Weekend games 16th to 19th May

[Onapointoforder]

Yeah, this summed it up for me really. Lennon normally is the only one doing any of the hard yards in midfield so you know you've a problem when he's the one you could point the finger at too.

If you only went off the balance of play/chances it probably didn't seem a 4-0 game but I don't think it was a particularly unfair scoreline. Rovers were in third gear and were ultimately always going to be too powerful over the course of the game. I think there's talent in the squad but it's ultimately too soft, mentally and physically. The likes of Mulraney have brittle confidence at the best of times, but there's just not enough athleticism and/or physicality to not get bullied in games like that.

Have to say, if it is actually true that we could have signed Adam O'Reilly but opted for Baggley instead (may not be, but was said at the time) then deary me. Not to pile on a player but he sort of sums us up this season thus far and has provided next to nothing. A soft touch off the ball and probably our least progressive midfielder on it, when that is meant to be a strength of his game.

Pat’s warm-up was worrying, players standing around not doing much some of the time… seemed very unprofessional compared to Rovers… carried on into the game.

[Nesta99]

Like him or loathe him Damien Duff is an addition to the league on a lot of levels. His profile and standig in the game and his forthright and almost carefree criticism of things, particularly officiating emboldened others to be less diplomatic. Himself and Bradley are outspoken managers that cannot be completely bullied in to silence and thats a good thing.

Im surprised to read that the St Pats warm-up lacked intensity. Years back it was always a contrast to see sides doing drills prior to a Euroean game and our lot pinging balls at goal only. SK or his s&c people changed that at Dundalk and domestically for a while I think it intimidated other sides watching a proper warm-up. It takes player buy in initially for these things to be taken eriously but by now its par for the course for all. Is SK getting sloppy, are his methods getting dated and his absolute belief in his system and players, to the point of barely changing things if a game isnt going well, is it still an issue or that he int evolving. Does he lack players that can take on the mountain of info he preps them with, or that the squad is in some way light in key areas that are needed to execute his system. I often found the slow buil up play frustraating and unnecessary but easy to take when winning games but there is a move away from possession for possesion sake. Or, and I think this is more the case, that it is just taking longer than previous team builds to get this St Pats side firing. There is a level playing field and wider professionalism across the league now than when Dundalk were being built in to a championship side so its a smaller incremental build rather than pretty big leap?

Galway are the other side that may have been figured out and hit a ceiling. Shels being hard to beat isnt enough when others are actually winning games they werent last season and theyre are pretty blunt up top. Its Derry's to lose without the rigours of Europe but I doubt we will have the progression of sides in Europe like last season bar Rovers (who need to be pushed domestically), Shels are not champions material for CL currently, Drogs will have a good go but meet any quality and its trouble and St Pats could benefit from SK guile in Europe maybe. Otherwise the league is starting to look more like the predictions thread now.

[Shinkicker]

Like him or loathe him Damien Duff is an addition to the league on a lot of levels. His profile and standig in the game and his forthright and almost carefree criticism of things, particularly officiating emboldened others to be less diplomatic. Himself and Bradley are outspoken managers that cannot be completely bullied in to silence and thats a good thing.

Im surprised to read that the St Pats warm-up lacked intensity. Years back it was always a contrast to see sides doing drills prior to a Euroean game and our lot pinging balls at goal only. SK or his s&c people changed that at Dundalk and domestically for a while I think it intimidated other sides watching a proper warm-up. It takes player buy in initially for these things to be taken eriously but by now its par for the course for all. Is SK getting sloppy, are his methods getting dated and his absolute belief in his system and players, to the point of barely changing things if a game isnt going well, is it still an issue or that he int evolving. Does he lack players that can take on the mountain of info he preps them with, or that the squad is in some way light in key areas that are needed to execute his system. I often found the slow buil up play frustraating and unnecessary but easy to take when winning games but there is a move away from possession for possesion sake. Or, and I think this is more the case, that it is just taking longer than previous team builds to get this St Pats side firing. There is a level playing field and wider professionalism across the league now than when Dundalk were being built in to a championship side so its a smaller incremental build rather than pretty big leap?

Galway are the other side that may have been figured out and hit a ceiling. Shels being hard to beat isnt enough when others are actually winning games they werent last season and theyre are pretty blunt up top. Its Derry's to lose without the rigours of Europe but I doubt we will have the progression of sides in Europe like last season bar Rovers (who need to be pushed domestically), Shels are not champions material for CL currently, Drogs will have a good go but meet any quality and its trouble and St Pats could benefit from SK guile in Europe maybe. Otherwise the league is starting to look more like the predictions thread now.

I was a big fan of Duff as a footballer but less so as a manager. He has an arrogant attitude with a face like a slapped ar$3 and believes he is the greatest manager ever in the LOI. I believe he now doesn't shake hands with two managers (I can be corrected) and just about acknowledges several others. These are all of the reasons I watch him. It's a bit like Donald Trump, what will he do or say next, which is good for the league. BUT this does not make him invincible and if results don't change soon he could be out of a job watching from any grassy bank of his choosing.

[Keen2win]

Unfortunately Longford doesn't care about developing its youth like every other team in the league.. LTFC probably spend as much renting a pitch for training in Dublin then on a lot of their players.. We are depending on Dublin players with very little experience while local players are thrown aside.. Apparently it was the worst LTFC match ever and the attendance was very poor, worst in the league.. we don't have a jersey sponsor.. there are a few who seem crazy to maintain the status quo at LTFC probably because they benefit personally with their role talking about games, however as a football club we need to start focusing on the fundamentals, its not a social media club! Most locals seem to be very tired of the situation and many are now asking to give Anthony Elding a chance as he won our first academy national league title and is a top coach .. We have entered a post truth reality where success in the game seems to be secondary and everyone is an expert.. just like people at Damien Duff, Duffer is a legend.. he came through Shels U17s and has won the league against the odds - long live Duffer probably the best manager in the league because nothing beats experience !! People calling Duffer arrogant, too right he is arrogant he knows he is at a different level than basically every other manager in the league, he probably looks at Stephen Bradley and thinks.. "give me a break"!

Hopefully it turns for LTFC, regardless of the manager for me the most important thing is to give our academy players the opportunity to play in the senior team by training in the midlands - our local players and coaches deserve our opportunity, LTFC is a Longford club, not a Dublin feeder club! Lots of good in the club and our chairman has done a great job over the years now hopefully they make the call to give Elding the opportunity to push the club forward the next bit.. LTFC, a "sleeping giant"

[Nesta99]

If Duff were to do the 'show me your medals' BS then he is an arrogant whatever. That he hasnt done that sort of stuff is credit to him knowing that as a manager he hasnt dont a whole lot. This will be his 1st season managing in CL and there are others that have greater experience there and in winning domestic titles. Bradley beng one so I doubt he'll be 'give me a break', Kenny as another. He has won as many league titles as Caulfield!! Now maybe his potential is greater but he cannot yet be dismissive of anybody in this league if he ever is and he doesnt seem the type. Other than that I agree with what you are getting at and indeed can associate with your frustrations with club matters.

[TownManForever]

Load of ****e lad.

The club has said for years it’s training outside of Longford due to the sheer lack of facilities and with academy teams being added every year there’s limited space. They’ve two pitches at Bishopsgate - there’s a new Astro but I don’t think it’s full sized and the new Astro at the rugby club is booked out 24/7.

Your point about ‘local players’ is rubbish too. The local league in Longford is barely functioning at senior level with about 5 teams and I can recall only 1 Longford lad playing in the LSL in Ryan Carberry and he was with the academy years ago. Nearly sure I heard he was training with us last year too. At the academy level, the club has developed multiple LOI players over the years- Aodh Dervin the obvious one, Ben Lynch now with Treaty, Evan O’Connor formerly of Galway and now Treaty also started with Longford. The U14/15’s are mostly all local and upwards is where you are going to get lads from outside the county coming in. Manny James came up from the 19s/20’s, hell this year alone Groves has played like 5 U19 players at some stage or another.

Absolutely NOBODY is calling for Anthony Elding to come in. Except you that is. And that’s because you were on his bench. Harping on about an U17 C title or whatever it was isn’t the win you think it is. Why hasn’t Elding managed at senior level before? Why has he not lasted at 4 different clubs? Mental points being made.

Facts are the club could probably do with new owners and investment but Longford is Longford and not many are going to be interested when you’ve Athlone (as bad as the club is) only half an hour away with a booming Town and university.

[placid casual]

just like people at Damien Duff, Duffer is a legend.. he came through Shels U17s and has won the league against the odds - long live Duffer probably the best manager in the league because nothing beats experience !! People calling Duffer arrogant, too right he is arrogant he knows he is at a different level than basically every other manager in the league, he probably looks at Stephen Bradley and thinks.. "give me a break"!

In the LOI , Duff is the monkey, but Bradley is the organ grinder.

[Kiki Balboa]

The Shels team last year was as poor of a winner as there ever has been in the league.

It wasn't there talent on the pitch, but complete lack of game management ability that really surprised me. Very conservative manager, who doesn't seem to want to go out and win games.

But someone has to win the league, and the rest all threw it away at different stages. You cant take it away from Shels.

They spent a lot more money this year, and got worse. Fair play to them last year, but feel watching Duffs teams, now is a far more representative of where this Shelbourne team under Duff always played. A bottom half side, who are set up well, but run out of ideas very quickly, and cant see out a game.

TDLR... Last year was an anonomly, and Duff to be thought of anything other than a lucky manager and full of bluster, has to do more than have one good season.

Roddy Collins part 2 ?

[pineapple stu]

TDLR... Last year was an anonomly, and Duff to be thought of anything other than a lucky manager and full of bluster, has to do more than have one good season.

I suppose Duff say in his four years with Shels, he's won the First Division, kept them up in the Premier (something they hadn't done since 2012), got them into Europe via the league (first time since 2006), and then won the league while also getting through a round in Europe and taking a respectable draw off FC Zurich (albeit while 3-0 down from the first leg).

It's a bit harsh to say last season was an anomaly.

[joey B]

I suppose Duff say in his four years with Shels, he's won the First Division, kept them up in the Premier (something they hadn't done since 2012), got them into Europe via the league (first time since 2006), and then won the league while also getting through a round in Europe and taking a respectable draw off FC Zurich (albeit while 3-0 down from the first leg).

It's a bit harsh to say last season was an anomaly.

Think it was Ian Morris who won the First Division ….

[RealJohn91]

Yeah, they sacked Morris after he won the first division.

[pineapple stu]

Ah, fair. Still, rest of stuff remains valid.

[bohsmug]

I suppose Duff say in his four years with Shels, he's won the First Division, kept them up in the Premier (something they hadn't done since 2012), got them into Europe via the league (first time since 2006), and then won the league while also getting through a round in Europe and taking a respectable draw off FC Zurich (albeit while 3-0 down from the first leg).

It's a bit harsh to say last season was an anomaly.

He didn't win the first division. Came in after that but your point stands. Duff has done a very good job there and has been steady progress up until this point. In his first season there they stayed up comfortably (7th I think) and got to a cup final. They got a lot stronger as that season went on, with them growing into the identity that gave them success over the next 2 years. 2nd season finished 4th and qualified for Europe. 3rd season wins the league. Every year he's had with Shels so far has been a success.

Who knows what happens this year but Kiki saying Duff "has to do more than have one good season" is a nonsense point to be honest. He's had 3/3.

Now if things get testy at the club and that ride of feel-good momentum they've been on for 3 years is replaced with a period of negativity then we don't yet know how he or the club and fans will deal with it. Bohs had feel good momentum between 2018 - 2021 and when it fell apart we were floored. It started creaking in 2021. We had a great European run, got to a cup final (at that stage in our progress we needed to win it really for it to be a "success") but that team shouldn't have finished as low as 5th. We fell apart and the ground got quite toxic, aside from the current run of form and a similar run in early 2023. So that's a different type of test for Duff and one that is par for the course in management, turning around a team who are getting poor results. I don't completely disagree with Kiki's post in its entirety but he's had 3 very good years of steady progress, I don't really see that as disputable. It suits Bohs if Shels fall apart so I can't make a prediction with any degree of objectivity, let's see.

-
EDIT: As is often the case it took me that long to write my post that a point I made had long already been made re: Ian Morris. I blame getting interrupted and occasionally having to do some actual work before getting back to the foot.ie tab

[pineapple stu]

Forgot they got to the Cup final as well. Bit of a pasting, but a Cup Final's a Cup Final, especially for a newly-promoted side.

Even now they're only four points off second in the league - nothing a run of form wouldn't fix.

[Keen2win]

Great to see a bit of sense on Foot.ie.. I met Duffer when he was managing Shels u17, and found him to be very nice and respectful.. more importantly his Shels team at that stage were excellent.. and I asked one of their players and they said he was brilliant! So it was clear to me anyway, because nothing beats experience.. someone with a professional history in England will have much more experience than someone who played in the part time LOI which was the worst league in Europe at the time! Duffer and others such as Elding etc are simply different gravy, and no fan or ex LOI player can deny that imo

[Another Bohemia]

Great to see a bit of sense on Foot.ie.. I met Duffer when he was managing Shels u17, and found him to be very nice and respectful.. more importantly his Shels team at that stage were excellent.. and I asked one of their players and they said he was brilliant! So it was clear to me anyway, because nothing beats experience.. someone with a professional history in England will have much more experience than someone who played in the part time LOI which was the worst league in Europe at the time! Duffer and others such as Elding etc are simply different gravy, and no fan or ex LOI player can deny that imo

While I agree with your broader point that Duff is a good manager I really dislike your logic. Just because someone played at a high level does not mean they are destined to be a good manager. By your logic Wayne Rooney, Thierry Henry, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard an many other great professional footballer should also be great managers. That's not the case. Alex Ferguson didn't have some stellar career and is one of the best managers of all time, Jose Mourinho had a pretty short professional career at lower levels in Portugal and is arguably one of the best managers of his generation. For every Zinedine Zidane who can manage and play at an extremely high level there's a plethora of Tony Adams, Gianfranco Zolas, Paolo DiCannios who just aren't up to it as managers.

[Nesta99]

Jeez what a load of horse**** K2w, Jose Mourhino was a translator who got in to coaching and probably Duff's main influence should we dismss Mourhino because he didnt have a English Premier League background? Worst league in Europe at the time?? It wasnt all rosy but it was never that bad as a simple look at rankings will show. Talk about sounding nouveaux LoI!!

[Keen2win]

Nesta son you seem not to know what you are talking about.. AI tells me a very high % of managers across the top leagues have played professionally.. these people dedicated their life to the game to make it.. it was not micky mouse league of ireland 10-20 years ago.. mourinho learned from Robson at Barca, I have also learned and can play.. so just an informed observation amongst a sea of noise! There are levels to the game, and loi back then was the bottom level . To bring loi forward one has to be realistic and accept that performing in England is miles ahead of loi .. but I definitely accept some managers can take a different route but they need to be truly exceptional, get lucky, and have professional mentors no doubt

[Buckett]

Nesta son you seem not to know what you are talking about.. AI tells me a very high % of managers across the top leagues have played professionally.. these people dedicated their life to the game to make it.. it was not micky mouse league of ireland 10-20 years ago.. mourinho learned from Robson at Barca, I have also learned and can play.. so just an informed observation amongst a sea of noise! There are levels to the game, and loi back then was the bottom level . To bring loi forward one has to be realistic and accept that performing in England is miles ahead of loi .. but I definitely accept some managers can take a different route but they need to be truly exceptional, get lucky, and have professional mentors no doubt

So, you're saying your LOI winners medal is worth fack all?

[Keen2win]

My LOI medal was on my bday in 2022. With the worst academy in the country. And their first national league title.. if that means nothing fair enough but I would disagree, it shows serious potential for everyone involved.. the worst part of this is only 1 player from this u17 team currently in the club - that's a shocking stat ! Probably missed out on a few million by not keeping young Elding too but my point is - nobody in the club knows this or sees this.. big decisions that have cost the club millions.. hopefully elding gets his chance to push on and drive LTFC forward, and starts to give you players and coaches from the midlands our just chance.. the reason I got involved initially because I saw many of my friends who were so good growing up getting no chance, I wanted to help change this but we still just a Dublin team.. while some people spent the past decade talking about football, those same friends set up a senior football team called the Moydow Muddogs.. who absolutely bossed local Longford football for the past 10 years and have a multiple of ex LTFC academy with us.. we are literally providing football for the young talented lads of Longford.. unfortunately local Longford football is going down and down too, a recent FAI meeting that I was at stated there were c. 10 teams 10 years ago, next season we are looking at 2 local teams.. football in Longford is in a bad state at adult level tbh