Team Selection Hokey Cokey

is it only me or do any of the rest of you get fed up with the constant chopping and changing of team seelction in the build up to a game.

TaKe Tyrone for an example there is a doubt over 6 player at present for Sundays match - O' Neill, Dooher, Mc Guigan, Mellon, Harte, and Mc Cullagh. One day we read a quote from Tony Donnelly saying Dooher and O' Neill came through unscathed from a training weekend and that there are no injury worries. Next day we read Brian Mc Guigan and Colm Mc Cullagh are unlikely to play due to injuries.

Then yesterdays paper says Dooher is not fit to start O' Neill's knee is playing up again and on and on we go round and round in circles.

Is there that much of an advantage to be gained from indulging in such mind games - is it not the case that most teams would be prepared for any eventuality and more often than not the manager has second guessed the oppositions team selection anyway because they have sent some eejit along to watch training sessions etc. Armagh are at the same crack talking about a bug that 13 players have got - that story would have like water of a ducks back to Mickey Harte he would have laughed it off and could nearly pick Armagh's team.

Fermanagh are another - they never start with the team which they release to the papers. Down pulled the same stunt with Benny Coulter and there are countless other examples, its very prevelant in the build up to league and championship finals with spin doctors working over time trying to gain some sort of advantage.

Is it just silly beggars or are there still managers out there who would fall for this? does it give you nay real advantage when the match starts? I can see the benefit of it in soccer were different systems are used but less face it nearly every team in inter county football/ hurling uses more or less the same system.

A waste of time in my opinion but maybe someone can convince me its a worthwhile exercise.

It's true Boc - dunno why we bother buying programmes any more!

I think the best thing to do would be to name a team and then stick with it at the start of the game..........that'd really stump Mickey Harte eh?

bald eagle wrote:I think the best thing to do would be to name a team and then stick with it at the start of the game..........that'd really stump Mickey Harte eh?

it probably would confuse him more alright BE