Offaly Hurling 2020

A forum to air your views on Offaly GAA matters and beyond.
Plain of the Herbs
All Star
Posts: 3492
Joined: Sat Nov 27, 2004 4:47 pm
Club: Lusmagh

Re: Offaly Hurling 2020

Post by Plain of the Herbs »

Place your ball winners in midfield? Is this hurling or football you're talking about? Maybe it's football, and that's fine. But in hurling, the place for your puckout targets is in the half-forward line. Statin' the bleedin' obvoius here, but you need mobility in midfield, lads to read and win breaks between the two '45s. Which is why midfield best suits, say, David Nally.
Fairplayalways wrote: Fri Jan 08, 2021 2:26 pm that fear is in my heart too..or we will be competitive until the game enters crunch time and then we will panic and implode...I know it sounds cruel, but that has been a habit in recent competitions including league games...I stems I think from lack of winning mentality, fear of loosing (i.e. we are not going to hold out here) Unfortunately one of the best ways to break that cycle is to win a few tight games...Ide rather see us win a few tight games by maybe 4/5 points and score a few goals in tow, rather than win by 20 points with a points only total....I really hope we get a nice run going in the league and field a settle team by the end of it (giving all players a chance during the group stages to lay claim to a place...might be no harm to to try something different like a brand new midfield pairing, putting known ball winners into the centre of the field rather than light skilful players who I would be having in my inside forward line...
Pat Donegan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

Fairplayalways
All Star
Posts: 875
Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2018 5:12 pm

Re: Offaly Hurling 2020

Post by Fairplayalways »

I think you knowwhat I mean when I say putting ball winners in the midde of the field, they wont be welded to the midfield marking (or shouldnt be anyway) and alternate between half back line and half forward line...David Nally?..does ok but not a Derek Lyng or or Cian Lynch or some other modern day player (either retired or not), he certainly tries but is their enough cutting in him for midfield..didnt he have a good inning at corner forward in one game when he was moved in there from what I remember..Ime just saying it might be no harm to change things around abit and see how lads do, something drastic like take Ben Conneely (well capable of winning his own ball) out of full back and put him centre back of midfield even in round or two of the league and see how he does..we read in other counties where lads have been parachuted up or down the field and are happy to play in their new positon (without researching a clear recent examaple but I will give Ollie Canning was a class corner forward before moving to be a star corner back) there are other examples, Tony Browne a class midfielder at start for Waterford, ended up a star half back and centre back when needed, good players can play anywhere,,it doesnt have to be "oh he always played such and such a position"...he may have but lets try something different..we have nothing to loose.....Kevin Moran of Waterford played in half backline and half forward line...Offaly are great for changing management etc. and even a change of backroom team will always have one or two from the previous set up, and we end up with the same team, in more or less the same positions expecting different results...try something different, we are in Division 2, see can we find a propper leader for up the field now that Kiely is gone and wasnt going to be moved up the field anyway was my bet..lets try a few different things in league...we have nothing to loose..

Sur lookit
Senior
Posts: 82
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 4:20 pm

Re: Offaly Hurling 2020

Post by Sur lookit »

Sorry now, but not sure who said we'll be fine in the league but we'll struggle in C Ring?

Aren't Carlow and Kerry in the league with us?

Another man said "we don't have time" to develop players, they must hit the ground running effectively? Yes, you would hope so, but this ain't a normal year lads, when are these guys going to get S&C, and get training at the right level?

My view is, yes, give league a rattle, but we need to win the Christy Ring, and playing that in the summer this year should be in our favour.

David Nally has plenty of cutting and will move quick ball inside, we need aggression in half lines on breaks and mobile runners taking passes full stop!
Cahill and Nally are 2 outstanding ball players who will only get better.

Fairplayalways
All Star
Posts: 875
Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2018 5:12 pm

Re: Offaly Hurling 2020

Post by Fairplayalways »

I hear what your saying, but arent every other county in the same boat (supposedly) as Offaly as regards S&C and training etc...Carlow and whoever are in our divison will I am sure have many players opting out too and will fill those places with new call ups too and will still (possibly) be a step or two ahead of us bet your bottom dollar...why is that?..why are Offaly not doing what these other counties are doing, and if they are (doing the same as other counties) are the hurlers in these counties better than than Offaly hurlers at present...seriously, it is a genuine question...if the answer is yes, we may have slipped to level where we may get very very hard to get out of...if not, we are not doing the same things as the Carlows and Kerrys etc..I suspect the the true answer lies somewhere in middle of the above scenarios..I wish all well for what its worth, its not going to be easy from what I see..

biffinbanner
All Star
Posts: 279
Joined: Thu Jun 12, 2014 7:15 pm
Club: ferbane

Re: Offaly Hurling 2020

Post by biffinbanner »

looking at the micheal o murahurtaigh programme monday eve and one of the highlight of his life was offaly hurling and our golden 20 years at the top..i was proud and sad at the same time looking at it..he also said christy ring was the best hurler he ever saw.i never saw ring but brian whelehan was the best i saw. you would never get sick looking at videos of them fantastic offaly men... from damien martin who toiled without any success until the twilight of his career in 80 and 81 to the men of 98 99 and 2000.. its sad to be talking about joe mcdonagh and christy ring competitions but i suppose thats where we are.

Fairplayalways
All Star
Posts: 875
Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2018 5:12 pm

Re: Offaly Hurling 2020

Post by Fairplayalways »

I would agree over his career, Brian was the best I seen, hurling in the backs also meant that we seen more of him of course, forwards can have off days and we tend to not notice so much as generally some other forward plays well on the day the marquee forward doesnt...so for longivity, Brian was the best I seen on a consistent basis, I will have to add that players like Ciaran Carey, Tony Brown, Ken McGrath, Paul Flynn, Joe Cooney, Charlie Carter, DJ Carey, Joe Deane, Mark Foley (Limerick half back one of the best also I ever seen) Tommy Walsh, Ger Hegarty, Brian Corcoran, Ollie Canning, Seanie McMahon, Anthony Daly, Liam Doyle, Tadgh De Burca, Stephen Frampton, John Talyor and Niall RIgney of Laois.....I could go on and on but these players were as good as Brian and were maybe unlucky to be in a province (many of them) with Cork and Tipperary and we didnt get to see enough of them to quantify them fully, in Leinster in "our time" it was either Kilkenny or Offaly, Waterford, LImerick and Clare had Tipp and Cork to get over...Wexford of course had George O'Connor, Liam Dunne, Martin Storey...Brian was the best I seen he had skill/pace and confidence...outside of him, equally, I would say Ciaran Carey and Tony Brown and Mark Foley were the best of the rest, and that is being cruel on the other names above and hundreds more I couldnt possibly mention...best forwards I seen in my time were Charlie Carter and DJ Carey...you cannot say Brian WHelehan was better than those given where they hurled and what is asked of each postion, for example, its alot easier clear the ball out the field (job done) forwards have to score, and a few bad wides can affect any players confidence...

Post Reply