Football is finished

We all had our suspicions but anyone who witnessed that soul destroying fare yesterday now knows for sure.

The two recent goliaths of football reduced to a pathetic afterthought. Right or wrong Tyrone will probably go down as the torch bearers of the modern game in all it's glory (or otherwise). Kerry didn't hesitate long in following them mind you. You could maybe forgive Tyrone for their nouveau riche mindset throughout the course of the last decade or so, I wouldn't be the first to say they represented much in common with all that was wonderful about the Celtic Tiger but their antics today left a real sour aftertaste whilst in a sporting context it was tragic to see a Kerry side celebrate like they'd won an all Ireland, truly tragic.

Looking to the likes of Donegal and Meath to bring some excitement later says it all about the state the game is in.

One thing's for sure - we won't be looking to Galway to bring any excitement to the championship this afternoon, or anything for that matter for another 10 months.

No great surprise that Galway's footballing stock has fallen. Any team whose gameplan relys on skill wouldn't have much of a chance in the modern game, the way it's gone. Today's matches were nothing special but were at least an improvement on the outright pathetic we had yesterday in Killarney yesterday

mossbags wrote:No great surprise that Galway's footballing stock has fallen. Any team whose gameplan relys on skill wouldn't have much of a chance in the modern game, the way it's gone. Today's matches were nothing special but were at least an improvement on the outright pathetic we had yesterday in Killarney yesterday

Well after more than A decade of testing their brand of champagne football against the modern ogres outside of connacht and a record of nil from eleven do you think its at least time that they tried using a statistician

OMAR wrote:

mossbags wrote:No great surprise that Galway's footballing stock has fallen. Any team whose gameplan relys on skill wouldn't have much of a chance in the modern game, the way it's gone. Today's matches were nothing special but were at least an improvement on the outright pathetic we had yesterday in Killarney yesterday

Well after more than A decade of testing their brand of champagne football against the modern ogres outside of connacht and a record of nil from eleven do you think its at least time that they tried using a statistician

No just need to be cynical, negative and petty like the rest. The sport has become a byword for disgust

70,000 in croker
35,000 in clones

I watched Ireland against Croatia wherevat least Ireland had one shot on targetbin 90 mins
I went to a baseball game last wednesday or 3 hours of junk food eating as most people seemed to be there for.

Todays fare was certainly much bettervthan either ofbthe above and at that wevwill have better matches as the summer progresses

Im not complaining. The game changes. Donegal scored 6 points in the 1993Ulster final.

gaelic football is at a low ebb , things have to change

banjo wrote:gaelic football is at a low ebb , things have to change

Again

OMAR wrote:70,000 in croker
35,000 in clones

I watched Ireland against Croatia wherevat least Ireland had one shot on targetbin 90 mins
I went to a baseball game last wednesday or 3 hours of junk food eating as most people seemed to be there for.

Todays fare was certainly much bettervthan either ofbthe above and at that wevwill have better matches as the summer progresses

Im not complaining. The game changes. Donegal scored 6 points in the 1993Ulster final.

Donegal are improving no question. There appears to have been some great eureka moment in the northwest over the winter where they figured out that scoring in your own right is important, maybe even just as important as stopping the others from scoring. We'll see to what degree their newfound zeal has truly evolved once they come up against a decent team.
The game is profoundly not improving it's a horrific spectacle seeing grown men devote their prime years to a wasteland of negativity. The petty shallowness that's now part and parcel of the game at the highest level outweighs the class, grace and courage that were once amongst it's most redeeming virtues.

Moss using the most graceful of words here in a Shakespeare like defence of 'pure' Gaelic football - all the more ironic as he rails agains the puke fare on offer. Commendable.

Is crowd banter finished too? An older Dublin guy in the stands next to me with a younger companion. In the last few minutes he became agitated roaring "Hammer the Ba**ards!!" over and over again.
An elderly Meath man in front of me shouted over "Ah go easy would you.." On his way out the younger Dub stopped in front of the Meathman, roared something unintelligible into his face while giving him the two fingers and carried on his merry way.

Jonsmith wrote:Is crowd banter finished too? An older Dublin guy in the stands next to me with a younger companion. In the last few minutes he became agitated roaring "Hammer the Ba**ards!!" over and over again.
An elderly Meath man in front of me shouted over "Ah go easy would you.." On his way out the younger Dub stopped in front of the Meathman, roared something unintelligible into his face while giving him the two fingers and carried on his merry way.

You get a55holes everywhere. If I was beside that buck I'd have told him to shut the fook up.

I find there is no animosity between Meath and Dublin anymore. Thought the atmosphere was grand yesterday and saw plenty of green and blue shirts chatting during and after.

Parouisa wrote:

Jonsmith wrote:Is crowd banter finished too? An older Dublin guy in the stands next to me with a younger companion. In the last few minutes he became agitated roaring "Hammer the Ba**ards!!" over and over again.
An elderly Meath man in front of me shouted over "Ah go easy would you.." On his way out the younger Dub stopped in front of the Meathman, roared something unintelligible into his face while giving him the two fingers and carried on his merry way.

You get a55holes everywhere. If I was beside that buck I'd have told him to shut the fook up.

I find there is no animosity between Meath and Dublin anymore. Thought the atmosphere was grand yesterday and saw plenty of green and blue shirts chatting during and after.

True, I'm not having a shot at the Dubs, there was a mixed crowd around us and other than this it was friendly enough. The thing I found funny was that the Dub was rushing out directly after the final whistle not even waiting for the presentation. Something tells me he wasn't anywhere to be seen on the cold nights in February.

Unfortunately, the trend of systems overcoming skill has been going on steadily since the turn of the century.

We thought Armagh were cynical, and often they were. But they actually possessed brilliant footballers in McConville, McDonnell, McGeeney, McGrane, Marsden etc.

Then we thought Tyrone were cynical, the standard bearers of puke football. Yet they possessed a team of fantastic players in all positions. Canavan, Dooher, McGinley, JoeMcMahon, Gormley, Cavanagh, O'Neill, Mulligan...we could go on. Regrettably for them perhaps, their style of play and 'nastiness' has overshadowed their sheer footballing quality in the eyes of many.

In 2012...what would we do to have these two teams back? Donegal are now being talked about as a top 3 side with a style of play that is not borne out of footballing pedigree, but from a chalkboard and a fitness suite.

Some say it is good for Gaelic football, that it is 'fascinating'. Personally I find it atrocious, and nobody should be ashamed to hark back to days gone by when football was football.

While it is good to see the normally weaker counties use 'systems' to get some success, the result is now that the counties of footballing pedigree have no room to showcase actual football....as it is choked and smothered by a wall of muscle. The only place for the normally better footballing counties to go is to either follow suit, or try to play football and get ate.

Gaelic football is not becoming a game where gym beats skill, it has already become that. Where once in the mighty Tyrone team there was a fine balance between tactics, fitness, and footballing quality...we now have a situation where skill is a bonus, and victory is 90% gym work.

Where once the old adage was, simply, if you're good enough you'll win...it has now become if you're spending hours in the gym, putting 13 men in your own half, and lumping the ball forward in 'creative' counter attacks, you'll win.

The danger is this:

There is a lull in Gaelic football right now, and an opportunity for some teams to step forward as contenders for the decade. But a bad example is being set. What was an opportunity for new teams to continue the proud traditions of skill mixed with hard intensity has become a battle to see who can defend and counter attack the most. It is complete dirt to witness.

If there was some workable way of limiting the number of players in one half of the pitch, I would be completely supportive of it. Our sport has always been the greatest sporting spectacle on earth, but the spectacle is dying, and is being replaced by a cold heartless game more akin to that dreaded word....soccer.

Bluearmy - you possess two pairs of spectacles.

One is unbelievably rose-tinted with red and black. The other has nostalgia smeared all over the lens and is horribly distorting reality and reason.

You really need a trip to Specsavers .....

Instead of simply saying I am biased or nostalgic, why don't you put forward a constructive argument as to why you think I am wrong?

Do you really believe Gaelic football is going in the right direction?

If so, tell me why.

I have no issue with teams defending in numbers. While it wouldn't be my preference in preparing a side, it can often make for interesting viewing. The reality is that the 6-2-6 formation is a thing of the past, and not the recent past either. It disappeared decades ago, just as the WM formation did in soccer, yet people still harp back to it with expressions like 'inside right' and 'centre half'.

What I would like to see change is the attitudes of many players, managers and supporters, form whom a win at any cost attitude is the order of the day. The pulling, dragging, body checking, goading, stamping - all these things are taking away from the game, and are far more damaging to it as a spectacle than a couple of deep-lying half forwards.

Well I wouldn't agree with you nostalgically for a start. There were some horrible eras for Gaelic football in the past - indeed the 70s was not all it is cracked up to be. I have long stated my admiration for the Gooches, Bernard Brogans and Padraig Joyces of this world - I love football played in (what I see as) the right way - I think we are quite similar in what kind of football we like. But it is not right to denigrate other styles simply because they don't fit in with my world view of GAA. I was scathing of Donegal here last year - even after victory - and would be no great fan of some of the early Noughties teams. The fact is that as long as teams are playing within the rules and are ahead at the scoreboard at the end how can you knock them??

I don't see how you can regulate how many gym sessions a team can do, how much muscle they can put on, how many bench presses they can do etc. You could argue that if everybody puts in the same effort and are on a same physicality level then the cream (best team) should rise to the top.

I would love to see a limitation on hand passing - scourge of the game - which is actually called FOOTball ..... but this may reduce the game to the level of an U9 blitz as refs try to police the amount of consecutive handpasses. The game is constantly evolving - I always believe skill will win over muscle.

I would love to see a clampdown on the deep cynicism that exists in the game - Killarney was shocking. Yesterday Dublin drew two yellow cards in the last 2 minutes for consecutive tackles - I can fully understand why the players did it - but the GAA have to look at it. Conversely Limerick had numerous chances to, but didn't pull down a Kildare player in the last minute and are now out of the C'ship.

In summary I don't like a lot of current styles but when teams are winning within the rules then you can't fault them.

Cynicism was always in the game, maybe not as much but it was there and any back that did not 'take out' a forward bearing down on goal was classified as a waste of time. Saw it many a time in the 60's,70's,80's and 90's. Could list the incidents but there would not enough room on the page.Same at midfield good fielders taken out on way up for the ball.Mouthing is one of the greatest causes of problems nowadays and leads quite often to further retaliation. Refs,linesmen and umpires hear a lot but do nothing. Then again some teams even as far back as the fifties were noted for their insulting jibes to opponents.They only good thing then probably was the gob could be shut without censure.Overall the two games I attended and even the Donegal match had a lot of fast moving open play and great scores but I agree some sort of a restriction to the handpass would be a help.Football is far from dead despite the wishes of some.

I'm not saying that there was once a great golden age of football. In fact, the game has always had a cynical side..with the physical brutality now replaced by the cynicism of sly digs, diving, and mouthing. The game has always had a negative side, with teams being defensive. However, from all the teams who were considered the top sides, there was never any doubt that they possessed good footballers.

People are always reluctant to accept change. When the Down midfielders went about trying to break the ball from Mick O'Connell in the 1960 final, some purists were disgusted. It is a similar story to the way many were horrified by the way Armagh conducted themselves on the pitch in the very late 90s and early 00's. Then of course we had the Tyrone 2003 team, who brought a completely new type of football to the table, bringing them both success and a great deal of notoriety.

Again though, you look at those teams and you can honestly say they had fantastic footballers. Had the trend stopped with Tyrone, where skill was on balance with intensity, our games would be in a better place.

The sad thing about football now is that you can win without playing much actual football. You can put 13 men behind the ball, swarm and choke the opposition, and counter attack at pace...if you can.

Thus, the danger is that football becomes a game where all teams get men back and try to counter attack. The result is that players will be bigger, fitter, and faster with tactical controlled play the norm....while even simple skills like dummying ,kick passing, and fielding kickouts will be futile in the face of swarming defences. It is now no longer necessary to have good footballers....13 defenders and two half-decent forwards are all that is required. Flair is now a bonus.

The worst thing about all this is that most people sit back with this attitude that if a team is winning, you can't criticise. If someone complains, they are a dinosaur, and simply don't appreciate the wonders of tactics and physical conditioning.

If this attitude prevails, what incentive is there for any team to seek to play with flair and creativity?

All I am asking BA is what rules are being broken?

And did Dublin not play some fine football en route to Sam last year?

Was the final not acknowledged as a very good game?

I'm not saying that rules are being broken.

Dublin played some decent football. A hammering of an over-the-hill Tyrone team was the height of it. While the All-Ireland final may well have been good footballing fare, that would probably have much to do with the fact that it was Kerry in the final, a team whose style encourages an open game.

If the All-Ireland final proved anything, it's that there is another way. Tactics and conditioning can co-exist with skill and flair.

If the semi-final last year was an indication of where football could go if all teams adopt a 'men behind the ball' strategy, then the final was a sign that Gaelic football still has a chance if teams go out with the right attitude, and the good of the sport in mind.

bluearmy1 wrote:While the All-Ireland final may well have been good footballing fare, that would probably have much to do with the fact that it was Kerry in the final, a team whose style encourages an open game.

I assume the only time you've seen Kerry play in the last decade has been on All Ireland Gold. You may not realise, but Mikey Sheehy no longer plays for them, and instead they have lads called Paul Galvin and Donnacha Walsh. Their roles are a bit different to that of Mikey, Ogie and the rest.

I don't even think RKF would try and argue that Kerry are any different to the vast majority of sides in terms of playing style!

Lets keep things simple here, all teams are cynical. No point painting a pretty picture for any county team.

Might need to get Emmet and a chalkboard for this.
The AI final was entertaining but from memory Kerry were closer to 6-6-2 than 6-2-6.