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Lads, if it was all about population, St Eunans would win every year. Carndonagh, Buncrana, Four Masters would all be doing better. If a player like PMB grew up in a town with more sports clubs, he might never have played with Donegal. There's nothing else in Glenties, all football. It is a factor. Four Masters lost out on talent in the recent past as they decided to play basketball. And being along the border does impact things. Less employment for a start to keep people there. Mixed population as well. None of these things are the most important or determining in their own, but they all play some role. SignTheContract (Donegal) - Posts: 197 - 06/11/2023 09:32:04 2511678 Link
Anyone at the u21 championship games at the weekend? I took in the Gaoth Dobhair Glenswilly match. It was a very good competitive game with the result in doubt right up until the very end. Glenswilly were very well set up and were very physical. They're probably very disappointed they didn't manage to see it out, conceding a goal late on. Credit must go to Gaoth Dobhair though, who refused to buckle when it looked like it was slipping away from them, and they managed to eke out a very good win. Donal Mac Ghiolla Bhríde was superb when Gaoth Dobhair needed him most. He will be a very influential player for them for years to come. I would say he will definitely be in the thoughts of Jim McGuinness. Lockjaw (Donegal) - Posts: 9536 - 06/11/2023 12:08:32 2511725 Link
Replying To SignTheContract: "Lads, if it was all about population, St Eunans would win every year. Carndonagh, Buncrana, Four Masters would all be doing better. If a player like PMB grew up in a town with more sports clubs, he might never have played with Donegal. There's nothing else in Glenties, all football. It is a factor. Four Masters lost out on talent in the recent past as they decided to play basketball. And being along the border does impact things. Less employment for a start to keep people there. Mixed population as well. None of these things are the most important or determining in their own, but they all play some role." Your right sign the contract, there is no one factor that goes into why some clubs are really thriving and some are struggling. In relation to population if you can start off with 50 under 6s there is a good hope you will hold 10 players until they are adults but if you start with 10 under 6s holding 2 until adult level is a struggle. Culture plays a big part definitely. Look at N Conaill, Kilcar, Gweedore or Glenfin the people there live for GAA. It's not the same in the border areas where as you pointed out there is more of a diverse population with not everyone being of the GAA persuasion and like it or not the same GAA culture doesn't exist. Newton is another club where culture goes against them. They aren't directly on the border but have a history of losing players to other clubs that surround them, Brendan Devenny in his day, Farmer to Gweedore, the two Toyes to Convoy, Brendan O Hagan to Clan na nGael in Lurgan. For weaker clubs to try and survive and possibly get a better culture going they have to be competitive whatever level that is at. A three division league is not providing that for the weaker clubs. Rather than posters either getting defensive if someone says their club is one of the weaker clubs or being happy that their club is stronger than their neighbour we should be look at how we can improve the plight of all clubs as that ultimately will is the only way to strengthen Donegal GAA. Whateveryourhavingyourself (Donegal) - Posts: 59 - 06/11/2023 13:17:34 2511744 Link
Attended the junior football game between na rossa and Lisnaskea at the weekend. In all my times going to championship matches I have never come across a poor a ref. I thought it was just me but from listening to all the media afterwards they all called it out. The big question is how did this referee get appointed to ref such a game . He just seemed totally biased and the free he gave against the na rossa keeper for over carrying in injury time with na rossa one up was just totally unacceptable. It wasn't a dirty game but was continually stopped by the ref dishing out cards.. rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2579 - 06/11/2023 14:25:13 2511762 Link
Hurling is another interesting one for border clubs. Look at Setanta, huge difficulties for Red Hughs back in the day. SignTheContract (Donegal) - Posts: 197 - 06/11/2023 15:00:56 2511773 Link
Replying To crnm: "Just seen the new Donegal jersey and it's poor in comparison with the current jersey, not much change at all, the O'Neills design team must be on strike" Agreed, would be interesting to know how much input the various county boards have if any in the design of their kits. The changes are so minimal that I'd say many will just stick with the last version rather than forking out €75, thus depriving the county board of much needed funds. BeardedBorderGael (Donegal) - Posts: 49 - 06/11/2023 17:39:02 2511810 Link
Replying To rorysboys: "Attended the junior football game between na rossa and Lisnaskea at the weekend. In all my times going to championship matches I have never come across a poor a ref. I thought it was just me but from listening to all the media afterwards they all called it out. The big question is how did this referee get appointed to ref such a game . He just seemed totally biased and the free he gave against the na rossa keeper for over carrying in injury time with na rossa one up was just totally unacceptable. It wasn't a dirty game but was continually stopped by the ref dishing out cards.." Was at the game and there did look to be some very tough calls on Na Rossa. From the start the ref was very quick to dish out yellow cards so it was inevitable that it wasn't going to finish with 30 men on the pitch. I've seen a few of Na Rossa's games this season and so I wasn't too surprised to see their corner back red carded. He was fortunate enough not to get the line in one of the games I saw for some off the ball stuff. The red card for Declan was presumably for language used when questioning the ref. BeardedBorderGael (Donegal) - Posts: 49 - 06/11/2023 18:18:22 2511817 Link
Replying To rorysboys: "Attended the junior football game between na rossa and Lisnaskea at the weekend. In all my times going to championship matches I have never come across a poor a ref. I thought it was just me but from listening to all the media afterwards they all called it out. The big question is how did this referee get appointed to ref such a game . He just seemed totally biased and the free he gave against the na rossa keeper for over carrying in injury time with na rossa one up was just totally unacceptable. It wasn't a dirty game but was continually stopped by the ref dishing out cards.." I'm surprised that Na Rossa thought they were going to get away with the pulling and dragging they were at from early doors. Were they planning on appealing them like they did from the county semi final? peiledoir20 (Donegal) - Posts: 1072 - 06/11/2023 19:24:03 2511823 Link
Replying To rorysboys: "Attended the junior football game between na rossa and Lisnaskea at the weekend. In all my times going to championship matches I have never come across a poor a ref. I thought it was just me but from listening to all the media afterwards they all called it out. The big question is how did this referee get appointed to ref such a game . He just seemed totally biased and the free he gave against the na rossa keeper for over carrying in injury time with na rossa one up was just totally unacceptable. It wasn't a dirty game but was continually stopped by the ref dishing out cards.." So disappointing to hear that. Not easy finishing with only 12 players and losing just by a point. Would have thought that dismissing the team's physio could put the player's health & safety at risk. Was the match recorded and is there a video available? Curlew66 (Roscommon) - Posts: 578 - 06/11/2023 19:24:09 2511824 Link
Replying To peiledoir20: "I'm surprised that Na Rossa thought they were going to get away with the pulling and dragging they were at from early doors. Were they planning on appealing them like they did from the county semi final?" So it was only na rossa that was pulling and dragging. What about the treatment young Caulfield got from the first ball. He was blocked every move he made. But your post is just against bonner and na rossa. Are you telling me that the referee was good. You mention the appeal in the semi final well Ulster council must have thought that the appeal in order when they over ruled the ccc decision. rorysboys (Donegal) - Posts: 2579 - 07/11/2023 10:53:02 2511860 Link
Replying To Whateveryourhavingyourself: "Your right sign the contract, there is no one factor that goes into why some clubs are really thriving and some are struggling. In relation to population if you can start off with 50 under 6s there is a good hope you will hold 10 players until they are adults but if you start with 10 under 6s holding 2 until adult level is a struggle. Culture plays a big part definitely. Look at N Conaill, Kilcar, Gweedore or Glenfin the people there live for GAA. It's not the same in the border areas where as you pointed out there is more of a diverse population with not everyone being of the GAA persuasion and like it or not the same GAA culture doesn't exist. Newton is another club where culture goes against them. They aren't directly on the border but have a history of losing players to other clubs that surround them, Brendan Devenny in his day, Farmer to Gweedore, the two Toyes to Convoy, Brendan O Hagan to Clan na nGael in Lurgan. For weaker clubs to try and survive and possibly get a better culture going they have to be competitive whatever level that is at. A three division league is not providing that for the weaker clubs. Rather than posters either getting defensive if someone says their club is one of the weaker clubs or being happy that their club is stronger than their neighbour we should be look at how we can improve the plight of all clubs as that ultimately will is the only way to strengthen Donegal GAA." It is interesting if you look at some of the club mentioned there.Glenties neighbours Ardara had 6 titles before Glenties won their first and now they have 7.You could ask what has caused the big swing and will it swing back.Some people are saying Soccer is causing clubs problems but Gweedore have 3 soccer teams in the Donegal league.Glenfinn have good interest now but they are a relatively new GAA club just like their neighbours Glenswilly.What caught my attention in this debate was the fact that Castlefinn were unable to beat Convoy's second team and while I am out of touch with what is happening in the Finn Valley area now I was surprised to see Emmets fall to such a low level given that there used to be so much interest in the GAA in their area and indeed in neighbouring Killygordon.People are talking about the border being a problem but I fail to see how that is the case.You just have to look at the likes of Crossmaglen and Scotstown to prove that theory wrong.Glenties seem to have tapped in to the whole community thing which might be missing in a lot of areas plus the fact that clubs that put a lot of effort in to underage seem to reap the awards.As you say there are a lot of factors at play and I suppose one of the big ones is cyclical. There are times you will be blessed with a lot of good players at the same time. gunman (Donegal) - Posts: 1126 - 07/11/2023 11:00:00 2511862 Link
Few things on giving out about the New Jersey. Someone said we fork out every year for one - this isn't true - think it's 2/3 years scuba isn't bad. Our neighbours across the water change every year and have 3 different shirts which by the way people have no issue paying out 100 quid a go for. €75 - if u can't afford it - don't buy it. I think that's ok to pay once every few years as obv parts of it go direct to funding the county - that doesn't happen for free. As for the design - I do agree it's not great - same as the last one really… eunans4ever (Donegal) - Posts: 1682 - 07/11/2023 11:16:41 2511871 Link
As the county team I imagine are back in full swing training - does anyone know the look up of the panel early on?? Also was there any further comms on the wider backroom team yet - I'd imagine they'd fully in place now ? eunans4ever (Donegal) - Posts: 1682 - 07/11/2023 11:18:15 2511874 Link
When and where are glenties / Fintown out in ulster club action ?? eunans4ever (Donegal) - Posts: 1682 - 07/11/2023 11:18:52 2511875 Link
I saw that game on Saturday and it was fairly grim. Think we all saw an early indication of how poor the officiating was going to be when he booked the wrong player after one minute! Probably did the other Na Rossa player a favour as he was at it from the start and could have been sent off after 5 minutes. Everyone from lisnaskea in the stand screaming "that's the wrong man"!! Game had a real stop start nature to it when it wasn't dirty other than one Na Rossa player in particular who was involved in 3 or 4 incidents in the first half. Ref completely lost control though with his over authoritarian way of officiating. Yellows being handed out for fairly soft frees and there was a black card in the second half that was really harsh as was the call on na rossas keeper at the end. The advantage rule never really being applied properly throughout the game and never allowed a quick free to be taken until after he gave the other player his telling off! HandballRef (Donegal) - Posts: 522 - 07/11/2023 11:27:46 2511880 Link
There a lot of good people doing very good work in every club in the county. It isn't always rewarded with success though, but that shouldn't be the ultimate goal anyway in my opinion. The GAA was set up as a cultural and sporting outlet, a very noble idea which has gone from strength to strength over the decades, proof of which is the existence of a GAA club in every pocket of the island practically. It can be hard to keep the show on the road. Smaller catchment areas will go through cycles where all will appear lost, only for a generation of players to appear, well coached to bring the club on again. Look at Downings as an example. They were operating in Div 4, and in the junior championship not so long ago. Alot of hard work and patience has gone into their progression I'm sure. So while success on the pitch in terms of titles may be a dream for some clubs, it's more important for clubs to continue to give their youth that outlet to train and play games. It's why I would never be condescending to so-called smaller clubs, and the level that they're playing at. Because you can be damn sure that there are great people in those clubs working away behind the scenes hoping that one day, they'll get their day in the sun too. Lockjaw (Donegal) - Posts: 9536 - 07/11/2023 11:52:18 2511891 Link
Replying To rorysboys: "So it was only na rossa that was pulling and dragging. What about the treatment young Caulfield got from the first ball. He was blocked every move he made. But your post is just against bonner and na rossa. Are you telling me that the referee was good. You mention the appeal in the semi final well Ulster council must have thought that the appeal in order when they over ruled the ccc decision." I mentioned Na Rossa because they seemed to be the only ones giving out about the ref at the end. Maybe Skea would have been of they had lost but we'll never know. Brendan Kilcoyne raised the point last night that it becomes apparent on the 1st ten mins of any game how a ref is going to ref it. It's up to the teams then to act accordingly. Common sense really. And please rain in your sensitivity about Bonner, it's beyond embarrassing now. As a matter of interest do you know what that red card was rescinded for? I'm sure you do. peiledoir20 (Donegal) - Posts: 1072 - 07/11/2023 12:05:20 2511899 Link
Gowna v Naomh Conaill in Kingspan Breffni , Cavan @ 4.30pm Sunday A long and late journey for many , any reason why it's so late ? live TV broadcast perhaps . Curlew66 (Roscommon) - Posts: 578 - 07/11/2023 12:14:55 2511903 Link
Replying To Curlew66: "Gowna v Naomh Conaill in Kingspan Breffni , Cavan @ 4.30pm Sunday A long and late journey for many , any reason why it's so late ? live TV broadcast perhaps ." There is an ulster Intermediate game at 2.15pm first, they need to leave a gap in throw in time due to maybe extra time/pens. Kilcoo V Scotstown game is live on TG4 at 3.15pm. Yourjoking (USA) - Posts: 730 - 07/11/2023 13:18:19 2511919 Link
Replying To Curlew66: "Gowna v Naomh Conaill in Kingspan Breffni , Cavan @ 4.30pm Sunday A long and late journey for many , any reason why it's so late ? live TV broadcast perhaps ." There is an ulster Intermediate game at 2.15pm first, they need to leave a gap in throw in time due to maybe extra time/pens. Kilcoo V Scotstown game is live on TG4 at 3.15pm. Yourjoking (USA) - Posts: 730 - 07/11/2023 13:21:50 2511921 Link