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Well we are where we wanted to be after a terrible year in footballing terms we have made the final of the secondary competition. Which in fairness is the least I think any of us demanded after the league and Leinster debacles.
Down for me we're not the one I was expecting to face in final , I honestly thought cavan would have been the one to get there. But here we are. 3 weeks now to hopefully get everyone fit (jones in particular) and win this . It would be nice for donal to collect some silverware even if I and I'm sure many others would prefer it to have been a Delaney or Sam. But we are where we are and beggars can't be choosers. The big prize for us is that we avoid this next year. The players and even the more sceptical fans (I include myself in that) have bought into this as a means to a end, ie we play in it once and that's it, it serves a purpose. I've been critical and rightly so of Colm this year, but to be fair to him he has done a total 180 on his approach during league , I watched the game back last night and all the pundits and commentators were the same as I was saying how naive he was during the league and how Meath were far more defensive unit now and how the whole set up had changed durin tailteann cup. Colm may have been very reluctant to change his mantra and belief in how football should be played but I think he saw the writing on the wall and has now accepted that a winning team is built on mass defence and running game with the option of letting in quick ball been taken when needed. Since this has happened we have seen a rejuvenated Jordan Morris (imo Meath most talented player) who many on here were calling for him to be dropped, he has shown immense potential when the team is set up to fulfill his potential same with lynch a similar player on the other wing, Costello is also coming into his own. The return of James Mac has also added a huge boost (again credit to Colm for asking him to come back, and for him been happy to do so despite his trying to be a doctor) so I'm looking forward to a final where should we win the pressure of league is off the table once we remain in division 2 is all that would matter.
Next year the important thing is to get Connor McGill back.
Hon the royal
royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 26/06/2023 08:56:15
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Replying To royaldunne: "Well we are where we wanted to be after a terrible year in footballing terms we have made the final of the secondary competition. Which in fairness is the least I think any of us demanded after the league and Leinster debacles.
Down for me we're not the one I was expecting to face in final , I honestly thought cavan would have been the one to get there. But here we are. 3 weeks now to hopefully get everyone fit (jones in particular) and win this . It would be nice for donal to collect some silverware even if I and I'm sure many others would prefer it to have been a Delaney or Sam. But we are where we are and beggars can't be choosers. The big prize for us is that we avoid this next year. The players and even the more sceptical fans (I include myself in that) have bought into this as a means to a end, ie we play in it once and that's it, it serves a purpose. I've been critical and rightly so of Colm this year, but to be fair to him he has done a total 180 on his approach during league , I watched the game back last night and all the pundits and commentators were the same as I was saying how naive he was during the league and how Meath were far more defensive unit now and how the whole set up had changed durin tailteann cup. Colm may have been very reluctant to change his mantra and belief in how football should be played but I think he saw the writing on the wall and has now accepted that a winning team is built on mass defence and running game with the option of letting in quick ball been taken when needed. Since this has happened we have seen a rejuvenated Jordan Morris (imo Meath most talented player) who many on here were calling for him to be dropped, he has shown immense potential when the team is set up to fulfill his potential same with lynch a similar player on the other wing, Costello is also coming into his own. The return of James Mac has also added a huge boost (again credit to Colm for asking him to come back, and for him been happy to do so despite his trying to be a doctor) so I'm looking forward to a final where should we win the pressure of league is off the table once we remain in division 2 is all that would matter.
Next year the important thing is to get Connor McGill back.
Hon the royal" Great to have made the TC final and what a great experience it will be for this young squad! A win, and a guaranteed place in the all ireland championship is secured so as well as the silverware and the experience there is a significant prize to be had!!
Yesterday's game was a very clear snapshot of where the team is at! We had some great performers - thought Flynn and Grey were excellent in midfield - some great turnovers and some nice quick passes into Lynch and Morris who both played well! Costello was also excellent and we certainly can put a strong front six in place. Would still like to see McGowan start - he doesn't waste many chances and I thought we had some poor misses today!
We struggled a bit at the back - I'm a fan of Ryan but he had his hands full against a big strong full forward. We were a little loose at the back and conceding 2-14 against Antrim is the biggest concern! Look back at some of Antrim and see how far we were off their shooters - particularly outside the 21!
I also think we play in spurts - we dominated in the 3rd quarter but I thought we drifted out of the game at times - that's something that can't happen against better teams!
Down will be a very different challenge and I think we will need to be focused for the full 70+ minutes of the game! It's there to be won!
Royalblufill (Meath) - Posts: 515 - 26/06/2023 10:28:43
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Looking forward to the game, will be a good litmus test. Would much rather be coming in off the back of a performance with loads to work on rather than a hammering and some complacency like Down. Our midfield pairing has looked good the last two games. It is key that Gray or Flynn get to grips with Murdoch, Down got the better of us. On an overall point Ronan Ryan battled but struggled with the size difference and we missed McGill yesterday but thankfully we got over the line. O'Higgins struggled badly in that first half and to be honest has stuggled a lot most of the year, I don't think we can afford to start him in the final. Jones is carrying a knee injury so I would be sticking with Flynn and Gray and the spaces of Croke Park should suit our forwards more than the group game in Parnell Park. Would be quietly confident
LeitrimRoyal99 (Meath) - Posts: 1527 - 26/06/2023 12:54:11
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Replying To Royalblufill: "Great to have made the TC final and what a great experience it will be for this young squad! A win, and a guaranteed place in the all ireland championship is secured so as well as the silverware and the experience there is a significant prize to be had!!
Yesterday's game was a very clear snapshot of where the team is at! We had some great performers - thought Flynn and Grey were excellent in midfield - some great turnovers and some nice quick passes into Lynch and Morris who both played well! Costello was also excellent and we certainly can put a strong front six in place. Would still like to see McGowan start - he doesn't waste many chances and I thought we had some poor misses today!
We struggled a bit at the back - I'm a fan of Ryan but he had his hands full against a big strong full forward. We were a little loose at the back and conceding 2-14 against Antrim is the biggest concern! Look back at some of Antrim and see how far we were off their shooters - particularly outside the 21!
I also think we play in spurts - we dominated in the 3rd quarter but I thought we drifted out of the game at times - that's something that can't happen against better teams!
Down will be a very different challenge and I think we will need to be focused for the full 70+ minutes of the game! It's there to be won!" Totally agree. Any taking our eye of the game and we will be punished
royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 26/06/2023 13:06:25
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It's great to be playing in a final at this time of the year. 5 championship wins in a row, its been a long time since we could say that.
Colm O'Rourke has given championship debuts to 13 players this year and we can see the benefits of this now and will in the next few years.
The players are beginning to understand how Colm wants them to set up and there has been an improvement as they have adapted to this during the year.
He has managed the team very well throughout the year and set standards that all players must meet. He has dropped established players for not meeting these standards and has shown great leadership in the process.
Fair play to James McEntee for coming back fitter and getting back in the team.
There won't be too many coming in next year very unfit and this can only be good for Meath football.
Looking forward to the final now, onwards and upwards....
Maestro (Meath) - Posts: 584 - 26/06/2023 13:28:06
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That oul Tailtean cup still on ? Yeh shur its been on for years now . Westmeath beat us in it years ago in Croker .NOO Yes they did ! I bet Colm didnt like that ? He wasnt playing or even the manager then, Ah thats why i dont remember that match..Limerick beat us in it a couple years earlier but Colm was not manager then either.i forget who was .Do you remember who was . Dont think so. God i wonder is there any DANGER that Meath could win the Tailtean this year? DANGER? Yeh O Rourke i dont want him to win anything or get any credit. But yiu say you are a supporter ? Yeh but thats different ! Whats different? Well look at the handshake with Andy for gods sake.What about it? Antrim should have won that match.. So who do you want to win the final then ? Not saying !! Will you even go ? Not saying !! Ah ffs WHO CARES??
nobull456 (Meath) - Posts: 1266 - 26/06/2023 13:41:38
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Regardless of the competition this is a final where everyone person should be going to support the lads we've won **** all in the last few years I hope we win and there's a great crowd celebrating it back in Meath with the team
Meathfor@life (Meath) - Posts: 85 - 26/06/2023 14:15:57
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Replying To Maestro: "It's great to be playing in a final at this time of the year. 5 championship wins in a row, its been a long time since we could say that.
Colm O'Rourke has given championship debuts to 13 players this year and we can see the benefits of this now and will in the next few years.
The players are beginning to understand how Colm wants them to set up and there has been an improvement as they have adapted to this during the year.
He has managed the team very well throughout the year and set standards that all players must meet. He has dropped established players for not meeting these standards and has shown great leadership in the process.
Fair play to James McEntee for coming back fitter and getting back in the team.
There won't be too many coming in next year very unfit and this can only be good for Meath football.
Looking forward to the final now, onwards and upwards...." Ok, so how does Colm want them set up and can you explain how they have started to do this? (We appear to have started to set up defensively at times now which is exactly what Colm set out to avoid, in his own words). Not having a go but if you comment the above you should be able to elaborate
Ed2010 (Meath) - Posts: 109 - 26/06/2023 14:31:33
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There should be no complacency or Meath showing up thinking they should win this final regardless based on Meath's and Down's displays yesterday. If Meath defend like they did yesterday against Down, the game will be over at half time. Antrim cut Meath apart at times in the first half and second half yesterday with their running game. Down are extremely fit and are a strong running team. Meath's forwards in particular played like individuals, ignoring runners off the shoulder instead opting to take wild pot shots that didn't always work out. It was a strange decision by management to make so many substitutes so early in the second half just when Meath had taken over in the 3rd quarter, and this I believe lead to Meath taking their foot off the pedal, thinking that the game was over, which it was but Meath then let Antrim back into it which is not good enough against a division 3 team, lets be honest about it.
BigJoe14 (Meath) - Posts: 998 - 26/06/2023 15:00:00
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Replying To Maestro: "It's great to be playing in a final at this time of the year. 5 championship wins in a row, its been a long time since we could say that.
Colm O'Rourke has given championship debuts to 13 players this year and we can see the benefits of this now and will in the next few years.
The players are beginning to understand how Colm wants them to set up and there has been an improvement as they have adapted to this during the year.
He has managed the team very well throughout the year and set standards that all players must meet. He has dropped established players for not meeting these standards and has shown great leadership in the process.
Fair play to James McEntee for coming back fitter and getting back in the team.
There won't be too many coming in next year very unfit and this can only be good for Meath football.
Looking forward to the final now, onwards and upwards...." "5 championship wins in a row" ?? you mean "Cup" wins... against Div 3 and 4 sides!! We were knocked out of the "championship" (Leinster) by one of those Div 3 teams! and we didn't even make the other "Championship" because of our very poor league performance!!
And you are talking about COR improving the team? I even saw an article in the Independent talking about him improving Meath.... coincidently a paper he writes for!
Lets not be getting ahead of ourselves here. Still conceding scores like 2:14 against teams like Antrim. We have been doing it all year and if those Div 3 and 4 teams were Div 1 and 2 teams you would not be talking about improvement!!
Was it not obvious during the league ( with the worst Against record in all of the leagues) that we needed to work on a better defensive system or work on players tacking abilities
We got obliterated by Dublin and I pick Dublin because he said himself that he should be judged on those matches against the Dubs.
And this BS about building a team an bringing in new lads...... how long am I hearing that in Meath? mickey Harte goes to louth and the impact is immediate. He doesn't have to wait for for a few new births in the county. That guy for Roscommon same. Good managers dont have to talk about "rebuilding" at senior intercounty level because the players are already "built" and they shape them into a performing team!
We beat Cork in the very first league match this year ....... Cork are now in an all Ireland QF!! So between us and Cork.....who is improving??
His very fist mistake was his backroom staff. Of all people I thought COR would have gone for one of the top experienced coaches in the game. Like Kevin McStay did. To be fair to Bernard Flynn his backroom staff included Rocheford and Quirke i think! Why didnt COR have someone like that?
And because of that you could see that naivety in all our performances this year. No game plan on turnovers, no defensive system from what I could see.
Now I am not saying that the coaches that are there are not good but at least one with an abundance of mens senior intercounty experience in the modern game would have helped!! I heard good things about the ex ladies coach but a different game and maybe he too could benefit from a more experienced head working with him.
I believe that if he did that, we would not be playing TC this year!! And lets face it... I wouldnt be going to any homecoming if they win that!!
So disagree on any improvement this year. Terrible year and nothing to write home about even if we win the Final.
If COR is to improve anything next year he must look for a big coaching ticket. Someone that can make them a unit (attack and defence) and can quickly spot a flaw and change things up if needed during a match!
JonnieG (Meath) - Posts: 246 - 26/06/2023 15:11:42
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Replying To Maestro: "It's great to be playing in a final at this time of the year. 5 championship wins in a row, its been a long time since we could say that.
Colm O'Rourke has given championship debuts to 13 players this year and we can see the benefits of this now and will in the next few years.
The players are beginning to understand how Colm wants them to set up and there has been an improvement as they have adapted to this during the year.
He has managed the team very well throughout the year and set standards that all players must meet. He has dropped established players for not meeting these standards and has shown great leadership in the process.
Fair play to James McEntee for coming back fitter and getting back in the team.
There won't be too many coming in next year very unfit and this can only be good for Meath football.
Looking forward to the final now, onwards and upwards...." Good to be still involved at this time of year another three weeks together can only be a positive. James Mac situtation was well handled, with his day to day workload it would be near impossible to commit to training like rest of panel, but door remained open and credit to him for reaching the set requirement and getting back. Team is taking shape, look to have good options from 8-15, solid keeper, backs and overall defence still a work in progress, however, overall future looks brighter and commitment is there for all to see. The break should give Ronan J the time required to get back, subs yesterday had no positive impact, something else that needs work but an easy enough fix. To date things are moving along nicely and would be great to win TC and set us up for next year.
seadog54 (Meath) - Posts: 2196 - 26/06/2023 15:23:44
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Replying To nobull456: "That oul Tailtean cup still on ? Yeh shur its been on for years now . Westmeath beat us in it years ago in Croker .NOO Yes they did ! I bet Colm didnt like that ? He wasnt playing or even the manager then, Ah thats why i dont remember that match..Limerick beat us in it a couple years earlier but Colm was not manager then either.i forget who was .Do you remember who was . Dont think so. God i wonder is there any DANGER that Meath could win the Tailtean this year? DANGER? Yeh O Rourke i dont want him to win anything or get any credit. But yiu say you are a supporter ? Yeh but thats different ! Whats different? Well look at the handshake with Andy for gods sake.What about it? Antrim should have won that match.. So who do you want to win the final then ? Not saying !! Will you even go ? Not saying !! Ah ffs WHO CARES??" What are you on about ?
Royal.Legend (Meath) - Posts: 685 - 26/06/2023 15:53:23
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Replying To JonnieG: ""5 championship wins in a row" ?? you mean "Cup" wins... against Div 3 and 4 sides!! We were knocked out of the "championship" (Leinster) by one of those Div 3 teams! and we didn't even make the other "Championship" because of our very poor league performance!!
And you are talking about COR improving the team? I even saw an article in the Independent talking about him improving Meath.... coincidently a paper he writes for!
Lets not be getting ahead of ourselves here. Still conceding scores like 2:14 against teams like Antrim. We have been doing it all year and if those Div 3 and 4 teams were Div 1 and 2 teams you would not be talking about improvement!!
Was it not obvious during the league ( with the worst Against record in all of the leagues) that we needed to work on a better defensive system or work on players tacking abilities
We got obliterated by Dublin and I pick Dublin because he said himself that he should be judged on those matches against the Dubs.
And this BS about building a team an bringing in new lads...... how long am I hearing that in Meath? mickey Harte goes to louth and the impact is immediate. He doesn't have to wait for for a few new births in the county. That guy for Roscommon same. Good managers dont have to talk about "rebuilding" at senior intercounty level because the players are already "built" and they shape them into a performing team!
We beat Cork in the very first league match this year ....... Cork are now in an all Ireland QF!! So between us and Cork.....who is improving??
His very fist mistake was his backroom staff. Of all people I thought COR would have gone for one of the top experienced coaches in the game. Like Kevin McStay did. To be fair to Bernard Flynn his backroom staff included Rocheford and Quirke i think! Why didnt COR have someone like that?
And because of that you could see that naivety in all our performances this year. No game plan on turnovers, no defensive system from what I could see.
Now I am not saying that the coaches that are there are not good but at least one with an abundance of mens senior intercounty experience in the modern game would have helped!! I heard good things about the ex ladies coach but a different game and maybe he too could benefit from a more experienced head working with him.
I believe that if he did that, we would not be playing TC this year!! And lets face it... I wouldnt be going to any homecoming if they win that!!
So disagree on any improvement this year. Terrible year and nothing to write home about even if we win the Final.
If COR is to improve anything next year he must look for a big coaching ticket. Someone that can make them a unit (attack and defence) and can quickly spot a flaw and change things up if needed during a match!" Well said, I'm interested to hear some responses now. Some of the narrative on here is very concerning, and 4 championship wins is about the tip of it. No where did they mention the fact it's intermediate championship against weaker opposition.
Don't mention cork improving as the year progressed against top opposition, meath only improve v substandard opposition.
Based on the game yesterday, you woul have to say what mcentee has done with div 4 Antrim is significantly better than what o Rourke has done with div 2 meath.
And btw I don't like either manager.
And we don't hear Andy mouthing about re builds either(that I have heard of)
Ed2010 (Meath) - Posts: 109 - 26/06/2023 15:54:08
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Replying To JonnieG: ""5 championship wins in a row" ?? you mean "Cup" wins... against Div 3 and 4 sides!! We were knocked out of the "championship" (Leinster) by one of those Div 3 teams! and we didn't even make the other "Championship" because of our very poor league performance!!
And you are talking about COR improving the team? I even saw an article in the Independent talking about him improving Meath.... coincidently a paper he writes for!
Lets not be getting ahead of ourselves here. Still conceding scores like 2:14 against teams like Antrim. We have been doing it all year and if those Div 3 and 4 teams were Div 1 and 2 teams you would not be talking about improvement!!
Was it not obvious during the league ( with the worst Against record in all of the leagues) that we needed to work on a better defensive system or work on players tacking abilities
We got obliterated by Dublin and I pick Dublin because he said himself that he should be judged on those matches against the Dubs.
And this BS about building a team an bringing in new lads...... how long am I hearing that in Meath? mickey Harte goes to louth and the impact is immediate. He doesn't have to wait for for a few new births in the county. That guy for Roscommon same. Good managers dont have to talk about "rebuilding" at senior intercounty level because the players are already "built" and they shape them into a performing team!
We beat Cork in the very first league match this year ....... Cork are now in an all Ireland QF!! So between us and Cork.....who is improving??
His very fist mistake was his backroom staff. Of all people I thought COR would have gone for one of the top experienced coaches in the game. Like Kevin McStay did. To be fair to Bernard Flynn his backroom staff included Rocheford and Quirke i think! Why didnt COR have someone like that?
And because of that you could see that naivety in all our performances this year. No game plan on turnovers, no defensive system from what I could see.
Now I am not saying that the coaches that are there are not good but at least one with an abundance of mens senior intercounty experience in the modern game would have helped!! I heard good things about the ex ladies coach but a different game and maybe he too could benefit from a more experienced head working with him.
I believe that if he did that, we would not be playing TC this year!! And lets face it... I wouldnt be going to any homecoming if they win that!!
So disagree on any improvement this year. Terrible year and nothing to write home about even if we win the Final.
If COR is to improve anything next year he must look for a big coaching ticket. Someone that can make them a unit (attack and defence) and can quickly spot a flaw and change things up if needed during a match!" I can tell you why a big coach wasn't chosen. Colm, in general, has to have yes men involved, any man who has ever disagreed with him or has shown to know more than him, gets gate.
Ed2010 (Meath) - Posts: 109 - 26/06/2023 15:58:36
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Replying To nobull456: "That oul Tailtean cup still on ? Yeh shur its been on for years now . Westmeath beat us in it years ago in Croker .NOO Yes they did ! I bet Colm didnt like that ? He wasnt playing or even the manager then, Ah thats why i dont remember that match..Limerick beat us in it a couple years earlier but Colm was not manager then either.i forget who was .Do you remember who was . Dont think so. God i wonder is there any DANGER that Meath could win the Tailtean this year? DANGER? Yeh O Rourke i dont want him to win anything or get any credit. But yiu say you are a supporter ? Yeh but thats different ! Whats different? Well look at the handshake with Andy for gods sake.What about it? Antrim should have won that match.. So who do you want to win the final then ? Not saying !! Will you even go ? Not saying !! Ah ffs WHO CARES??" Are you on the sauce ? LOL
kingofclubs (Meath) - Posts: 330 - 26/06/2023 16:58:16
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Replying To kingofclubs: "Are you on the sauce ? LOL" Maybe he's been celebrating the semi final win a bit too much lol
royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 26/06/2023 18:19:53
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Replying To kingofclubs: "Are you on the sauce ? LOL" Ah...maybe a mild sprinkling of amusement avoiding specifics . Can be hard to keep up here at times !
nobull456 (Meath) - Posts: 1266 - 26/06/2023 19:14:48
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Replying To BigJoe14: "There should be no complacency or Meath showing up thinking they should win this final regardless based on Meath's and Down's displays yesterday. If Meath defend like they did yesterday against Down, the game will be over at half time. Antrim cut Meath apart at times in the first half and second half yesterday with their running game. Down are extremely fit and are a strong running team. Meath's forwards in particular played like individuals, ignoring runners off the shoulder instead opting to take wild pot shots that didn't always work out. It was a strange decision by management to make so many substitutes so early in the second half just when Meath had taken over in the 3rd quarter, and this I believe lead to Meath taking their foot off the pedal, thinking that the game was over, which it was but Meath then let Antrim back into it which is not good enough against a division 3 team, lets be honest about it." Yes a repeat of yesterday cannot happen against Down. Defence would be torn asunder . i still wonder how training sessions are structured to meet needs ,and how coaches measure the effectiveness of their input.
nobull456 (Meath) - Posts: 1266 - 26/06/2023 19:37:55
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Replying To JonnieG: ""5 championship wins in a row" ?? you mean "Cup" wins... against Div 3 and 4 sides!! We were knocked out of the "championship" (Leinster) by one of those Div 3 teams! and we didn't even make the other "Championship" because of our very poor league performance!!
And you are talking about COR improving the team? I even saw an article in the Independent talking about him improving Meath.... coincidently a paper he writes for!
Lets not be getting ahead of ourselves here. Still conceding scores like 2:14 against teams like Antrim. We have been doing it all year and if those Div 3 and 4 teams were Div 1 and 2 teams you would not be talking about improvement!!
Was it not obvious during the league ( with the worst Against record in all of the leagues) that we needed to work on a better defensive system or work on players tacking abilities
We got obliterated by Dublin and I pick Dublin because he said himself that he should be judged on those matches against the Dubs.
And this BS about building a team an bringing in new lads...... how long am I hearing that in Meath? mickey Harte goes to louth and the impact is immediate. He doesn't have to wait for for a few new births in the county. That guy for Roscommon same. Good managers dont have to talk about "rebuilding" at senior intercounty level because the players are already "built" and they shape them into a performing team!
We beat Cork in the very first league match this year ....... Cork are now in an all Ireland QF!! So between us and Cork.....who is improving??
His very fist mistake was his backroom staff. Of all people I thought COR would have gone for one of the top experienced coaches in the game. Like Kevin McStay did. To be fair to Bernard Flynn his backroom staff included Rocheford and Quirke i think! Why didnt COR have someone like that?
And because of that you could see that naivety in all our performances this year. No game plan on turnovers, no defensive system from what I could see.
Now I am not saying that the coaches that are there are not good but at least one with an abundance of mens senior intercounty experience in the modern game would have helped!! I heard good things about the ex ladies coach but a different game and maybe he too could benefit from a more experienced head working with him.
I believe that if he did that, we would not be playing TC this year!! And lets face it... I wouldnt be going to any homecoming if they win that!!
So disagree on any improvement this year. Terrible year and nothing to write home about even if we win the Final.
If COR is to improve anything next year he must look for a big coaching ticket. Someone that can make them a unit (attack and defence) and can quickly spot a flaw and change things up if needed during a match!" There is clear improvement to where we were this time last year.
We has a very disappointing league this year and yet we won the same amount of games as the previous years.
In the championship we scored 12 point at home to Wicklow and conceded 27 to Dublin before Clare comfortably knocked us out. This was a team McEntee was building for 6 years
Looking at the team now and the scores we are getting.
With the players that have been brought in by O'Rourke I have a lot more optimism going into next year.
They are by no means anywhere near the finished article but there be could be the makings of a good team there.
Maestro (Meath) - Posts: 584 - 26/06/2023 19:59:03
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Replying To JonnieG: ""5 championship wins in a row" ?? you mean "Cup" wins... against Div 3 and 4 sides!! We were knocked out of the "championship" (Leinster) by one of those Div 3 teams! and we didn't even make the other "Championship" because of our very poor league performance!!
And you are talking about COR improving the team? I even saw an article in the Independent talking about him improving Meath.... coincidently a paper he writes for!
Lets not be getting ahead of ourselves here. Still conceding scores like 2:14 against teams like Antrim. We have been doing it all year and if those Div 3 and 4 teams were Div 1 and 2 teams you would not be talking about improvement!!
Was it not obvious during the league ( with the worst Against record in all of the leagues) that we needed to work on a better defensive system or work on players tacking abilities
We got obliterated by Dublin and I pick Dublin because he said himself that he should be judged on those matches against the Dubs.
And this BS about building a team an bringing in new lads...... how long am I hearing that in Meath? mickey Harte goes to louth and the impact is immediate. He doesn't have to wait for for a few new births in the county. That guy for Roscommon same. Good managers dont have to talk about "rebuilding" at senior intercounty level because the players are already "built" and they shape them into a performing team!
We beat Cork in the very first league match this year ....... Cork are now in an all Ireland QF!! So between us and Cork.....who is improving??
His very fist mistake was his backroom staff. Of all people I thought COR would have gone for one of the top experienced coaches in the game. Like Kevin McStay did. To be fair to Bernard Flynn his backroom staff included Rocheford and Quirke i think! Why didnt COR have someone like that?
And because of that you could see that naivety in all our performances this year. No game plan on turnovers, no defensive system from what I could see.
Now I am not saying that the coaches that are there are not good but at least one with an abundance of mens senior intercounty experience in the modern game would have helped!! I heard good things about the ex ladies coach but a different game and maybe he too could benefit from a more experienced head working with him.
I believe that if he did that, we would not be playing TC this year!! And lets face it... I wouldnt be going to any homecoming if they win that!!
So disagree on any improvement this year. Terrible year and nothing to write home about even if we win the Final.
If COR is to improve anything next year he must look for a big coaching ticket. Someone that can make them a unit (attack and defence) and can quickly spot a flaw and change things up if needed during a match!" 100% correct ! People getting overjoyed beating waterford wexford and antrim ! Saying we have turned corners with systems ! Only
Winning because the oppisition is so poor !
grahamc9897 (Meath) - Posts: 1176 - 26/06/2023 21:11:18
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