Kerry v Monaghan

aidz

this sunday at 2pm.
undercard to the limerick waterford hurling semi final which has a throw in at 4pm.

whats the neutrel view of this game?
speaking from a monaghan perspective, we have had a great summer so far. the interest created in our 4 games thus far has been immense. there isnt a pole in the county without a ble andd white flag hanging from it.
at the start of the year i thought monaghan would give ulster a good rattle. to get to the final really raised their profile within the province. it was a great run but we were very disapointed to lose the final.
a lot depends on the reaction of the players to such of a defeat for further progress in the back door. the players stepped up to it in omagh last week. it was one of the best ever evenings following monaghan in years, a real joy.

so this brings us to the quarters against the mighty kerry. i think monaghan are confident enough to pull off ashock. a lot depends on our capablilty of holding the kerry full forward line. dessie moen (corner back) is having a revelation this year. hes outmarked benny coulter, paddy bradley, owen mulligan and brendan devenney so far. next up is the couch. however, it is the big man donaghy who we are weary of.

revenge from 1985 is hopefully on the cards for the biggest shock of the year... well i like to dream...monaghan are about 5/1 to win this game.....
COME ON THE FARNEY ARMY!!!

TomMc

If Kerry were in the same casual mode they were against Cork in the Munster final, then Monaghan have a real chance. They need to get off to a flyer though. Can't afford a bad start like the Tyrone match. Monaghan have a good team spirit and work hard for each other; They are more than the sum of their parts. If they can hassle Kerry no end who knows but Croke Park is such a big pitch it takes it toll after a while. Monaghans last big day in CP was more or less over before it begun. The very best of luck.

Erin Go Brath

Yeh, best of luck to Monaghan, 31 Counties will be cheering yous on. They are playing well this year, and i'd expect a close enough game. The problem with Kerry is they usually play their best football this time of year. It's a huge ask for a relatively inexperienced Monaghan team to come to Croker, and slay the kingdom. Donaghy is the biggest danger. You never know, if they all play like their lives depended on it, they could just cause an upset.

Flukey

You'd have to expect Kerry to win this, but I hope they don't.

blackbelt

I would strongly urge the Monaghan team to supply ball to Thomas Freeman from the defence or half back line.In my opinion,Kerry are too superior in midfield and would therefore cut the supply to him but this tactic would upset them as they would not expect it.

ionapaul

Question: is there big interest in the hurling semi final, enough to make tickets for the football hard to come by? I'm just back in the country and would like to see the football (being a Kerryman), just checked Ticketmaster and I can only get standing tickets in the Nally, no seated tickets at all. Can't imagine a huge crowd is making the pilgrimage all the way to Dublin from Kerry for a quarter final, but I suppose the crowds are coming for the hurling? Any ideas on how to nab a seated ticket for the day?

cruiserweight

Kerry have named their team for the game, just one change from the game against Cork

Kerry (SFC v Monaghan): D Murphy; M O Sé, T O'Sullivan, P Reidy; T O Sé, A O'Mahoney, K Young; D O Sé, S Scanlon; D O'Sullivan, E Brosnan, P Galvin; C Cooper, K Donaghy, MF Russell.

Mr. Incognito

Still no sign of Quill, Franny hit some great frees in the Munster final but you'd still expect Quill to have to edge as he's a ball winner and great hassler which Franny isn't.

I expect Donaghy to run riot in this game, I can see Monaghan conceeding a lot of goals. They leaked a lot to a Tyrone team, that granted were mis-firing on their day out in Croker but I think the space in Croke Park is going to suit Kerry. Expect the half backs to pump a lot of diagonal ball into the full forward line.

I think Monaghan will be close at half time and to lose it in the third quarter.

Pride Fighter

Flukey wrote:

You'd have to expect Kerry to win this, but I hope they don't.

I agree.

cmoney

ionapaul wrote:

Question: is there big interest in the hurling semi final, enough to make tickets for the football hard to come by? I'm just back in the country and would like to see the football (being a Kerryman), just checked Ticketmaster and I can only get standing tickets in the Nally, no seated tickets at all. Can't imagine a huge crowd is making the pilgrimage all the way to Dublin from Kerry for a quarter final, but I suppose the crowds are coming for the hurling? Any ideas on how to nab a seated ticket for the day?

id say the tickets that are coming back from the county boards will be in croker over the next few days probably tomorrow or friday so if ya can get there during the day.... but i doubt there will be too many of them. just keep checking on ticketmaster otherwise cos there was no tickets there 2 days ago but then yday there was davin stand upper tickets available.

EDIT: il definitely be cheering for monaghan though... it would be something else if they can pull it off. just need to be a bit more accurate this time.

scaramanga

tickets on ticketmaster now , good sections too got upper cusack near halfway line

treen74

Anyone know a weblink to get the game this sunday? I did see some of the Tyrone v Monaghan game the other week but havent got the link details.

I cant get the RTE link btw as Im way outside the UK and British Isles. (NZ)

Good luck monaghan - Hopefully ill be watching and rooting for you so my old mans (from Castleblayney) pessimism will disappear back in Manchester.

Cheiftan

SetantaL wrote:

Still no sign of Quill, Franny hit some great frees in the Munster final but you'd still expect Quill to have to edge as he's a ball winner and great hassler which Franny isn't.

I expect Donaghy to run riot in this game, I can see Monaghan conceeding a lot of goals. They leaked a lot to a Tyrone team, that granted were mis-firing on their day out in Croker but I think the space in Croke Park is going to suit Kerry. Expect the half backs to pump a lot of diagonal ball into the full forward line.

I think Monaghan will be close at half time and to lose it in the third quarter.

SetantaL , exactly which Ulster final did you watch? 1985 maybe , 1979 V Donegal ?? Maybe your getting confused with Monaghan playing in Blue and white ,we are not Waterford !!!

FYI final score in the Ulster Final was 1-15 to 1 - 13 , hardly what you would call leaking a lot , I wonder if you have even sen Monaghan this year other than on the Sunday puke with Pat Spillprck, yes 3 minutes of highlights is truely enough to have such a potent insight .

Roll on Sunday , Mhuineachain Abu.

homerjk

I've always thought that it wont be as much of a walkover as people or saying but word on the grapevine is that Tommy Freeman has an infection on a cut on this hand is 50/50 to play.
Absolute disaster, thought he would run riot in Croker.

Carcharodon

I dont think anyone from Kerry expects an easy win, will be a very tough game and I would not be shocked to see us lose. The performances have been a bit average so far but hopefully now the midfield will be alot better and the forwards will continue to improve.
I would be disapointed with a loss obviously but not shocked and would have no problem losing to an honest team like Monaghan.
I hope Kerry experience will bring them through and Russell is having his best season in years, although Quill should be figuring in the team I think the management have made their mind up on where they stand with him for the moment.

Kingdom

I don't understand all this gash being spouted that Quill should be on the the team. Who exactly should be dropped for him? MFR? He's having his best period in a Kerry jersey since Fitzy finished!
Gooch? No chance best forward in the country.

Undoubtedly this will be a tough game but I think they are being hyped up to the extreme. The best win they've had this year, imo was against Derry. They pushed Tyrone but weren't good enough and while Donegal won the League they've been cack in the Championship this year. So I think this will be another step up for Monaghan on Sunday and I'm just not sure if they are capable of it.

On the Sam in general, it really has been a poor championship. Of the q/f's last weekend, both games were poor, but the Tyrone game didn't get that much criticism because it was exciting. The Cork game was brutal and I would hope for Monaghans sake that they perform better than Sligo!

MementoMori

On the whole Quill thing I can see where people are coming from - he was in super form in the League probably best Kerry forward - However there is a big difference between League and Championship (just ask Donegal).

Also in the League both Gooch and Eoin Brosnan were more concerned about the club championship, Declan O Sullivan and Galvin were off on their travels, Mike Frank is always a better player in finer conditions while Donaghy was busy being injured & then getting sent off. In a case like this you would expect someone such as Quill to play well in order to force his case for a starting spot. Which he did.

In truth there is no way that Pat O'Shea is going to drop Gooch nor Donagh, so it was in reality a case of Quill v MFR. As people have been saying MFR is probably having his best season in abut five years and Quill can be considered very unlucky not to dislodge him. I would expect him to be one of the first subs on Sunday.

In other news Declan O'Sullivan is apparently flying in training.

Was suprised that Scanlon got the nod over Griffin at midfield. Anyone know if Griffin is carrying a knock? Relief to see Quirke dropped. Dread to imagine what his lack of mobility would have looked like in Croker.

Given the style of both teams and the wide open spaces of Croke Park I would be hopeful this could be one of the better games in the championship.
However in general it has been a very poor Championship.

Hopefully Kerry v Monaghan, Dublin and Meath will all be classics.

Flukey

The rest of the championship, starting with tomorrow's games, has had to be cancelled due to a selection problem with referees. See my post near the end of the "Kerry referee..." thread. The same problem in getting a referee for the Derry game applies to the other matches this weekend and for the foreseeable future, and not just for GAA but for all world sports which have any sort of officials making a decision.:( Sport is over, forever!:(

Mr. Incognito

SetantaL , exactly which Ulster final did you watch? 1985 maybe , 1979 V Donegal ?? Maybe your getting confused with Monaghan playing in Blue and white ,we are not Waterford !!!

FYI final score in the Ulster Final was 1-15 to 1 - 13

I saw teh whole game, Tyrone forwards were very poor at converting chances they had, same as meath game. The Kerry inside line won't squander as much. If kerry don't score at least a goal a half I'll conceed the point, so see you Monday.

scaramanga

This is what will happen between Kerry and all of the other teams left if they meet each other

Kerry v Monaghan - monaghan to go ahead early , kerry to pull away in final 20 min - kerry 6-7
Kerry v Derry - derry nob all forwards kerry by 5
Kerry v Dublin - kerry win but will be close could be a cracker. kerry by 3
Kerry v Cork - dont think will happen , cork fecked without masters , if so kerry by bout 10
Kerry v Meath - kerry to run riot at this stage win by bout 10-15:)
ye heard it here first

blackbelt

Kingdom wrote:

I don't understand all this gash being spouted that Quill should be on the the team. Who exactly should be dropped for him? MFR? He's having his best period in a Kerry jersey since Fitzy finished!
Gooch? No chance best forward in the country.
Undoubtedly this will be a tough game but I think they are being hyped up to the extreme. The best win they've had this year, imo was against Derry. They pushed Tyrone but weren't good enough and while Donegal won the League they've been cack in the Championship this year. So I think this will be another step up for Monaghan on Sunday and I'm just not sure if they are capable of it.

On the Sam in general, it really has been a poor championship. Of the q/f's last weekend, both games were poor, but the Tyrone game didn't get that much criticism because it was exciting. The Cork game was brutal and I would hope for Monaghans sake that they perform better than Sligo!

I'm sure a lot of people would disagree with that about Gooch.

The Meath-Tyrone game was great.Thats coming from a Dub.I think it can be an extra on this years Sideline DVD on the Championship but we have to see what Dublin-Derry provide before we can say for definite.Of course we can be diplomatic and build up the opposition and say it won't be easy for Kerry or Dublin this weekend but as far as Kerry are concerned I think they will scrape through uncomfortably.A 6 week layoff may show some rust on the Kerry team while Monaghan will be glowing with confidence.

Cheiftan

SetantaL wrote:

I saw teh whole game, Tyrone forwards were very poor at converting chances they had, same as meath game. The Kerry inside line won't squander as much. If kerry don't score at least a goal a half I'll conceed the point, so see you Monday.

You would have to ask the question why were Tyrone so poor at converting chances ? was it because they had mouldies on and prefer blades ? Addidas instead of puma ? Nah did'nt think so , Tyrones wide count in the second half of the Ulster final was in the region of 7 - 8 of which 3 could be put down to poor shooting , the rest good defending. So your earlier assertion of "leaking a lot " is flawed.

However i do see your point re goals been conceeded by Monaghan , we gave away 2 disgraceful goals v meath in the nat league semi final , real U 12 stuff. At the start of the championship i was worried about our full back line but they have progressed a lot since then and have gelled very well , they mark tight , break at speed and put the bodies in there.

Donaghy is a different matter altogether and would imagine V Corey going man 2 man with him and JP mone hovering in front, having said that I think no team in Ireland will stop him scoring.

Just to change tack some bookies are giving 8-1 on tommy freeman scoring a goal on sunday , get the money on now lads

Nalced_irl

We have already had our surprise for the Quarters with Meath doing Tyrone so if there is any surprise in this game, i think it will be that Monaghan finish only losing by 1-2 points. As it stands i would say Kerry by 5 or 6 but Monaghan keeping up with them for much of the game. Would love to see Mon winning this one but smart money has to be on Kerry by a bit of a margin.

Pride Fighter

Hope its a great match. I like the kingdom, they are a nice bunch of lads but I am going to root for Monaghan. Go on the Farney men!

angeldelight

I desperately desperately want Monaghan to win this, being a Monaghan girl so fingers (and toes) crossed. I think it depends on how we start the match really, if we go behind I doubt we'd catch up whereas I'd have more faith in us defending a lead.

Will be watching the match in a pub in Tralee, should be interesting

Kojak

A lot of people are thinking that this will be a close game and I would go along with that - up until about 10 minutes into the second half.

It is understandable that Kerry are going to be "ring-rusty" after having approx. 6 weeks off without any competitive match. And if you want to be technical, they have only had one meaningful game since playing Dublin at the end of the league (That being the munster final against cork).

Monaghan will probably race into a 4 or 5 point lead coming up to half time, but could then start to get edgy as they will know that Kerry will up the performance in the second half.

It will also be interersting to see what Pat O'Shea does to the team selection if things aren't going Kerry's way - will he make a tactical substitution, positional change etc.

Also, I believe its time that Donaghy has a good game. He seems to be struggling to reach the high standards of last year. Maybe today he will wake up. This will have a negative impact on Monaghan's attack as they will have to deploy Vincent Corry to number 3 to man-mark donaghy.

From a neutral point of view, I'd like to see Monaghan go all the way seeing as they have never won the All-Ireland. But the money is on Kerry to win by about 5 points.

MementoMori

Maybe this might be madness on my part but I'm expecting/hoping for an 8 to 10 point win for Kerry.

One of the reasons I expect this is that I expect Kerry to get goals. I think the weather conditions - dry (fingers crosed) and not warm, will suit Kerry's style.

Also the Kerry team know there is the reward of a semi-final place against the Dubs on offer. They will have a massive desire for this. This is a generation of footballers brought up on the Kerry's Golden Years video.

A lot of people are saying that Kerry will be rusty after the 6 weeks off. I would be more worried about this if Derry had won but the reward of a crack at the Dubs in the semi will be more than enough to overcome this. One could argue that after six weeks of sitting on the sidelines of the Championship watching the other teams would have made the players eager to get back in action. Also I think the six week gap would be a bigger factor if the team were less experienced.

Monaghan are a good team but Kerry's team are a step above them. You have to ask how many of the Monaghan team would get on the Kerry team.

Cant see this ending up but one way.

My physic prediction is that Gooch scores 1-8.

Ciarrai abu

wanabe

If Kerry dont win by more than 8 points Id be dissapointed! a good win would be a massive advantage going into the semi-final!
Bring on the Dubs!

D. Coughlan

Monaghan are starting well, hopefully it will be a good match.

ionapaul

Kerry win by one point but looked terribly rusty and the high-ball-to-Donaghy approach didn't seem to work so well. Hopefully they can shake off the rust before the Dublin match!

nesf

I really feel for Monaghan fans. That was not a nice way to lose a game.

TomMc

Kerry were sitting ducks today, but will be all the better for it in the long run. They kept their composure when it mattered most or they too would have joined the big name casualties. Sore limbs tomorrow morning for sure but that was as physical a test (& pounding) as they will meet all season. Bryan Sheehan was a great substitution and he is worthy of a starting place the next day. Dublin will now start favourites in the SF, which will play into Kerry's hands I feel.

Pal

nesf wrote:

I really feel for Monaghan fans. That was not a nice way to lose a game.

Dreadful refereeing.
Monaghan won that game fair and square.

TomMc

Just like yesterday when a Derry man made only one real hop of the ball, got penalised when setting up in front of goal - Dublin then broke to the other end and scored a point.

Darragh Ó Sé was very lucky not to get penalised too late on. I guess the better the footballer, the more ref's tend to give you the benefit of the doubt.

Ah well, Hard luck Monaghan - It's hard to stomach, we have all been there, but GAA usually serves up some hard knocks before some success.

Flukey

Kerry very definitely got out of jail on this one. Some more dubious refereeing on view, especially right at the end. The best teams don't always win. Anyway, we'll see how Kerry perform against in two weeks. They'll have to up their performance, which they will, but will that be enough. Come on the Dubs.

Erin Go Brath

Have to say I thought the best team lost this one. Monaghan were extremely unlucky. Kerry were "ring rusty" as someone pointed out with the 6 week lay off, and it showed. Fair play to Monaghan, they did themselves proud today. Battled away for the whole game, but possibly Kerrys greater experience payed off in the end. The passing around when they were 1 point up coming to the closing stages was self assured. Monaghan will be back next year, and they will be more street wise next time around.

Kerry v Dublin should be interesting. I fancy the Dubs to do it. They look the stronger team.

Flukey

Erin Go Brath wrote:

Kerry were "ring rusty" as someone pointed out with the 6 week lay off, and it showed.

It's funny, Kerry's poor performance is being argued as being down to the fact that they have not played so long, while Waterford's defeat is down to them having played lots of games. People will argue the case either way, whichever suits the situation.

D. Coughlan

Flukey wrote:

It's funny, Kerry's poor performance is being argued as being down to the fact that they have not played so long, while Waterford's defeat is down to them having played lots of games. People will argue the case either way, whichever suits the situation.

I think it is a balance, playing 3 highly intense matches at Croke Park must leave the players feeling unfresh, particularly when they were playing Limerick who had no matches for 2 weeks and seemed to be first for every ball.

While Kerry with no matches for 6 weeks just could not get back into the intensity of the Championship.

If i was a Monaghan supporter tonight, I would not be feeling great, they just seemed inexperienced at the big match occasion like Derry yesterday.

quad_red

Met a few friends from Monaghan at the game (and my gf is from Monaghan) and I really felt for them. As one of the lads said, that result came straight out of the long grass.

Kerry were poor. Disjointed, off the pace and ineffective. I read on the game review on the rte site that Donaghy despite not being very effective, caused 'terror' in the Monaghan defence when high balls came in.

It didn't bloody look like that from where we were sitting! He couldn't keep hold of the bloody ball and the Monaghan defence were ready to capitalise and regain possession 99% of the time. It was an ineffective tactic and Kerry's dependence and hesitation/inability to adapt was worrying.

Daragh O Se was strangely pedestrian as well (certainly in comparison to how he usually plays). But he wasn't alone.

Monaghan were determined, energetic and really up for it and they can take allot from this. But it disappoints me to hear the same clowns go on about referee bias etc. If there was bias why was the goal disallowed? Monaghan, Limerick and Waterford fans all roared Monaghan on today. Kerry weathered an overwhelmingly pro Monaghan atmosphere and kept their cool.

But Monaghan were unable to capitalise on Kerry's weaknesses. They allowed us to keep in touch and put in a late rally to which they had no response (literally - they couldn't buy a point at the end).

So a date with Dublin beckons (and the scramble for a ticket).

Flukey

Since Waterford's last game, they've had seven nights of sleep. It's not as if they played Cork this morning, both the drawn and replayed matches. I do think a bit much is made of this kind of thing. As I said too, it is used in both ways. We'll get the "Kilkenny haven't been tested or had a hard game so that's an advantage as they will be fresh" and we'll get the "Kilkenny haven't been tested or had a hard game so that's a disadvantage." The amount of games had or not and the intensity of those games or not, is argued as being both an advantage and a disadvantage, whenever it suits someone's case. Kerry's poor performance today, or had they even been defeated, would be put down to them not having had a game for 6 weeks. Had they hammered Monaghan it would be because they haven't had a game for 6 weeks and they were fresh. Whatever your case, a long lay off or a heavy schedule can be used to argue it both ways.

Erin Go Brath

D. Coughlan wrote:

I think it is a balance, playing 3 highly intense matches at Croke Park must leave the players feeling unfresh, particularly when they were playing Limerick who had no matches for 2 weeks and seemed to be first for every ball.

While Kerry with no matches for 6 weeks just could not get back into the intensity of the Championship.

If i was a Monaghan supporter tonight, I would not be feeling great, they just seemed inexperienced at the big match occasion like Derry yesterday.

This post is spot on!

Pal

The last 2 points should not have stood.
Monaghan must feel very hard done.

WarZoneBrother

class game and from a monaghan person i am very disappointed...how can a team get the lead in the last 5mins and win ..monaghan had there chances in the last 5mins but didnt get them...hopefully kerry dont win the all ireland or there will be tears all round..

K-9

Seen this one coming but unfortunately just didn't come through at the end. They have some belief, that Monaghan team. Thomas Freemans knock on his knee was significant, wasn't as effective afterwards.

Ok Donaghy didn't play well and the ball into him wasn't that great sometimes, but he caused the goal, even if he never touched the ball.

I can see the Kerry defence having bother with the Dublin forwards and the rotation and mobility of them.

Kojak

Hard luck on Monaghan - they stayed with Kerry a lot longer than I thought they would have.

Kerry seemed to be labouring a lot today, maybe it was because of the 6 week lay off but some of their play was clumsy and didn't look the stuff of All-Ireland champions. However, this will suit them for their next match against the Dubs as with all the usual hype of the dubs, kerry could be going in as underdogs.

Monaghan hunted in packs, and I was surprised that Kerry couldn't counteract this given the fact that they have experienced this kind of thing before with Tyrone. Donaghy was quiet today, and it seemed to take him a while to grasp the fact that he was better off to catch the ball rather than knock it down for the incoming forwards as the Monaghan corner-backs were sweeping up in front of him.

Monaghan got away with a lot of fouls today, IMO and it just added a bit of agro that hadn't any part in the game.

kerry usually peak for one game a year (look at All-Ireland final of last year) so it will be interesting to see if they can raise their game for the next day. Because they will definatly need to - if they played the dubs with a performance like that today, then the dubs would win by about 6 points.

angeldelight

Absolutely and totally heartbroken over this one, I was just starting to think we could hold on when things turned. I was really proud of the alds though, in my (slightly biased) opinion it was the best QF even though some people thought it'd be a washout and the fact that they managed not to go behind for so long was encouraging. Watched it in Tralee and even the Kerry fans sitting next to us coming up to the last 3/4 mins were willing Monaghan to get a point as they thought they deserved the draw and start afresh again. Oh well, roll on 2008!

K-9

What an 2008 Ulster championship its going to be!

Donegal, Tyrone, Armagh and Fermanagh on one side, Derry and Monaghan on the other. That's writing off Down, Cavan and Antrim which they'll just love. Now, that is competitive!:D

Pride Fighter

Fair play to Kerry, they won but only just. Well done to Monaghan, they can be a force for the future. Roll on the semi and c'mon the Dubs!!

mdwexford

TomMc wrote:

Dublin will now start favourites in the SF, which will play into Kerry's hands I feel.

no hope,
8/11 Kerry, 6/4 Dublin.
Kerry will always be favs regardless of past results or who they are playing.
Dublin look to have a cracking chance against them this time though....

CMON DA DUBS!!!!!!!

Bukman13

Seanies32 wrote:

I can see the Kerry defence having bother with the Dublin forwards and the rotation and mobility of them.

yea agree, Defence very sluggish today IMHO

C'mon The DUBS...:D

wanabe

We've seen this all before! Kerry have a bad game and people begin to say that Kerry are'nt the team they used to be! I say bulls**t, Form is temporary and Class is permenant! Everybody has bad games but they still won! bring on the dubs! who in my opinion were lucky to get past derry!