Offaly vs Down Football Qualifier

[faithful till I die]

If the present Offaly set up have any bit of pride, even a small bit

there is now an opportunity for the lads to kickstart their year

Thats all any of us can ask for. Offaly fans will always stay behind their team if they can see the players putting in the maximum effort and taking it seriously. We are all on this site because we love our county and want players we can be proud of whether they win or lose. Come on the faithful we have to want this more than them.

[biffo_king]

I Think we have a great chance agenst down
we are not has bad as we look,and down are by no means kerry or dublin.
hopefully the offaly fans will turn up in numbers..... cant see that many form down making that long trip down form DOWN.
I know we never do that well in the qualifiers.but ya never no this could be our year,i think this is our frist ever real home qualifer(since the started-bar london in 2003-correct me if iam wrong)
may just hope for the best...
go on the biffs

[black and red exile]

You can be certain that Down will travel in huge numbers and will, surprise surprise probably outnumber us like most opposition supporters do even on our own patch. A victory on July 19th will give our guys terrific confidence and I know its a big IF but if the winners of our game were to get the winners of Kildare/Cavan or Westmeath/Tipp there would be a great chance to make further progress but then again that's another day's work and something none of us can do anything about.[ APOLOGIES FOR ALL THE IFS].Back to the game and lets pray to god our management team has the cop on to bury those ridiculous negative tactics of the last day, go back to the two man full forward line of 2 years ago and, it's just my opinion but a midfield combination of McManus and McNamee just would not cut the mustard against Gordon and Colgan so surely a Kelly/Smith or Kelly/McManus pairing would be worth a try.Whatever way you look at it, providing he is injury free Jason Kelly has got to get his chance either at Midfield or in the half forward line.

[Overview]

Very good post lone shark. You are so tuned in it amazes me that the County Board or/and the management of our Co. teams have not utilized your extraordinary ability to decipher genuine information/stats on players and games which would give us a head start on any opposition. I don’t believe any other County have a person of your calibre that would not be dragged in, kicking and screaming if necessary, to plot the path to success. – O there are none so blind than those who do not want to see!!Its ludicrous that the County Board cannot attract/motivate the super talent that we have in the County who are more than willing to play a supporting role to our County team if only they were asked.
Anyway enough of that rant – here is the team from the PRESENT PANEL that I think should be selected (and why) to play Down.
Alan Mullhall: Alan is a safe pair of hands, good reader of the game and an accurate kicker of a ball to a team mate.
Gerry Grehan: Put him on the opponents most dangerous forward and he will not let you down.
Ger Rafferty: The nearest we have to Martin Furlong around the square (come in here at your peril).One bit of advice Ger 'win and give the ball to someone else' never attempt to go forward.
Brian Darby: Play a free role – your football intelligence will see you through.
Karl Slattery: Aggressive in the tackle, very clever and at his best supporting the forwards from deep.
James Keane: Can only play a central role – sit the pocket (between the 21 & 45) and orchestrate the game from there.
Nigel Grennan: I like a left footed player playing at No. 7 and Nigel can – like Slatts – support from deep!
Jason Kelly: Will seamlessly link the backs and forwards and has a hundred times more energy than Alan McNamee.
Niall Smyth: Has to be picked in his best position, can field, can tackle and has ‘bottle’ -a quality which has been sadly missing in Offalys midfield for a number of recent years.
Niall Darby: Given Niall the nod here for the purpose of taking right sided frees and hopefully would break 50/50 with the wing-back in general play.
Sean Ryan: To provide the 3 P’s, pace, power and playmaker – a centre backs nightmare – take them on and if you get through finish the job if not feed back to Coughlan or Darby in space who are well capable of popping the ball over the bar.
James Coughlan: Stay floating out around the ‘40’ and pick off points from breakdown ball or set up by Ryan – see above.
Willie Mullhall: Was picked by Ireland U17’s to play Australia in football!! Might take a few games to build up his confidence but has the right ingredients, will get a few scores and should take some watching.
Ciaran McManus: Just give him the ball and let him off – he will never see anyone anyway!! Ideal to bring out if you need a 3rd midfielder if you were against a strong wind or under a spell of pressure.
Niall McNamee: Has all the bells and whistles but needs other scoring threats in the forward line for him to flourish. With this team I think he would excel.

Subs: Quinlan (keeper in waiting), McConway: Will make it – (but looks injured at the moment). Lonergan: (good athletic cover for a number of positions) Sullivan: (not eligible due to red card for this match), Fox: (has something to offer but wont realize his potential while Laz Molloy is around), Egan (will not let you down if needed), Brady (very honest player who could have a role to play in certain situations), Kellaghan (ditto), A. McNamee, T. Deehan, J. Reynolds make up the rest of the panel.

Pat Roe must now be man enough to manage, put an intelligent man in the stand ( i.e. Eugene Magee Lone Shark) and have direct contact with him for feedback, and then liaise with Mick Lillis on the sideline.

[Lone Shark]

Just wondering LS, did ye beat Rhode? Were they flying?

Nah, they beat us handy enough. They had Coffey and Ronan Heavey in the two corners and they boys linked up well and worked the full forward line very well, crossing over and leaving our full back line under a bit of pressure to follow them all over the place. It was quite well worked in fairness to them. I wouldn't say they're unbeatable, but it was simple football done well.

You are so tuned in it amazes me that the County Board or/and the management of our Co. teams have not utilized your extraordinary ability to decipher genuine information/stats on players and games which would give us a head start on any opposition.

Overview, your praise is appreciated, but I do't see anything that most of the guys on this site wouldn't be able to tell you as well, I just talk a lot more than most (witness the post count!! )

[Hocker]

Also I must state a complete no-brainer in that Jason kelly must be the first name on the teamsheet for the Down game.....
I'd start Kelly and Smith in the centre of the park, and start Mad MacManus @ centre forward and use him as a third midfielder.

Alan McNamee can stay in Rhode and listen to Jody Gunning commentate on the match on midlands Radio 3... he'd be doing himself and everybody else a favour!

[biffo_king]

Also I must state a complete no-brainer in that Jason kelly must be the first name on the teamsheet for the Down game.....
I'd start Kelly and Smith in the centre of the park, and start Mad MacManus @ centre forward and use him as a third midfielder.

Alan McNamee can stay in Rhode and listen to Jody Gunning commentate on the match on midlands Radio 3... he'd be doing himself and everybody else a favour!

Your Dead Right.
Smith Def Should Start in The Center Of The Park.
Mid field Is going to be very Inportant for this game,its wher it will be won of lost.

[Square Cab]

Hocker your a gas man! You keep banging on about Jason Kelly, the simple fact of the matter is if he was worth his place on the team he would be on it. As far as I am aware the man has never started a senior champ game for Offaly (or many, if any league games). Now unless he's the best kept secret since Ashley Cole joined Chelski theres something flawed in your argument. As for your views on Alan Mac (and let me state now, im far from being his biggest fan) the man has captained his side to three senior county champ in a row and played very well in the three campaigns. When Rhode were struggling against the reigning county champ this year he was the one that got them motoring. To tell him to stay in Rhode is a little harsh, he def has a contribution to make. Dont get me wrong, id love kelly to start against Down and prove me wrong but something tells me it just aint gona happen.

[TheManFromFerbane]

I just think that within the county set-up Kelly has stepped on a lot of toes and if you keep doing that eventually people will stop asking you out to dance.

[Lone Shark]

Hocker your a gas man! You keep banging on about Jason Kelly, the simple fact of the matter is if he was worth his place on the team he would be on it.

To be fair, it's certainly not that simple. Just the same as Limerick weren't the second best hurling team in Ireland just because they got to the All Ireland final last year, getting on the county team doesn't automatically make you one of the best fifteen footballers in Offaly. It merely means that in the manager and selectors collective opinion, each player is the best option they have to do a particular job.

There are plenty of managers who would pick Jason Kelly for the county team - just as there are plenty of managers who wouldn't have him near the squad for various reasons. On form he would be there, but equally it's a bit hard on some very good committed footballers who would miss out if they pick a guy who had no interest in training with the county back in the winter and early spring.

A little bit of me would love to see him picked to either prove or disprove that he's worth his place and deep down I suspect that he's definitely good enough, but equally I'd feel sorry for fellas who have put in the hard yards, have made the sacrifices and probably have "earned" their shot a little more than Kelly has. whatever else you can say about the case, it's not simple or cut and dried by any stretch of the imagination.

As for your views on Alan Mac (and let me state now, im far from being his biggest fan) the man has captained his side to three senior county champ in a row and played very well in the three campaigns. When Rhode were struggling against the reigning county champ this year he was the one that got them motoring. To tell him to stay in Rhode is a little harsh, he def has a contribution to make.

Nobody's arguing with the fact that Alan McNamee was a deserved selection on Offaly teams for the three years 2004-2006 inclusive. The problem is that this is 2008 and his form since then has been hit and miss for Rhode, while being miss and miss again for Offaly. Alan McNamee is very well exposed, to use racing parlance, and while we might have no better options, surely to God we should at least try something? Plus praise for a midfielder for doing well in Offaly club football always has to come with an asterisk - the standard of midfield play in Offaly football is brutally low and you don't have to be county standard to look very good under the kickout in Offaly club matches. I'd need to see a bit more than half a good match against a severely weakened Tullamore team to prove to me that he's still the best man for the job.

[Muck Savage]

On the team, the right thing to do is look at the future and players that can be improved by playing in the qualifiers. Some of the lads have given great service over the years and should be aplauded for this, but we need to look to the future. I feel that players like Alan Mac and Pascal have hit their peak a few years ago now would be better to use as impact subs. Someone like Ciaran Mac still has the heart and can lead the young lads for another couple of years on the field so as to bring them on. Jason Kelly and Niall Smith should be chucked into the middle now and let them sink or swim. If things go well then your building for next year if they don't then you've lost nothing but a game that most expect to loose anyway.
At this stage the team that played against Westmeath would loose to Down, a couple of fresh faces could actually pull off a suprise. We have to start thinking of 2010 at this stage cause that's when we could have a realistic chance of getting back up there. Right now we're about 6-7 in Leinster even though I think we have the potential to be higher up than that. Getting into the top three would be a goal for next year and progress from there.

Give the younger lads a shot at it I reckon.

I heard it said coming out after the Westmeath game that an Offaly team is one of the most difficult teams to get on but twice as hard to get off it, this is a fairly true statment.

[azoffaly]

On the team, the right thing to do is look at the future and players that can be improved by playing in the qualifiers. Some of the lads have given great service over the years and should be aplauded for this, but we need to look to the future. I feel that players like Alan Mac and Pascal have hit their peak a few years ago now would be better to use as impact subs. Someone like Ciaran Mac still has the heart and can lead the young lads for another couple of years on the field so as to bring them on. Jason Kelly and Niall Smith should be chucked into the middle now and let them sink or swim. If things go well then your building for next year if they don't then you've lost nothing but a game that most expect to loose anyway.
At this stage the team that played against Westmeath would loose to Down, a couple of fresh faces could actually pull off a suprise. We have to start thinking of 2010 at this stage cause that's when we could have a realistic chance of getting back up there. Right now we're about 6-7 in Leinster even though I think we have the potential to be higher up than that. Getting into the top three would be a goal for next year and progress from there.

Give the younger lads a shot at it I reckon.

I heard it said coming out after the Westmeath game that an Offaly team is one of the most difficult teams to get on but twice as hard to get off it, this is a fairly true statment.

What team would you pick for the Down game? I am in favour of doing what you say, but not throwing the baby out with the bathwater. I'm not so sure I would share your negativity regarding our position in Leinster, at least notionally, because I think the standard is fairly even anyway. Certainly I couldn't argue the case based on the Westmeath game (in fact 7 might be too high!!) but I think that was a game from bizzaro world. Offaly were tactically clueless, as much as the players being bad.

So, to give us a balance, a team that can compete now, but still build towards 2009 and 2010. What would it be?

I'd like to see

Padraig Kelly in goals. (Is there an alternative?)

Gerry Grehan
Ger Rafferty
Nigel Grennan

Karol Slattery
Jame Keane
Paul McConway

Niall Smyth
Jason Kelly

Sean Ryan
Ciaran McManus
John Reynolds

James Coughlan
Willie Mulhall
Niall McNamee

Jimmy Paw to come drifting a little bit. Mulhall to be Donaghy, Nialler to be Gooch. Now, where's those ribbons for Sam?

[Muck Savage]

On where Offaly are in Leinster, well looking at C'ship and League form I'd put them behind Dublin, Wexford, Meath, Westmeath, and Laois. Then you have Kildare Wicklow and ourselves with Longford not far behind. I don't think we're bad enough to be behind anyone after Dublin but I wouldn't have too much confidence going out against any of the others in a game this weekend. Now that's not down to the players we have but the whole set-up from attitude, fittness, tactics, ability and belly. The right man in there will take two years to get us into the top two in Leinster from todays starting point.

On the team for Saturday week, coming out of the Westmeath match a couple of simple switches could have won that game. Now I saw Roe and the two lads in a shouting match with each other more than once in the game (what about I don't know as nothing was changed). But a competitive team for the weekend would be as follows (and just looking at the current panel)

Kelly

Grennan
Rafferty
Keane

Darby (played well vs. Westmeath)
Fox (Best I've seen here in a long time for Offaly)
Slatts

Kelly (Let's prove all the other side of Tullamore what we've know for a long time)
Smith

Egan (Heart and fight)
Ciaran Mac
Ryan (Speed and strenght)

Coughlan (His best position close to goal)
W Mulhall (or Deehan)
McNamee

Give them the game to put some life back in Offaly football, some pride, some honesty. Lets walk out of there Saturday week with a bit of brightness for the future. There are about 6-7 other players in the county added to the list above that I think would do this for the next two years. You have the basis of a good team here, a few more additions which we have and get them all playing the same game plan (and not packing our own 21).

[Silken Thomas]

A few observations if I may...

Down at home was a welcome draw to get because...

- They have a terrible qualifier record.
- They are one of the least physical inter-county teams in Ulster and further afield.
- They will be gutted at not making an Ulster final.
- They have with the exception of Benny Coulter very little to trouble us up front.


However I have seen two members of the panel on the sauce myself and heard of others so with what is beginning to look like a quite competitive local championship cranking up it seems most of the county and indeed some of the panel are turning their attentions already.

Which is a pity.

On this team M.S. which I agree a lot with

Kelly

Grennan
Rafferty
Keane

Darby (played well vs. Westmeath)
Fox (Best I've seen here in a long time for Offaly)
Slatts

Kelly (Let's prove all the other side of Tullamore what we've know for a long time)
Smith

Egan (Heart and fight)
Ciaran Mac
Ryan (Speed and strenght)

Coughlan (His best position close to goal)
W Mulhall (or Deehan)
McNamee

.

I would swap Darby and Grennan and put James Coughlan full forward. If you're from where I think you're from you will be well aware at his ability from the more central position. As for Deehan give him another chance for me Mulhall has to wait another bit yet.

From my observation of challenge, league and senior club I would draft in these for next year;

Séan Casey
Neville Coughlan
Thomas Coughlan
Ross Connor
Aidan Keeenaghan ( getting there)
PJ Ward
Rory Guinan ( of course)
David Corbett ( potential)
Ken Casey( Prodigal sons and all that)


All of them players would add something and in the case of the first seven a real physical presence.