Club football championship
Re: Club football championship
i not lookin for reaction.fair play to eden last year,i just think over last ten years clara and rhode av bein best two teams,rhode av a young team coming through so have edenderry.i belive eden will win more in next 5 6 years i just sayin they prob won it earlier than even they thought
Re: Club football championship
what i am saying is they have won the same number of leinsters as Clara and Rhode .............Abercrombie Fitch wrote:Edenderry lost to a young Athy team last year.
Clara beat Laurences in Newbridge in 2009 despite being 8 points down. They then beat Rathvilly with 14 men and were a point up on Portlaoise in the 2nd half playing with a huge gale in driving rain when the ref called a halt to proceedings.
Hardly the same.
Re: Club football championship
who will edenderry be shouting for sunday?i belive rhode wanted edenderry to win it over clara last year?
Re: Club football championship
id say edenderry wont be to bothered about who wins.should be a good game.i think rhode have the better footballers but clara are physically stronger.its been a great rivalry between these two teams and i cant wait for sunday.
Re: Club football championship
some ppl gettin sick of same 2 teams almost every year will it ever change?hardly good for offaly football
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Goodsupporter11
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Re: Club football championship
Don't see why people are getting sick of Rhode & Clara? Is it their fault? Only two teams that can represent Offaly half decently in football. Should be praising the two clubs. And no its not good for the County team. You should be getting sick of teams like Tullamore, Edenderry, Gracefield etc. Rhode and Clara (mostly Rhode) have set the standard and its up to the other senior clubs in Offaly to rise to that.classof81 wrote:some ppl gettin sick of same 2 teams almost every year will it ever change?hardly good for offaly football
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Lone Shark
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Re: Club football championship
http://www.gaa.ie/gaa-news-and-videos/c ... n-hurling/
I think this says it better than anything else. It's not bad for Offaly football that Rhode and Clara are that much better than the rest, it's a relief for Offaly football that at least two clubs are maintaining high standards and playing at a level comparable to that of good clubs in any county championship in Ireland. Other clubs need to look at reaching that level, but I genuinely don't believe that our club championship is poor - I just think it's a bit shallow. Edenderry and Tullamore are decent, would be competitive in any other county but not exceptional either, while Gracefield, Ferbane, Ballycumber and Walsh Island could all do a bit better but they aren't all that far off the mark of pulling off an occasional shock either. After that you're into very small rural clubs, some of which (Tubber and Erin Rovers in particular) punch way above their weight, but generally it's unrealistic to expect much from them.
Anyway, that's neither here nor there for the moment. It's actually great for the county that we have a final taking place between two good clubs that are well matched, and that no matter who wins, we'll expect a good performance in Leinster, which is badly needed.
My gut feeling is this - Rhode can't win if Niall McNamee plays badly or is shut out, but Clara can't win if they let him run riot. They shut him down in 2009, they shut him down in 2011. They stubbornly and stupidly insisted on going man to man on him in 2010, and they paid the price - they lost by a point, but they were three or four points the second best team on the day in that final. You'd like to think that the lesson has been learned. If Niall is on form, county teams double team him - so it goes without saying that a club side definitely should.
Outside of him, Anton Sullivan will have to be well marshalled as well, but the rest of the Rhode forward line are limited. Paul McPadden is very light and is nothing more than a good finisher - if you don't allow overlaps and extra men to surge forward, he can't do his thing of splitting his man, finding space and hitting the target. Mark Dunne is a hard working player who won't score heavily, Paschal spends all his time in his own half, and a young lad like Conor McNamee is taking a huge step up in class here and will find the going tough against the Brady brothers. If you restrict Niall to two or three chances from play, there just isn't that much scoring in the rest of the team.
Clara have scorers all over the place, the concern is that unlike the last couple of years, they're not all on form. Thomas Deehan looks to have gone backwards and John Reynolds and Graham Guilfoyle aren't even starting, but you'd have to expect they might get the nod here. Even Luke Kelly could be a consideration as I thought he looked as strong as ever in the minor semi last weekend.
Clara need to win midfield, and to be clever and shut down Niall. After that, as long as at least two or three of their forwards hit form, I think they should have a slight edge. Very slight though.
I think this says it better than anything else. It's not bad for Offaly football that Rhode and Clara are that much better than the rest, it's a relief for Offaly football that at least two clubs are maintaining high standards and playing at a level comparable to that of good clubs in any county championship in Ireland. Other clubs need to look at reaching that level, but I genuinely don't believe that our club championship is poor - I just think it's a bit shallow. Edenderry and Tullamore are decent, would be competitive in any other county but not exceptional either, while Gracefield, Ferbane, Ballycumber and Walsh Island could all do a bit better but they aren't all that far off the mark of pulling off an occasional shock either. After that you're into very small rural clubs, some of which (Tubber and Erin Rovers in particular) punch way above their weight, but generally it's unrealistic to expect much from them.
Anyway, that's neither here nor there for the moment. It's actually great for the county that we have a final taking place between two good clubs that are well matched, and that no matter who wins, we'll expect a good performance in Leinster, which is badly needed.
My gut feeling is this - Rhode can't win if Niall McNamee plays badly or is shut out, but Clara can't win if they let him run riot. They shut him down in 2009, they shut him down in 2011. They stubbornly and stupidly insisted on going man to man on him in 2010, and they paid the price - they lost by a point, but they were three or four points the second best team on the day in that final. You'd like to think that the lesson has been learned. If Niall is on form, county teams double team him - so it goes without saying that a club side definitely should.
Outside of him, Anton Sullivan will have to be well marshalled as well, but the rest of the Rhode forward line are limited. Paul McPadden is very light and is nothing more than a good finisher - if you don't allow overlaps and extra men to surge forward, he can't do his thing of splitting his man, finding space and hitting the target. Mark Dunne is a hard working player who won't score heavily, Paschal spends all his time in his own half, and a young lad like Conor McNamee is taking a huge step up in class here and will find the going tough against the Brady brothers. If you restrict Niall to two or three chances from play, there just isn't that much scoring in the rest of the team.
Clara have scorers all over the place, the concern is that unlike the last couple of years, they're not all on form. Thomas Deehan looks to have gone backwards and John Reynolds and Graham Guilfoyle aren't even starting, but you'd have to expect they might get the nod here. Even Luke Kelly could be a consideration as I thought he looked as strong as ever in the minor semi last weekend.
Clara need to win midfield, and to be clever and shut down Niall. After that, as long as at least two or three of their forwards hit form, I think they should have a slight edge. Very slight though.
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.
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The Magpie
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Re: Club football championship
Smokin’ Joe Frazier was a gold-medal Olympian and Heavy-weight Champion of the World during what was undoubtedly a golden era for boxing – probably it’s best. Despite this, when you happen upon this great man’s name, those are not the first things that spring to mind. The physiology that controls how we store and access information in our brains inextricably connects Joe Frazier with his greatest adversary, Mohammad Ali.
Sporting rivalries are really quite unique. They have a life-cycle all to themselves. Recognition is usually the first step, followed quickly by false posturing and fear (which come hand-in-hand). A sense of hatred comes next and it can last for some time. Inevitably, respect eventually forms. Finally, comes bonding. Barring other serious life-events, bonding will come. Frazier and Ali took quite some time to work through this cycle – but they did.
Clara and Rhode are currently transitioning through the life-cycle of rivalry. For over 10 years, a significant group of these players have rolled with the punches, knowing almost every year that they would have to face one another if a Championship was to be won. Semi-Finals in 2001, 2004 & 2011, as well as Finals in 2003, 2006, 2009, 2010 and now 2012 litter the recent footballing landscape in Offaly club football. Only Tullamore (2007) and Edenderry (2011) have played the peripheral poachers, arguably both pinching Championships – both beating Clara (a semi-final and a final) and neither having to face Rhode. It’s a pointless argument, but I don’t think there was a team during this period that could’ve beaten both Rhode and Clara in the same Championship campaign.
Perhaps less pointless is to consider whether this rivalry has made each of these teams better than they would have been otherwise. There is quite some contradiction to contend with here. Wouldn’t either team have been infinitely better off without the other? Wouldn’t they have won more? For Rhode, I can say this. Handing out record beatings to Gracefield and Tullamore in County Finals only brings complacency. For Clara, it’s a little bit different. I think it took the sight of the Rhode jersey to lift them to another level – and there’s quite a lot of evidence to back that up. Other footballers in the County would give themselves far more of a chance of beating Clara, but are just as quick to acknowledge that Clara are the only team that will beat Rhode. It’s not something that fits well with conventional logic – but it’s true.
And so, this double-edged rivalry – that has made both teams better, but also reduced the success of each – of a perennial nature, is revived again this coming Sunday. Although both under new management, the two teams are not terribly different from those that met last year. It’s true that some of the names have changed, but in reality some panellists have switched places with some team members and we don’t really have a new name on the scene. Rhode will be delighted to have formed the spine of the Offaly U21 football team this year, with six members (the two McPaddens, Eoin Rigney, Anton Sullivan, Stephen Hannon & Jake Kavanagh) while Clara had just two (Graham Guilfoyle & John Ledwith). Another youthful McNamee has graduated through the St. Marys, Offaly Minor & Rhode ranks and offers something fresh in the middle of the field. In addition, the presence of high-profile seasoned campaigners in their ranks (Roy Malone, Paschal Keelaghan & Alan McNamee) bolsters their options and balances youth and experience. Notably, Eddie McDonnell departs from the goalkeeping position.
For Clara, Barry Cushen and Lorcan Hiney have both played far bigger roles this year, while Gary Collins has returned to the full-back line and the ageless Alan Cronin has returned to fill the right-half forward position, replacing retired veteran Tony Dalton. Neither Eoin Brady or Peter Flanagan have re-joined the fold this year, while Matt Mitchell has made a positional switch, but other than that, it’s as-you-were.
The picture is not complete without considering other disruptions. Anton Sullivan was massively unfortunate to injure his shoulder again earlier this year, while Niall Darby is out for the year. Shane Sullivan and Alan McNamee appear to have niggling injuries too. On the Clara side, John Reynolds has missed most of the Championship year through injury, while Graham Guilfoyle has missed most of the year, having been state-side. Neither side will be helped by all of this. Whatever the extent of any of these injuries or the level of fitness of any of the aforementioned (excluding Darby), it doesn’t take a fortune-teller to predict that all will be involved in Sunday – that is a certainty.
Having watched Rhode this year, but particularly against Tullamore, it’s fairly clear that they intend (as they have done for many years now) to make space for the full-forward line. This will be achieved by sucking pretty-much everyone else out the field and then relying on some intelligence (Paschal Keelaghan) and some hard-running (Brian Darby, Padraic Sullivan & Stephen Hannon) to get the ball into the full-forward line. Clara can only combat this by having a pragmatic approach to marking Niall McNamee. In the Tullamore tribune this week, the Clara manager alludes to the beautiful game, playing man-for-man and winning your individual battles. One only has to watch a recording of the 2010 County Final to quash this argument. Rhode scored 3-9 that day – 3-7 came directly (2-5) or indirectly through Niall McNamee. Fool-me-once, fool-me-twice shall be the moral of the story if Clara fall for this one again.
The battle in the middle of the field, which should go a long way to deciding the outcome of this final, should be edged by the Bradys. But Rhode will be keenly aware of this and just as they did in 2010, there will be a tactic to combat the slight disadvantage they have here. They’ll probably look to target Stephen Deehan for (their own) short kick-outs, while flooding the area between the two 45s when Kevin Meehan places the ball (the tireless Mark Dunne will be put to good effect here too). Don’t expect Rhode to double-up on any of the Clara forwards either – but more so to have extra bodies behind the ball.
Overall, if both teams are cognisant of the others strong-points (and address them) it really is hard to see where the winning of this match is. If Clara can win the middle of the field and if a couple of their forwards offer a return, they could win it. If Rhode can spoil the middle and get the right ball into Niall McNamee, they’re capable of beating anyone – inside or outside the county. It might just come down to the impact of players like Guilfoyle or Anton Sullivan – either of which are capable of swinging an evenly balanced contest.
Much is being made of Clara appearing in their fourth consecutive final, with the spectre of losing a third successive final looming large. While there’s no doubt that losing finals is a horrible experience, consider this:
The loser of Sunday’s Final will have lifted the Dowling Cup just once in four hard years. For Rhode, a team that has appeared in (and probably could’ve won) Leinster Finals in recent years, that will be a failure. For this collection of Clara men, who have collectively set new standards within the club, that too will be a failure.
Regardless of the outcome of this latest instalment or whether future chapters remain to be written, the only thing we can be certain of is this. When this rivalry is ended, many of these footballers will be unable to recount their footballing lives, without thinking about one another. Ultimately, it is this factor that will bring the end to the rivalry as the most unlikely of bonds will be formed.
When Joe Frazier died in November 2011, Mohammad Ali commented that “The World has lost a great Champion”. This was no back-slapping or posthumous gesture. From one champ to another, this was the ultimate accolade.
Sporting rivalries are really quite unique. They have a life-cycle all to themselves. Recognition is usually the first step, followed quickly by false posturing and fear (which come hand-in-hand). A sense of hatred comes next and it can last for some time. Inevitably, respect eventually forms. Finally, comes bonding. Barring other serious life-events, bonding will come. Frazier and Ali took quite some time to work through this cycle – but they did.
Clara and Rhode are currently transitioning through the life-cycle of rivalry. For over 10 years, a significant group of these players have rolled with the punches, knowing almost every year that they would have to face one another if a Championship was to be won. Semi-Finals in 2001, 2004 & 2011, as well as Finals in 2003, 2006, 2009, 2010 and now 2012 litter the recent footballing landscape in Offaly club football. Only Tullamore (2007) and Edenderry (2011) have played the peripheral poachers, arguably both pinching Championships – both beating Clara (a semi-final and a final) and neither having to face Rhode. It’s a pointless argument, but I don’t think there was a team during this period that could’ve beaten both Rhode and Clara in the same Championship campaign.
Perhaps less pointless is to consider whether this rivalry has made each of these teams better than they would have been otherwise. There is quite some contradiction to contend with here. Wouldn’t either team have been infinitely better off without the other? Wouldn’t they have won more? For Rhode, I can say this. Handing out record beatings to Gracefield and Tullamore in County Finals only brings complacency. For Clara, it’s a little bit different. I think it took the sight of the Rhode jersey to lift them to another level – and there’s quite a lot of evidence to back that up. Other footballers in the County would give themselves far more of a chance of beating Clara, but are just as quick to acknowledge that Clara are the only team that will beat Rhode. It’s not something that fits well with conventional logic – but it’s true.
And so, this double-edged rivalry – that has made both teams better, but also reduced the success of each – of a perennial nature, is revived again this coming Sunday. Although both under new management, the two teams are not terribly different from those that met last year. It’s true that some of the names have changed, but in reality some panellists have switched places with some team members and we don’t really have a new name on the scene. Rhode will be delighted to have formed the spine of the Offaly U21 football team this year, with six members (the two McPaddens, Eoin Rigney, Anton Sullivan, Stephen Hannon & Jake Kavanagh) while Clara had just two (Graham Guilfoyle & John Ledwith). Another youthful McNamee has graduated through the St. Marys, Offaly Minor & Rhode ranks and offers something fresh in the middle of the field. In addition, the presence of high-profile seasoned campaigners in their ranks (Roy Malone, Paschal Keelaghan & Alan McNamee) bolsters their options and balances youth and experience. Notably, Eddie McDonnell departs from the goalkeeping position.
For Clara, Barry Cushen and Lorcan Hiney have both played far bigger roles this year, while Gary Collins has returned to the full-back line and the ageless Alan Cronin has returned to fill the right-half forward position, replacing retired veteran Tony Dalton. Neither Eoin Brady or Peter Flanagan have re-joined the fold this year, while Matt Mitchell has made a positional switch, but other than that, it’s as-you-were.
The picture is not complete without considering other disruptions. Anton Sullivan was massively unfortunate to injure his shoulder again earlier this year, while Niall Darby is out for the year. Shane Sullivan and Alan McNamee appear to have niggling injuries too. On the Clara side, John Reynolds has missed most of the Championship year through injury, while Graham Guilfoyle has missed most of the year, having been state-side. Neither side will be helped by all of this. Whatever the extent of any of these injuries or the level of fitness of any of the aforementioned (excluding Darby), it doesn’t take a fortune-teller to predict that all will be involved in Sunday – that is a certainty.
Having watched Rhode this year, but particularly against Tullamore, it’s fairly clear that they intend (as they have done for many years now) to make space for the full-forward line. This will be achieved by sucking pretty-much everyone else out the field and then relying on some intelligence (Paschal Keelaghan) and some hard-running (Brian Darby, Padraic Sullivan & Stephen Hannon) to get the ball into the full-forward line. Clara can only combat this by having a pragmatic approach to marking Niall McNamee. In the Tullamore tribune this week, the Clara manager alludes to the beautiful game, playing man-for-man and winning your individual battles. One only has to watch a recording of the 2010 County Final to quash this argument. Rhode scored 3-9 that day – 3-7 came directly (2-5) or indirectly through Niall McNamee. Fool-me-once, fool-me-twice shall be the moral of the story if Clara fall for this one again.
The battle in the middle of the field, which should go a long way to deciding the outcome of this final, should be edged by the Bradys. But Rhode will be keenly aware of this and just as they did in 2010, there will be a tactic to combat the slight disadvantage they have here. They’ll probably look to target Stephen Deehan for (their own) short kick-outs, while flooding the area between the two 45s when Kevin Meehan places the ball (the tireless Mark Dunne will be put to good effect here too). Don’t expect Rhode to double-up on any of the Clara forwards either – but more so to have extra bodies behind the ball.
Overall, if both teams are cognisant of the others strong-points (and address them) it really is hard to see where the winning of this match is. If Clara can win the middle of the field and if a couple of their forwards offer a return, they could win it. If Rhode can spoil the middle and get the right ball into Niall McNamee, they’re capable of beating anyone – inside or outside the county. It might just come down to the impact of players like Guilfoyle or Anton Sullivan – either of which are capable of swinging an evenly balanced contest.
Much is being made of Clara appearing in their fourth consecutive final, with the spectre of losing a third successive final looming large. While there’s no doubt that losing finals is a horrible experience, consider this:
The loser of Sunday’s Final will have lifted the Dowling Cup just once in four hard years. For Rhode, a team that has appeared in (and probably could’ve won) Leinster Finals in recent years, that will be a failure. For this collection of Clara men, who have collectively set new standards within the club, that too will be a failure.
Regardless of the outcome of this latest instalment or whether future chapters remain to be written, the only thing we can be certain of is this. When this rivalry is ended, many of these footballers will be unable to recount their footballing lives, without thinking about one another. Ultimately, it is this factor that will bring the end to the rivalry as the most unlikely of bonds will be formed.
When Joe Frazier died in November 2011, Mohammad Ali commented that “The World has lost a great Champion”. This was no back-slapping or posthumous gesture. From one champ to another, this was the ultimate accolade.
The Dog chases the Car....the Car stops....the Dog can't Drive!
Re: Club football championship
Ah great stuff there Magpie.
Top Marks.
Top Marks.
If you don’t stand for something you fall for anything
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Lone Shark
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Re: Club football championship
Excellent write up, particularly the use of the boxing analogy.... 
Nah, seriously, I'm really looking forward to this one. Last week was about novelty, but this is about two proven heavyweights going head to head and from a sporting point of view, that's always fascinating. Just to pick up on a few small points:
(1) If Clara's management really do go man on man against Niall Mac, then that's unforgivable and they deserve the defeat that's coming their way in that scenario. They beat Rhode in 2009 and 2011 by covering their marker, they lost in 2010 because they didn't double him up. It would be unforgivable from management and senior players like Joe Quinn, Scott Brady, Alan Cronin and John Reynolds should be able to go to the management and explain why they lost the final in 2010.
(2) It always amuses me how everyone imagines that Rhode plays a lot of long balls from their own 65 into the opposition full back line for players like Niall to attack. Yeah, you'll get a few Hollywood passes from players like Alan Mac and Paschal, but they aren't as common as people would have you believe. Carrying the ball with good support play and playing it in from 60 yards out from goal is much more common, thus giving support players the chance to be there for the layoff. That's the sector that Clara have to be very conscious of - making sure that Rhode don't get to play these passes unimpeded. Crowd that sector, check the support runs, and I suspect Rhode scores will dry up.
(3) At the other end of the field, I'm really not sure where the Clara scores will come from. I don't mean that in the sense that I don't think they'll get any, it's just that it's a long time since I've seen a club forward line with so many different potential scorers, yet with no-one really dominating the scoresheet on a weekly basis. No one player is in fantastic form - certainly not at the same level as Niall (who is?) or Anton pre-injury. I'll be interested to see what way the Rhode backs line up against the Clara forwards and what way the individual battles will take shape.
(4) The critical aspect of the midfield battle for me is not necessarily kickouts, but ensuring that tackles are made in that sector and seeing which side gets the most turnovers. If you win a ball in your own full back line, by the time you work it to midfield the opposition are set and ready. If you win it around the middle, one long pass and you can take advantage of a corner back who was pushing up to support his team-mate on the ball and there is a high probability of an easy score. High fielding is becoming less and less of an issue in gaelic football, but the ability to generate turnovers in this sector will be critical. Clara are possibly better at tackling, but Rhode's ability to play good, low-risk handpasses with real purpose and momentum is unsurpassed in the county. If Rhode don't turn over the ball here, I think they'll have secured a big advantage.
Really looking forward to it now.
Nah, seriously, I'm really looking forward to this one. Last week was about novelty, but this is about two proven heavyweights going head to head and from a sporting point of view, that's always fascinating. Just to pick up on a few small points:
(1) If Clara's management really do go man on man against Niall Mac, then that's unforgivable and they deserve the defeat that's coming their way in that scenario. They beat Rhode in 2009 and 2011 by covering their marker, they lost in 2010 because they didn't double him up. It would be unforgivable from management and senior players like Joe Quinn, Scott Brady, Alan Cronin and John Reynolds should be able to go to the management and explain why they lost the final in 2010.
(2) It always amuses me how everyone imagines that Rhode plays a lot of long balls from their own 65 into the opposition full back line for players like Niall to attack. Yeah, you'll get a few Hollywood passes from players like Alan Mac and Paschal, but they aren't as common as people would have you believe. Carrying the ball with good support play and playing it in from 60 yards out from goal is much more common, thus giving support players the chance to be there for the layoff. That's the sector that Clara have to be very conscious of - making sure that Rhode don't get to play these passes unimpeded. Crowd that sector, check the support runs, and I suspect Rhode scores will dry up.
(3) At the other end of the field, I'm really not sure where the Clara scores will come from. I don't mean that in the sense that I don't think they'll get any, it's just that it's a long time since I've seen a club forward line with so many different potential scorers, yet with no-one really dominating the scoresheet on a weekly basis. No one player is in fantastic form - certainly not at the same level as Niall (who is?) or Anton pre-injury. I'll be interested to see what way the Rhode backs line up against the Clara forwards and what way the individual battles will take shape.
(4) The critical aspect of the midfield battle for me is not necessarily kickouts, but ensuring that tackles are made in that sector and seeing which side gets the most turnovers. If you win a ball in your own full back line, by the time you work it to midfield the opposition are set and ready. If you win it around the middle, one long pass and you can take advantage of a corner back who was pushing up to support his team-mate on the ball and there is a high probability of an easy score. High fielding is becoming less and less of an issue in gaelic football, but the ability to generate turnovers in this sector will be critical. Clara are possibly better at tackling, but Rhode's ability to play good, low-risk handpasses with real purpose and momentum is unsurpassed in the county. If Rhode don't turn over the ball here, I think they'll have secured a big advantage.
Really looking forward to it now.
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.
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Plain of the Herbs
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Re: Club football championship
Magpie. Just brilliant. What you expect of an analysis. Sufficiently in-depth to analyse but also informing a casual observer of club football (like me).
I didn't know Clara and Rhode had met THAT often in the last decade (four previous Finals and three semi-finals?). The 'Meath - Dublin' and 'Meath - Cork' rivalries immediately spring to mind when mention is of life-cycles and the like. And yes, they do bring out the best in each other. And they do end in respect and friendship. A pity it took John Kerins' funeral to bond the Meath and Cork lads.
I didn't know Clara and Rhode had met THAT often in the last decade (four previous Finals and three semi-finals?). The 'Meath - Dublin' and 'Meath - Cork' rivalries immediately spring to mind when mention is of life-cycles and the like. And yes, they do bring out the best in each other. And they do end in respect and friendship. A pity it took John Kerins' funeral to bond the Meath and Cork lads.
Pat Donegan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.
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Bord na Mona man
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Re: Club football championship
The Magpie has beaten all comers back out the gate!
Re: Club football championship
see thats the problem with edenderry,edenderry play tullamore and still have to mention rhode men,very same as last year when ye won the county about 50 cars coming through rhode blowing the horns waving the eden flags,if rhode win sunday and its a big if will rhode ppl go through eden?not a hope,they worry about there own team,eden are a small club very few have heard of. as rhode known all over ireland for the football,jelousy is a bitch.heman wrote:offalyman08 wrote:The hotel busting brothers from Rhode done fair celebrating when Tullamore got their second goal...True Red wrote:Draw between Edenderry and tullamore. 1-13 apiece
oh lord.
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Lone Shark
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Re: Club football championship
I think we've established that if it comes down to punditry, Clara are certainly out of the blocks with a big early lead......
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.
Re: Club football championship
long time since rhode were underdogs in a county final.two teams coming in with alot of hunger and both will feel they have something to prove.should be be great battle. Alot of great points made frm everyone on this site.ya cant beat a gud aul debate.