The Battle for Sam 2009

Sport
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[quote=“farmerinthecity”]Good question - James Glancy was taking them in the league. Not bad but not nearly as good as Mulligan.

The other option is Michael Wilkinson Foley - don’t even want him in the team to be honest.[/QUOTE]

Possibly Ray Cox and Glancy in the two corners - left and right sided. I wholeheartedly agree with Farmer about Wilkinson. The sight of the fucker posing over a free is revolting.:popcorn:
Slightly confident at this stage and while I do not regard Carrick as a fortress (I love the oul’ Hyde) the derby factor is massive this year. Word on the ground is that the loss of Mulligan is having a massive shit or bust effect.

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Think bandage had the same problem during the week:eek:

123

i see that your idol handsome shay is touting down for Ulster on another forum

so who is leading who here - who is the brains & who is the yes man?

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The chances of a light, naive Down team winning a hard edged, cynical Ulster championship are less than none.

125

DB vs Bandage here

forever will their reputations be staked on this

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Down will do nothing until the get the great Pete McGrawwwwwwwww back in charge.

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[quote=“Bandage”]The chances of a light, naive Down team winning a hard edged, cynical Ulster championship are less than none.

[/QUOTE]

got them at 20s with Victor Chandler. I expect them to get to a semi final against Donegal. They will be about 7/2 for Ulster then.

Lay lady lay - that’s the plan anyway

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And that makes 3

Laois will be without Zach Tuohy for part of this year’s Championship as he is going to Australia for a training camp ahead of his permanent move to the Carlton Blues in November.

He will travel to Carlton in mid July to familiarise himself with Aussie Rules and will return in the second week of August. Cork under 21 star Ciaran Sheehan is also going over.

Tuohy follows Cork’s Setanta O hAilpin and Mayo’s Pearce Hanley to Carlton and has already agreed a two-year deal.

The loss of Tuohy is Laois’ third to the AFL, as he follows in the footsteps of Colm Begley and Conor Meredith. Brendan Quigley returned home after a few months with the Brisbane Lions.

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What is it about Laois lads MBB? Always seems to be an unreal amount of them getting tappped up my Aussie Rules lads.

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There’s a mole in the camp. Toss in our decent underage system and the fact that we’re not a glamorous county thats guaranteed provincial titles, then you get good players who aren’t certain of rewards, so they fook off to Oz.

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Proud to enlist in the Kingdom’s service

Coliste na Sceilge’s Max Thiemann © and Ian Galvin in action against Edenderry’s Brian O’Flaherty during the All-Ireland colleges senior football final at Portlaoise. - (Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho)

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/images/2009/0513/1224246386622_1.html

HOME FROM HOME MAX THIEMAN : EMMET RIORDAN talks to a promising German-born Gaelic footballer who has been called up by Kerry after an epic school campaign

THE CASE of Max Thiemann proves that when it comes to Kerry football, nature can have a lot stronger influence than nurture in creating further generations of green and gold heroes.

The 17-year-old was born near Stuttgart to German parents Bernard and Ursula, before moving to Sligo at three years old and finally arriving in south Kerry when he was eight.

Keen on all sports growing up, it was love at first sight when he started to join in games at primary school in Waterville.

“I always loved sports growing up and found it very easy to fit in to any type of sport. When I came to Ireland then, especially in south Kerry it was just football.

“I loved it from day one. It took me quite a while to get into some of the rules, but once I did I loved it,” he said.

His footballing education would take a giant leap forward when he moved on to secondary school at Coliste Na Sceilge in Caherciveen and the guiding hand of Kerry senior boss Jack O’Connor.

“Your dream coming in to first year is the Corn U Mhuir and the Hogan Cup. I knew the standard was very high, seeing as the school had already won three Corn U Mhuirs in a row at the start of the decade. There are great trainers there too and they make a really good job of it.”

O’Connor coached that three-in-a-row side that claimed their first title in 2001 in their first year competing in the competition. The All-Ireland title eluded them during that run but that would all change this year when they secured the Holy Grail of colleges football with a Hogan Cup final victory success over St Mary’s of Edenderry.

Thiemann, a fifth-year student, played his part with his physical performances in midfield, while O’Connor’s son anna contributed some some vital late scores throughout the campaign, including a dramatic late goal in the decider.

Thiemann is quick to play down the individual aspects of their success, pointing to an unbreakable team spirit that saw them through some tough encounters as they first made it out of the treacherous waters of the Corn U Mhuir and then past St Patrick’s of Dungannon to make the decider.

“Back when we played a few games in Kerry we were a couple of points down at certain stages. But our forward line was always able to get goals and did that in the semi-final of the Corn U Mhuir especially, with a goal in injury-time to win the game against Skibbereen,” said Thiemann.

anna O’Connor had the midas touch again that day and they would go on to claim their fourth Corn U Mhuir crown of the decade in a hard-fought decider against Intermediate School Killorglin, where they claimed the title by a single point, 2-8 to 2-7.

Having safely secured their passage out of Munster, they would enter their Hogan Cup semi-final against St Patrick’s of Dungannon as underdogs.

Tyrone sides may have caused problems to the Kingdom’s senior stars during the decade, but the Kerry side chose the moment perfectly to put in their most impressive display of the campaign in Portlaoise.

Thiemann puts the performance down to the fact that the pressure was off to some respect after claiming the Corn U Mhuir. “All the other games in Kerry and Munster we were always the favourites to win and that’s a very big burden to have.

“Then in the semi-final of the Hogan Cup we were the underdogs and we really played our football that day. That burden had kind of gone and Jack was saying to us to just believe in ourselves and play football and we’d be okay,” added Thiemann.

They certainly did believe and a 3-10 to 1-6 scoreline for the Kerry side saw them go into the final as overwhelming favourites to claim their first All-Ireland title back in Portlaoise.

“It was always hard going into the final, in any All-Ireland final there’s going to be nervousness. The tag of favourites was back on us and we had to deal with that after the semi-final,” remarked Thiemann.

Whether nerves or complacency set in, their title dream looked a distant one at half-time in the decider as St Mary’s enjoyed a 0-6 to 0-1 lead. Time to panic? Not a bit of it as O’Connor set about reassuring his charges that the game was still there to win.

“We believed in ourselves and Jack and Michel S were just saying to us to just keep the heads and play our football and we’d hang in there and point by point we’d get back at them,” remembers Thiemann.

And so it transpired as they levelled matters with 10 minutes to go, only for the Offaly side to come back and lead by one point with time running out. But O’Connor junior would have the final say, firing home to the back of the net with the last kick of the game to spark great scenes of jubilation amongst the Coliste na Sceilge players, coaches and supporters.

“It took a while to sink in, to win an All-Ireland is great and we saw it as a reward for all our hard training since last September,” added Thiemann.

It wasn’t Thiemann’s first All-Ireland title, with three under-21 titles and other underage successes with Sive Rowing Club playing a big part in his summer activities over the years. And he also shared in the success of his club, St Michael’s Foilmore, as they secured the All-Ireland intermediate club title at Croke Park back in February.

He has parked the oars for the time being, fulfilling a long-held ambition by making his debut in the green and gold colours for the Kerry minor side in their victory over Tipperary that secured them a Munster semi-final clash against Clare in Tralee tonight.

“Putting on that Kerry jersey is something else, you’d notice straight away the standard of intercounty football is another step up from earlier in the season. You really have to up your performance, you can never take your foot off the gas.”

Taking it to the Max then – it’s the Kerry way after all.

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All set for more nuke and puke as RTE’s poacher turned gamekeeper gets a licence to thrill again

Ewan MacKenna talks to Pat Spillane about his no holes barred style which has led to being denounced from the altar and weekly threats by letter

In the face of fury: Pat Spillane grew thick skin as a player and has needed it ever since

'In three"… the 1992 autumn fashion collection in Donegal consisted of t-shirts suggesting he knows “f**k all about football” after the misdiagnosis of that year’s final. “Two”… his opinions on the 1995 Munster final led a priest in Kerry to skip God during one sermon and instead denounce him from the altar. “One”… after the 2000 Leinster final, when he brutally tore Kildare’s efforts limb from limb, their county board tried to have him removed from RT. “And we are on the air”… Pat Spillane smiles through the self-doubt that’s swirling in his head for first time in a life that from the outside seems one long victory parade. The rest of the country rubs its hands together against the sound of gritted teeth.

For year’s he’s been getting abuse. The letters that come through the door tend to have "Boocks" as his middle name. A few years back one addressed simply to Pat Boocks, County Kerry found its way to the home place in Templenoe. His wife takes the odd glance but he rarely gets more than two lines in and can never understand why someone would go to the trouble of writing pages of bile and not sign their names. Other times it went further. In fact the main reason he took The Sunday Game presenter’s role was because of the “threatening letters and phone calls, some of them very frightening. It was getting very dodgy, very scary stuff”.

It got so serious, there was one All Ireland final when he travelled to Croke Park hiding in the back seat of Ger Canning’s car. “That was a bad one alright. Mayo. It was one of the years they could have won an All Ireland but that hardly narrows it down. If they’d listened they might have won one. But for years I was only pointing out the blindingly obvious yet here I was hiding in the back seat.”

Now he’s in the front seat of his own car, making his way home from The Sunday Game launch in Dublin, a road he’s travelled every summer Sunday night these past five years, getting back just three hours before the alarm had him up for school. And while the slings and arrows fired out at his presenting pierced the thick skin, you can’t help asking what he thought of his own efforts in the hot seat.

“The figures were good. I thought it was great. If I hadn’t been an analyst before people would have said I was doing a great job. I got a bit pissed off with some the things said. I knew nothing about hurling – a lazy criticism when in actual fact the football was more difficult. I really did work my socks off. Sometimes you’d get frustrated and I would have loved to have a Pat Spillane on the other side. You were getting excellent, articulate analysis but weren’t getting the answer you should have. I might have known more than some of the fellas I was putting the questions to.”

Like his opinions of others, his opinion of himself is questionable in this instance but what’s a fact is there wasn’t much help. The first night he anchored The Sunday Game in 2004, RT was in the midst of a power struggle and the office of Head of Sport was empty. It left Spillane with no training and he sat there blind as the cameras rolled. “It’s some achievement pulling that off without making a mistake. But the criticism hurt because I worked hard and when I was a pundit people were giving out to me for being controversial and then when I went they said RT have lost their best pundit. But I’ve gone through that doubting phase and I am one hard individual.”

That inner steel came about the same way as his inability to walk for more than an hour these days or run at all. From the same origins as the constant pain in his knee he’s learned to live with. In fact his opinions have been so severe, many under 30 don’t even realise he won eight senior All Irelands, nine All Stars and came through more than any Gaelic footballer to stay at the top. In August of 1981 playing for Templenoe he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament, a similar effect to an elastic band snapping. Back then, no one had ever recovered from the injury and even after surgery he was told there was little chance he’d play again.

The solution involved his own programme. Training Monday to Saturday, twice a day; a weights programme for his quads and hamstrings in a rat infested garage every second day, even if that meant missing part of Christmas; 30 laps of the football field with 10-pound weights strapped to his legs. By the end of it all, before the 1984 All Ireland final, a visit to the doctor revealed he had a resting pulse of 34. Carlos Lopes, the Portuguese who beat John Treacy to gold in that year’s Olympic marathon, had the same number.

“When you are isolated and get back you are mentally way tougher. Nowadays you get a programme and you are fine. But me? Now I need a knee replacement but my surgeon says I’m too young at 53. I wake up some mornings and wonder was it all worth it. Some days you say yes, some days no. I go out with my young lad and he’s kicking the ball and I’m hobbling but every dog has his day. You move on. I can get out of bed, have good health, good family. Like, my All Ireland medals are in a biscuit tin somewhere, not even sure where it is. I’m not into medals or trophies. Been there, done that, got the medal, move on. Next.”

And beside the long drives home, that’s the other reason he’s back in the pundit’s role with Joe Brolly and Colm O’Rourke for live games. Five years of asking questions have left him with a lot of answers built up inside and an old challenge to revisit. On the GPA he says: “I think they should come out in light of the recession and forego their rights to grants. As long as players are being looked after medically and their expenses are okay, then that’s it.”

On rugby he says: “It’s a threat. In our school below in Bantry we’ve been getting calls from rugby coaches all the time. In 31 years as a PE teacher the GAA have never been on. The role models are the Irish rugby team. Very few are even recognisable from GAA.”

And on the standard of football he reaffirms: “When Clive Woodward won the World Cup with England we adopted that paralysis-by-analysis system of success. In every county in Ireland there are 15 players as good as in the next. But the way it is now, give me three forwards, and I’ll take 12 fellas from a top rugby league team and after two week’s training, we’d give most intercounty teams a run.”

The man that caused Joe Kernan to turn on the TV in place of his half-time teamtalk and tell his Armagh side to listen to that idiot is back; the man Jack O’Connor publicly said he had no respect for after getting the Kerry job in 2003 is back. (On O’Connor he claims the two made up and he sent a text message when O’Connor got the Kerry job for a second time reading: “In case you’re thinking of writing another book, might I be the first of the ex-players to congratulate you”.)

"I’ve been there, done that and I’ll give you an honest opinion based on experience. When people look down through the years, any of the supposed controversial things I said, I’d say 90 per cent were tongue-in-cheek whether it be my grandmother was quicker than Francie Bellew or puke football. I’d be very conscious of being mean spirited. Besides, it’s a sign of weakness when you worry about what other people say. Ask the Kildare County Board.

“At the end of the day, and people forget this, television is a medium of entertainment. There’s only a certain percentage of sports viewers that are anoraks. There’s no point in giving a long, boring, 10-minute thesis on the benefits of blanket defence. So I’d like to bring to my role analysis but entertainment as well. I’m just a reflection of a typical GAA person who’s passionate, humorous, just a wide range of emotions. With me, you’ll get everything.”

You ask him will he ever put his expertise into intercounty practice given the huge amount of coaching he does (“19 out of the last 21 nights”) and his know-it-all opinions. “Jaysus, I might.” But for now it’s back to analysis. Lights, camera, action and the country rubs its hands together against the sound of gritted teeth.

emackenna@tribune.ie

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Bad and Goodfellas: our county-by-county guide

Somebody will make off with the loot while all the rest will be gunned down in the street. Kieran Shannon and Ewan MacKenna run the numbers on the ball-breakers and point-shavers planning a hit on Sam

TYRONE (+4)
(+4 =Up four places from last year) Will be even better than they were last year yet may not have Sam to show for it. But with Brian Dooher hell-bent to win it again in his final year and everyone else hell-bent to win it for him, they could pull it off. Stephen O’Neill is two months away from peak fitness but Owen Mulligan and Kevin Hughes are chomping at the bit to re-live 2003.

I’m watching you kid Midfielder Aidan Cassidy

Look, I’m telling you Ulster champions and quite possibly All Ireland champions too

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “You think we need one more? You think we need one more. All right, we’ll get one more” Danny, ‘Ocean’s Eleven’

2. KERRY (-1)
For all they’ve won it’s hard to recall their panel ever looking as deep, as hungry, as focused, and – with Jack ‘The Wolf’ O’Connor back in there to chill them brothers out – as disciplined as they are right now.

I’m watching you kid Promising David Moran

Look, I’m telling you All Ireland finalists, and very likely, All Ireland champions

If they were in a gangster film they’d have said “You sendin’ The Wolf?” “Feel better?” “Shit, Negro, that’s all you had to say” Jules and Marsellus, ‘Pulp Fiction’

3. CORK (+1)
Instead of trying to make Sen O’Brien into another Dooher and trying to make Michael Cussen into another Donaghy, Cork are finally building a team in their own image with the most physically powerful half-back line and midfield in the country backing up a genuine footballing forward line.

I’m watching you kid Pacy half-forward Paul Kerrigan

Look, I’m telling you All Ireland finalists

If they were in a gangster film they’d be asked and then say “What are you going to do?” “Just one last thing, and then it’s done” Michael Sullivan jnr and snr, ‘Road To Perdition’

4. GALWAY (+3)
Barry Cullinane, Niall Coleman, Mark Lydon and Paul Conroy have all been tried in the middle these past few months and still there is no reliable partner for Joe Bergin. And with a Liam Sammon preaching the catch-and-kick game, it’s a midfield failing that’s magnified. Michael Meehan remains one of the best full-forwards about but keep him quiet and Galway are sunk as the other forwards don’t compensate for his quiet days. In fact in Galway’s last three league games – the only three where Meehan couldn’t inspire them to victory – the rest could only pitch in with from-play tallies of 1-4, 1-1 and 1-3.

I’m watching you kid Storming wing-back Gareth Bradshaw

Look, I’m telling you Connacht final defeat

If they were in a gangster film they’d say about themselves – and Mayo “All my life I’ve tried to be the good guy, the guy in the white f***ing hat. And for what? For nothing. I’m not becoming like them; I am them” Joe Pistone, ‘Donnie Brasco’

5. DUBLIN (-2)
Have freshened the team somewhat but only somewhat. As a manager with no experience, Pat Gilroy is guilty until proven innocent but the full-back line which was weak throughout Pillar’s time is an unsolvable problem. The line that Westmeath obliterated for 35 minutes and Tyrone obliterated for 70 minutes last season has been in trouble again this time around.

I’m watching you kid Bernard Brogan, the latest in the dynasty

Look, I’m telling you Last eight via the qualifiers

If they were in a gangster film they’d be told “Thing is, right now you got ability. But painful as it may be, ability don’t last. And your days are just about over. Now… that’s a fact of life your ass is gonna hafta get realistic about. Besides, even if you went all the way, what would you be? [Leinster] champion of the world? Who gives a shit? In the [first] round [against Meath], your ass goes down” Marsellus, ‘Pulp Fiction’

6. DERRY (-4)
Have a greater sense of purpose and method of play about them that should see them finally shake off the Monaghan hoodoo. You’d worry they may be missing too many leaders at the back and not enough support for the Bradleys up front to win something but they must just want it more than Tyrone or Armagh in that likely Ulster semi-final.

I’m watching you kid Corner-forward James Kielt

Look, I’m telling you All Ireland quarter-finalists, possibly having won Ulster

If they were in a gangster film Damien Cassidy would say “The saddest thing in life is wasted talent” Lorenzo, ‘A Bronx Tale’

7. MAYO (+2)
For all their near misses, they’ve only beaten Sligo and Cavan these past two years and they don’t have the firepower up front. But John O’Mahony knows this is the last chance given his workload, has found a three and six in Ger Cafferkey and Tom Cunniffe, has massive competition with James Nallen and David Heaney back and is due just a little bit of luck.
I’m watching you kid Target man Aidan O’Shea, who scored 2-3 in just two league games

Look, I’m telling you Connacht champions and All Ireland semi-finalists

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these. It might have been” Alfred Pendlebury, ‘The Lavender Hill Mob’

8. MONAGHAN (+2)
Have to negotiate tougher terrain than Frodo had to through Middle Earth to get the ring they crave. The Cork game showed that when the heat’s on they can be over-dependent on the Finlay and Freeman show for scores but there’s not a team in Ireland people hate playing more.

I’m watching you kid Corner-forward Mark Downey

Look, I’m telling you Might win one game in Ulster but hardly two; another last-12 exit

If they were in a gangster film they’d be told “Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy, or you gonna bite?” Mr Blonde, ‘Reservoir Dogs’

9. ARMAGH (-3)
They just won’t be Armagh running out onto Clones without Paul McGrane and his bulging biceps, will they? Worse, just when Charlie Vernon seemed primed for his breakthrough year, he goes and breaks his jaw. McDonnell and Clarke might still be the best double act in the business but Aidan O’Rourke is the only other starter from 2002 likely to start this year.

I’m watching you kid Crossmaglen midfielder David McKenna

Look, I’m telling you Last 12-exit

If they were in a gangster film they’d say to Tyrone “You will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you.’ I been saying that shit for years. And if you heard it, it meant your ass. But you happened to pull this shit while I’m in a transitional period” Jules, ‘Pulp Fiction’

10. KILDARE (+6)
A year on from Wicklow and Kieran McGeeney has possibly the best side in Leinster. To just mention last summer’s national top scorer John Doyle is lazy and predictable; this side averaged seven different scorers per Division Two game. Add to that the potential of Kevin O’Neill and Gary White and Dermot Earley’s legitimate claim to being the midfielder in the province, they could end up with some silverware.

I’m watching you kid Powerful and precise half-forward James Kavanagh

Look, I’m telling you Leinster champions

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “When your head says one thing and your whole life says another, your head always loses” Frank McCloud, ‘Key Largo’

11. DONEGAL (-3)
Should have all the usual suspects back which is both good and bad. Good in that it should get them back to an Ulster final; bad, in that they’ll hardly win it or get back to Croke Park.

I’m watching you kid Quality young finisher Michael Murphy

Look, I’m telling you Ulster runners-up, last-12 exit

If they were a quote from a gangster movie “Open your eyes! This is the life we chose, the life we lead. And there is only one guarantee: none of us will see heaven” John Rooney, ‘Road To Perdition’

12. MEATH (–)
Too easy to remember Limerick and forget they were the last team to beat Tyrone in Croke Park. They’ll always perform against Dublin and a forward line of Stephen Bray, Brian Farrell, Cian Ward, Joe Sheridan and (eventually) Shane O’Rourke is too good to disappear again. There could be an early upset in Leinster.

I’m watching you kid The best free-taker in Ireland, Cian Ward

Look, I’m telling you Leinster finalists

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “Look, I fight for what’s mine, I make no apologies. You can call me a ballbuster but it’s just the way I am” Connie Russo, ‘Married to the Mob’

13. WEXFORD (+1)
What was lost in their run to the last four of 2008 was just how poor they were at the back. In their three 2008 Leinster outings they let in 21 points a game and against Tyrone they were caught with another 23. This league only Kilkenny have conceded more goals, and in the top three divisions only Westmeath have conceded more points. Adrian Morrissey, Redmond Barry and Ciarn Lyng will make them competitive but they have problems at full- and centre-back while Matty has his problems too.

I’m watching you kid Half-forward Shane Roche

Look, I’m telling you Beaten by Kildare and early in qualifiers

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “After I got here I ordered spaghetti with marinara sauce and I got egg noodles with ketchup. I’m an average nobody. I get to live the rest of my life like a schnook” Henry Hill, ‘Goodfellas’

14. DOWN (+3)
They actually played better football in last year’s Division Three than they did in this year’s but this time they got promoted. That fillip along with the run of the under-21s could keep them floating all the way to the Ulster final but they won’t beat any All Ireland champions this year.

I’m watching you kid Paul McComiskey, the best young forward in Ulster

Look, I’m telling you Last-16 exit

If they were in a gangster film they’d say (to Fermanagh) “I do what I do best, I take scores. You do what you do best, try to stop guys like me” Vincent Hanna, ‘Heat’

15. FERMANAGH (–)
For four of the past five summers they’ve had the best defensive record in the country but sadly they have the weakest punch up front of any top-20 ranked team. Throw in Mark Murphy in Australia, Marty McGrath and Barry Owens’ latest injury woes and Ryan McCluskey’s rustiness after he favoured soccer over league football, it’s hard to see them doing any giant killing.

I’m watching you kid Ryan Carson

Look, I’m telling you Last-16 qualifier exit

If they were in a gangster film they’d be told “You said you wanted to get [the Anglo-Celt]. Do you really wanna get him? What are you prepared to do?” Malone, ‘The Untouchables’

16. WESTMEATH (-5)
Martin Flanagan, Dessie Dolan, David O’Shaughnessy, Donal O’Donoghue, Kieran Gavin, Dermot Bannon, Fergal Wilson and Damien Healy’s absence meant the league was always going to be a disaster. But with a kind last-eight draw, they should again be competitive, although psychological scars from the last 18 months will stop them crossing the finish line.

I’m watching you kid Dermot Bannon, a rare scoring forward

Look, I’m telling you Beaten in Leinster last four

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “It’s strange how pulling a trigger is easier than playing the guitar. Easier to destroy, than to create” El Mariachi, ‘Desperado’

17. LAOIS(-4)
Nightmare situation for Sen Dempsey in that he has too many players for too few positions and none of them playing particularly well. Pdraic Clancy and Brendan Quigley are struggling at centrefield and they are so poor in attack that there’s talk of Beano making a reappearance at full-forward. In their four league defeats this year they averaged less than five points from play and three scorers a game. Keep MJ Tierney quiet and you’ll win. If you don’t you’ll probably win anyway.

I’m watching you kid Multi-talented John O’Loughlin, who’ll probably play centre-back

Look, I’m telling you Might get shocked by a Louth side with a game under their belt

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “You don’t understand. I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody” Terry Malloy, ‘On the Waterfront’

18. TIPPERARY (+8)
The greatest sporting miracle since Kim Jung-Il’s 38-under round of golf is now out of the way, the Division Three champions are sitting ducks. A win against Limerick will turn a great season into a remarkable one and given the venue for that tie and the speed at which Tipp play the game, they could add their neighbours’ scalp to the list of names they’ve upset this season.

I’m watching you kid Free-scoring Barry Grogan

Look, I’m telling you Munster final defeat ending one hell of a season

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “With dreams begin responsibilities” David Jason, ‘Deep Cover’

19. LOUTH (-1)
Three missed penalties cost Louth five points and promotion but there were other reasons for their average league campaign too. With the midfield pairing of Ronan Carroll and Brian White averaging five points a game, not enough forwards helped build on that total.

I’m watching you kid Brian White, a threat from midfield

Look, I’m telling you Might topple a freefalling Laois

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “Don’t wait for it to happen. Don’t even want it to happen. Just see what does happen” Malone, ‘The Untouchables’

20. SLIGO (+2)
Having fallen from the top of the mountain, the climb began in earnest this league. The full-back line of Charlie Harrison, Noel McGuire and Ross Donovan have conceded only 10 points a game (only Cork and Antrim were better) and have been the platform for a mini-revival. The return of Mark Brehony and Eamonn O’Hara add momentum but Brendan Egan’s work commitments in Sweden will stop them.

I’m watching you kid Adrian Marren

Look, I’m telling you Won’t get the chance to show they are best of the rest out west

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “You want to know what my father went through to get my watch? I don’t want to get into it right now but he went through a lot” Butch, ‘Pulp Fiction’

21. LIMERICK (+2)
Completely over-reliant on Ian Ryan. He kicked 40 per cent of their miserly league tally which averaged just 11 points a game and only twice all league did a teammate manage more than two points (what happened to the side that put 4-12 on Meath?). Mickey Ned never thought heading to Thurles it would be a Division Two side taking on a team two leagues lower.

I’m watching you kid Kieran O’Callaghan at corner-forward

Look, I’m telling you Will rattle Tipp but are too one-dimensional

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “This is going to get messy” Gorgeous George, ‘Snatch’

22. OFFALY (-3)
Three management teams and a strike later, finally there’s some stability. Alan McNamee still doesn’t have a midfield partner but at least the over reliance on Niall McNamee has decreased with John Reynolds playing well, Thomas Deehan back in form and PJ Ward back. Bad draw though.

I’m watching you kid Niall Darby at full-forward

Look, I’m telling you First-round defeat to Kildare although their response will be interesting given the infamous pre-qualifier attitude

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “I haven’t had a gun in my hands for many, many years. My eyes aren’t what they used to be, even with the glasses” Noodles, ‘Once Upon a Time in America’

23. CAVAN (-3)
Just as he moved on some big names in Roscommon, Tommy Carr has done the same in Cavan. He effectively retired Dermot McCabe while Mark McKeever was not just relieved of the captaincy but of his spot on the panel after a training camp disciplinary matter. Could ambush the winner of Down-Fermanagh but won’t threaten an Ulster final

I’m watching you kid Michael Lyng, back after years of injury torment

Look, I’m telling you Last-24 exit

If they were in a gangster film they’d say to Tommy Carr “You live among the remains of dead people. You sift through the detritus, you read the terrain, you search for signs of passing and then you hunt them down. That’s the only thing you’re committed to. The rest is the mess you leave as you pass through” Justine Hanna, ‘Heat’

24. WICKLOW (+6)
Some strange decisions in a league that lacked direction and purpose, not least bringing on sub goalkeeper Billy Norman in the forwards. Missed James Stafford and Thomas Walsh badly in the middle but both are back.

I’m watching you kid The classy Leighton Glynn

Look, I’m telling you First-round win but an anticlimax against Westmeath

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “Whether or not what we experienced was an ‘According to Hoyle’ miracle is insignificant. What is significant is that I felt the touch of God. God got involved” Jules, ‘Pulp Fiction’

25. ANTRIM (+2)
Big monkey off their back in finally getting out of Division Four and could even surprise Donegal in the first round. Liam Bradley has brought some steel and discipline to the set-up; shame CJ McGourty and himself fell out.

I’m watching you kid Paddy Cunningham

Look, I’m telling you Will win a game this summer

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “Everybody deserves a fresh start every once in a while” Bugsy Siegel, ‘Bugsy’

26. ROSCOMMON (-2)
Fergie O’Donnell’s popularity continues to soar but the under-21 defeat to Mayo was more devastating than any senior defeat could possibly be this season. A little luck and the return of Cathal Cregg could see them win a match in Carrick.

I’m watching you kid Cathal Cregg

Look, I’m telling you One win, two defeats

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “He said I could learn some things from you. I already know how to drink” Johnny Hooker, ‘Sting’

27. LONGFORD (-6)
Only so many forwards to unearth amongst 34,000 people, Longford had the third worst attack in the league. Hard to understand why the bookies have them as favourites against Wicklow.

I’m watching you kid Philip Reynolds, who needs to solve a problem at midfield

Look, I’m telling you First-round exit at the hands of Wicklow

If they were in a gangster film they’d say to Glenn Ryan “What did you expect? To come in here and fix everything?” Gloria Carter, ‘Get Carter’

28. WATERFORD(–)
Continue to fight the good fight, with another league in which they went close to promotion. Conceded only one goal all spring. Sadly up front the free-scoring wonder that is Liam Lionin hasn’t enough support.

I’m watching you kid Liam Lionin who scored 6-15 from play in the league

Look, I’m telling you After the inevitable defeat to Cork, could surprise any team outside the top 18 in the qualifiers

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “I just can’t believe we’re going to walk into certain death” Verbal, ‘The Usual Suspects’

29. LEITRIM (-4)
Missed promotion and 11 Division Four goals conceded can be forgiven as Mickey Moran worked his way through 38 players in the league but Michael Duignan’s absence leaves a void at centre field. And then there’s the season-ending injury to Emlyn Mulligan. He kicked more than 50 per cent of their scores in the six games he started this league and was the top scorer in Connacht last year.

I’m watching you kid Toms Beirne

Look, I’m telling you First-round fall at home to Roscommon

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “Every day above ground is a good day” Mel Bernstein, ‘Scarface’

30. CLARE (-1)
You would have thought a winnable game away from a Munster final would have galvanised football players and men in the county but it hasn’t. The worst team in Munster.

I’m watching you kid Nippy forward David Tubridy

Look, I’m telling you Won’t win a game all summer

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “You know, in a situation like this, there’s a high potentiality for the common motherf***er to bitch out” Maurice Snoopy Miller, ‘Out of Sight’

31. CARLOW(–)
Nothing Matthew, Mark and John – let alone Luke on his own – could do with this lot. Looks like a grim summer.

I’m watching you kid Mark Carpenter (not really a kid, but there is no one else)

Look, I’m telling you Beaten badly, twice

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “I mean, look at me! You got everything, man. I mean, come on! Look what I got to fn’ go around with. Fn’ diapers, man. I got fn’ diapers! I shit in my pants every day, I can’t walk, I can’t hump. Go ahead and kill me, you csucker” Lalin, ‘Carlito’s Way’

32. LONDON (–)
Bad draw given they’d have rattled the lesser lights out west. It’ll probably take another year of Lenihanomics before they do beat someone.

I’m watching you kid Tyrone high-scoring native Chris Eastwood

Look, I’m telling you Two and out

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “The entire British empire was built on cups of tea, and if you think I’m going to war without one, mate, you’re mistaken” Eddie, ‘Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’

33. NEW YORK (–)
Over and out on the opening day. Not experiencing the boom like England.

I’m watching you kid Former Mayo minor Robert Moran

Look, I’m telling you Giving a game to the Irish community is more important than winning

If they were in a gangster film they’d say “I give you my word, this will all be finished tomorrow” Amsterdam Vallon, ‘Gangs of New York’

May 10, 2009

134

Serious bit of work there MMB. Where’d you get it from??
Love the quote on Galway
If they were in a gangster film they’d say about themselves and Mayo “All my life I’ve tried to be the good guy, the guy in the white f***ing hat. And for what? For nothing. I’m not becoming like them; I am them” Joe Pistone, ‘Donnie Brasco’
pure class

135

Best Sports paper in Ireland, The Tribune

136

Is there a hurling version?

137

Dunno that, didnt see it. Check Trib website.

TSG has kicked off for 09. Sunday afternoons, The Championship is back.

Downs jersyes are a disgrace, O Neills should be ashamed of themselves.

Good to have Spillane back on TSG.

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[quote=“myboyblue”]

Good to have Spillane back on TSG.[/QUOTE]

What was all that about his phsychiatrist telling him not to bottle things up and to let things out? I thought he was telling a joke. I’m still waiting for the punchline or indeed a wry smile from him to suggest so. :confused:

139

Missd that Dunph. Shur Spillane could come out with anything. Think it might take him a wee bit to get his feet again as an analyst but its not harm to shake up O Rourke and Brolly.

I wonder is the decision to base them in a studio instead of aeound the grounds a cost cutting measure?

140

Some fine point scoring on display. Whats the attendance like?