Offaly Hurling Championships 2014

[sam88885a]

plain of the herbs would u agree that this young rynagh team stock to a game plan that go them to the final but that rynagh didnt cope with the intensity kk brought . i though rynagh we not able to keep to kk intensity partically in the second half .
j dunne need credit for that .
with good coaching rynagh can improve .they have youth on there side and remind me of kk in 2009 against tullamore

[Toxicity234]

I'm probably being hard on them. But as now deserved three in a row champions, this scrutiny comes with the territory and is a marker of their clubs rise. Offaly needs these players, if they have the capability, to be the backbone of a new Offaly team. The test at the next level awaits, a test they have yet to pass.

Yeah, you are been hard on them.
For players to progress they need to be give a run of games and when they come into the county team a run of game in a position they played at club level would be most preferable.
When is the last time you seen a Kilcormac Killoughey player plays a run of league game in the same position??
The same thing apply to Rynagh's here?? Niall Wynne got a good run of League game at no.2 and got better as the games went on. Dermot Shortt came into the offaly panel this year and Brian Walkins was getting a game at centre back ahead of him. Brian a fine midfield. Shortt was dropped and we played Morkan, Colin Egan and Nolan at centre back. I know he didn't played centre back on sunday and i think that was a mistake.

Good team have a Strong centre. in 1981 and 1985 its was Coughlan and Delaney. In the 1990 it was Kinahan and Rigney. in the club at that time you had Joe Errity and Damien Geoghegan in birr. Kinahan and Connors in Clareen. McGuckin and Rigney in Rynaghs. Were any for these lad blessed with unbelievable pace. No but they were all teak tough.
When is the last time a county won an all ireland without a 6 foot plus centre back. Liam Dunne but Dunne was special what he didn't have in size he make up for in pure aggression.
Offaly have tried to build team full of pace and with hurler down the centre.
Lads like the Healions, Eanna Murphy, Joe Brady and David Kenny have all been overlooked in their best position because of their lack of pace. Them we should have been look at their strength and leadership skills.
Yeah team will target the lack of pace in the centre. just like team this year targeted our lack of power down the centre. The Fennelly's Brothers ran over our two central player this year and Bonner Maher and Callanan had a field day with us.
But a good game plan can over come the lack of pace.

[Plain of the Herbs]

I wouldn’t agree that St Rynagh’s handpassed their way to the County Final. Not at all.

I discovered the breeze was quite stiff when I exited the stand afterwards, to the extent that you couldn’t really hit the ball into that wind and hope to make good ground. Yet Kilcormac were able to do it in the first half. Maybe the breeze stiffened as the afternoon progressed, or maybe the breeze factor didn’t bother Kilcormac, who were on the front foot from start to finish anyway.

Rynagh’s didn’t particularly play a handpassing game in their quarter-final or semi-final. Rather they placed their middle-distance stickpasses and picked out men who had made good runs into favourable positions. That’s all very well when you are on the front foot and dictating play, something that wasn’t the case last Sunday, and a plan is all very well until you are under pressure.

They didn’t make the runs at the required angles, didn’t time the passes correctly and ran into the K-K half-back line too often, when they despertely needed to find space. With the breeze the way it was, I don’t think the alternative was to pump the ball up in the air and chase after it.

Francis Forde didn’t become a bad coach over the course of 75 minute last Sunday. He remains a good coach, and I don’t think Rynagh’s have anything to gain by ditching him now. What are he alternatives?

Finally, I am thinking Rynagh’s miss Lusmagh from Senior hurling. In the past, Rynagh’s best performance of the year was often when they played their neighbours, and it set them up well for whatever Birr, Clareen, KInnitty or anyone else had to offer. With the exception of the Shinrone game (and Rynagh’s have a psychological edge over Shinrone anyway) and the first half of the semi-final, Rynagh’s weren’t really tested on the way to the Final.

plain of the herbs would u agree that this young rynagh team stock to a game plan that go them to the final but that rynagh didnt cope with the intensity kk brought . i though rynagh we not able to keep to kk intensity partically in the second half .
j dunne need credit for that .
with good coaching rynagh can improve .they have youth on there side and remind me of kk in 2009 against tullamore

[shannonbanks14]

Miss lusmagh "u avin a laf mate", how would the rynaghs senior team benefit from playin a team the intermediates knocked out of the championship. Holy mother a god

[Toxicity234]

I wouldn’t agree that St Rynagh’s handpassed their way to the County Final. Not at all.

I discovered the breeze was quite stiff when I exited the stand afterwards, to the extent that you couldn’t really hit the ball into that wind and hope to make good ground. Yet Kilcormac were able to do it in the first half. Maybe the breeze stiffened as the afternoon progressed, or maybe the breeze factor didn’t bother Kilcormac, who were on the front foot from start to finish anyway.

Rynagh’s didn’t particularly play a handpassing game in their quarter-final or semi-final. Rather they placed their middle-distance stickpasses and picked out men who had made good runs into favourable positions. That’s all very well when you are on the front foot and dictating play, something that wasn’t the case last Sunday, and a plan is all very well until you are under pressure.

They didn’t make the runs at the required angles, didn’t time the passes correctly and ran into the K-K half-back line too often, when they despertely needed to find space. With the breeze the way it was, I don’t think the alternative was to pump the ball up in the air and chase after it.

Francis Forde didn’t become a bad coach over the course of 75 minute last Sunday. He remains a good coach, and I don’t think Rynagh’s have anything to gain by ditching him now. What are he alternatives?

Finally, I am thinking Rynagh’s miss Lusmagh from Senior hurling. In the past, Rynagh’s best performance of the year was often when they played their neighbours, and it set them up well for whatever Birr, Clareen, KInnitty or anyone else had to offer. With the exception of the Shinrone game (and Rynagh’s have a psychological edge over Shinrone anyway) and the first half of the semi-final, Rynagh’s weren’t really tested on the way to the Final.

plain of the herbs would u agree that this young rynagh team stock to a game plan that go them to the final but that rynagh didnt cope with the intensity kk brought . i though rynagh we not able to keep to kk intensity partically in the second half .
j dunne need credit for that .
with good coaching rynagh can improve .they have youth on there side and remind me of kk in 2009 against tullamore

Yeah i agree with you. i watched Rynagh's a five time this year and thought 4 of the days they were outstanding. They forward line was build around Rafferty and Wynne do a huge amount of hard work at full and centre forward.
Sunday in the 1st half they look like a team playing with fear.
In the sense normal when they are in trouble they try to hit Rafferty and given themselves a breather. Sunday they were afraid to let the ball go long because they look worried that the big Kilcormac KIlloughey backs would sweep it up and when they were under pressure in they own half instead of just hit it and leaving they hard working forward fight for it, they were trying to short pass it and they were just let the pressure build up on themselves.
its was the worst thing you can do because Kilmartin and Co. Love having lads running that them.
Yeah. i know that Rynagh's the short pass then they had time and space in games early this year but they also use the out ball of Rafferty as well when time and space wasn't there.

This is Forde 1st managerial job and Sunday could be the making of him as a great manager. if he learn from his mistake and his team mistakes.
Cody allways said "sometime you learn more for defeat that victory" and Cody has make some big mistake but he normal only make a mistake once.

[sam88885a]

plain of the herbs i have to agree with shannonbanks14 .
its silly to say rynagh would be better if the had to play lusmagh .
when kk play that high intensity game no club in offaly has been able to handle it since 2012
kk didnt need to play to that level all year and to be fair to rynagh they havent meet a team like kk since the final of 2012 .
both rynagh corner backs were outstanding in the semi final , out way ahead of there men and passing great ball out of defence . on sunday neither could get a clean strike such was the presure kk put on man and ball.
i think rynagh got their tatics wrong .
i would have have started d short at fullback dolan at wing back , tracy on the other wing and camon at centre back g connelly in midfield on leonard and s quirke at full forward with rafferty and g kelly in both corner forward and target their size advantage over their men .
it would not have changed the result but it may have made a game of it .

[sam88885a]

wonder has anyone saw kk training this year?
i have heard there full blooded , no free just keep going no matter what .

[timber]

wonder has anyone saw kk training this year?
i have heard there full blooded , no free just keep going no matter what .

Fair play to KK on their win at the weekend. A tremendous achievement. The management of this squad deserve massive massive credit. When you think about it, alot of the same players were involved with KK teams prior to this 3 in a row and lets be honest you would have fancied your chances of beating them when you went out to play them. But this management team has transformed them and got the max and more out of them. It's all about the team.

Lets not get carried away though with talk about what they are at in training etc etc. This is not Kilkenny. Its a good club team in a poor Offaly championship with Coolderry and Rynaghs the only other good sides. Outside that you are looking at very average to poor.The
standard across all adult grades has dropped. anybody who saw the intermediate and junior finals would see that the standard is nowhere near where it was.

Hopefully KK can go on and do well in Leinster. They have a good opportunity with the Wexford champions drawing and the winner will be a new champion in Wexford. KK have a number of players who are better suited to heavier conditions and they will give it a right go. Let them at it but lets not blow them up too much. As much as some do not want to hear it, this is not the new Birr...yet anyway.

[sam88885a]

timber i hear your point but when birr were wining titles between 99 to o8 they were 15 points better than any other club in offaly . the standard of hurling was at an all time low then in my opinion then . at least cooldery rynagh clareen shinrone and birr are at a simillar level now . they have young teams with potental to improve .
i always think its funny to hear winter hurling suit kk but it didnt suit birr .
surely d currams p geraghty c kiely t geraghty would prefer fast ground and a dry ball ?

[timber]

Yes Sam that is a fair point about Birr being well ahead of the others back then but that was an exceptionally strong Birr team. A team that I personally think would hammer the current county team. And they had a fair few lads who were suited to winter hurling. I never said otherwise. That was a fantastic squad back then that will be hard matched in the country nevermind in Offaly. I think the current standard in the county is very weak outside KK, Coolderry and Rynaghs.

Agree KK have some lighter players but the likes of the Healions, Grogans, Leonard's, Mahon and Gorman who are key to this team are better suited to soft ground. With the exception of Mahon, the others would not be as athletic. Wheras Mahon is not a silky hurler but is very effective in the role KK use him. I think that is why they have struggled to make any real impression for the county whereas their club form would build an expectation that they deserve to be selected. If KK are to go places they need these lads on top form. Best of luck to them. The county sure needs a lift and they seem focused on giving it a right good go.

[sam88885a]

timber the kk team would hammer the current offaly team under b whelahan

[Chris]

KK are finally getting the credit they deserve.....last Sunday was a classy performance from a classy team. Anyone questioning the performance of those KK players when they go into the Offaly setup should address tthe issue with the county management. Can someone perhaps tell me the criteria by which thecurrent management team were measured last year.....in other words, if Offaly perform in 2015 a they did last year will that merit their re - appointment for 2016 again.

[sam88885a]

i agree totaly with u CHRIS kk are finally getting credit . its hard to listen to the bull talked around birr over the last few years that offaly hurling in dead .
that kk couldnt hurl because the didnt go to birr school .
what these people forget is that there was good hurling played in offaly when birr were poor before .
so rather than look down at good clubs like kk maybe birr should try make birr great again.
b whelahan reflects this attidude to guys outside the birr cooldery clareeen area .
look at the lads he fucked around d kelliher s gardner d kilmartain d shortt etc.
to me kk are at the top table because of good managment and good players
.kk are well ahead of other clubs when it matters so it reasonable to expect offaly to build their team around them .
that didnt happen last year which i feel was down to lack of respect for kk by whelahan.
offaly did well against kilkenny last year when 5 kk lads played but d kilmartain also should have played , this year only two kk lads played and look at what happened .
he built this team around parlon hannify carroll and bergin , all good hurlers but i take g healion d kilmartain c mahon and d currams ahead of them any day .they give u 100 per cent for the team .

[Conrad]

Team of the Championship anybody??

Player of the year - toss up between Daniel Currams, Dermot Shortt and Conor Mahon

[sam88885a]

team of the championship has to kk , unbeaten and doing ,three in a row.
d currams for player of the year 7 goals in 8 games i think and lead by example with high workrate to bring kk their 3 title .