Ulster Championship 2023
- Thread starter ragingbull
- Start date
Peter grimes
Well-Known Member
Where have the fixtures confirmed? I know the weekend of each fixture but have dates and times been confirmed?
William Of Orange
Well-Known Member
According to the official GAA website the match was a draw , when's the replay ?
Peter grimes
Well-Known Member
Based on Rufus’ posts I think the realistic expectation for Armagh is 2 or 3 notches above whatever Rufus expects.
I am not accusing the man of being unrealistic just on the pessimistic end of realism. But bitter experiences can do that to us.
I think we were always in with a shout yesterday without being favourites. I don’t think any of our 3 upcoming opponents are looking forward to the battle. Plus yesterday was the first championship match this year that we will have learned anything from.
We have lost matches by small margins and the tendency is to bunch this all together as a collective failure to close games out. And I think that is the majority view here. I think that misses the point though. The answer isn’t some mystical solution to some mental fragility, it’s to actually address the building blocks of that short coming. It’s not a failure to close a game out that causes a free to be moved up. It’s indiscipline. That s is what you need to address. The same applies to the other building blocks around wides, cards, kick outs etc. Small but fundamental changes are required. We need to start coming out on the right end of the small margins.
JoeH
Well-Known Member
Technically the game ended in a draw.
The penalty kick competition decides who lifts the trophy
It doesn't get any easier despite being battle hardened from bitter defeats over the years, like the ones you've highlighted. Before the game I was philosophical - if we win wouldn't get too carried away, if we lose won't get too downhearted. But to lose it when it was in touching distance, that's a hard one.As you all will probably know, gut wrenching defeats such as yesterday comes with the territory. It's part of being an Armagh fan. You can add Clones 2023 to so many others - '80 semi-final, the '92 Minor Final, the '05 semi-final, Galway last year. A fresh wound that will develop into a scar along with all the others.
Forgive me if I don't do a post mortem. I haven't really the heart for it in any great detail and I haven't watched the match since. I will say though that the players did us proud yesterday - I actually thought Derry would win comfortably - but our lads battled throughout. I hope they can take positives from the debris.
For me, the issue that occurred yesterday, and has been our Achilles heel for a long while now, is seeing out games when we have the lead. Our great team of the noughties could. We could not, and it is a scenario that is getting repeated and repeated. For all my pride in the performance yesterday, and associated with my point about seeing games out, I just felt that we had no-one who was prepared to step up and demand the ball. There were a few half hearted runs for the last few kick-outs but Rafferty had to kick long, and it cost us hugely.
I'm devastated today, so the players and management will be this one hundred fold. I just hope they can pick up the pieces again and get the show back on the road. A quarter-final should be achievable and with a bit of luck a semi-final as well and we can get the buzz going again.
Armagh and proud!
I was expecting us to be in with a decent shout yesterday because I thought Derry were being built up too much and that we would have the greater hunger and a number of players that could cause them problems.
William Of Orange
Well-Known Member
Yep that sums it up , even Geezer said yesterday that he's waiting for the spark to ignite into a flame , the only problem is we are rubbing the sticks that long now the spark might go out or the stick might break . Hopefully not.
I agree with this, especially the first one. We all expected Mackin to pair up with Rogers. Need to hammer the hammer, but we allowed their main men to play well (Rogers, Glass and Mcguigan).
William Of Orange
Well-Known Member
It’s the hope that kills you , Louth fans wouldn’t be feeling 1/100th of the pain of what we are feeling today . Imagine what the team feel like .
Armagh_paul
Well-Known Member
So let me get this straight...
If we win all our games in the group stages we go through to the QF. Where we are likely to play the winner of Tyrone and Galway from the preliminary QF?
If we win all our games in the group stages we go through to the QF. Where we are likely to play the winner of Tyrone and Galway from the preliminary QF?
William Of Orange
Well-Known Member
No you won’t be playing a team from the same group .
Armagh_paul
Well-Known Member
We aren't in a terrible position. It's a new competition for the AI. I hope relegation and the loss of an Ulster final act as a catalyst for Armagh to reach new heights, we have been threatening it for too long. If it doesn't, it would be a major concern. We have experienced truly heartbreaking deciders to games in the last 2 seasons than what most counties will never experience. The team needs to realise they matched pretty much all of last year's semi-finalists but our psychological problems are what have held us back.
PatMustard
Well-Known Member
@Rufus T Firefly - For all my pride in the performance yesterday, and associated with my point about seeing games out, I just felt that we had no-one who was prepared to step up and demand the ball. There were a few half hearted runs for the last few kick-outs but Rafferty had to kick long, and it cost us hugely.
Yeah I noticed that when I watched the recording (yes, I watched it. Leave me alone). Three kick outs in a row, Ethan went long. As you say, nobody seemed to want to make the move, and with Ethan on the verge of being blown up for time wasting, he had to go long. Derry got three attacks from those long punts, and two points.
Effectively it was the losing of the game at that late stage.
Listen, I’m bloody gutted. I’m actually twice as gutted now because I watched the recording! But anyway, I’m not going to run down the lads. They gave it all they had, and the margins were so so fine.
The only thing I’ll say is, the little things, we can learn from. Sometimes it takes us to lose a big match before we can win one (eg. Kerry 2000, Galway 2001).
Let’s regroup, get our lucky pants washed for the next day, and off we go again. This summer is far from over.
Yeah I noticed that when I watched the recording (yes, I watched it. Leave me alone). Three kick outs in a row, Ethan went long. As you say, nobody seemed to want to make the move, and with Ethan on the verge of being blown up for time wasting, he had to go long. Derry got three attacks from those long punts, and two points.
Effectively it was the losing of the game at that late stage.
Listen, I’m bloody gutted. I’m actually twice as gutted now because I watched the recording! But anyway, I’m not going to run down the lads. They gave it all they had, and the margins were so so fine.
The only thing I’ll say is, the little things, we can learn from. Sometimes it takes us to lose a big match before we can win one (eg. Kerry 2000, Galway 2001).
Let’s regroup, get our lucky pants washed for the next day, and off we go again. This summer is far from over.
Gutted along with everyone else here. I’m a long time critic on management but really feel we didn’t get the rub of the green yesterday.
Yes even during the first half we where scratching our heads wondering why he decided to surrender kick outs and some of the match ups where questionable, however there was nothing between them for large periods and we had the chances to win it. Composure in the big moments is what we are lacking.
But a titanic performance by all who took to the pitch yesterday and it was gripping throughout. The tenacity to win the ball that lead to Rodgers black card was inspiring. I don’t know where the people who are saying the atmosphere was poor were sitting. Because in the Pat McGrane it was electric throughout and felt like an all Ireland final at times.
Can’t wait until the AI starts and extra games means more bonding with the team and management learning more to work on our strengths so here’s hoping things improve.
Yes even during the first half we where scratching our heads wondering why he decided to surrender kick outs and some of the match ups where questionable, however there was nothing between them for large periods and we had the chances to win it. Composure in the big moments is what we are lacking.
But a titanic performance by all who took to the pitch yesterday and it was gripping throughout. The tenacity to win the ball that lead to Rodgers black card was inspiring. I don’t know where the people who are saying the atmosphere was poor were sitting. Because in the Pat McGrane it was electric throughout and felt like an all Ireland final at times.
Can’t wait until the AI starts and extra games means more bonding with the team and management learning more to work on our strengths so here’s hoping things improve.
FearArdMhacha
Member
What are these new heights? Are we going to win or challenge for the All Ireland? I can’t see it. The catalyst was last year when we lost in similar circumstances to Galway, what is the reaction to that; get relegated, get around the cannon fodder unspectacularly and then fain to close the show with the hard work done against the one top team we’ve faced who have had the preparation week from hell. On the evidence presented thus far we’re looking like being nearly men again at best when we face anything with some form of strength. If we do anything above winning against Westmeath followed by two narrow losses I’ll eat those words and I would love to be wrong. After that we’d be in the last 12 and facing a team who comes second so I predict Mayo, Roscommon or Monaghan. We can get past 2 of those so then it would be on ahead to play a group winner - Kerry, Dublin or Derry. Tall order if we have all those wrongs to right. Every One of those aforementioned 6 teams would love a crack at us in Croker. I’m feeling very negative and annoyed today. I think there is more in that team but there’s no go for the throat.
Back to the heights question, what represents kicking on for us?
ragingbull
Well-Known Member
I don't rewatch Armagh game's that they lose
ragingbull
Well-Known Member
He was no better than Mackin
This is why I am positive with where Armagh are, obviously devestated in losing but their 3 biggest attacking players where brilliant and we still should of won, I'd say we have more of a ceiling than them,
At home. They were sitting at home