Dublin v Westmeath

GalwayDub2

Cluxton, Henry, McConnell, O'Shaughnessy, Moran, Cullen, Cahill, Fennell, Ryan, Flynn, Sherlock, ABrogan, BBrogan, Keaney, Quinn.

So Whelan is out, no suprise there. I heard Quinn got a leg injury in training, wonder if he'll be fit for Sunday.

cruiserweight

GalwayDub2 wrote: »

Cluxton, Henry, McConnell, O'Shaughnessy, Moran, Cullen, Cahill, Fennell, Ryan, Flynn, Sherlock, ABrogan, BBrogan, Keaney, Quinn.

So Whelan is out, no suprise there. I heard Quinn got a leg injury in training, wonder if he'll be fit for Sunday.

I would guess that Connolly or Vaughan will come in for Quinn. Not suprised to see Casey dropped. I wonder how long it will take Cafferey to change it if they aren't doing well around midfield? I haven't seen much of Flynn, how good is he?

aidan24326

Connolly should be starting anyway. I don't know much about this Flynn lad though.

Dublin have a superior forward line and more options on the bench with Whelan, Vaughan and Connolly all likely to see action, so I can see them winning by 5 or 6 points, think Westmeath are being talked up too much. They've only beaten Longford and Offaly, two very ordinary teams, and made heavy work of the Longford game. They won't roll over the way Louth did and I'd imagine it will be close enough for a while, but Dublin should be too strong for them in the last 15/20 mins.

Het-Field

GalwayDub2 wrote: »

Cluxton, Henry, McConnell, O'Shaughnessy, Moran, Cullen, Cahill, Fennell, Ryan, Flynn, Sherlock, ABrogan, BBrogan, Keaney, Quinn.

So Whelan is out, no suprise there. I heard Quinn got a leg injury in training, wonder if he'll be fit for Sunday.

Again, with the likes of Griffin, Vaughan, Whelan, Andrews and Connolly (is Kevin Bonner there too ?) on the bench, it highlights the strength in depth the Dubs have. Plus the availability of Darren McGee, and Paul Casey would also suggest further experience.

I would imagine that unless Flynn has a major game, I could see him being ousted. He was ordinary against Louth.

Im interested that Casey has been dropped, for the fist time in almost six years, and Moran has been returned to the Backline.

Any chance that Barry Cahill may be brought futher back to the full back position ?

Dublin cannot be complacent. However, realistically they have too much for Westmeath. I recall people talking up Westmeath in 2006 before the quarter final, and Dublin dispatched of them easily. In fact had Cosgrove and a few other forwards had their shooting boots on, I believe there could have been up to a 20 point gap at the final whistle.

Dublin to win with a 5 to 8 points difference

aidan24326

Het-Field wrote: »

I would imagine that unless Flynn has a major game, I could see him being ousted. He was ordinary against Louth.

I watched the Dublin-Louth game on tv and can't even remember this Flynn guy, so he can't have done much! Must be lucky enough to be keeping Connolly off the team.

blackbelt

GalwayDub2 wrote: »

Cluxton, Henry, McConnell, O'Shaughnessy, Moran, Cullen, Cahill, Fennell, Ryan, Flynn, Sherlock, ABrogan, BBrogan, Keaney, Quinn.

So Whelan is out, no suprise there. I heard Quinn got a leg injury in training, wonder if he'll be fit for Sunday.

Thats the first time I've seen Caffrey omit Paul Casey from the starting 15 in a championship game.I also bolded O Shaughnessy because I am a bit worried about him.I can't count the amount of times he was turned in the Louth game and against Westmeath we can't do that.

Fennell retaining his position is the right call.There was no way Pillar could go up to him and say he wasn't starting and replae him with Whelan although I am certain Whelan will come on in the second half.Moran in the half backs is logical.

Flynn is a good worker.He seems to win a lot of ball in tight situations and is a great groundsman.Always ready to fight for the ball on the ground when surrounded.He also scored the goal against Monaghan in Parnell Park if I remember correctly.I'm also wondering about McManoman and his role and if he'll make a breakthrough.

Mossy is okay.He's not injured thank God.Connolly will probably replace Flynn later in the game while Caffrey will probably take Mossy off a few minutes before the end and put Vaughan on.

A very different team to the one which lost to Westmeath in Navan and I'd say they'll get the job done by about 4 points.Westmeath without Flanagan will weaken them while Dessie Dolan and Bannon will be the threat up front for Westmeath.David Duffy will be hard to beat in the air.I can see Westmeath being in front at the break and Dublin to come out after the re-start and get a couple of scores to put them back in front for a while and excel in the last ten minutes after a good spell from Westmeath.

My prediction would be something like

Dublin 1-13
Westmeath 0-12

yahoo_moe

I agree with most of this - Caffrey seems to have his own system and way of doing things and unfortunately for Connolly, Vincent's club run meant that he missed out on the games he would've been given to prove himself earlier in the year (games he got last year without ever quite making the impression he would've liked and is capable of making). Flynn, though, was around for those games so Caffrey seems to be giving him his shot. Fennell also deserves his place after a super showing (particularly early on when things weren't going so well) against Louth.

Delighted to see Casey benched - for too long, he's been an automatic name on the Dublin teamsheet without needing to justify his place and the return of Collie Moran to the backline is long overdue.

Like Blackbelt, O'Shaughnessy would be my major concern - he looked great a couple of years ago before breaking his leg but his display against Louth was less than encouraging. But match sharpness is what he's lacking and that can only come with games - and these are the games that Caffrey (without being complacent) should be able to take a long-term view and go with that kind of weakness, especially with Griffin still working his way back into the reckoning after his Australia trip.

Very happy with the team overall and should have enough to make another final...

hunter164

Flynn's good from what I've seen from him.But I really wonder how Colly Moran is still there.Casey's better than him.

blackbelt

I'd say that is debateable.I've often worried about Casey even though he doesn't be at fault too much but when it really goes wrong,I've noticed that he fits into the chain of events that led to a goal being scored against us.I'd rate him highly but I think Collie Moran is fit to take his place.He's more of a defender than a half forward although he could be considered one of the strongest players on the team.I've noticed that Moran can solo and run through a defense and hit it wide or take the ball from far out and stick it over.

I'd prefer to see Moran take the ball,solo from the defence and distribute it to the Brogans,Jayo or Keaney from the left-centre.

Have to agree that Casey seems to be an automatic starter in Caffrey's mind as well as Collie Moran but with Moran,he's more versatile.

Het-Field

I think Casey has struggled to justify his place. In fact with the exception of Barry Cahill and Alan Brogan, he is the only player of the first year of Lyons' tenure to remain. The likes of Joe McNally etc have never been heard of since.

blackbelt

There are players who are automatically chosen as starters.

They seem to be Casey,Moran and Keaney.Casey at half back has always been an automatic while Keaney and Moran are 2 others.With Moran being able to switch between half forward and half back,it is no surprise.Keaney is a great player but I thought he was a bit quiet against Louth and I expected him to do better against Westmeath in Navan.He also missed a goal from all of 2 yards out that Dessie Farrell would have been proud of.

I think Pillar is starting to take off the rose tinted glasses and is picking players on form rather than favourites.Griffin used to be another automatic before his trip to Australia but it was justified as I believe he is one of the better defenders on the team.Lets hope he gets up to speed so that our backline is solid again.I think his absence hurt the team some how.

jackbhoy

aidan24326 wrote: »

......think Westmeath are being talked up too much......

Whose talking them up? Certainly not Westmeath people or bookies (dubs 5/1 on).

I'll go to Croke Park more in hope than expectation anyway. Dubs undoubtedly have better players and Whelan on bench is great impact sub for ye if you were struggling.
To win I think Westmeaths backs will be key, if they could contain dub forwards and limit the purple patches where ye always seem to get glut of scores and then go quiet then we might have a chance. Midfield is a concern, Flanagan has been our best player for last couple of years and is irreplaceable in cf, even if he does play he won't be near 100%, so lack of primary position from kick outs could really hurt us.
Our forwards need to play more decisevely too and move ball with more pace, against L'fod/Offaly they kept overplaying the ball and waiting for chances to develop, play like this againt dubs and your mf/hbs will destroy them.

As I said dubs are better team overall and should win, hope that we at least show up as last time out in croker we totally lacked confidence and gave in too easy.
I've backed Westmeath +6 at evens, roll on sunday.......

blackbelt

jackbhoy wrote: »

Whose talking them up? Certainly not Westmeath people or bookies (dubs 5/1 on).

I'll go to Croke Park more in hope than expectation anyway. Dubs undoubtedly have better players and Whelan on bench is great impact sub for ye if you were struggling.
To win I think Westmeaths backs will be key, if they could contain dub forwards and limit the purple patches where ye always seem to get glut of scores and then go quiet then we might have a chance. Midfield is a concern, Flanagan has been our best player for last couple of years and is irreplaceable in cf, even if he does play he won't be near 100%, so lack of primary position from kick outs could really hurt us. Our forwards need to play more decisevely too and move ball with more pace, against L'fod/Offaly they kept overplaying the ball and waiting for chances to develop, play like this againt dubs and your mf/hbs will destroy them.

As I said dubs are better team overall and should win, hope that we at least show up as last time out in croker we totally lacked confidence and gave in too easy.
I've backed Westmeath +6 at evens, roll on sunday.......

Midfield is where I think the battle will be won and lost.I think Westmeath are seriously hit with the Flanagan injury while Dublins midfield will be much much stronger with Fennell in.Last time Dublin struggled with Magee who has lacked game time.David Duffy who is a very strong midfielder and nearly impossible to beat in the air will come up against Fennell.I'm looking forward to that duel.I think Duffy is an excellent midfielder but he tends to pull the ball from the sky and then simply lays it off with a handpass.He never really runs with the ball although he did against Offaly setting up the goal.If Flanagan at 100% and Duffy were partnering,Dublin would be up against it.

Meanwhile our forward line is seriously strengthened with the return of the Brogans,Mossy Quinn and the availability of Dermot Connolly and Jayo back at 100% again.I think Heavin etc will struggle against them.Alan,Bernard and Mossy know how to deal with blanket defences and I've noticed that even Longford and Offaly has breached the Westmeath defense on a few occasions this championship whereas in the league,Westmeath conceded 8 points on average in each game.

Het-Field

aidan24326 wrote: »

I watched the Dublin-Louth game on tv and can't even remember this Flynn guy, so he can't have done much! Must be lucky enough to be keeping Connolly off the team.

I recant. It was Paddy Andrews who was poor. I confused the two

aidan24326

jackbhoy wrote: »

Whose talking them up? Certainly not Westmeath people or bookies (dubs 5/1 on)

Lots of people, if not the Westmeath fans themselves. I was having a look on hoganstand website and was surprised at the number of people tipping Westmeath or at least giving them a big chance, of course that might have just been to wind up the dubs.

I'd give Westmeath an outside chance but that's all. They'll need everything to go right, but if they really believe in themselves they have a chance as Dublin blow hot and cold, and it's vital to limit the damage when they hit that 15-20 minute purple patch (that they always have) as they tend to blow teams away in a quick burst. Stop that and you've got a chance.

bigtimecharlie

GalwayDub2 wrote: »

So Whelan is out,(

There's one Yellow or Red card that won't be dished out then.

berliner

Westmeath will win and go on and and win their first all -ireland.Dublin are a media driven puffed up team that lack substance.Get on Westmeath to do them.

hunter164

blackbelt wrote: »

I think Pillar is starting to take off the rose tinted glasses and is picking players on form rather than favourites.Griffin used to be another automatic before his trip to Australia but it was justified as I believe he is one of the better defenders on the team.Lets hope he gets up to speed so that our backline is solid again.I think his absence hurt the team some how.

If he was picking on form Moran would be out of the panel by now.

blackbelt

berliner wrote: »

Westmeath will win and go on and and win their first all -ireland.Dublin are a media driven puffed up team that lack substance.Get on Westmeath to do them.

April Fools Day was nearly 3 months ago.

blackbelt

hunter164 wrote: »

If he was picking on form Moran would be out of the panel by now.

Not necessarily true.Pillar plays him out of position as cover.I don't understand why Moran gets half the stick he does.I don't think he's terrible.

GAAman

Lads, kinda worried about This does this mean rte aint showin the Dublin match??!!

blackbelt

GAAman wrote: »

Lads, kinda worried about This does this mean rte aint showin the Dublin match??!!

No,RTE are not showing the match but TV3 are.I've only seen TV3 first match live and it was decent enough actually.

Zzippy

berliner wrote: »

Westmeath will win and go on and and win their first all -ireland.

Hallucinate much?



Edit: Post 1,000! I should have wasted it on something more important!

GAAman

blackbelt wrote: »

No,RTE are not showing the match but TV3 are.I've only seen TV3 first match live and it was decent enough actually.

Never even thought of tv3 cheers man, though i have to say not very keen on their announcers

jackbhoy

GAAman wrote: »

Never even thought of tv3 cheers man, though i have to say not very keen on their announcers

Their studio panel are decent but their commentator is appalling, doesn't convey any sort of excitement at all with his monotone drone......

aidan24326

jackbhoy wrote: »

Their studio panel are decent but their commentator is appalling, doesn't convey any sort of excitement at all with his monotone drone......

Agreed. Their coverage so far has actually been ok, better than I expected, but they could really do with finding a decent commentator.

GAAman

jackbhoy wrote: »

Their studio panel are decent but their commentator is appalling, doesn't convey any sort of excitement at all with his monotone drone......

COMMENTATORS!!! Thats the word i was lookin for

thirdmantackle

i've money on westmeath

they have the backs and midfield to stop the Dubs running up a score.

dcr22B

bigtimecharlie wrote: »

There's one Yellow or Red card that won't be dished out then.

Hahaha, you're a comedian. Did you just make it through against that mighty Limerick side the other week! :rolleyes:

Really pleased with this selection but Westmeath will be no pushover, Dubs by 3-4 to pull away in last 10 minutes.

hunter164

blackbelt wrote: »

Not necessarily true.Pillar plays him out of position as cover.I don't understand why Moran gets half the stick he does.I don't think he's terrible.

I just don't think he's good enough and there's better players in the panel.

AnMoralltach

hate to say it but im afraid to say

no flanagan=no win

berliner

blackbelt wrote: »

April Fools Day was nearly 3 months ago.

It's no joke.Westmeath will do the over hyped merchants.

Marse

aidan24326 wrote: »

I watched the Dublin-Louth game on tv and can't even remember this Flynn guy, so he can't have done much! Must be lucky enough to be keeping Connolly off the team.

Flynn was one of the suspended, so wasn't playing in the Louth game.

Marse

Het-Field wrote: »

Again, with the likes of Griffin, Vaughan, Whelan, Andrews and Connolly (is Kevin Bonner there too ?) on the bench, it highlights the strength in depth the Dubs have. Plus the availability of Darren McGee, and Paul Casey would also suggest further experience.

I would imagine that unless Flynn has a major game, I could see him being ousted. He was ordinary against Louth.
Im interested that Casey has been dropped, for the fist time in almost six years, and Moran has been returned to the Backline.

Any chance that Barry Cahill may be brought futher back to the full back position ?

Dublin cannot be complacent. However, realistically they have too much for Westmeath. I recall people talking up Westmeath in 2006 before the quarter final, and Dublin dispatched of them easily. In fact had Cosgrove and a few other forwards had their shooting boots on, I believe there could have been up to a 20 point gap at the final whistle.

Dublin to win with a 5 to 8 points difference

Flynn was one of the suspended, so wasn't playing in the Louth game.

GalwayDub2

berliner wrote: »

It's no joke.Westmeath will do the over hyped merchants.

You've obviously backed them, youre so confident. So come on....tell us....how much did you put on? :rolleyes:

techdiver

AnMoralltach wrote: »

hate to say it but im afraid to say

no flanagan=no win

I don't think that is true. Duffy is a worthy replacement for Flanagan albeit a different style of midfielder, but he he solid under the high ball and can provide good quick deliveries to the forwards.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Flanagan coming on mid way through the second half at Full Forward. He has played a lot of his football there over the years and is an ace at scoring goals.

All in all I'm looking forward to a good close game. Hopefully we can shut up the critics of Leinster football who claim it is weak.

May the best team win on the day.

blackbelt

berliner wrote: »

It's no joke.Westmeath will do the over hyped merchants.

I don't see any real substance to your argument.The team Westmeath are playing on Sunday is totally different to the one that played them in Navan.I think the suspensions have actually worked out in Dublins favour.Had we those players available,Westmeath would have more cop on to our forward and midfield line.Westmeath are confident and rightfully so but the Westmeath posters here such as Patmac and Jackbhoy are obviously more quietly confident than you are.

We'll see on Sunday.If Duffy and Flanagan were both fit together and formed Westmeaths conventional midfield,I would be more worried but they are not and to be honest,this blanket style defence that Westmeath have employed since the start of the league has not been so apparent against Longford and Offaly and they were in smaller venues.Plus those two teams have been shown to catch Westmeath out.

In Croke Park,Dublin will expose the space that is available more than Westmeath will and with our better forwards back such as the Brogans,Mossy Quinn,Jayo and Flynn to impress,I have a feeling Westmeaths defense will be breached on one occasion that will be the difference.Then again,our defense doesn't look to be up to much so I'd say we'll have Westmeath nearly getting a goal or two that should put the heart in the mouth.

Westmeath forward line looks impressive.However,I'd be more weary of the lower profile players such as Bannon and Glennon rather than Dolan.I have a feeling Dolan will choke this Sunday.I've seen it happen many a time.

Pride Fighter

Yeah, it should be a good game. The winners will win Leinster IMO.

techdiver

blackbelt wrote: »

Westmeath forward line looks impressive.However,I'd be more weary of the lower profile players such as Bannon and Glennon rather than Dolan.I have a feeling Dolan will choke this Sunday.I've seen it happen many a time.

In fairness Dolan has only kinda choked once before and that was against Meath in 2003 when he missed the free from the 21. He is a consistent player and will always get scores and his general distribution is good too.

Glennon needs to improve greatly on his last 2 performances. If I was the manager I would have taken him off at half time in the Offaly game as he was terrible. He is capable of much more, but he fails all too often to deliver. Maybe I'll be wrong this Sunday. Westmeath need him to play at the top of his game if we are to have any chance. His temperament can be a big problem especially with all the Dub supporters breathing down his neck.

It will be an interesting game based on the fact that Westmeath have the meanest defence in the country so far this year and that Dublin have some of the most potent forwards. The match will be won and lost in the middle of the field, with the half lines on both teams playing a vital role in gaining possession and dictating the pace of the game.

If Dublin can get quick ball in the middle and deliver it fast before the Westmeath defence can mobilise then they will win, on the other hand if Westmeath can crowd the middle and in tun get good supply into their forwards then it'll be a great day for the Maroon and Whites.

blackbelt

Pride Fighter wrote: »

Yeah, it should be a good game. The winners will win Leinster IMO.

Have to agree with this statement.Wexfords last real competitive match was against Meath a few weeks ago and the match against Laois looked very lacksadaisical for Wexford apart from a brief spell where Laois looked to have a 2nd wind but it didn't last long.Had Wexford played Laois with the same performance and result and THEN Meath with same performance and result,you might fancy them more.

I think the winners of Dublin-Westmeath will be better prepared.Maybe even moreso Westmeath if they beat Dublin as they have had an extra competitive game in May against Longford and any game against Dublin will prepare a team much better if they progress through the All-Ireland or qualifiers.

blackbelt

techdiver wrote: »

In fairness Dolan has only kinda choked once before and that was against Meath in 2003 when he missed the free from the 21. He is a consistent player and will always get scores and his general distribution is good too.

Glennon needs to improve greatly on his last 2 performances. If I was the manager I would have taken him off at half time in the Offaly game as he was terrible. He is capable of much more, but he fails all too often to deliver. Maybe I'll be wrong this Sunday. Westmeath need him to play at the top of his game if we are to have any chance. His temperament can be a big problem especially with all the Dub supporters breathing down his neck.

It will be an interesting game based on the fact that Westmeath have the meanest defence in the country so far this year and that Dublin have some of the most potent forwards. The match will be won and lost in the middle of the field, with the half lines on both teams playing a vital role in gaining possession and dictating the pace of the game.

If Dublin can get quick ball in the middle and deliver it fast before the Westmeath defence can mobilise then they will win, on the other hand if Westmeath can crowd the middle and in tun get good supply into their forwards then it'll be a great day for the Maroon and Whites.

(In my best Pat Spillane voice)...."So based on this assumption,one should be expecting a scrappy match Daragh"??:)

techdiver

blackbelt wrote: »

(In my best Pat Spillane voice)...."So based on this assumption,one should be expecting a scrappy match Daragh"??:)

This could be indeed true. It may lack champagne football, but it may more than make up for it with intensity and excitement.

I feel that a team should play to whatever strength will enable them to win. We can criticise the Westmeath style of play (which I am not a huge fan of), but I'm sure if any county can win playing in whatever manner the choose the supporters of that county won't complain. It brought an All-Ireland each to Tyrone and Armagh and then Kerry adopted that style of play to some extent too and finally were able to deal with the Northern teams.

patmac

Yeah a lot of things have to go Westmeath's way if we are going to win, our much vaunted defence will be put firmly to the test by a very strong forward line and that is the key to this game. Flanagan can be very hot and cold and Duffy made a huge difference against the Biffos when he came on so I wouldn't be writing us off yet. I also disagree about Dessie being a choker, he is usually double marked and gets some serious abuse not many players would come back after the trauma of missing that last minute free against Meath to lead his side to a 1st Leinster title the following year, look at Ray Cosgrove as an example of a choker.
I have us backed at 14/1 to win Leinster and are 9/2 to win on Sunday.

Oh and by the way watch out for our unique warm up just before the throw-in.

blackbelt

O Flatharta has said that the team has been trying to perfect the blanket defense for years but I've only noticed they implemented this against Dublin in Parnell Park in February and have been using it since.Its not nice to look at but it can get results.I think Dublin should be looking to adopt it against teams that use it.

I am a fan of the Westmeath midfield and attack play but if they do indeed try and crowd out midfield,we should be able to match them.Meath tried to do it in midfield when we only had Fennell as a natural midfielder and we won that battle so I'd be confident.

blackbelt

patmac wrote: »

Yeah a lot of things have to go Westmeath's way if we are going to win, our much vaunted defence will be put firmly to the test by a very strong forward line and that is the key to this game. Flanagan can be very hot and cold and Duffy made a huge difference against the Biffos when he came on so I wouldn't be writing us off yet. I also disagree about Dessie being a choker, he is usually double marked and gets some serious abuse not many players would come back after the trauma of missing that last minute free against Meath to lead his side to a 1st Leinster title the following year, look at Ray Cosgrove as an example of a choker.
I have us backed at 14/1 to win Leinster and are 9/2 to win on Sunday.

Oh and by the way watch out for our unique warm up just before the throw-in.

One thing I've noticed about David is that he is immense under the high ball but tends to just handpass it off to the next guy or kicks it up to the attackers.He doesn't have a great propoensity to run with the ball like Ryan,Whelan or Fennell for example.Maybe thats his primary role...win the high balls and lay it off.

Dolan doesn't have to miss free kicks to choke.He was nowhere to be seen except for a few chances against Dublin in 06.I just think that Dessie has a run of good games and then has a bad one which I'd expect him to have this Sunday.I could be very wrong though.It is just a hunch I have.I think Bannon and Glennon will have exceptional games.I've been reading posters giving Glennon a good bit of stick for his performance against Offaly but usually this further motivates a player.

aidan24326

Pride Fighter wrote: »

Yeah, it should be a good game. The winners will win Leinster IMO.

I wouldn't write off Wexford at all. They will give Dublin* a good game, although probably come up a bit short.

*And yes it will be Dublin.

jackbhoy

patmac wrote: »

I also disagree about Dessie being a choker, he is usually double marked and gets some serious abuse not many players would come back after the trauma of missing that last minute free against Meath to lead his side to a 1st Leinster title the following year, l

Well said, very harsh to call him a choker for one lapse in concentration and missed free in a game where he was easily motm.

Personally I'm glad that Dessie isn't as overly-relied as he used to be, Wilson and Glennon have taken some pressure off him in terms of scoring and Flanagan had taken over mantle of our most important player in last couple of years. Dolan tends to pull back towards midfield these days and act as more of link man rather than out and out forward. Either way he's still top player and would get his game in any county side in the country.

Scootay

blackbelt wrote:

this blanket style defence that Westmeath have employed since the start of the league has not been so apparent against Longford and Offaly and they were in smaller venues.

That's bizarre as the Sunday game spent a good 5 minutes moaning about Westmeath's blanket defence against Longford showing several examples of them flooding back and the media was full of talk about how it made for a terrible opening game of the championship. The game in Tullamore was more of the same and I expect Sunday to be the same again.

blackbelt wrote: »

One thing I've noticed about David is that he is immense under the high ball but tends to just handpass it off to the next guy or kicks it up to the attackers.He doesn't have a great propoensity to run with the ball like Ryan,Whelan or Fennell for example.Maybe thats his primary role...win the high balls and lay it off.

I was at the Dublin Louth game and kept an eye on Fennell. While he won a load of ball in midfield he didn't take a step with it in the first half (then again, the entire team were muck in the first half against Louth). He was catching and getting rid of it immediately. It was really frustrating as he was passing away when he had a good 10 or 15 yards of space in any direction and should have been drawing in Louth men while making ground. He took a few steps in the second half but not as many as he should have.

I'm a Westmeath man living in Dublin for longer than I lived in Mullingar. I support Westmeath and Dublin and in head to heads always Westmeath. Having seen both teams play this season (and not just from my couch) I can't call this. If Dublin play like they did against Louth in the first half they'll be destroyed. If they play like they did in the second then this still has the makings of a very tight game. Normally I put money on the outcome but this time I'm keeping it in my pocket.

blackbelt

Scootay wrote: »

That's bizarre as the Sunday game spent a good 5 minutes moaning about Westmeath's blanket defence against Longford showing several examples of them flooding back and the media was full of talk about how it made for a terrible opening game of the championship. The game in Tullamore was more of the same and I expect Sunday to be the same again.

I was at the Dublin Louth game and kept an eye on Fennell. While he won a load of ball in midfield he didn't take a step with it in the first half (then again, the entire team were muck in the first half against Louth). He was catching and getting rid of it immediately. It was really frustrating as he was passing away when he had a good 10 or 15 yards of space in any direction and should have been drawing in Louth men while making ground. He took a few steps in the second half but not as many as he should have.

I'm a Westmeath man living in Dublin for longer than I lived in Mullingar. I support Westmeath and Dublin and in head to heads always Westmeath. Having seen both teams play this season (and not just from my couch) I can't call this. If Dublin play like they did against Louth in the first half they'll be destroyed. If they play like they did in the second then this still has the makings of a very tight game. Normally I put money on the outcome but this time I'm keeping it in my pocket.

I thought the blanket style Westmeath employed was more apparent in the league than in the last two championship games against Longford and Offaly.Against Longford it was more so but against Offaly I didn't see it being used as much or as effectively maybe.Westmeath will want to play the blanket defense again this Sunday but with the extra space that Croke Park provides can they use it effectively?...I'd say they'll get caught out at some stage.

Being from Mullingar,you should be familiar with David Duffy who plays for Shandonagh.He's my cousin so I'd tend to pay particular focus to how he plays.I agree with you on Fennell but Fennell has been known to go up along the wings and supply ball into the danger zone.Take the O Byrne Cup Final as the perfect example.David Duffy who rarely runs with the ball was actually the key man in setting up the goal against Offaly and this was when he took the ball and ran with it as much he could and drove it up the pitch before he came under pressure.

I'd agree that if Dublin play like they did against Louth in the 1st half they'd get punished more but not destroyed I don't think.Anyway,I think the Dubs will be in a much better frame of mind.First game nerves should be gone and we'll see a less nervous Dublin team fighting for each other more.Meanwhile this is Westmeaths first game in Croke Park this year.Dublin are so formidable in Croke Park.I think Dublin will win.

If Westmeath do win,I hope they go on and win Leinster.When David Duffy stops playing for Westmeath,I'll have no interest in them but until then Westmeath and Mayo will be my second favourite teams after Dublin.:)

NORTH1

Hi Guy's

I was looking to get 2 adult and 4 juvenile tickets for Sunday. Unfortunately I could only get 6 adult tickets together.

Am I right in thinking I can get a refund on four of the adult tickets against the cost of a juvenile ticket at the grounds before the game?

Can anyone here confirm this?

Thanks

Brian

cruiserweight

NORTH1 wrote: »

Hi Guy's

I was looking to get 2 adult and 4 juvenile tickets for Sunday. Unfortunately I could only get 6 adult tickets together.

Am I right in thinking I can get a refund on four of the adult tickets against the cost of a juvenile ticket at the grounds before the game?

Can anyone here confirm this?

Thanks

Brian

What do you mean? If you buy an underage or student ticket the difference in price can be retrieved in Croke Park upon presentation of the appropriate identification