A curate's egg of a performance. Firstly, well done to all involved in the win. To win in the Ulster Championship has been a very big psychological hurdle for this group but an important thing was that there were 4-5 who have not played or played very little in Ulster so the baggage was not there and they had some freedom to play. Also, beating Down in Newry is always a good result and given that they hadn't been beaten in 63 years in championship makes it even better.
The positives are there. Some good defenders but still a bit below level as a unit. Thought Kennedy out in a very good shift for a newbie and Morgan did well when he came in. In MF Burns did well and I think he will compliment Niall Grimley very well when he gets back fully fit. Vernon is not the man for MF anymore but may be useful on the square as some have suggested as there is a serious lack of strength back there.
Up front Nugent impressed on his debut and he has a good opportunity now to establish himself. Clarke played better than he has for a while which makes his refusal to play for his club even more frustrating. I have major reservations about this whole scenario and it seems to be being brushed under the carpet to an extent. The notion that a player can openly refuse to play for his club and then play for the county is unsettling. I recall during my playing days when we were going for an All Ireland and the Armagh management at the time threatened to have Oisin, the Twins and Paul Hearty suspended from the club scene as they wouldn't play National League. We were playing in an Ulster Final the week after a National league game, back when there were games pre-Christmas. This notion of the county outweighing the club is something I find unfair and really it sends a bad message that a lad can play for the county and not play for the club. It won't happen but questions should be raised as this open action of refusing to play for your club while playing for the county is wrong and goes against the ethos of the game in my opinion.
Anyway, the performance of Rian was outstanding and he certainly has it all. If Grimley, Murnin and Oisin O'Neill can get back fit I think between them there is a central spine from MF forward that can be devastating if properly utilized. The pure talent these lads have is exceptional and if the right players are played round them then they can do anything in my opinion. If I was picking the team from MF forward and all were fit I would play Grimley and Burns in MF, a half forward line of Clarke, O O'Neill and Nugent and a FF line triangle of 2 targets in Rian and Murnin with Soupy floating either side of them. Soupy and Jamie could interchange from HF to FF lines.
As you will see Grugan is not in the team and to be honest this brings me to my negatives. I thought he was poor and has been poor for some time. He is captain and it is not suiting him. He is not a big game player and certainly not a leader. I actually thought that was one of the big concerns yesterday in terms of leadership and calmness at key times. The game should have been won in normal time. Down were a busted flush with 14 men (rightly so, clear red card), and with a keeper gone for a black card. The game management was poor and the experienced players like Grugan, Donaghy, Forker, etc should have been taking control of the game at different times and calming the whole thing down. Lying down, cramp etc, break up momentum. This didn't happen. Some of the football was kamikaze and the OG goal summed that up. Leadership is needed. There is no disputing the drive and desire but there needs to be a bit more cuteness.
As alluded to already there is an issue at the FB and GK position in my opinion. I have suggested Vernon at FB but that is just a sticky plaster. Blaine Hughes is a decent keeper but he is a weak link as he has limited presence. I have heard a story about an outfield player was approached to play goals and he subsequently removed himself from the panel. This player would have a significant better presence that Hughes so maybe that was the thinking. Long term there needs to be a bit of clever thinking about this position.
Management made decent substitutions but also made a few head scratchers. Also the whole McGeeney incident with McKernan was embarrassing and out of line for his part. As a manager you need to have a bit of coolness and leadership and in that one incident this was lacking. If the rules are applied he could be looking at 12 weeks in the stand.
Finally, and not to piss on people's chips, but this is a very poor Down team. They couldn't get out of Division 3. We played against 14 men for 40 minutes, we were 5 points up with time almost up and drew and we were 4 up with time up in ET and conceded poorly again. This will not do against Cavan, whom I thought looked excellent on Saturday night. I will not get into details about that in here as there is a separate thread opened by Rufus already but all I will say there will need to be improvements.
Some good some bad but the key thing is a win. Confidence and momentum can hopefully build.
The positives are there. Some good defenders but still a bit below level as a unit. Thought Kennedy out in a very good shift for a newbie and Morgan did well when he came in. In MF Burns did well and I think he will compliment Niall Grimley very well when he gets back fully fit. Vernon is not the man for MF anymore but may be useful on the square as some have suggested as there is a serious lack of strength back there.
Up front Nugent impressed on his debut and he has a good opportunity now to establish himself. Clarke played better than he has for a while which makes his refusal to play for his club even more frustrating. I have major reservations about this whole scenario and it seems to be being brushed under the carpet to an extent. The notion that a player can openly refuse to play for his club and then play for the county is unsettling. I recall during my playing days when we were going for an All Ireland and the Armagh management at the time threatened to have Oisin, the Twins and Paul Hearty suspended from the club scene as they wouldn't play National League. We were playing in an Ulster Final the week after a National league game, back when there were games pre-Christmas. This notion of the county outweighing the club is something I find unfair and really it sends a bad message that a lad can play for the county and not play for the club. It won't happen but questions should be raised as this open action of refusing to play for your club while playing for the county is wrong and goes against the ethos of the game in my opinion.
Anyway, the performance of Rian was outstanding and he certainly has it all. If Grimley, Murnin and Oisin O'Neill can get back fit I think between them there is a central spine from MF forward that can be devastating if properly utilized. The pure talent these lads have is exceptional and if the right players are played round them then they can do anything in my opinion. If I was picking the team from MF forward and all were fit I would play Grimley and Burns in MF, a half forward line of Clarke, O O'Neill and Nugent and a FF line triangle of 2 targets in Rian and Murnin with Soupy floating either side of them. Soupy and Jamie could interchange from HF to FF lines.
As you will see Grugan is not in the team and to be honest this brings me to my negatives. I thought he was poor and has been poor for some time. He is captain and it is not suiting him. He is not a big game player and certainly not a leader. I actually thought that was one of the big concerns yesterday in terms of leadership and calmness at key times. The game should have been won in normal time. Down were a busted flush with 14 men (rightly so, clear red card), and with a keeper gone for a black card. The game management was poor and the experienced players like Grugan, Donaghy, Forker, etc should have been taking control of the game at different times and calming the whole thing down. Lying down, cramp etc, break up momentum. This didn't happen. Some of the football was kamikaze and the OG goal summed that up. Leadership is needed. There is no disputing the drive and desire but there needs to be a bit more cuteness.
As alluded to already there is an issue at the FB and GK position in my opinion. I have suggested Vernon at FB but that is just a sticky plaster. Blaine Hughes is a decent keeper but he is a weak link as he has limited presence. I have heard a story about an outfield player was approached to play goals and he subsequently removed himself from the panel. This player would have a significant better presence that Hughes so maybe that was the thinking. Long term there needs to be a bit of clever thinking about this position.
Management made decent substitutions but also made a few head scratchers. Also the whole McGeeney incident with McKernan was embarrassing and out of line for his part. As a manager you need to have a bit of coolness and leadership and in that one incident this was lacking. If the rules are applied he could be looking at 12 weeks in the stand.
Finally, and not to piss on people's chips, but this is a very poor Down team. They couldn't get out of Division 3. We played against 14 men for 40 minutes, we were 5 points up with time almost up and drew and we were 4 up with time up in ET and conceded poorly again. This will not do against Cavan, whom I thought looked excellent on Saturday night. I will not get into details about that in here as there is a separate thread opened by Rufus already but all I will say there will need to be improvements.
Some good some bad but the key thing is a win. Confidence and momentum can hopefully build.
