Senior Hurling semi finals - 03/10/2010

[biffoabroad]

Disappointed K/K fan here. So many issues in relation to todays game that I am sure the powers that be will hand out some fines and suspensions/bans. First off well played to Tullamore again. They have discipline, fittness, great work ethic and no shortage of skill. I hope they go on to win it out now. I don't think we can blame the Ref for losing this game, I thought K/K in the first half had gotten it pretty much right (perhaps over zealous in some of the tackling which came back to haunt with a couple of reckless yellows) and with a bit of luck could have been a few more up at half time.

As for the second half I think it was fair to say Tullamore improved after the break and it was nip and tuck with points being traded. The farce of the first sending off though rankles a little. I actually don't blame the ref, as he acted on the instruction of his inept linesman (who let him hang). I did not see the incident as was following the ball. So obviously I can't comment on the whether it was a deserved yellow or not for "whoever" commited the foul. The problem is not that a foul was committed or indeed that a player be yellow carded for it, but it is the whole ineptitude and handling of the situation that upset the players. It lead to confusion and sowed the seeds for the brawl a few minutes later. When the ref loses his authority and the respect of the players it descends into a bit of a farce. I think the real culprit was the linesman in that he called the refs attention to it and let him walk over to Eamon Lee and talk with him for about a minute before sending him off. Surely to God if the linesman thought it was Slevin he should of stopped the Ref before he made a fool of himself by sending of Lee and lost his authority with the players. I am pretty sure it wasn't Slevin just from the reaction of the player. He was a loss in midfield. No excuses for the scenes after, and hopefully K/K won't be judged by the actions of a few. But in fairness to Tullamore they didn't let the 10 minutes of chaos affect them, maintained their discipline and pushed on to finish strongly. i wish them all the best in 2 weeks.

P.S 3 minutes extra time. WTF!

[GreatDayForTheParish]

looking to blame the ref for K/K short comings is a laugh.

Again, nowhere did I say that.
Had all the time been played Tullamore could quite easily have stretched their lead. In fact they probably would, after the brawl it was they who dominated the game as K/K fell apart. That does not however make the lack of appropriate extra time any less wrong.

Quit the lazy, false generalisations on my posts. Its juvenile.

[biffoabroad]

If it was Coyne, he should have come forward taken the yellow and would have stopped Slevin being sent off for a second yellow. Someone in charge should have been using the head. I suspected it was Coyne just from the positioning of the players at the time, and I even think he looked like coming forward.

[townman]

Just on the other semil-final that was on today, i have to say well done to Coolderry they played a lovely brand of hurling in which
the management Ken Hogan has them playing i know people will say Kinnitty were brutal but coolderry played some great hurling
today and are strong and fit its hard to see them been beating in the county final.

it will be some year for Ken Hogan if he pulls it off senior under21 club titles and an all ireland under21 title with tipp
i think offaly have slipped up not giving him a shot at the county team. i think the county team have gone stale under Joe Dooley
well thats for another day.

[allstar2010]

I'm not from tullamore or K/K either but once the 60 minutes was played there can't be a replay it doesn't matter if he only played 2 seconds
of injured time. as i said before if K/K had to stick to playing hurling instead of acting the mick they could of won today.

but in all fairness greatdayfortheparish how did you know there was 7 minutes left to play i know the row went on but thats their own fault
looking to blame the ref for K/K short comings is a laugh. as i said i am not tullamore and i was sitting beside two K/K men and they
agreed with me that Ger Healion was lucky to stay on the pitch for a late pull across the tullamore full back Mark Conlon in which the umpires
call in the ref cooke about it and he should of sent him off.

"townman" yeah of course ur not from tullamore!! They ref rode kk. If there isn't a replay it's a poor day for Offaly hurling... Healion never touched d full back, he went down like all d rest of the windy townies..

[allstar2010]

greatdayfortheparish there is not a chance of a replay.. tullamore won fair and square today,,. it was kk who tryed to rough them up and it ultimately backed fired on them.. kk havent got the head to win the county out.. and never well.. and quite frankly i love it that way as i cant stand them shower.. il tell ya this there was no "kk" chants or kilcormac drums beating at the end..

as for tullamore back in the final i think its time the south of the county started looking at this tullamore team and giving them credit... the have bet birr the last 3 years and kk the last 2 but yet ye still hear lads saying it was a fluck..

this coming from a ballinamere man is laughable... How'd ye get on against rynaghs... Bottle it again...

[townman]

I'm not from tullamore or K/K either but once the 60 minutes was played there can't be a replay it doesn't matter if he only played 2 seconds
of injured time. as i said before if K/K had to stick to playing hurling instead of acting the mick they could of won today.

but in all fairness greatdayfortheparish how did you know there was 7 minutes left to play i know the row went on but thats their own fault
looking to blame the ref for K/K short comings is a laugh. as i said i am not tullamore and i was sitting beside two K/K men and they
agreed with me that Ger Healion was lucky to stay on the pitch for a late pull across the tullamore full back Mark Conlon in which the umpires
call in the ref cooke about it and he should of sent him off.

"townman" yeah of course ur not from tullamore!! They ref rode kk. If there isn't a replay it's a poor day for Offaly hurling... Healion never touched d full back, he went down like all d rest of the windy townies..

i from a town alright and its Birr town as for the windy townies how come they have 23 county titles tullamore 10 how many have K/K
the only one that rode K/K was them selfs and on the line and its not the first time this happen.

[Long John]

I think a few people on here are taking away from what was a great Tullamore win. KK through everything they had and more at the Blues but in fairness to the them they showed character and didnt lie down.

I dont know who it was for sure that did take Kelly out near the end but what I do know is that somebody had to go for it. It was intentional and dangerous and thats the bottom line. Healion did some very wild pulling also when things were not working out for him. Its a pity for KK because they are a team I would not mind seeing winning the championship but a few lads let them down in the big game and thats their biggest downfall.

Moving on, Coolderry will probably be overwhelming favourites and they wont have any respect for Tullamore. I expect them not to go out expecting to win but knowing Coolderry they will expect to hammer Tullamore as they would be more a footballing area. Thats the mind frame down there, and dont anyone deny it. Coolderry, Clareen etc etc have no respect for the likes of Tullamore.

Coolderry were very impressive yesterday and should win the final and comfortably based on form. As for Tullamore, win or lose I think they deserve huge respect as a duel club trying to keep both codes going strong at senior level. I have to admire them for that.

[townman]

I think a few people on here are taking away from what was a great Tullamore win. KK through everything they had and more at the Blues but in fairness to the them they showed character and didnt lie down.

I dont know who it was for sure that did take Kelly out near the end but what I do know is that somebody had to go for it. It was intentional and dangerous and thats the bottom line. Healion did some very wild pulling also when things were not working out for him. Its a pity for KK because they are a team I would not mind seeing winning the championship but a few lads let them down in the big game and thats their biggest downfall.

Moving on, Coolderry will probably be overwhelming favourites and they wont have any respect for Tullamore. I expect them not to go out expecting to win but knowing Coolderry they will expect to hammer Tullamore as they would be more a footballing area. Thats the mind frame down there, and dont anyone deny it. Coolderry, Clareen etc etc have no respect for the likes of Tullamore.

Coolderry were very impressive yesterday and should win the final and comfortably based on form. As for Tullamore, win or lose I think they deserve huge respect as a duel club trying to keep both codes going strong at senior level. I have to admire them for that.

Yes agree with you on most of what you said and i to can't see Coolderry losing the county final they look very fit and hungry for hurling
but you have to give tullamore credit for been back in the county final again this year and i think they now proved that it was no flash
in the pan. as for been from a football area they have a good history of hurling in tullamore they have more titles than the strong hurling
area of Kinnitty, seir kierans, lusmagh,K/K, and people forget that.

[Long John]

Yes Townman, it was no flash in the pan and it proves that their is hurling in the North of the county. Ye deserve huge credit for keeping both codes going so strongly. Unfortunately their are people from the South (hopefully only in the minority) that dont give the likes of Tullamore any credit. Birr possibly would be an exception who I always found to be very gracious in victory and defeat.

[townman]

Yes Townman, it was no flash in the pan and it proves that their is hurling in the North of the county. Ye deserve huge credit for keeping both codes going so strongly. Unfortunately their are people from the South (hopefully only in the minority) that dont give the likes of Tullamore any credit. Birr possibly would be an exception who I always found to be very gracious in victory and defeat.

Bye the way i'm a Birrman not a tullamore man and tullamore have knock us out in the last two year's and all i heard was Birr's gone Birr's bad
because tullamore beat us in the last two year's. we had our day in the sun and please god we will be back again, as for tullamore they have
also beaten K/K for the last two years who have won nothing and think they have a right to think they are better than tullamore.

and the way there fans carried on when Shane Dooley was taking the frees was a disgrace booing and roaring in the stands and they weren't kids
who were doing it one gobshit in front of me roar out go back to clareen or stick with the football when shane miss the few frees. the same great
supporter left before full time when tullamore went 3 points up.

[Lone Shark]

On the balance of play yesterday, Tullamore seemed to me to deserve the win. The shooting from both sides was pretty poor and of course there were several other issues with regard to individual behaviour and the refereeing, but I thought Tullamore kept their focus that bit better, they were happy to get stuck into the game without looking to cross the line usually, and they stood up and delivered some really big scores and some important interventions when the game was in the melting pot.

I also believe that if the game went on for another six or seven minutes, as it should have, Tullamore would have tacked on two or three more scores and won with a bit more to spare. That does not change the fact that K/K were denied time that they were certainly entitled to. Getting a call wrong in the heat of the moment, incorrectly identifying the wrong player, all of these things are disappointing but understandable human error. Playing three minutes extra time when there should have been nearly ten is simply not knowing how to referee a game.

I do sympathise with Declan Cooke over the first incident. He was acting on the advice of the Dinger, so all he could do was follow those instructions. Dinger should have stopped him as he was talking to Eamonn Lee, while it's a moot point to say that Coyne should have come forward. I've no idea what happened so I'm not speculating on who was guilty of what, but I know that if I was a referee and a guy comes up to claim responsibility for a foul when he has no yellow card and I'm about to send off a freetaker for a second yellow, then I'd be skeptical of that player's motives. This one is on the linesman.

The second incident was badly handled on all sides. First of all Cooke watched the wrestling match develop at a time when tension was running high - he should have been straight in, not leave it to sort itself out. The red card for the two lads on the ground was harsh enough, but the obvious red card in all that was for Mannion of Tullamore, who came barging in and struck several players with the hurl. He was the most guilty party of the lot in there and it's disappointing that between referee and linesman, he got off scot free. Secondly, Shaun Martin came in from the sideline to get involved. I'm aware that others then came in after him, but Martin should be getting a serious suspension for that too. Finally, I don't know who the supporter was that got involved or what club affiliation he was (I could guess based on what side he took!) but the important part here is that he should have been cooling off in a jail cell by the time the final whistle went. Interventions from the stand or sideline are the real danger and they should be stamped out entirely. That supporter, and Shaun Martin, should be getting hefty bans in my view. Sadly, I don't believe either will.

I didn't see the Healion incident either, but somebody beside me did and again if that's the case, then he should have gone too. That's why I remain of the belief that Tullamore were deserved winners. I know they had a man advantage, but if justice was done, Keane and Dunican would have been still on the field while Healion and Mannion would have been on the line.

As for the individuals that came charging in to have a go at the ref at the end, the key aspect here is well done to a few county board members who had the presence of mind to add their weight to the stewarding team to ensure that nothing unsavoury happened. While it didn't look pleasant, I didn't see anything that would have made the national papers or anything like that, and with a few minutes to go, such was the atmosphere that it was a genuine concern.

[biffoabroad]

as for tullamore they have also beaten K/K for the last two years who have won nothing and think they have a right to think they are better than tullamore.

and the way there fans carried on when Shane Dooley was taking the frees was a disgrace booing and roaring in the stands and they weren't kids
who were doing it one gobshit in front of me roar out go back to clareen or stick with the football when shane miss the few frees. the same great
supporter left before full time when tullamore went 3 points up.[/quote]

I think most K/K supporters "think they have a right to think they are better than Tullamore." I think most believe that we have a talented team, and have had huge success at underage for the last 2 decades that frustratingly has not translated to snior success. We have been knocking on the door for a while now, and if the correct player had of been booked yesterday (and not Slevin sent off for a 2nd yellow) with 15 v 15 it would have been a very interesting finish. I hope these setbacks spur the team on, as I am sure there is a county in this group of players and maybe once that monkey is off their back we could maybe go on to win a couple more. Booing is a shame, I didn't hear any myself in the stand, but someone of Shane Dooleys ability is way above being put of by it, in fact it probably motivates the oppostition more than distract them.

[backofthenet]

Long John I think its unfair to say people from Coolderry will be expecting to hammer Tullamore because they are from the "football" area. Of course Coolderry will have respect for Tullamore, only a fool wouldnt after the last two years they have had. However I dont think we will fear them, which is an altogether different concept. In fact most Coolderry people if they were 100% honest they would rather play Tullamore than Kilcormac in the county final, just for the fact that there is less history between the teams.

On the two games at the weekend, Coolderry Kinnity was probably the best hurling of the two games, some great scores from the Coolderry forwards who really performed well as a unit, James Rigney didnt give Barry Teehan enough respect in my opinion he tried to play across the whole backline, but whilst he was running around trying to read the game Teehan stood still and tapped over the points.The game felt closer to a challenge game than a county semi final by halftime, When Kinnity tried to get back into it they found the Coolderry backline strong and resillent as it has been all summer, only one goal conceeded so far in the championship is some feat. Coolderry tweaked the team again, with Kevin Connoly moving to the wing, Murray going to the corner, Carroll went back to the wing whilst Martin Corcoran moved to midfield. This seemed to freshen Coolderry up and had Kinnity thinking from the off.

On Tullamore Kilcormac, ive been to 3 Tullamore games this year, in all three i expected them to lose before half time, but they seem to dig deep in the second half and if they are + or -2 to 3 points come the last ten minutes i dont think there is a better team to finish the game. However both Birr and Kilcormac should have beaten Tullamore, Birrs wide tally and yesterdays farce came into play unduly in both games, Really Declan Cooke just doesnt have the experience or ability required to take charge of a senior county semi final, he has a tendancy to let a lot of belts go, then when the inevitable row starts he is far to slow to try and restore order, he becomes a spectator and what would have been two players pushing and shoving turns into a melee. I think the county board have something to answer for by putting him in the role.

Should be a great game in two weeks time, Id imagine Coolderry will be red hot favourites going into the game, but they wont feel like it, Tullamore have proved that they are able to put it up to most teams and having beaten both birr and kk will be full of confidence. The ability of Shane Dooley to influence the game will be key, he will need to be on top of his game and then some for Tullamore to win back to back titles

[the weasel]

Cooke had it right in the first place,it was eamonn lee who fouled so he would have been off anyway so it didnt make a huge difference that slevin was sent off instead. In sayin that there wasnt a hole lot in it, after the tullamore player had just pucked the ball lee pushed him to the ground with the hurl and the tullamore guy made the most of it which they seemed to do a few times durin the match from what i seen. It probably just about deserved a yellow and it was stupid to do when already on a yellow. Id have to disagree with u loan shark on the 2 straight reds, i dont think cooke had any choice especially after the big row that started from it.

As for the match itself there wasnt much in it nd dooley really stood up when needed near the end, a sign of a great player. young waters i think his name is also impressed me takin a few nice scores and causin trouble for kk defence. A big problem for kk nd its a problem that they seem to hav for a long while is there shootin, they shoot to much from out the field hittin lots of wides and droppin lots to goalie especially since slevin start playin midfield, they would be better playin these balls in to the full forward line and workin more scorable chances. Thats just my 2 cents anyway.