Offaly senior football team 2012

[Lone Shark]

Have to agree with you on this. I can't think of too many mistakes from him this year. I'd go even further and consider bringing him up to take the 45's and lond range frees. He is as consistant as anyone else on the scene with these.

In the absence of McManus, who in fairness was incredibly accurate from his frees last year, I'd say he'll be at the front of the list. There's no-one else jumping out at me as a candidate.

[happy harry]

another question, who the best free taker we have...is it mulhall?

[Johnno81]

Would Richie Dalton be an option after his performance with frees and 45's in the county final?????

[thelittletown]

I attended a lot of the club games this year and seen all of gracefields matches bar one..i dont understand all the hype bout this ruairi allen..sure he's a strong lad and would be able to mix it physically but if he was to play centre back at inter county level he'd be out of his depth all together..he played very well for gracefield this year but it wasnt as a centre back it was as a SWEEPER..you could play him as a forward and bring him back for cover but you would want to be mad to pick him as a centre back!!!!
1. A Mulhall:walsh island (safe and reliable)
2. B Darby:rhode (experienced and tough)
3. J Maloney:tullamore (young, talented and has to be given the chance)
4. S Pender:edenderry (very tight marker and very consistent)
5. M Mitchell:clara (good on the ball going forward and distripution)
6. C Kiely:gracefield (solid player and could be a his position with his physical presence)
7. A Murphy:gracefield (young talented player, very quick and a good man marker that does well going forward)
8. B Connor:walsh island (very talented could be a future great for the county)
9. N Smith:gracefield (Amazing fielder of the ball could be turned into a huge player for offaly)
10. G Guilfoyle:clara (blistering pace but needs to play with his head up)
11. A Sullivan:rhode (class act needs to stay fit)
12. M Brazil:tullamore (very strong and can kick a score from anywhere as well as see a pass)
13 S Dooley:tullamore (very accurate player could be what were missing)
14.N McNamee:rhode (cant do without him but needs to become more of a team player)
15.???????? cant think of anyone to give it to any real contenders??

[offalyman18]

I attended a lot of the club games this year and seen all of gracefields matches bar one..i dont understand all the hype bout this ruairi allen..sure he's a strong lad and would be able to mix it physically but if he was to play centre back at inter county level he'd be out of his depth all together..he played very well for gracefield this year but it wasnt as a centre back it was as a SWEEPER..you could play him as a forward and bring him back for cover but you would want to be mad to pick him as a centre back!!!!
1. A Mulhall:walsh island (safe and reliable)
2. B Darby:rhode (experienced and tough)
3. J Maloney:tullamore (young, talented and has to be given the chance)
4. S Pender:edenderry (very tight marker and very consistent)
5. M Mitchell:clara (good on the ball going forward and distripution)
6. C Kiely:gracefield (solid player and could be a his position with his physical presence)
7. A Murphy:gracefield (young talented player, very quick and a good man marker that does well going forward)
8. B Connor:walsh island (very talented could be a future great for the county)
9. N Smith:gracefield (Amazing fielder of the ball could be turned into a huge player for offaly)
10. G Guilfoyle:clara (blistering pace but needs to play with his head up)
11. A Sullivan:rhode (class act needs to stay fit)
12. M Brazil:tullamore (very strong and can kick a score from anywhere as well as see a pass)
13 S Dooley:tullamore (very accurate player could be what were missing)
14.N McNamee:rhode (cant do without him but needs to become more of a team player)
15.???????? cant think of anyone to give it to any real contenders??

This is the best team someone has suggested on this topic so far.... for number 15 i would think on top form tomo deehan! have to agree with you on ruairi allen its actualy laughable to think he would be good enough to play center back for intercounty football...can anyone picture him marking alan brogan, joe sheridan or dessie dolan???

[happy harry]

Kiely didn't play with gracefield this year he played with the downs in Westmeath. Brutal team aswell.; Dooley to slow and wouldn't be up to football at this level. Brazil no , Mitchell no , murphy no, gullfoyle no . U cannot pick a lacklustre team like that In anything bar a club or challenge game. I do however rate Kiely to be a top player and a good option at 6 ,we have about 25 good players in Offaly now that's 25 who are committed and also good enough so the pool of players to pick from is small. Every person will pick a different team so theirs no right r wrong it's all just opinion at the end of the day.

[offalyman18]

Kiely didn't play with gracefield this year he played with the downs in Westmeath. Brutal team aswell.; Dooley to slow and wouldn't be up to football at this level. Brazil no , Mitchell no , murphy no, gullfoyle no . U cannot pick a lacklustre team like that In anything bar a club or challenge game. I do however rate Kiely to be a top player and a good option at 6 ,we have about 25 good players in Offaly now that's 25 who are committed and also good enough so the pool of players to pick from is small. Every person will pick a different team so theirs no right r wrong it's all just opinion at the end of the day.

if theres no rights or wrongs why are you then saying this player "no" and that player "no".... your just basically saying my opinion is wrong why dont you put up a team and il let you know whos a "no"

[jimbob17]

I attended a lot of the club games this year and seen all of gracefields matches bar one..i dont understand all the hype bout this ruairi allen..sure he's a strong lad and would be able to mix it physically but if he was to play centre back at inter county level he'd be out of his depth all together..he played very well for gracefield this year but it wasnt as a centre back it was as a SWEEPER..you could play him as a forward and bring him back for cover but you would want to be mad to pick him as a centre back!!!!
1. A Mulhall:walsh island (safe and reliable)
2. B Darby:rhode (experienced and tough)
3. J Maloney:tullamore (young, talented and has to be given the chance)
4. S Pender:edenderry (very tight marker and very consistent)
5. M Mitchell:clara (good on the ball going forward and distripution)
6. C Kiely:gracefield (solid player and could be a his position with his physical presence)
7. A Murphy:gracefield (young talented player, very quick and a good man marker that does well going forward)
8. B Connor:walsh island (very talented could be a future great for the county)
9. N Smith:gracefield (Amazing fielder of the ball could be turned into a huge player for offaly)
10. G Guilfoyle:clara (blistering pace but needs to play with his head up)
11. A Sullivan:rhode (class act needs to stay fit)
12. M Brazil:tullamore (very strong and can kick a score from anywhere as well as see a pass)
13 S Dooley:tullamore (very accurate player could be what were missing)
14.N McNamee:rhode (cant do without him but needs to become more of a team player)
15.???????? cant think of anyone to give it to any real contenders??

This is the best team someone has suggested on this topic so far.... for number 15 i would think on top form tomo deehan! have to agree with you on ruairi allen its actualy laughable to think he would be good enough to play center back for intercounty football...can anyone picture him marking alan brogan, joe sheridan or dessie dolan???

Decent enough team alright i think. think Mick Stanbrook from shamrocks certainly deserves to be in there. seen him do very well on Niall Mac in the last few years at club level. Always struggles with him. Never gets a mention for these teams. Not sure about Darby, he is an excellent player, driven tenacious etc no doubt but he lacks a lot of pace at the top level. Sean Ryans brother could be looked at here i think, serious pace and very impressive at minor level 2 years ago. Liam Brennan from Daingean should also be looked at for full or corner back, very impressive this year in the 2 games i saw him. Guilfoyle definitely needs to play with the head up and develop some better decision making skills, can be blinkered at times but a lot of potential. Brazil and moloney are talented but carrying weight this summer for Tullamore, not too sure about their discipline. Mitchell is an excellent footballer no doubt, again discipline an issue as Tom Cribbin found out in his first year...for 15, id say thomo if he had any ambition but bernard allen with a little more strength is probably the pick of the bunch. Dont think Dooley will committ with the hurling.

What about Karl Slattery and Neville Coughlan???

[offalyman18]

I attended a lot of the club games this year and seen all of gracefields matches bar one..i dont understand all the hype bout this ruairi allen..sure he's a strong lad and would be able to mix it physically but if he was to play centre back at inter county level he'd be out of his depth all together..he played very well for gracefield this year but it wasnt as a centre back it was as a SWEEPER..you could play him as a forward and bring him back for cover but you would want to be mad to pick him as a centre back!!!!
1. A Mulhall:walsh island (safe and reliable)
2. B Darby:rhode (experienced and tough)
3. J Maloney:tullamore (young, talented and has to be given the chance)
4. S Pender:edenderry (very tight marker and very consistent)
5. M Mitchell:clara (good on the ball going forward and distripution)
6. C Kiely:gracefield (solid player and could be a his position with his physical presence)
7. A Murphy:gracefield (young talented player, very quick and a good man marker that does well going forward)
8. B Connor:walsh island (very talented could be a future great for the county)
9. N Smith:gracefield (Amazing fielder of the ball could be turned into a huge player for offaly)
10. G Guilfoyle:clara (blistering pace but needs to play with his head up)
11. A Sullivan:rhode (class act needs to stay fit)
12. M Brazil:tullamore (very strong and can kick a score from anywhere as well as see a pass)
13 S Dooley:tullamore (very accurate player could be what were missing)
14.N McNamee:rhode (cant do without him but needs to become more of a team player)
15.???????? cant think of anyone to give it to any real contenders??

This is the best team someone has suggested on this topic so far.... for number 15 i would think on top form tomo deehan! have to agree with you on ruairi allen its actualy laughable to think he would be good enough to play center back for intercounty football...can anyone picture him marking alan brogan, joe sheridan or dessie dolan???

Decent enough team alright i think. think Mick Stanbrook from shamrocks certainly deserves to be in there. seen him do very well on Niall Mac in the last few years at club level. Always struggles with him. Never gets a mention for these teams. Not sure about Darby, he is an excellent player, driven tenacious etc no doubt but he lacks a lot of pace at the top level. Sean Ryans brother could be looked at here i think, serious pace and very impressive at minor level 2 years ago. Liam Brennan from Daingean should also be looked at for full or corner back, very impressive this year in the 2 games i saw him. Guilfoyle definitely needs to play with the head up and develop some better decision making skills, can be blinkered at times but a lot of potential. Brazil and moloney are talented but carrying weight this summer for Tullamore, not too sure about their discipline. Mitchell is an excellent footballer no doubt, again discipline an issue as Tom Cribbin found out in his first year...for 15, id say thomo if he had any ambition but bernard allen with a little more strength is probably the pick of the bunch. Dont think Dooley will committ with the hurling.

What about Karl Slattery and Neville Coughlan???

yeah i agree Slattery could be in there either! Is it donie ryan your talking about havent seen much of him this year.. but yeah thats why i dont understand happy harry with mitchell as a no has he not watched offaly football for the last 4 years? Bernard allen is turning into a brilliant footballer just needs a bit more physical strenght

[DAF]

Liam Brennan would be a good option and should defintely be called up to the panel and given a run to see would he be capable of making the step up from Junior football to intercounty football.He is by far Daingeans best player and was outstanding in the county final

[Long John]

I attended a lot of the club games this year and seen all of gracefields matches bar one..i dont understand all the hype bout this ruairi allen..sure he's a strong lad and would be able to mix it physically but if he was to play centre back at inter county level he'd be out of his depth all together..he played very well for gracefield this year but it wasnt as a centre back it was as a SWEEPER..you could play him as a forward and bring him back for cover but you would want to be mad to pick him as a centre back!!!!
1. A Mulhall:walsh island (safe and reliable)
2. B Darby:rhode (experienced and tough)
3. J Maloney:tullamore (young, talented and has to be given the chance)
4. S Pender:edenderry (very tight marker and very consistent)
5. M Mitchell:clara (good on the ball going forward and distripution)
6. C Kiely:gracefield (solid player and could be a his position with his physical presence)
7. A Murphy:gracefield (young talented player, very quick and a good man marker that does well going forward)
8. B Connor:walsh island (very talented could be a future great for the county)
9. N Smith:gracefield (Amazing fielder of the ball could be turned into a huge player for offaly)
10. G Guilfoyle:clara (blistering pace but needs to play with his head up)
11. A Sullivan:rhode (class act needs to stay fit)
12. M Brazil:tullamore (very strong and can kick a score from anywhere as well as see a pass)
13 S Dooley:tullamore (very accurate player could be what were missing)
14.N McNamee:rhode (cant do without him but needs to become more of a team player)
15.???????? cant think of anyone to give it to any real contenders??

Totally agree with comments about Ruairi Allen. He wasnt really a centre back. Gracefield packed their defence and he was a loose man acting as a sweeper. But to put him as a conventional centre back at county level and maybe even club level, I think he would be found out defensively.

Just a few other points. I dont see anything in Guilfoyle. Unquestionably he has great speed because of his long stride. But the man is not a good footballer. He has been very bad in club games even. On his county performances so far he has been the reason for more scores against his team than alot of defenders. Completely over rated.

Dooley has had some good games but he has also has some brutal ones. Ive seen Michael Stanbrook who somebody else mentioned absolutely clean him out and Ive not seen him play well in any of Tullamores big battles with the likes of Rhode or Clara. Hes not bad but he's not a stand out player either. Probably good enough for panel but not a starter.

Kiely was very exposed against Meath when he played. He got a right run around. Maybe he deserves a run in league and see what he can do. He's playing with the Downs in Westmeath so I have not seen much of him in a while.

Matt Mitchell certainly wouldnt be on the wing anyway. Hes struggles with pace. But he is a good reader of the game and uses the ball very well. Ideally he would be my choice at centre back. But there is the discipline issues around him. He's one of many to be fair who like the social side of been seen as a county footballer more so than performing like a county footballer. But in general that's a problem with 90% of the panel. Cooney has to knock this partying culture out of these lads. They shouldnt be near a pub until their out of the all Ireland series. And I dont think thats over the top, it's just doing things the right way.

[townman]

Ciran Kiely is back with Gracefield for 2012 i hear, as for Allen not good enough for centre back who else!
Scott or Ross Brady way to slow and haven't the football Allen has, Shane O'Sullivan would be the choice after Allen.

[happy harry]

what i was saying and i apolagise if i wasnt clear was that in my opinion them players were a ''no''. im not saying im right or anything. and long john kiely had a very good game against meath...he held graham reilly scoreless and reilly tore laois and others a ;''sunder' later in the year gettn an all star nomination. kiely came off due to cramp with 4 minutes to go. stanbrook is a very good player and worth a shot. and i personally would have slattery on the panel at the very least. coughlan probaly past it at this stage but was a good one when at his best. ruari allen ....i stilll dont know what to think....he's young so he can develop but im not a 100 per cent convinced but i do think hes a good ball player and worthy of a chance

[townman]

i don't think Dooley is slow happy larry i think he has bulk up alright, he is quick enough to get out to a ball
and yes Kiely had a good game at half back again meath he was about the only one.

he also played a good game again kerry a few years ago in the league down in kerry he should make it if he gets the call
who is this A,Murphy was he the fullback for Gracefield this year he was also on the offaly under21 team he would be Martin Murphys
son would he be.

[Long John]

what i was saying and i apolagise if i wasnt clear was that in my opinion them players were a ''no''. im not saying im right or anything. and long john kiely had a very good game against meath...he held graham reilly scoreless and reilly tore laois and others a ;''sunder' later in the year gettn an all star nomination. kiely came off due to cramp with 4 minutes to go. stanbrook is a very good player and worth a shot. and i personally would have slattery on the panel at the very least. coughlan probaly past it at this stage but was a good one when at his best. ruari allen ....i stilll dont know what to think....he's young so he can develop but im not a 100 per cent convinced but i do think hes a good ball player and worthy of a chance

Reilly tore him to shreds. If im not mistaken, reilly missed 4 or 5 guilt edged chances in the first half alone and Kiely was way off him. Reilly is a good footballer to be fair and Kiely really struggled with him. Maybe he still might have somrthing to offer if he gets a good chance in the league.