The final result was expected but the manner of it not. I thought we could go toe to toe for a while but they would pull away and win with a bit to spare. The way we came back at them and could have nicked it is very good for the future.
There were lots of positives. Jemar Hall, Paul Hughes, Brendan Donaghy, Soupy, Jamie, they all played really well. Others played in bursts and contributed. We have the nucleus of an excellent team and they played above expectations.
The is a downside though and I think yesterday for all it’s positives was as clear an example of how far we are actually away from the top table as it was showing how close we are.
Defensively we tackled well but still gave away too many scoreable frees. Also indiscipline saw frees brought forward or frees for pulling off the ball closer to the goals. Also we need a keeper. I’m sorry but he is simply not good enough. Harsh as that may seem he does not inspire confidence and his kick outs are too scratchy. If there is nothing better in the county then something needs to change. I think it was very telling that the management asked at least one out field player to become a keeper, allegedly causing him to leave the panel.
Also we are 2 defenders short of a top tier team. James Morgan for all his faults is one of them and was coming into a bit of form when he got injured. He has been wrecked with injury and how he recovers will be interesting. An obvious loss for us in the club but you suck it up and get on. There needs to be at least 1 more defender out there. What is very telling is that if you take the Cross players out of the team there is only 1 player from the other recent county champions playing consistently from the start inAidan Forker. Genuinely I find this baffling. Cullyhanna too are the bridesmaids wfor the last number of years and they only have 1 player. I would hazard a guess that there are proven winners of these teams who are the equal to or better than what is there already but also know how to win big games.
In midfield Burns has had the year of a senior debutant, flashes of brilliance, periods of anonymity and a lot of inexperienced play. He has the potential to be an excellent midfielder but I fear that people have Jack O’Se’d him before he is even close to it. He has a great engine, great hands on him when he has the opportunity to catch it but can be a bit clueless sometimes and plays like he is still playing underage in that he puts the head down and runs into traffic a lot. A lot of blind alley running. Also physically he was bullied on Saturday. He was pulled into a few physical tussles and wasn’t fit for it. Looking to the ref too much. You need to win those fights yourself. Experience will hopefully bring that into his game but its a harsh lesson that you learn from quickly or get out of the heat. Grimley is a decent midfielder who can chip in with some good scores and works hard. I think he too can be caught with his decision making, the last free and shot being a prime example. People are saying the management should have had more input but lets face it the players need to take responsibility on the field and the shot for nothing was wrong. A if Oisin Mc and an experienced Ben Crealy add significantly to this area.
In the forwards Hall, Soupy, Nugent, have been solid all year. This has been the best I have seen Jamie in a long time, pity from a selfish point of view he is going to London but that’s his call. Grugan had a curates egg of a year. He played reasonably well at the weekend but I thought he has been very poor all year up to this. I genuinely do not think that the captaincy sits well with him and I think it saved his position on the team a few times. Like Burns Rian had the year of a debutant but he has the potential to be what he wants to be. To score 3-21 at 20 years of age in your debut year is exceptional but his decision making was questionable, particularly shot selection. That will come. What did impress me was his general coolness under pressure and his discipline in general. He has a temper and he held it. He could be the Micheal Murphy of this team and when his brother is fully fit I think that will release him. They both work really well off each other. He really has the potential to be the best. Put him in Dublin and he is young player of the year this year and championship top scorer. What needs to happen now is that the likes of Duffy, McQuillan, young Turbitt from CE and a few others need to be blooded consistently.
In terms of the management, they have had 5 years. From what I have heard another 2 years is there for Geezer to accept or reject. McCorry has made a difference but I would freshen up the rest of the management structure. Change can refresh and reinvigorate. I genuinely believe that there needs to someone from our club on the sideline, may seem as arrogance or bias but there is too much talent coaching within our club that would add greatly to the Armagh set up but is not being utilized. I think at key times at the weekend and over the championship as a whole mistakes have been made on the line. Hard decisions need to be made at times and I think they were not done fast enough or at all. Egos need to be left at the door when the team walks in and I include the managements in that. I do think sometimes that there is still a wee bit of ‘coffee in Grounded in our training gear’ about this group and that there is a lack of steel about some of it. A few hard homes truths at training would change that.
The reality is that we beat a poor Down team, lost to a Cavan team who were beaten with ease by Donegal, beat a Monaghan team on its last legs with a few key men not playing and beaten by a Mayo team struggling with injuries, form and who are notoriously brittle in the Qualifiers. We struggled in Division 2 and could easily have gone down. We are improving but its a long road to be at the levels that the effort and expense that are being expended warrant. The CB will give the manager another run at it, financially he is doing a serious amount of work for them so they cannot let him go but at least the results at least warrant another go at it. Honestly, if an Ulster Final wasn’t at least made and a serious run at winning Division 2 this season then I would have to question should the whole management team stay on. Give them the change to do that. If they don’t then I think its time for change.