Offaly Senior Football Club Championship 2011

[Lone Shark]

On the one hand I can see what the county board were thinking. You don't want to be putting on big games up against the All Ireland hurling final, and fitting in fixtures around that means that you end up with huge games for a lot of clubs being played on Thursday and Friday evenings, which I wouldn't be a fan of. County championship matches are big events and players should be given every chance to prepare properly as far as I'm concerned, not to have to dash off early from work eating a sandwich in the car on the way from Dublin/Galway/wherever. There's already too much of that.

On the other, I agree this is a football weekend and if we feel that the optimum break between matches is two weeks, then there will be some slight advantage to the three QF winners this weekend, not least because they will know the draw and the opponents of Rhode/WI will get to take in their quarter final and assess their opponents. Still, if Niall Mac was carrying an injury, then you can see why they might put it off - particularly if it wasn't known and the extra week was welcome in d'Island as it gave more time to get Brian Connor back into playing ball, or they had any injuries of their own.

I wonder if the Intermediate/Junior B Rhode teams being in action had anything to do with it?

[theman]

Word going round that The Rhode - Walsh Island game will be played Saturday week as part of a double header with the Clonbullogue - Ballyfore Intermediate Q-Final game in O Connor Park?
The lads in Clonbullogue knew since last week that they wouldnt be out till the following weekend anyway. Dont know or understand the reason behind why its not this weekend.

[Superted]

Hi, can someone tell me the date & time & venue of the Tubber v Shamrocks matcH?

Many Thanks

[puzzled]

Hi, can someone tell me the date & time & venue of the Tubber v Shamrocks matcH?

Many Thanks

Its on this evening in Clara at 6.30!

[Hyper]

Tubber won by a point. St Brigids won by 4.

[townman]

looks like Shamrocks will drop out of both hurling and football at senior level this year big blow for the club.

[Plain of the Herbs]

Am I right in thinking Rahan Parish have been in Senior football since St. Carthage's won the Intermediate in 1979?

Previously the parish won Junior titles in 1956 (Rahan) and St Carthage's (1967, which led to their Senior final appearance in 1973).

[faithfullad]

Tubber 1-9 Shamrocks 1-8. Shamrocks were well up for this one, they had Derek Molloy back from America and they led by 1-7 to 4 at half time but Tubber came back well in the 2nd half. Can't say I have much sympathy for Shamrocks going down, saw a lot of dirty play from them tonight.

[llkj]

What are the chances of Rhode doing Shamrocks a favour and keeping them up? I feel that Rhode will find it hard to win both the Senior and Intermediate in the one year, but they could do it.

[Lone Shark]

What are the chances of Rhode doing Shamrocks a favour and keeping them up? I feel that Rhode will find it hard to win both the Senior and Intermediate in the one year, but they could do it.

Croghan look too good to be honest. I'd make Rhode second favourites for the intermediate, but still with a lot of ground to make up.


Being honest too, while I've no ill will towards Shamrocks in the slightest, on the strength of the year as a whole, I'm happier that Tubber avoided the drop. Tubber were competitive all year long, while Shamrocks played well for a bit of their game against Walsh Island and that was about it before last night. I didn't see the Tubber vs Tullamore game so I don't know were Tullamore way better than they were all year or were Tubber much worse than they had been, but it would have been harsh on Tubber to meet two clubs in a row who hadn't put in an effort all year but suddenly dug deep and found a big performance.

[Long John]

Tubber 1-9 Shamrocks 1-8. Shamrocks were well up for this one, they had Derek Molloy back from America and they led by 1-7 to 4 at half time but Tubber came back well in the 2nd half. Can't say I have much sympathy for Shamrocks going down, saw a lot of dirty play from them tonight.

Didnt make it to the game (These Thursday night fixtures are a fecking disaster, wise up county board) but heard Shamrocks threw away a great opportunity to stay up. I am suprised Tubber are as bad as they are for what is a young team that should be hitting their best years.
It is sad to see them relegated. A very good team over the last decade or more and with them gone to where they are it leaves the championship even less competitive than what it was a few years ago.

Just shows that if even one or two more players had made themselves available they would have survived. The likes of Coughlan and Guinan who have retired very young.

[llkj]

I couldn't agree more about the Thursday fixtures. For a game of such importance, it is very disrespectful to throw it on a Thursday night. While I agree that it is good that it was played pretty quickly and not dragged out like some previous relegation battles, is there any reason why it couldn't have been played on the weekend?

I would say that players got a weeks notice, at very most about it. If they are working, that means having only a few days to try to look for time off work - ideally a 1/2 day, which can be very hard.

I know there are a lot of fixtures to be played and it's not an easy situation, but for such an important game, I think a weekend day should have been chosen.

Interesting to see the situation in Dublin at the moment - read a quote from one of their officials about talking of restructuring the club championships to a knockout in hurling to ensure that it gets played in time to have a rep in the leinster club. I don't know if i agree with this, as the normal club player has already made way for the elite player during the Summer, so the least they deserve is a system that allows enough time between games. In my opinion, it would be better for the development of the game if the focus was on having a properly structured competition and it dragging on a few weeks more than having a rep in Leinster.

[Sniper]

Apparently the Rhode v Walsh Island match was put back a week as neither are involved in hurling championships. That's the official line anyway................

Doesn't really make much sense. The master fixture list had this weekend down for senior football championship. Football it should be.

It is nearly as important for the county board to be seen to do the right thing, as to actually do the right thing. On this occasion they have managed neither.

Thats the reasoning I heard also, although not from any official sources I might add. I also heard that because of kinnitys involvement in the Junior B final it had to be played this weekend due to Kinnitys hurling commitments. So then the intermediate Q/F had to be sunday(maybe Doons involvement with Brosna Gaels made it a priority this wkend). Also bearing in mind the Hurling All-Ireland knocking sunday afternoon out of bounds, then that left the senior Q/F being moved back a wkend.
I would have thought that the senior Q/F could have been played as a curtain raiser to the Junior B final maybe with 5.30 and 7pm throw ins respectively!! That might have messed up a few other fixtures tho.

Kind of sad to see the meteoric fall of Shamrocks. A side that could have won 3 SFCs in the last decade had lady luck shone on them. I'd echo lone sharks sentiments in that it would have been worse had a gallant Tubber side, who are preparing and trying their best at all times, gone down instead

[Plain of the Herbs]

As handy as the scoreline suggests. T'was 0-7 to 0-2 when I arrived at OCP with about 20 minutes gone and Edenderry went on to lead 0-9 to 0-3 at half time. Cloghan needed a good start (statin' the bleedin obvious) but Edenderry got the first two points of the half and went on to score two goals in a minute early in the half.

I didn't have a teamsheet and while Edenderry were stronger and on top in every duel, the no 13 and 14 stood out. Cloghan can get out the black markers over the winter - white numbers on green-and-white hoops are a no-no.

[theman]

Edenderry were 11/1 to win the championship before tonight. Got a tenner on them. I think thats serious Value, Especially after tonight. They will be geared up for whoever they play in the semi's. They have a good balanced team with young and old and can see them winning it out this if they put there mind to it as Rhode and Clara are not as good as the last few years. You heard it hear first (by the way im no way connected with edenderry if any one thinks im seeing with tinted glasses)