*Limerick GAA news/discussion thread*

glasagusban

Well done to the camogie team, super win!

zombieHanalei

Bryan Ryan out, Leo O'Connor in for the minor job. I have to say I find that one very surprising. Nothing against O'Connor, but strange to see the board turn to him after booting him out of the under 21 job three years ago.

John Kiely set to replace Ciarán Carey in the under 21 job.

francozola

Was Leo the current U16 manager or what?

zombieHanalei

I'm pretty sure he was the under 15 manager, I think Pat Donnelly was the under 16 manager with John Mulqueen over the u17's.

15's did alright in fairness, pipped by Cork in the final after topping their group.

Iecrawfc

zombieHanalei wrote: »

Bryan Ryan out, Leo O'Connor in for the minor job. I have to say I find that one very surprising. Nothing against O'Connor, but strange to see the board turn to him after booting him out of the under 21 job three years ago.

John Kiely set to replace Ciarán Carey in the under 21 job.

Looks like Brian Ryan paid the price for the all Ireland letdown, in fairness to him and the selectors, thought they had a good team in place and preparations seemed to be top notch, however tinkering with a team that won a semi by 15 points was very strange and seemed to betray a lack of trust in the team at a vital time.

John Kiely is a good appointment as he was very popular with the players under John Allen, hopefully he can make progress with a very talented bunch.

mickaleen

The under 21 set up for the next three years is of massive importance for Limerick Senior hurling. If they make a balls of it it will have serious implications for Limerick hurling imo.

Fireball07

Changes are a bit strange imo... not a huge fan of Leo O'Connor myself, and I thought there was a succession plan where managers would move up through the grades with the same players? Still though, on paper, Leo has done better than most underage managers we've had in recent years.


Surprised that Brian Ryan was dumped out completely... particularly as he got the minor job in the 1st place... and he did win 2 Munsters. Obviously it would have been nice to win an All-Ireland but I just thought that Ryan was held in favourable view by the county board, much like TJ was/is. Very surprised that he didn't get the U-21 job tbh.


Bit harsh on Ciaran Carey to be dumped out after only a year, but maybe he'd be better off trying to get an U-14/U-15 team and working his way up with them and proving his worth. No complaints about Kiely really, a very well-respected coach... we should have a decent enough team this year and I'd be hopeful of making an impact- Clare won't be as strong.


I presume that means that Paul Kinnerk isn't going to be added to either minor/U-21 management teams. Wonder is Niall Moran involved at any level either?

glasagusban

Fireball07 wrote: »

Changes are a bit strange imo... not a huge fan of Leo O'Connor myself, and I thought there was a succession plan where managers would move up through the grades with the same players? Still though, on paper, Leo has done better than most underage managers we've had in recent years.


Surprised that Brian Ryan was dumped out completely... particularly as he got the minor job in the 1st place... and he did win 2 Munsters. Obviously it would have been nice to win an All-Ireland but I just thought that Ryan was held in favourable view by the county board, much like TJ was/is. Very surprised that he didn't get the U-21 job tbh.


Bit harsh on Ciaran Carey to be dumped out after only a year, but maybe he'd be better off trying to get an U-14/U-15 team and working his way up with them and proving his worth. No complaints about Kiely really, a very well-respected coach... we should have a decent enough team this year and I'd be hopeful of making an impact- Clare won't be as strong.


I presume that means that Paul Kinnerk isn't going to be added to either minor/U-21 management teams. Wonder is Niall Moran involved at any level either?

Kiely is probably a safe pair of hands and seems to be spoken of positively on the basis of his previous work. No word on back room team yet I suppose. I'd agree that both Morans should be got involved at some level. Getting Kinnerk involved with limerick in some capacity would be a coup, if indeed he is gone from Clare. Ciaran was only down for a year, don't know did he wanted another go at it but probably could/should have been given the chance. Surprised at O'Connor back after how his last tenure ended. A decent if not quite as spectacular group of minors available for him next year so if he achieves near the same level of performance it'll be a big achievement. Seems the intermediates aren't a priority which may be a bit of a lost opportunity for development of players.

betterbodies

glasagusban wrote: »

Kiely is probably a safe pair of hands and seems to be spoken of positively on the basis of his previous work. No word on back room team yet I suppose. I'd agree that both Morans should be got involved at some level. Getting Kinnerk involved with limerick in some capacity would be a coup, if indeed he is gone from Clare. Ciaran was only down for a year, don't know did he wanted another go at it but probably could/should have been given the chance. Surprised at O'Connor back after how his last tenure ended. A decent if not quite as spectacular group of minors available for him next year so if he achieves near the same level of performance it'll be a big achievement. Seems the intermediates aren't a priority which may be a bit of a lost opportunity for development of players.

Niall moran is over the ardscoil harty team this year. Hes barry hennessy and paul flanagan from clare with him also as far as I know

Rightwing

Well the 1 thing Kiely has going is he has the right job i.e. a school principal, this should allow him plenty of time to concentrate at the hurling. Cody/Loughnane etc

Spudmonkey

Iecrawfc wrote: »

Looks like Brian Ryan paid the price for the all Ireland letdown, in fairness to him and the selectors, thought they had a good team in place and preparations seemed to be top notch, however tinkering with a team that won a semi by 15 points was very strange and seemed to betray a lack of trust in the team at a vital time.

John Kiely is a good appointment as he was very popular with the players under John Allen, hopefully he can make progress with a very talented bunch.

According to Martin Kiely, moves were being made to replace Ryan after the Munster Final so he was going to be replaced regardless of winning the AI or not.

zombieHanalei

Spudmonkey wrote: »

According to Martin Kiely, moves were being made to replace Ryan after the Munster Final so he was going to be replaced regardless of winning the AI or not.

I'm not a fan of Kiely and his irritating tendency towards hearsay and citation of unnamed sources in his articles but this wouldn't surprise me to be honest.

zombieHanalei

NHL fixtures
Feb-14; Waterford (h)
Feb-22; Antrim (a)
Mar-8; Wexford (a)
Mar 14; Offaly (h)
Mar-22; Laois (h)

NFL fixtures
Feb-1; Sligo (h)
Feb-7; Tipperary (a)
Mar-1; Armagh (h)
Mar-8; Wexford (a)
Mar-15; Fermanagh (a)
Mar-28; Clare (h)
Apr-15; Louth (a)


Double header in Wexford on March 8th.

slegs

zombieHanalei wrote: »

NHL fixtures
Feb-14; Waterford (h)
Feb-22; Antrim (a)
Mar-8; Wexford (a)
Mar 14; Offaly (h)
Mar-22; Laois (h)

NFL fixtures
Feb-1; Sligo (h)
Feb-7; Tipperary (a)
Mar-1; Armagh (h)
Mar-8; Wexford (a)
Mar-15; Fermanagh (a)
Mar-28; Clare (h)
Apr-15; Louth (a)


Double header in Wexford on March 8th.

As with last year (v Cork) the first game likely to determine whether we get promoted or not.

It didn't turn out that way due to the draw with Cork and the failure to beat Offaly after Cork had opened the door.

I think this time v Waterford is likely to be the decider. I think Wexford will gear heavily for championship.

francozola

Nice set of fixtures for the footballers to get. Good challenges from other teams in Munster. Armagh will surely be favourites to get promoted.

The hurling league is a yawn at this stage. However, the need to get promoted is now, so there should be max focus on those five games and try and build up a head of steam.
I wish it one group of ten or 12 teams, at least then you chop and change teams. Last year bar one or two changes it was the same team time and time again. It's really starting to hurt the development of the squad.

Fireball07

zombieHanalei wrote: »

NHL fixtures
Feb-14; Waterford (h)
Feb-22; Antrim (a)
Mar-8; Wexford (a)
Mar 14; Offaly (h)
Mar-22; Laois (h)

NFL fixtures
Feb-1; Sligo (h)
Feb-7; Tipperary (a)
Mar-1; Armagh (h)
Mar-8; Wexford (a)
Mar-15; Fermanagh (a)
Mar-28; Clare (h)
Apr-15; Louth (a)


Double header in Wexford on March 8th.

Have to see about going to Wexford for the double header.

Definitely wouldn't be writing off them as promotion contenders, especially since we have to go down there. We really should be getting promoted this year, we are just further down the road than either Waterford/Wexford, but we have continually failed to hit anywhere near our best during the league- last year's draw against Offaly was pathetic really. Hopefully they can strike a nice balance between trying players out and getting the necessary results.


Only 3 home games for the footballers, it's likely to be a very close division again. Have to start with a win over Sligo... Tipp seem to have the beating of us recently, although we seem to have a hoodoo over Wexford. Hopefully we can improve on last year.

zombieHanalei

Kilmallock 0-24 Adare 2-16. Ahane ahead at half time in the second game (1-12 to 0-7).

Cause of irritation being that whoever is operating the scoreboard is completely unable to keep up. Has been wrong for the majority of both matches. Was about five points behind at one stage in the first game. Not to make a big deal out of it or anything but I noticed players discussing it at various times not having a clue what the score was! Some Adare players annoyed that they believed they were two points down in injury time when the gap was just one so they were chasing a goal when a point would have leveled it. Not to sound like sour grapes though, Kilmallock deserved it in the end!

washman3

zombieHanalei wrote: »

Kilmallock 0-24 Adare 2-16. Ahane ahead at half time in the second game (1-12 to 0-7).

Cause of irritation being that whoever is operating the scoreboard is completely unable to keep up. Has been wrong for the majority of both matches. Was about five points behind at one stage in the first game. Not to make a big deal out of it or anything but I noticed players discussing it at various times not having a clue what the score was! Some Adare players annoyed that they believed they were two points down in injury time when the gap was just one so they were chasing a goal when a point would have leveled it. Not to sound like sour grapes though, Kilmallock deserved it in the end!

That kind of carry on with the scoreboard is a disgrace.:mad:
Why cant we get simple things like this right.?
I travelled back to watch a game in Abbeyfeale last year and the scoreboard is excellent there, its electronic. A guy is on the sideline with a zapper/remote control and each score is added instantly. The added benefit is he knows immediately if a score is over-ruled as he is close to the action rather than looking through a peephole almost 200 metres away in some cases.
Travelled out to Kilmallock today for the football semis.
St.Pats ability to score goals proved vital winning 5-7 to 1-13.
Gearoid Hegarty had a fine game for Pats, as did Pa Mullins and Jeff McNamara with sub Doherty scoring a brilliant goal.
Kierans threw everything at Pats in the second half, Daragh Treacy and the great Johnny Mac were absolutely immense.
Ballylanders beat NCW 2-9 to 0-11 in what was a fine all round team performance but Tom Lee's display was as good as will be seen in this years championship. Time and time again he won great ball setting up attacks.
Callaghan and Fox caused many problems for the NCW backs, but their own backline lead by Stephen Walshe were outstanding as the NCW inside forward line barely got a sniff.
Were in not for the brilliant long range points from Stephen Kelly and Corbett the winning margin would have been greater.
Tom Lee was red carded near full time (very harsh) as was the younger Kelly (correctly)

Fireball07

The senior hurling semi-finals are on next weekend: Na Piarsaigh vs Ahane and Kilmallock vs Doon.

Hard to see NaP not winning the first game, even though Ahane absolutely trounced Liberties. Niall Moran got 1-9, Killian Enright 1-4 and with the Morrisseys in there, they have a good team. They seem to have come on a lot this year and the fact that they finished ahead of Adare and the Well is good news for them. Neither of those teams are bad... I don't think Ahane are quite title challengers yet but they're on the right track.

Apparently Liberties were awful though, and are really not a team that should be in the quarter-finals, I was talking to one fella from out that way and he was surprised they weren't relegated. So, fine margins. Barry Nash's scoring is a huge asset for them, he got 2-5 in the quarter-final, think he buried two frees late on. Thing is, if a minor can do it twice in a few minutes, then surely it's not as hard as some people are making out... still can't believe Callanan tapped his over in the AI final.


The other game should be an absolute cracker. An up-and-coming Doon side who were unlucky not to make the final last year, against a Kilmallock side who are still very strong, but not quite at the heights of a few years ago. Will be interesting. Kilmallock had too much for Adare, and while they were hammered by Na Piarsaigh earlier in the year, you'd think they're starting to come together now. I think Doon are the better team, but Kilmallock have experience and they have Graeme Mulcahy. Doon were beaten by Adare's experience last year... and I'm not sure Doon have reached the same heights as last year, even if they've been very consistent. Kilmallock do have experienced quality throughout the team- look at Mulcahy, O'Mahony, O'Brien, Egan, Ryan, O'Dwyer, O'Sullivan, Hurley, the O'Loughlins..... I'm going to tip Doon though, slightly.


Going back to the Kilmallock/Adare game..... Hanalei, how did John Fitzgibbon play? I see Willie Griffin got 1-6. I wonder if he should be given a go for the senior team, I know he never really did at U-21 level but he was one of our best players when he was a minor, he's extremely consistent at club level and has been a star at Fitzgibbon level too. Maybe he's a bit small.

Fireball07

Football semis were on last weekend, and fair play to Ballylanders for beating Drom twice in one year. Drom perhaps aren't the tower of strength they once were, but it still takes a lot to beat them. Danny Frewen got the 2 crucial goals for Ballylanders and I'll ask again, should he not be considered for the senior team? He's strong, he's quick and he's a goalscorer. I played against him at underage level, and he was a 1-man show most of the time. Maybe doesn't have the same influence at senior level, but still could be an asset. Worth trying in the league, I think. Kieran O'Callaghan is obviously a big player for them too, but I don't think I'd be recalling him.


And well done to Pats for beating Casey's in the other one. Not a surprise to me at all tbh, the odds were great, Pats just have serious firepower and I'm not sure Casey's were properly tested in the group. And they were just after an awful year last year.... I know they expect to be a dominant force, but Pats have been growing steadily over the last few years and have some excellent operators up front. Gearoid Hegarty seems to be growing all the time, and it's also good for the county team because Brudair clearly trusts their players.


And a shout back to Washman's last post, is Stephen Kelly still not worth playing at intercounty level? Class act. It's also good that the likes of Johnny Mc, Tom Lee, Darragh Treacy, Iain Corbett are stepping up and leading their teams at club level.



Pallasgreen beat Galbally in the relegation play-off. Surprised at that. I don't want to accuse a team of being dirty really.... but it's not overly surprising that Jim-Bob was forced off early, seeing as how he would have been the one class act on the field skill-wise. Obviously, I don't know exactly what happened but the word is he has a broken jaw and that Galbally couldn't cope without him. Huge blow for Garryspillane ahead of the Premier Intermediate semis...

Fireball07

As for the Premier Intermediate Championship... I was a bit sceptical at the start. Well, just because I didn't think senior numbers should be reduced. Bu t I reckon it's been a huge success. It's created a very competitive environment, and it was a very entertaining Championship this year. Not sure how that will reflect on our county team in years to come, but it's hard to predict anyway. It creates a higher intensity at this level anyway... and the fact that it's 2 up, 2 down definitely makes it a cut-throat business. Possibly having semi-finals negates that slightly, but still... seems to be a success.

The top 2 teams both lost 2 games each (Blackrock and Bruff). Garryspillane actually beat both of those teams... but then they ended up drawing with Hospital-Herbertstown, who were the only non-competitive team. Don't know what happened to them, some really awful results (20 point defeat to Blackrock, 17 point defeat to Bruff, only scoring 0-4 against Knockaderry). That's them gone from senior to intermediate in only 2 seasons, and badly too.

Must have been heartbreaking for Knockaderry to go down though, they were outside the relegation places going into the last game, but Bruree beat Croom by a point, and they lost to Bruff. Could see them coming up next year though.


Semi-finals, we've got Blackrock vs Croom, and Bruff vs Garryspillane. The 2 winners go up. And in both those cases, the team who finished lower have already beaten the other team. Croom were the other team to beat Blackrock, while Garryspillane, as already mentioned beat Bruff. Only thing is that if Jim-Bob's jaw really is broken, he'll be a huge loss to Garryspillane. Hard to know in the other one, I'd be tipping Blackrock tbh.... they've been very impressive. Dylan Dawson has racked up some huge scores, David Moloney is a powerful player too.... and Croom apparently lost to Bruree due to Conor Allis and some badly missed frees. Can't afford to miss them in a semi-final.


If Blackrock & Bruff were to come up, I don't think the senior championship would be weakened, and both Granagh/Ballingarry and Knockainey would probably be improved for playing in the PI. Neither would be guaranteed of going straight back up (in fact, I really doubt they will) and that will improve them too. I mean... Knockainey had no chance this year tbh. It's a good preparation ground for going into senior, I think..... 7 or 8 high-intensity, close-fought matches with everything at stake each time.


I think the intermediate championship has sufferred as a result purely on the quality front, but it's still a close-fought affair. Glenroe are already in one semi-final and I'd be surprised if they didn't go up... hard to know who'll join them. Wouldn't write off Mungret tbh.



And my own little parish managed to avoid relegation. Again. Had thoughts of the knockout phases and potential promotion this year, but injuries and emigration really are a killer... and there's too much reliance on a couple of players. Still, live to fight another day. Maybe next year. There really isn't much between teams at that level, and it really depends on how teams are faring injury-wise at a particular time.... a good start can get you promoted, look at Pallasgreen.

zombieHanalei

Fully agree on the Premier Intermediate championship, I was not behind reducing the SHC to 12 teams but it has been a success. I still feel the open draw aspect is flawed, led to two very lop sided groups; group one contained the two favourites and four relegation candidates, and group two contained 5 competitive teams and poor old Knockainey who would probably feel they would have survived had they been in the other group.

I would make one change; model the SHC on the format used in division 1 of the National Hurling League in 2012 and 2013. So we'd have Senior A and Senior B. Top 3 senior A teams qualifying for county semi finals to be joined by winners of senior B final (contested by top 2). 1 up / 1 down between Senior A and B, and 2 up / 2 down between senior B and Premier Intermediate.

All in all, the changes made are not without flaw, but they have undoubtedly had a positive impact. Next thing on the agenda surely must be the Junior championships, time to bite the bullet and go all-county I believe.

Fireball07

zombieHanalei wrote: »

Fully agree on the Premier Intermediate championship, I was not behind reducing the SHC to 12 teams but it has been a success. I still feel the open draw aspect is flawed, led to two very lop sided groups; group one contained the two favourites and four relegation candidates, and group two contained 5 competitive teams and poor old Knockainey who would probably feel they would have survived had they been in the other group.

I would make one change; model the SHC on the format used in division 1 of the National Hurling League in 2012 and 2013. So we'd have Senior A and Senior B. Top 3 senior A teams qualifying for county semi finals to be joined by winners of senior B final (contested by top 2). 1 up / 1 down between Senior A and B, and 2 up / 2 down between senior B and Premier Intermediate.

All in all, the changes made are not without flaw, but they have undoubtedly had a positive impact. Next thing on the agenda surely must be the Junior championships, time to bite the bullet and go all-county I believe.

I don't know if I'd be in agreement with the Senior A & Senior B thing.... they have that in Clare at the moment and it looks pretty bad to me. I just think it nullifies the chance for a bit of an upset in the knockout stages if you do it that way.


Was it a completely open draw this year? For example- NaP, Kilmallock, Doon, Adare, Patrickswell & Ahane could technically all have been in one group... with one of them going down?

That seems a bit unfair... I wouldn't be against over-seeding, but maybe teams who reach the semi-finals this year could be seeded for next year and have open with the rest.

This year was harsh on Knockainey, but it allowed South Liberties to make the quarters. Okay, they weren't good enough... but if you seed everybody, you reduce the chance of any upsets.

zombieHanalei

Fireball07 wrote: »

Going back to the Kilmallock/Adare game..... Hanalei, how did John Fitzgibbon play? I see Willie Griffin got 1-6. I wonder if he should be given a go for the senior team, I know he never really did at U-21 level but he was one of our best players when he was a minor, he's extremely consistent at club level and has been a star at Fitzgibbon level too. Maybe he's a bit small.

John Fitzgibbon was a bit subdued, I think he got one or two long distance points but a couple of wides too, he wasn't really at his best for Adare all year really, he was outstanding the previous two years, easily Adare's key player for me, (that's quite a compliment given they have Dec Hannon and Wayne Mac to call on). He's a fine athlete, and he works very hard, a smart hurler with great vision, but the game seemed to go on around him a lot this year, he wasn't as involved as the previous few years. Adare would not have reached the 2012 and 2013 finals without him.

The thing about Willie Griffin is I'm not sure I agree with you on his consistency, he can't seem to put two consecutive good performances together, he'll be on fire one day and he'll fall flat the next. Very dependable free taker though, when he's having an off day in open play he'll still knock over the frees. He's been given the task ahead of Hannon and Fitzgibbon who are two excellent free takers in their own right.

I might be being a bit harsh on him, it's only because I rate him very highly, I'm an Adare man myself so I've seen plenty of him, I just want him to do well, he's prone to being marked out of a game by some of the more astute corner backs, but that's usually down in part to Adare not supplying the type of ball he needs. Plenty of ability, pace to burn, not afraid to take his man on, but he is a bit small, and not the strongest under the dropping ball, give the right ball into him (low with a bit of 'zip'!) and he's very dangerous, and I think he'd certainly be worth giving a chance on the panel.

I was going to say we're not exactly stuck for forwards, but we actually could do with a few more options, Dowling seems to be our only goal threat, I've a feeling O'Grady and Moran may not be involved next year, so we might need to stock up on a few more forwards.

zombieHanalei

Fireball07 wrote: »

I don't know if I'd be in agreement with the Senior A & Senior B thing.... they have that in Clare at the moment and it looks pretty bad to me. I just think it nullifies the chance for a bit of an upset in the knockout stages if you do it that way.


Was it a completely open draw this year? For example- NaP, Kilmallock, Doon, Adare, Patrickswell & Ahane could technically all have been in one group... with one of them going down?

That seems a bit unfair... I wouldn't be against over-seeding, but maybe teams who reach the semi-finals this year could be seeded for next year and have open with the rest.

This year was harsh on Knockainey, but it allowed South Liberties to make the quarters. Okay, they weren't good enough... but if you seed everybody, you reduce the chance of any upsets.

Well, I'll correct myself; it wasn't completely open, the 4 semi finalists from last year were seeded, so we had Kilm and NaP in one group and Adare and Doon in the other, then open draw on the remaining 8 teams.

I take your point on why my desired format wouldn't be the best, I do also see the value in a bit of openness.

One thing I suggested previously; one change I definitely would make; make 5th play 6th from the other group, and the two losers go down with the two winners joining the two 4th placed teams in the Co Cup semi's.

That way, we would have had; Ballybrown v Knockainey, and Murroe-Boher v Granagh-Ballingarry, as relegation play-offs. I could understand if Knockainey felt a bit hard done by with the lop sided draw, but if they got relegated from the scenario I propose above then they could have no complaints really.

glasagusban

zombieHanalei wrote: »

John Fitzgibbon was a bit subdued, I think he got one or two long distance points but a couple of wides too, he wasn't really at his best for Adare all year really, he was outstanding the previous two years, easily Adare's key player for me, (that's quite a compliment given they have Dec Hannon and Wayne Mac to call on). He's a fine athlete, and he works very hard, a smart hurler with great vision, but the game seemed to go on around him a lot this year, he wasn't as involved as the previous few years. Adare would not have reached the 2012 and 2013 finals without him.

The thing about Willie Griffin is I'm not sure I agree with you on his consistency, he can't seem to put two consecutive good performances together, he'll be on fire one day and he'll fall flat the next. Very dependable free taker though, when he's having an off day in open play he'll still knock over the frees. He's been given the task ahead of Hannon and Fitzgibbon who are two excellent free takers in their own right.

I might be being a bit harsh on him, it's only because I rate him very highly, I'm an Adare man myself so I've seen plenty of him, I just want him to do well, he's prone to being marked out of a game by some of the more astute corner backs, but that's usually down in part to Adare not supplying the type of ball he needs. Plenty of ability, pace to burn, not afraid to take his man on, but he is a bit small, and not the strongest under the dropping ball, give the right ball into him (low with a bit of 'zip'!) and he's very dangerous, and I think he'd certainly be worth giving a chance on the panel.

I was going to say we're not exactly stuck for forwards, but we actually could do with a few more options, Dowling seems to be our only goal threat, I've a feeling O'Grady and Moran may not be involved next year, so we might need to stock up on a few more forwards.

I think we really need to add a corner forward for next year. That, or adjust our style of play to a two man inside line as we are relatively well stocked with middle third players. I see Dowling as having nailed 14 for the next few years and Mulcahy is one of the first names on the team sheet and had an outstanding year. Hannon is a half forward. I liked the idea of Downes at corner but his best has come at half forward in recent years and I think we need him there, Breen/O'Grady to make up the half forward line -that all leaves us with one space in the corner.

You've mentioned Fitz and Griffin and they are two options. I think Kevin O'Brien is really worth a look given his display for the 21s. Cian Lynch is at his best at half forward or midfield maybe but he is be well suited to the corner too. I also think he's ready for the senior panel and will certainly be starting in 2016 if not the coming year. Barry Nash and Tom Morrissey other options here. I'm not writing off Tobin either but he may be best coming from the bench. I'd hope to see some of these guys given a decent chance to nail down a spot and one of them take it.

Fireball07

zombieHanalei wrote: »

The thing about Willie Griffin is I'm not sure I agree with you on his consistency, he can't seem to put two consecutive good performances together, he'll be on fire one day and he'll fall flat the next. Very dependable free taker though, when he's having an off day in open play he'll still knock over the frees. He's been given the task ahead of Hannon and Fitzgibbon who are two excellent free takers in their own right.

I might be being a bit harsh on him, it's only because I rate him very highly, I'm an Adare man myself so I've seen plenty of him, I just want him to do well, he's prone to being marked out of a game by some of the more astute corner backs, but that's usually down in part to Adare not supplying the type of ball he needs. Plenty of ability, pace to burn, not afraid to take his man on, but he is a bit small, and not the strongest under the dropping ball, give the right ball into him (low with a bit of 'zip'!) and he's very dangerous, and I think he'd certainly be worth giving a chance on the panel.

I was going to say we're not exactly stuck for forwards, but we actually could do with a few more options, Dowling seems to be our only goal threat, I've a feeling O'Grady and Moran may not be involved next year, so we might need to stock up on a few more forwards.

I'm from Pallas myself, losing Willie Griffin to Adare was a big blow for the club, some people still hold grudges

In fact, he made a complete fool of me at underage level, hastened my retirement.

zombieHanalei wrote: »

Well, I'll correct myself; it wasn't completely open, the 4 semi finalists from last year were seeded, so we had Kilm and NaP in one group and Adare and Doon in the other, then open draw on the remaining 8 teams.

I take your point on why my desired format wouldn't be the best, I do also see the value in a bit of openness.

One thing I suggested previously; one change I definitely would make; make 5th play 6th from the other group, and the two losers go down with the two winners joining the two 4th placed teams in the Co Cup semi's.

That way, we would have had; Ballybrown v Knockainey, and Murroe-Boher v Granagh-Ballingarry, as relegation play-offs. I could understand if Knockainey felt a bit hard done by with the lop sided draw, but if they got relegated from the scenario I propose above then they could have no complaints really.

Wouldn't have a problem with relegation play-offs, think that would be fair in the circumstances.

glasagusban wrote: »

I think we really need to add a corner forward for next year. That, or adjust our style of play to a two man inside line as we are relatively well stocked with middle third players. I see Dowling as having nailed 14 for the next few years and Mulcahy is one of the first names on the team sheet and had an outstanding year. Hannon is a half forward. I liked the idea of Downes at corner but his best has come at half forward in recent years and I think we need him there, Breen/O'Grady to make up the half forward line -that all leaves us with one space in the corner.

You've mentioned Fitz and Griffin and they are two options. I think Kevin O'Brien is really worth a look given his display for the 21s. Cian Lynch is at his best at half forward or midfield maybe but he is be well suited to the corner too. I also think he's ready for the senior panel and will certainly be starting in 2016 if not the coming year. Barry Nash and Tom Morrissey other options here. I'm not writing off Tobin either but he may be best coming from the bench. I'd hope to see some of these guys given a decent chance to nail down a spot and one of them take it.

Dodge could be gone next year, don't think Moran is an option. Hanalei mentioned goal threat... Dowling certainly is, I would always have considered Mulcahy & Downes significant goal threats, but never looked too likely this year (although Mulcahy was unlucky to have one ruled out vs Tipp).

Not sure Fitzgibbon or Griffin are the answer tbh, I would be inclined to look at Kevin O'Brien too.

Cian Lynch could be an option, but it would be almost a waste of his uncanny ability to win breaking ball.

Not sure Morrissey would be ready for senior so soon, but could be worth a go. Definitely think Barry Nash would be involved. Both Ronan Lynch & Dave Dempsey have played in the corner at times. I still rate Dean Coleman very highly, not sure he should be a senior starter next year though.

francozola

Well lads, another year in this books. Since last Saturday, I have seen a lot of pundits and analyst laud Cody and KK. And fair dues to them, they won it fair and square. However, I think Kilkenny copied the game plan which Limerick used to beat Tipp earlier in the year. It's funny that many analysts didn't bring this up.

Kieran Joyce was brought in to mark Maher with no doubt in Cody's mind that Joyce had similar characteristics to Wayne Mc. The work rate which Limerick brought that day in Thurles was another thing that KK brought to the plate on Saturday.

In sum, we're not far away however, we need to start learning from our own selves and what others are doing. I feel Cody was inspired by Clare's Tony Kelly and Colm Galvin in midfield last year to put Hogan and Fogarty there this year. What can Limerick do to give them extra dynamism compared to other teams. If Richie Hogan was in Limerick, the only position he would play would be corner forward. We need to move away from stereotypical player profiles and put players with the most skill in the most important positions.

I've said it before but I'll say it again, we need to use the league in order to bring players on and create a few game plans.

glasagusban

francozola wrote: »

Well lads, another year in this books. Since last Saturday, I have seen a lot of pundits and analyst laud Cody and KK. And fair dues to them, they won it fair and square. However, I think Kilkenny copied the game plan which Limerick used to beat Tipp earlier in the year. It's funny that many analysts didn't bring this up.

Kieran Joyce was brought in to mark Maher with no doubt in Cody's mind that Joyce had similar characteristics to Wayne Mc. The work rate which Limerick brought that day in Thurles was another thing that KK brought to the plate on Saturday.

In sum, we're not far away however, we need to start learning from our own selves and what others are doing. I feel Cody was inspired by Clare's Tony Kelly and Colm Galvin in midfield last year to put Hogan and Fogarty there this year. What can Limerick do to give them extra dynamism compared to other teams. If Richie Hogan was in Limerick, the only position he would play would be corner forward. We need to move away from stereotypical player profiles and put players with the most skill in the most important positions.

I've said it before but I'll say it again, we need to use the league in order to bring players on and create a few game plans.

It's hard to see last years pair being shifted out of midfield and that's fair. They dominated a few matches but against the really top mids in the country might still come off second best. I think at least we need to look at bringing in subs earlier here. In a couple of years we could conceivably have a midfield of Cian and Ronan Lynch.

francozola

I wasn't suggesting that midfield should be changed, I was highlighting how in the last few years, the teams who have won the AI, have had players playing in positions where if they were in Limerick they would not be in an asses roar of playing in those positions, hence my example of Richie Hogan being a corner forward only.

Fireball, I see ye won the City JBFC during the weekend. Ye'll surely win the county now with the players ye have. I was amazed to hear ye are only Junior B with only 3 teams in the City JAFC.

James Ryan, supposedly broke his jaw in the relegation final at the weekend. Big blow for the Bouncers and their promotion push if he's out for an extended period of time.