Spot on.
Though the semi last whilst on the face of it was dire was fascinating.
I left Croker like a bull but subsequent viewing and conversations tapered my anger.
McGuinness implemented what we will call stage one. He indoctrinated a philosophy into a panel over the winter and league of 2011. So when he had decided on his panel that suited the tactics and organisation he wanted we ended up with a militarily drilled unit who played simple effective ball and were a nightmare to break down.
In Ulster when they came up against teams there was no response. No one was ready.
Fast forward to the QF v Kildare; Geezer got ready. A different Donegal showed up. And gave us one of the most remarkable games of the year. Donegal had already overachieved when hey won Ulster. Getting to a semifinal was super extra bonus territory.
McGuinness at every stage of a game tweaks and changes and makes subsitutions when they need to be made and doesn't suffer fools gladly.
The only thing for Donegal last year though is they wouldn't have gotten away with playing against Dublin the way they did Kildare. We would have murdered them. So they sat back and implemented the so called blanket defence.
It worked. Mostly. Eventually the better team willed the scores out and I think it was for the best that Donegal lost that game as we will see in the next couple of years.
This year they moved into stage two. This was flagged in the McKenna and the League. Despite the dislike for the McKenna it helped Donegal this year.
Stage two saw the consolidation of what they had become masters in. Organisation. Now they needed to play football.
And boy did they. And with an intensity like no one since Mickey's 2008 team.
And that's what's going on here. It's a well trodden path. How anyone thought it was surprising watching the Ulster Championship that Donegal wouldn't be where they are or there or there abouts doesn't know ball.
Anyone who would call Donegal negative against Kerry on Sunday is talking crap.
On a note about cynicism. That was one thing missing from Dublin's game. We started using it last year. Not to the extent of the Masters of the black art Corkerry. Can anyone honestly believe that Cork deserved to win that semi in 2010? No. But they dis because we were naive.
DID YOU NOTICE A SIGN OUTSIDE MY HOUSE...?
Dublin tried to match Cork physically that year and they got so tired in the last ten minutes of thet game they had to resort to consistant fouling just to keep parity with Cork who were pouring forward at the latter stage of the game. It had such an effect on the Dublin management they started training at 6 in the morning the following season.Originally Posted by BonnieShels
The only team to beat Cork in the last 10 years ( apart from the Mayo abberation last year ) is Kerry, who know the way to beat Cork is to go man for man in the forwards and let thier superior footballing talent shine, the wide open spaces of Croker make this far easier than tight narrow Pairc Ui Chaoimh for this.
Taking Cork on physically is a bad idea I think - it plays into thier hands, Kerry showed by spreading the play and keeping the ball moving quickly they can be taken on. The Donegal / Cork clash will be interesting but McGuinness is going to need a few more tricks to get the better of this squad. Counihan is in the advantegous position of being able to switch things constantly because he has such a large capable panel at his disposal.
That must be one of those camera angle illusions. Pairc Ui Chaoimh is the full shilling.
I don't see that Cork have more strings to their bow than Donegal (that doesn't mean they don't).
One big difference from last year is that Cork don't fanny about with the ball in their own half going sideways and backwards, even when under no pressure. They are more direct with their running game and find their way down the left, through the middle and on the right. That and their free kick expertise stands them above most/all teams.
I don't know about Dublin yet, just too inconsistent over the 70 minutes, their game against Mayo should be every bit as intriguing as Cork v Donegal.
I'd like to see Mayo get through to the final but just the fear that we would witness another collapse should they get there, whereas the Dubs (God love them) can walk the hype.
Out of all that you pick up on the Cork thang. :-)
Tut tut tut
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For the Donegal Fans:
tp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAjQrnImT_k&sns=em
Tis a good tune alright. Fair played to Rory for that one.
https://kesslereffect.bandcamp.com/album/kepler - New music. It's not that bad.
I don't think I've looked forward to a game as much in so long.
Come on Donegal.
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What a game of football. Pleasure to watch.
DID YOU NOTICE A SIGN OUTSIDE MY HOUSE...?
Massive congratulations to Donegal, a great display. Cork are up at the business end of every competition these days and Donegal had them reduced to rubble at the 50 minute mark, completely outplayed. 6 or 7 points would have been a fairer winning margin.
Donegal missed two kickable points just before the Cork goal.
The Cork goal was atypical of the performance overall but that's two games in a row they've let in a needless easy score.
They'll have to keep the concentration up for 70min next time.
A joy to watch. Great game of football overall. Reminded me of Kerry v Tyrone 2008.
They're nailed on for me. No idea what we could do to stop that intensity. And we all know that if Mayo beat us next week that they will
have shot their load.
Gonna be a great day out in Dublin in the 23rd regardless.
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Think Dublin will still be favourites against Donegal. Like Cork they have a big squad and can match them Physically. Unlike Cork they don't have a tactical clown working the controls. Mcguinness must have been rubbing his hands when he saw the team sheet and Cork were playing with 7 forwards - talking about walking into an open trap. Game was up as early as the 45th minute.
Depressing day to be a Cork fan, when you think of the talent in this team and only 1 AI to show for it, and the window is probably gone now, or at least getting narrower.
Fair play to Donegal ....... they destroyed Cork and the football they are playing is unreal, dont think Dublin or Mayo would get anywhere near them. I think Dublin will win next week cause Andy Moran is out for Mayo and he the only guy in the full forward line that can win his own ball and thus cause problems.
Can someone explain to me how this is all negative? I don't think there's one thing about them that's negative.
Is it because they defend well and are economic with the ball in attack?
Reminds me of the puke football days. I remember feeling like I was watching a different game to everyone else.
A glorious day for the football fan and the ultimate advert for the sport.
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After 2 mins today , I knew we were in trouble, Everytime a Cork player touched the ball he had his fist clinched waiting to give a pass. In my opinion , to beat the blanket defence you must be able to kick the ball over from 30/35 yards out and laugh away at the other 11/12 players inside you. Cork had the ability to do this on paper but got their tactics all wrong on the day. Hopefully Donegal go on and win it after todays fine display.
To escape criticism ~
do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.
Tickets for All-Ireland final = €80
Number of Donegal people in Croke Park last weekend = 40,000
Number of tickets allocated to Donegal fans for the final = 13,500
Grab All Association at it again. Disgrace.
https://kesslereffect.bandcamp.com/album/kepler - New music. It's not that bad.
How do you know how many tickets ye are going to get given Mayo have yet to play Dublin ??????
Supposedly that's the number Donegal are to be given. Official word not released, Monday I believe it's confirmed, but that's the word on the street.
https://kesslereffect.bandcamp.com/album/kepler - New music. It's not that bad.
So that *2 = 27000
Not including season tickets and corporates it seems pretty low.
Dub v Mayo not sold out just yet.
I've my tickets. And should we get to the final I'm sorted too. Whoop.
DID YOU NOTICE A SIGN OUTSIDE MY HOUSE...?
Ye will get more tickets if its Mayo obviously - the ticket distribution is determined by the number of clubs in each county, the more clubs the opponents have the less tickets ye will get. They will be like hen's teeth if the dubs win next Sunday.
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