Negative matches?

Been hearing a lot of people (and I'm talking about Ulster papers like the Gaelic Life and the Irish News as well as southern pundits so I'm trying to avoid a 'everyone hates Ulster' debate) talking about the negativity of the opening Ulster senior matches. Are we so determined to only find the negatives that we are forgetting the positives? Take Derry v Armagh for example....ok it wasn't lovely to watch but these were two sides with realistic ambitions of doing quite well in the Championship and it was always going to be a very physical game with both teams being very wary of the other and fearing to lose. Both teams are capable of playing attractive football but considering that to win an Ulster usually requires winning 3 or 4 very tough matches its inevitable that teams get defensive and some the later stages they can open up a bit.

Then we had Tyrone v Antrim where once again it seemed that everyone only wanted to bemoan the negative points. Antrim were once one of those teams you just wanted to get in the Championship knowing that it was a chance to dish out a heavy beating.....they aren't a laughing stock anymore. So maybe they don't play the most attractive brand of football we've ever seen, but attractive football comes with confidence and these lads will get no confidence playing pretty-ball and getting hammered. Their performance against one of Ireland's top teams deserves merit.

As a Down man I'm maybe being biased when I say I found the game entertaining. It was scrappy and error ridden but still quite high scoring. It was a very hard game to call between two teams who again have realistic ambitions for Championship success and I thought Benny Coulter gave a masterclass in 'attractive' football with an exhibition of high fielding, tackling, and scoring. There was great tension and I think both teams are capable of a more attractive style.

I always say...think back to the Marshes in 1991, Down v. Armagh 1st round USFC....a woefully negative game between what looked like two average teams. Come September, Down were playing lovely football in the All-Ireland final.

Am I being too positive?

you do have a point bluearmy - tactics employed during the Ulster championship games by many Ulster teams are quickly abandoned when they get out of Ulster be it into the qualifiers or the Q/Fs.

the problem is many teams employ tactics which they arent really capable of carrying out - take Antrim for example against Tyrone they left Scullion high and dry in his rightful position instead of dropping him back in front of O'Neill and Mulligan that was tactical stupidity at its best.

Derry employed the same tactics two years in a row which was puzzling considering they had made no headway last year with the said tactics. Too many teams approach games with a defensive mind set and yet they might make more headway were they to take the game to their opponents, and its not just and Ulster problem it happens all over the country though others dont like to admit it

I think you are easily pleased. In terms of entertainment value, the football we've seen so far has been awful, particularly in Ulster.

We've seen 6 of the top 7 Ulster sides so far. and every one of them played with a sweeper. Now, there is nothing wrong with this, so long as it is done correctly, but only Tyrone were able to do this, by using a good footballer in the role, instead of a marker. Of the others, Antrim abandoned the sweeper tactic when they brought on CJ McGourty, and it actually helped them, preventing Tyrone from breaking out of defence. This contrast in styles is what made it the best of the 3 Ulster games we have seen so far.

Armagh and Derry was awful, with 2 ultra-defensive sides, deep-lying sweepers, and wing backs playing far too centrally and with no licence to attack. This was 2 sides going out to avoid defeat which, may be acceptable to some, but I think it is a poor show if that is all a side aspires to after 7-8 months of preparations. Neither of these sides can win an all-ireland, so why not go out and try to play football.

Down & Donegal was not high scoring. It was 2-07 to 0-13 after 70 minutes. Those totals would lose most games. Like Derry & Armagh, these sides played very defensively, and with sweepers who apparently weren't allowed to cross their own 45m line. Donegal dropped 4 forwards into midfield, while Down held their half-backs in position. This meant that Donegal got plenty of ball, but lost it when they reached the Down half-back line. It was brutal to watch, and the game was only brightened up by the brilliance of Benny Coulter.

I'd like to think that tomorrow's game will be better, but I don't expect it to be.

That is just Ulster, and again, there have been awful games in other provinces, but at least they had some decent football (from Sligo & Louth tonight, for instance), although Kildare & Mayo were, admittedly, worse than anything we have seen in Ulster. Still though, leaving aside what is happening elsewhere, Ulster sides deserve the stick they have been getting so far this summer for their lack of entertainment.

This is exactly what I 'm getting at. How many times have we heard this about the sweeper system? Everyone wants to talk about the low points. People aren't talking about some of the great scores that Down had in Ballybofey...or Rory Kavanagh's courageous last ditch point to keep Donegal in the game. Small fleeting moments but still the sort of things that we (should) cherish in Gaelic football. I'll say it again I think it's great to see Antrim developing into an alright team and putting it up to Tyrone. You can't expect champagne football from a team that is only starting to show signs of being contenders.

I think all this moaning is becoming all too familiar in the GAA. In a summer where half the world will be toasting the ultimately tedious game of soccer I just don't understand why GAA fans can't appreciate the finer aspects of their own more exciting sports.

As James McCartan said, the GAA championships are unique in that there is such a small margin for error before an entire season's hopes come crashing down. In a province as tough as Ulster, this small margin of error encourages cagey games.

Maybe we should consider a league element in the Championship so that teams become less fearful of losing and more willing to attack? Or would this take away form the do-or-die drama that often makes the Championship so great to watch?

Ok the games haven't been fantastic so far....but would it not make more sense to discuss the negatives in the Championship after September? Because come the All-Ireland final, and if there is an Ulster team in it, I'm sure there will be little said about negativity. I have faith in the greatness of the sport and I believe things will only get better.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion but maybe a few more column inches and talk time should be given to the positive aspects. Negativity is doing nothing to help light up this years Championship.

Nothing negative about Monaghan today.

bluearmy1 wrote:Nothing negative about Monaghan today.

I agree, they were the most adventurous and attacking side that we have seen in Ulster ths year.

Great to see it. Finlay was excellent as was Freeman but Dick probably gets Man of the Match for those two points and the work rate.