justifiably feel aggrieved are Armagh and Dublin, who between them have 10 provincial titles during this period, and only that single All-Ireland won by Armagh in 2002. Though we in Tyrone have been the beneficiaries of the system in 2005 and 2008, I definitely believe that the current weighting is disadvantageous to the provincial champions.
That four qualifiers can regain equal status in the last eight, after having lost a game, while the champions currently have no second chance, is grossly unfair. I have already suggested that I believe the provincial winners should play-off, as in the old style All-Ireland semi-finals, and the two losers await the two best qualifiers. I would like to elaborate a little on that view and allude to another deficiency in our current League system.
Because only the top two qualify for the NFL final, and very soon that reality is out of the reach of many, it becomes a case of avoiding relegation. This necessarily detracts from the competitive nature of the second most important gaelic football competition. Connecting League position to each championship draw and a re-structuring of the Qualifying system would address both these deficiencies simultaneously. This would take the format of a seeding process where the counties in each province would be rated according to their League finishing position.
For example, based on the League just completed, Ulster would read:
1 Derry. 2 Tyrone. 3 Monaghan
4 Donegal. 5 Armagh. 6 Down. 7 Fermanagh. 8 Cavan and 9 Antrim. Therefore, in the preliminary round Cavan would play Antrim and the winner would go into the quarter-final where they would play Derry. Accordingly, Tyrone (2), would play Fermanagh (7), Monaghan (3) would meet Down (6) and Donegal (4) would play Armagh (5).
The loser of the preliminary game would enter the first round of the Qualifiers. In Leinster, the competing teams would be rated one to 11, in Munster one to 6 and in Connacht one to 6. New York would be accommodated on a rotational basis as at present.
In a new departure, I would suggest that the preliminary round losers, which would be eight in total (one in Ulster, three in Leinster, and two from both Connacht and Munster) should play off in an open draw and the four winners go forward to the second round where they would be in the same pool as the losing quarter-finalists in Ulster and Leinster (totalling eight) and the losing semi-finalists in the other two provinces (totalling four), thus making a total of 16 teams in the second round of the Qualifiers.
In theory, this should result in the 16 bottom teams according to current League form making up the second round of the Qualifiers. Of course, there could be a number of upsets or giantkilling acts, and consequently a highly ranked team could find themselves in the Qualifiers at this stage, but it is likely that the majority would follow the expected pattern. This method would have the distinct advantage of giving developing counties a realistic chance of making progress and not suffering any humiliating defeats. The eight winners would then play each other in an open draw (third round) and again the four winners play in the fourth round to leave two successful teams.
Meanwhile, there would be two beaten semi-finalists in Ulster and Leinster plus the beaten finalists in Munster and Connacht to join them in making a total of eight again. An open draw for the fifth round would reduce this to four and the sixth round would reduce this to two and then the beaten finalists in Ulster and Leinster would provide their opposition (seventh round) to eventually leave the two best qualifiers who would have to meet the beaten provincial champions (eighth round) in order to re-enter the All Ireland series proper.
I know you might be thinking this appears complicated, but, I assure you, there is a degree of logic in the proposal. I understand the overall logistics in making any system work is fraught with much difficulty but, nevertheless, I believe this system could address some of the deficiencies often attributed to the current All-Ireland football structures. The benefits could be (a) higher value placed on League positions equally valid across each province. (b) better weighting given to provincial success and, consequently, more of a knock-out mentality prevailing within the provinces. © more realistic chance for developing teams to make progress without the risk of demoralising defeats. (d) it would create a more level playing field for teams from Ulster and Leinster, where their beaten finalists enter at a more advanced stage than those from the provinces with a smaller number of counties.
As in all such innovative thinking I am very well aware that the devil is often in the detail and, no doubt, I may have overlooked some critical factors in this thought process. However, it might serve to initiate some solutions rather than re-iterate the problems inherent in the current system.
Carey, Miskella and O’Leary all start, no Cussen. Conor has very nearly picked the right 15 (Colm O’Neill should start somewhere in the full forward line).
Kerry and Cork lads still in the pub. Match delayed
Another achievement of astonishing incompetence by the Cork County Board. They should all be put up against the wall and 
Surely not
Thought it was only the Dubs that stayed in the pub:confused:
Galvin and O’Leary gone on straight reds
TV3 so shite they haven’t even got it on camera
Kerry are appalling, worse then last week. Game should have been over at half-time.
Kerry have been poor but they have a strong breeze in the second half, Cork to lose all the same…
Don’t know Puke
I know COrk are only 5 up but they look on top in every area
[quote=“W.B. Yeats”]Don’t know Puke
I know COrk are only 5 up but they look on top in every area[/QUOTE]
I left out an “s” out of that last statement
Cork’s to lose…
We are going to lose, we are going to lose…
[quote=“The Puke”]I left out an “s” out of that last statement
Cork’s to lose…[/QUOTE]
5 min in and that s doesn’t look like it matters anymore
OMahony diving again there though
Cork seem to have forgotten for the second week in a row that there is a second half. Galvin is just a liability at this stage.
Penalty…
Will he put it away
yes he will
Game on?!?
Reidy must be the worst corner back to have ever played for Kerry. He’s muck