All Ireland series

Lemallon

Lemallon

Active Member
The reason why people love and watch sport very often is because of its ability to drive u to emotional extremes. You experience devastating lows and the memory of them makes the highs all the more thrilling and exhilarating.

As an Armagh supporter of over 40 years I don’t believe I’ve gone through the emotional spectrum as much previously as I have since Saturday evening. Sitting in the stand at 11-5 I was resigned and depressed. We looked utterly defeated and demoralised. I said to my neighbour. We are going to get beaten by 10 plus. It’s going to get nasty. Then gradually we pulled our way back into it. Got it down to 5/4/3. For people who weren’t there it’s hard to describe but I think during that short time frame the area of the stand I was in was one of the loudest I’ve ever experienced as an armagh supporter. I truly believe the team were helped by this noise and support. It was inspiring to me never mind those on the field.

Amazingly one of the loudest cheers came not from a score but an amazing catch by Ethan from a kickout. At that stage it looked like the comeback was on and the stand almost felt like it was shaking. At the final whistle I felt proud. Armagh had shown an amazing amount of heart and no little skill to never give up in a match where if wouid have been easier to fold and say we have a few days yet to rectify things.
Rory Grugan Jason Duffy and Andrew Murnin especially decided they were going to dig deep and do everything they could for their county.
I walked out of the ground with a slight pep and felt Armagh had the best supporters in Ireland.

As u do I started flicking through social media for post game reaction. Facebook first. My mood turned. Under the armagh gaa final score post the comments were building. Management a joke, performance a disgrace, defensive shite etc etc. I thought Jesus, it wasn’t that bad was it.
Then on here. The same if not worse. Absolutely brutal attacks on the team but more venomous ones on the manager. Some were constructive but many were personal, vindictive and alll cowardly. I posted straight away in the car on the way home and called people gutless fools. This was wrong. It was done in rage and I apologise for it.
I signed off and determined I wasn’t reading any more because I knew what annoyance the posts were going to cause. I haven’t been on since but the general social media atmosphere has been impossible to avoid. It has been toxic and has saddened me deeply. Having a large fan base always means you will attract the polar opposite type of fan, the best and the worst and the past two days has really demonstrated that. I’ve gone from the highest high to the lowest low in my estimation of the Armagh fan.

Before anyone calls me a McGeeney fan boy, those that actually know me will know this is 100 percent not the case. Many times since 2015 I’ve felt and verbally expressed the opinion that Kieran has had long enough in the role. I’ve felt we have not exploited the talents of the players we’ve had sufficiently for his position to be justified. However I do believe the last two days has seen the criticism rise to a level of unacceptable personal abuse.
I’ve witnessed online how it is affecting family members of his and it’s very very wrong. People need to think how their words can affect the emotional stability of others before they type.

I can safely say the Armagh football team brings me the most happiness and joy in my life. Maybe that says more about my life but so be it lol. I’m 48, never married with no children. My mother and father who have passed away loved football and it has transferred to me. The past two years in division 1, the Galway q final and the likes of Donegal in clones last year and even extra time v Derry a few weeks ago have been amazing. I’m lucky to have this team to keep me wanting to be alive.

This is why the last two days have made me so so sad. The overwhelming negativity and vitriol has been so unnecessary. Criticise all you want, I do plenty of it but please do it with a level of restraint and consideration for others. We still have at least one more game to go. I feel down now but my god I’ll be in Breffni praying for a win as much as I ever have.

Many apologies for the long post. Insomnia can lead to rants lol. For anyone who has reached the end thanks for indulging in my personal therapy
 
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M

MrMaguire2002

Well-Known Member
PatMustard said:
You’re not from Lurgan, so you’re hardly qualified to talk about spades ;)

We’re all disappointed. Probably as much with the performance than the result. But this isn’t Real Madrid or Liverpool, so calling for a managers head in the height of summer isn’t going to change anything. McGeeney is there until the championship is over, whether you, or any of us, like it or not.

We might only have one more game this year. Get behind the lads for whatever remains of our season. Any talk of changes to management can take place when the season has finished....







...lad.
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Pat that 'lad' gograngego is the worst active member on this forum. His idiotic comments are insulting and he hides behind a keyboard calling Rian O'Neill a tr*mp and McGeeney needs to pack his 'gym bags'. He wouldn't do it to their face.

Little to no significant input. Just on here to give personal insults and is devoid of any posts worth reading.

As you rightly say Pat - little point on discussing getting rid of the management now. You let the year pan out. Then everyone can reflect back on the season.

My one criticism would be that we conceded the kickout for the majority of the game. When we did a high press in the last 10 - 15 minutes we really had them under pressure.

It is hard to expect them to press their kickout for the whole game. Energy sapping obviously - but it could still be done during the fist half and second half not smply the last quarter when we are chasing the game.

On a sidenote Murnin has to be mentioned. He was absolutely brilliant the other evening. Felt for him more than most as his work rate was superb.

These two weeks are needed and need to be used very wisely.
 
W

Wee man

Well-Known Member
Lemallon said:
The reason why people love and watch sport very often is because of its ability to drive u to emotional extremes. You experience devastating lows and the memory of them makes the highs all the more thrilling and exhilarating.

As an Armagh supporter of over 40 years I don’t believe I’ve gone through the emotional spectrum as much previously as I have since Saturday evening. Sitting in the stand at 11-5 I was resigned and depressed. We looked utterly defeated and demoralised. I said to my neighbour. We are going to get beaten by 10 plus. It’s going to get nasty. Then gradually we pulled our way back into it. Got it down to 5/4/3. For people who weren’t there it’s hard to describe but I think during that short time frame the area of the stand I was in was one of the loudest I’ve ever experienced as an armagh supporter. I truly believe the team were helped by this noise and support. It was inspiring to me never mind those on the field.

Amazingly one of the loudest cheers came not from a score but an amazing catch by Ethan from a kickout. At that stage it looked like the comeback was on and the stand almost felt like it was shaking. At the final whistle I felt proud. Armagh had shown an amazing amount of heart and no little skill to never give up in a match where if wouid have been easier to fold and say we have a few days yet to rectify things.
Rory Grugan Jason Duffy and Andrew Murnin especially decided they were going to dig deep and do everything they could for their county.
I walked out of the ground with a slight pep and felt Armagh had the best supporters in Ireland.

As u do I started flicking through social media for post game reaction. Facebook first. My mood turned. Under the armagh gaa final score post the comments were building. Management a joke, performance a disgrace, defensive shite etc etc. I thought Jesus, it wasn’t that bad was it.
Then on here. The same if not worse. Absolutely brutal attacks on the team but more venomous ones on the manager. Some were constructive but many were personal, vindictive and alll cowardly. I posted straight away in the car on the way home and called people gutless fools. This was wrong. It was done in rage and I apologise for it.
I signed off and determined I wasn’t reading any more because I knew what annoyance the posts were going to cause. I haven’t been on since but the general social media atmosphere has been impossible to avoid. It has been toxic and has saddened me deeply. Having a large fan base always means you will attract the polar opposite type of fan, the best and the worst and the past two days has really demonstrated that. I’ve gone from the highest high to the lowest low in my estimation of the Armagh fan.

Before anyone calls me a McGeeney fan boy, those that actually know me will know this is 100 percent not the case. Many times since 2015 I’ve felt and verbally expressed the opinion that Kieran has had long enough in the role. I’ve felt we have not exploited the talents of the players we’ve had sufficiently for his position to be justified. However I do believe the last two days has seen the criticism rise to a level of unacceptable personal abuse.
I’ve witnessed online how it is affecting family members of his and it’s very very wrong. People need to think how their words can affect the emotional stability of others before they type.

I can safely say the Armagh football team brings me the most happiness and joy in my life. Maybe that says more about my life but so be it lol. I’m 48, never married with no children. My mother and father who have passed away loved football and it has transferred to me. The past two years in division 1, the Galway q final and the likes of Donegal in clones last year and even extra time v Derry a few weeks ago have been amazing. I’m lucky to have this team to keep me wanting to be alive.

This is why the last two days have made me so so sad. The overwhelming negativity and vitriol has been so unnecessary. Criticise all you want, I do plenty of it but please do it with a level of restraint and consideration for others. We still have at least one more game to go. I feel down now but my god I’ll be in Breffni praying for a win as much as I ever have.

Many apologies for the long post. Insomnia can lead to rants lol. For anyone who has reached the end thanks for indulging in my personal therapy
Click to expand...
Excellent post and I must have been in the same part of the stand. The noise was deafening at times. I posted right after the game to say I felt happier losing to Tyrone than beating WestMeath the previous week.
They showed tremendous heart and fight in that second half and I think they can still go places this year.
We still haven’t ‘clicked’ this year. We have won games playing poorly but I really feel (hope) there are a couple of big games left in this team.
 
N

Naka

Active Member
have been thinking about the positivity and how we have talked ourselves up but having considered our victories over the past two years we havent really beaten a top team when they were on song.
this year Monaghan and Donegal
last year tyrone , dublin when they were undercooked kildare and then donegal
this year playing wise we have been awful and i feel we really need to put a serious team to the sword to get momentum.
for me galway is a must win to stop the maliase thereafter if we avoid kerry we have a serious chance of getting to the quarter finals
if we lose to galway i just feel the season will fall away
 
G

gael_force_orchard

Well-Known Member
MrMaguire2002 said:
Pat that 'lad' gograngego is the worst active member on this forum. His idiotic comments are insulting and he hides behind a keyboard calling Rian O'Neill a tr*mp and McGeeney needs to pack his 'gym bags'. He wouldn't do it to their face.

Little to no significant input. Just on here to give personal insults and is devoid of any posts worth reading.

As you rightly say Pat - little point on discussing getting rid of the management now. You let the year pan out. Then everyone can reflect back on the season.

My one criticism would be that we conceded the kickout for the majority of the game. When we did a high press in the last 10 - 15 minutes we really had them under pressure.

It is hard to expect them to press their kickout for the whole game. Energy sapping obviously - but it could still be done during the fist half and second half not smply the last quarter when we are chasing the game.

On a sidenote Murnin has to be mentioned. He was absolutely brilliant the other evening. Felt for him more than most as his work rate was superb.

These two weeks are needed and need to be used very wisely.
Click to expand...
I'd say it's likely a 12 or 13 year old keyboard warrior with little else to be at. No credence should be given to whoever is behind that username
 
A

armaghtimmy

Well-Known Member
Rafferty

Paddy burns
McKay
Morgan

Mc Cambridge
McCabe
O'Neill

Mackin
McPartland

Jarly og
Hall
Grugan

Murnin
Forker
Duffy

Thats what I would like to see start v Galway
 
William Of Orange

William Of Orange

Well-Known Member
Lemallon said:
The reason why people love and watch sport very often is because of its ability to drive u to emotional extremes. You experience devastating lows and the memory of them makes the highs all the more thrilling and exhilarating.

As an Armagh supporter of over 40 years I don’t believe I’ve gone through the emotional spectrum as much previously as I have since Saturday evening. Sitting in the stand at 11-5 I was resigned and depressed. We looked utterly defeated and demoralised. I said to my neighbour. We are going to get beaten by 10 plus. It’s going to get nasty. Then gradually we pulled our way back into it. Got it down to 5/4/3. For people who weren’t there it’s hard to describe but I think during that short time frame the area of the stand I was in was one of the loudest I’ve ever experienced as an armagh supporter. I truly believe the team were helped by this noise and support. It was inspiring to me never mind those on the field.

Amazingly one of the loudest cheers came not from a score but an amazing catch by Ethan from a kickout. At that stage it looked like the comeback was on and the stand almost felt like it was shaking. At the final whistle I felt proud. Armagh had shown an amazing amount of heart and no little skill to never give up in a match where if wouid have been easier to fold and say we have a few days yet to rectify things.
Rory Grugan Jason Duffy and Andrew Murnin especially decided they were going to dig deep and do everything they could for their county.
I walked out of the ground with a slight pep and felt Armagh had the best supporters in Ireland.

As u do I started flicking through social media for post game reaction. Facebook first. My mood turned. Under the armagh gaa final score post the comments were building. Management a joke, performance a disgrace, defensive shite etc etc. I thought Jesus, it wasn’t that bad was it.
Then on here. The same if not worse. Absolutely brutal attacks on the team but more venomous ones on the manager. Some were constructive but many were personal, vindictive and alll cowardly. I posted straight away in the car on the way home and called people gutless fools. This was wrong. It was done in rage and I apologise for it.
I signed off and determined I wasn’t reading any more because I knew what annoyance the posts were going to cause. I haven’t been on since but the general social media atmosphere has been impossible to avoid. It has been toxic and has saddened me deeply. Having a large fan base always means you will attract the polar opposite type of fan, the best and the worst and the past two days has really demonstrated that. I’ve gone from the highest high to the lowest low in my estimation of the Armagh fan.

Before anyone calls me a McGeeney fan boy, those that actually know me will know this is 100 percent not the case. Many times since 2015 I’ve felt and verbally expressed the opinion that Kieran has had long enough in the role. I’ve felt we have not exploited the talents of the players we’ve had sufficiently for his position to be justified. However I do believe the last two days has seen the criticism rise to a level of unacceptable personal abuse.
I’ve witnessed online how it is affecting family members of his and it’s very very wrong. People need to think how their words can affect the emotional stability of others before they type.

I can safely say the Armagh football team brings me the most happiness and joy in my life. Maybe that says more about my life but so be it lol. I’m 48, never married with no children. My mother and father who have passed away loved football and it has transferred to me. The past two years in division 1, the Galway q final and the likes of Donegal in clones last year and even extra time v Derry a few weeks ago have been amazing. I’m lucky to have this team to keep me wanting to be alive.

This is why the last two days have made me so so sad. The overwhelming negativity and vitriol has been so unnecessary. Criticise all you want, I do plenty of it but please do it with a level of restraint and consideration for others. We still have at least one more game to go. I feel down now but my god I’ll be in Breffni praying for a win as much as I ever have.

Many apologies for the long post. Insomnia can lead to rants lol. For anyone who has reached the end thanks for indulging in my personal therapy
Click to expand...
Great post @Lemallon , theres a few of us on this forum who would know you personally and despite some strong criticism you have always been an unwavering Armagh supporter and have provided one particular 'infamous' post of the previous forum after a catastrophe performance against Tyrone in the McKenna cup :):):)

Your 100% right we have the best supporters in Ireland pound for pound with attendances and vocal support , the inverse of this is some of the posts your read here , and twitter (I don't do Facebook) , but the toxicity is rising to a level where I would not be surprised if a number of people don't just walk away and don't come back .

Anyhow you keep the faith , Sport is full of disappointments , being an Armagh fan that is par for the course , but there will always be that chink of light that we will grasp and the season is far from over , some big days may be ahead.
 
G

gazman317

Member
gograngego said:
Imagine what the likes of ORourke, McGuinness etc could do this this armagh team.

One of ireland most expensive wage bill with 3 donkeys standing on sideline.

Been p1ss poor all year and beat 3x Div3 teams.

Pack those gym bags Geezeer.
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5times5times​

  • Sr. Member
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Re: Tyrone vs Armagh - 3rd June 7pm - Healy Park, Omagh.​

« Reply #188 on: June 03, 2023, 08:44:43 PM »

Imagine what the likes of ORourke, McGuinness etc could do this this armagh team.

One of ireland most expensive wage bill with 3 donkeys standing on sideline.

Been p1ss poor all year and beat 3x Div3 teams.

Pack those gym bags Geezeer.
 
pablo

pablo

Well-Known Member
Lemallon said:
This is why the last two days have made me so so sad. The overwhelming negativity and vitriol has been so unnecessary. Criticise all you want, I do plenty of it but please do it with a level of restraint and consideration for others. We still have at least one more game to go. I feel down now but my god I’ll be in Breffni praying for a win as much as I ever have.

Many apologies for the long post. Insomnia can lead to rants lol. For anyone who has reached the end thanks for indulging in my personal therapy
Click to expand...
Don't ever apologise for sharing a post llike this. Its our privliege to read this. Thank you for this
Our support is magnificent.
 
pablo

pablo

Well-Known Member
Ed Ricketts said:
Some random thoughts on today:

There seemed to be a consensus around me in the stand that we were all watching two poor teams. Some basic skill execution was shocking - balls kicked over the sideline, misplaced 5 yard hand passes, really poor wides. Hard to see either side going further than the quarter finals without huge improvement.

We're 13 proper games into this season, and it still doesn't look like Armagh are close to finding a winning balance in their brand of football. They remain fine defensively, but I have yet to get a sense that there's any sort of structure or plan going forward. It's all very off the cuff, get the ball to O'Neill in the 'shooting pocket', or take a pot shot, or run down a blind alley. This has been the biggest disappointment of the year.

That red card was in the post all year. Rian has been running around like a grumpy heure giving sneaky digs in pretty much every game to date. He gets a lot of abuse himself of course, but that doesn't excuse his own behaviour. This has been his poorest year in an Armagh jersey, and he has capped that by letting everyone down this evening. Someone needs to have a word.

It was a bit mad that Armagh were a desperate fly-kicked clearance away from nicking a draw, despite being largely woeful, and despite playing for about 50 mins with 14 men. A lot of that is down to how nervous and mediocre Tyrone were on the night, but some of it is also due to the valiant efforts of a few Armagh men. Duffy, Murnin and Grugan put in serious shifts for fellas that must have known they were probably chasing a lost cause.

Would love to know what the plan was on that last 50. Only a goal would do, so why was the ball tipped over the bar? Why was Rafferty collecting it short, instead of making a nuisance of himself around the square? Tyrone were jittery as shite at that stage, who knows what might have happened with a decent high ball landed in.

Poor enough evening for Aiden Forker in the FB line. Perhaps it's time to give him a swansong back in the forward line? It feels like he is no longer a better defensive solution than bench options like Paddy Burns or Barry McCambridge, and I'd like to think he could add some creativity to the misfiring forward line. Soupy Campbell confirmed again this evening that he provides much more impact off the bench, so there is probably an open spot in the HF line. I think it's worth a try.

Understandable that Armagh dropped off the Tyrone kick-outs when a man down (at least until they went for broke in the last 10 mins). But I didn't understand the plan before that. Some kick-outs were fully pressed, others were sort of pressed with one/two Tyrone man left free, and yet others weren't really pressed at all. It almost looks like some weird hybrid system to keep the opponent guessing - either that, or the intention actually is to press but it's just really poorly executed by the players. It's definitely frustrating to watch.

Hard to see where Armagh's season sparks from here. They've looked really flat the last two weeks. Energy levels, concentration, discipline all way down on the Ulster final performance. The optimist in me wants to believe that these group stage games have been sacrificed so that the knock out games can be hit with renewed focus, but that's looking a hard sell right now. It feels like things are just drifting a bit, and a feeble ending to the year is just around the corner. We continue to live in hope.

Finally, chat about the management is futile at this stage of the year. Sure they could probably be doing some things better, and I'm certain there will be a thorough evaluation of the situation at the end of the season. But I'd caution those now baying for replacement to be careful what you wish for...

The current group of players didn't just land into McGeeney's lap - he has crafted this team over many, many years. In the absence of any sort of conveyor belt of underage talent over the last decade, resources have had to maximised and intercounty players have had to be moulded from what was available. There are men putting in good shifts for Armagh at the top level who probably wouldn't be near intercounty football under any other management - it's from these efforts that we have our modest amount of squad depth. When the current management team does depart, which may be soon enough, it will very likely precipitate the retirement of up to half a dozen playing stalwarts. We will then enter a rebuilding phase, and with little to shout about in Armagh football recently at underage or club level, it looks not at all unlikely that the only way will be down (or, Down - like in languishing in Div 3 and going nowhere fast). Anyone that thinks we'll hit the next level just by landing Oisin McConville, Tony McEntee, or Malachy O'Rourke in on top of the current playing group isn't living in the real world.
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Nail on head
For all the recent ranting and complaining about our senior team-for anyone who follows Armagh football in a wider context, I would counter that our senior team represents the ONLY positive aspect in an overall bleak picture. At every other level, our record and standard of performances have been miserable. I live in Derry and I have overheard young footballers discuss before a draw for underage championship, a hope to meet Armagh for an easy warm up before 'the big guns'. We should have been concerned about this a long time ago. I am not without concerns and questions about current management-but overall, they are not the major, long terms issue facing Armagh football. As stated by other poster, they have put together a panel from a very, very shallow pool of competive talent and provided an environment to allow basic honest players to perform at an elite level. Calls for change of manager are missing the bigger picture.
With respect to Saturday. Felt big problem seemed to be confidence. And I can't help but again feel that Ulster Final defeat really floored that team. They have had to deal with a few punches over the past year. Next two weeks will be vital-getting spirits up and focus back. Will still be cheerig them on.
 
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William Of Orange

William Of Orange

Well-Known Member
gazman317 said:

5times5times​

  • Sr. Member
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  • Posts: 263
xx.gif

Re: Tyrone vs Armagh - 3rd June 7pm - Healy Park, Omagh.​

« Reply #188 on: June 03, 2023, 08:44:43 PM »

Imagine what the likes of ORourke, McGuinness etc could do this this armagh team.

One of ireland most expensive wage bill with 3 donkeys standing on sideline.

Been p1ss poor all year and beat 3x Div3 teams.

Pack those gym bags Geezeer.
Click to expand...
Well played Sherlock , worse than the Russians we have a 'diving midget' infiltrating our ranks .
 
O

Orchard Apples

Member
pablo said:
Nail on head
For all the recent ranting and complaining about our senior team-for anyone who follows Armagh football in a wider context, I would counter that our senior team represents the ONLY positive aspect in an overall bleak picture. At every other level, our record and standard of performances have been miserable. I live in Derry and I have overheard young footballers discuss before a draw for underage championship, a hope to meet Armagh for an easy warm up before 'the big guns'. We should have been concerned about this a long time ago. I am not without concerns and questions about current management-but overall, they are not the major, long terms issue facing Armagh football. As stated by other poster, they have put together a panel from a very, very shallow pool of competive talent and provided an environment to allow basic honest players to perform at an elite level. Calls for change of manager are missing the bigger picture.
With respect to Saturday. Felt big problem seemed to be confidence. And I can't help but again feel that Ulster Final defeat really floored that team. They have had to deal with a few punches over the past year. Next two weeks will be vital-getting spirits up and focus back. Will still be cheerig them on.
Click to expand...
Absolutely the biggest issue at the moment is a lack of confidence in themselves. Leads to silly mistakes, wides, poor execution etc
 
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