Waterford GAA Discussion Thread 2013- Mod Warning Post #1

PTH2009

Our match is live on Sunday on tg4 so that will affect the attendance as will the price increase of 5 euro

archieknox

According to big Dan brick played with 2 suspected broken ribs!! If he did he deserves even more praise. My only fear is will that be targeted next Sunday?

skaface

If Brick has 2 broken ribs, he has no business
playing on Sunday !!

Horseboxhead

He is am iron man, but realisticly if they were broken there is no way he would be playing, one bad contact and its season over, possibly worse, whilst i admire the mans fighting spirit, it would be nothing less than foolhardy to step onto a field in a highly competitiive contact sport , with this type of injury, and then for Dan to paint a target on it, jesus , dan have a think will ya?.
As for the game itself, Wexford were so poor, disorganised, no game plan, looked as if they were running uphills all week, touch was piss poor, i think someone highlighted the amount of time Brick was allowed on the ball with at least two possessions, will not happen against better sides, we seem to have improved at playing the type of game we are playing, and on a very positive note the lads are very fit and working very hard, its also a very positive thing that everything i hear from the camp indicates everybody is very happy with the camp itself, we need to get darragh fives fully fit, Stephen bennett fully fit, stephen daniels fully fit, and shane Bennett back from his exam duties and fully fit if this happens we will be a good side, and if we have a full squad to pick from and we add a little more imagination to the already impressive workrate , but guys are stepping up, and improving, and Derek seems to have method to his madness , we'll see, but you could not be anything but happy with the story this year.

hardybuck

Anyone hear Derek McGrath's interview on Off the Ball on Monday night? Here is a link to the podcast: http://www.newstalk.com/player/podcasts/Off_The_Ball/GAA_on_Off_The_Ball/82927/1/waterford_manager_derek_mcgrath_interview

One of the very topical pieces which Off the Ball seem to be placing a lot of focus on right now was on player welfare and some of the draconian rules which certain managers are imposing on players right now.

Here is a list of a number of particularly bizarre rules imposed on one county squad recently: http://www.the42.ie/inter-county-code-of-conduct-2011704-Mar2015/

Anyway, Derek spoke about the fact that he had a very young squad. He mentioned that a lot of them were away in college, playing Fitzgibbon and Freshers hurling, and making a huge commitment to be travelling back and forth to training. He was asked about player rules and said he felt it was important to give lads a bit of freedom occasionally, maybe have a drink - the lads playing the Fitzgibbon final was given as an example. He felt that if managers were a little bit flexible with players and used common sense, they would get a lot more back in turn in terms of commitment.

His views were seen to be progressive, and was applauded for empowering players. Hopefully this is a good sign and that everyone is pulling in the one direction. Some of the stuff going on in the likes of Clare seems to be bonkers altogether.

thesaturdayman

any sign of the michael ryan supporters? #derekout

Mountainlad

thesaturdayman wrote: »

lads, ffs fellas banging on about ryan here still, if ryan was any good he be with another decent county or a top club, not messing around with some intermediate team in clonmel.

secondly, queally is a bluffer too, same crap as last year negative as an taoiseach, men behind the ball no apparent plan then goes and has a dig at senior set up and that it didnt suit him! god sake man u knew about this game for ages its a reflection on your management skills if you cannot motivate and organise players.

lastly waterford will beat wexford and also limerick of that i am certain. where will the derek mcgrath knockers be then? I cant see them being negative v wexico id understand it against a team of greater ability, but i imagine we will go out and hurl wex 15v15... and beat them.

will that be enough to take from dereks critics? i doubt it....

free the ballymac 1....

8 months ago

thesaturdayman wrote: »

any sign of the michael ryan supporters? #derekout

Good man yourself

thesaturdayman

Mountainlad wrote: »

8 months ago



Good man yourself

in all honesty, i wouldnt agree with what happened michael ryan. But by the same token derek got the job and is now evidently doing a good job. i thought it was wrong the slating derek took last year and i think we are now starting to see some semblence of green shoots coming up.

I for one have been a long time doubter of jamie barron amongst others, he looks like a man re invented this year, midfield really suits him and hopefully he will keep progressing.

O halloran is someone i never really thought would make the impact he once promised after a series of injuries few years but again is like a new signing (and an impressive one at that) physique, pace & serious scoring threat, just what we need really.

dillon seems to be delivering in a blue and white jersey too.

was sick up in nolan park last year, almost physically sick, but think hope and pray that we have turned a corner. it would be amazing if we beat galway but lets not get ahead of ourselves, it would be a huge result & upset imo.

i really think (and hope) we are building something special.

ill park the pro michael ryan brigade bashing for the moment....

Mountainlad

thesaturdayman wrote: »

in all honesty, i wouldnt agree with what happened michael ryan. But by the same token derek got the job and is now evidently doing a good job. i thought it was wrong the slating derek took last year and i think we are now starting to see some semblence of green shoots coming up.

I for one have been a long time doubter of jamie barron amongst others, he looks like a man re invented this year, midfield really suits him and hopefully he will keep progressing.

O halloran is someone i never really thought would make the impact he once promised after a series of injuries few years but again is like a new signing (and an impressive one at that) physique, pace & serious scoring threat, just what we need really.

dillon seems to be delivering in a blue and white jersey too.

was sick up in nolan park last year, almost physically sick, but think hope and pray that we have turned a corner. it would be amazing if we beat galway but lets not get ahead of ourselves, it would be a huge result & upset imo.

i really think (and hope) we are building something special.

ill park the pro michael ryan brigade bashing for the moment....

Jamie Barron is 21 and was good enough to play for Waterfords 21s when he was 18, was considered good enough to mark Clare's best forward (Conor McGrath) the following year, he has been starting Fitzgibbon the past two years as soon as became eligible by not being a fresher and was considered good enough at 20 to start for Waterford. He was injured all last year for Waterford pretty much and his club form has been excellent. I think at the very least you could say anybody doubting Jamie Barron was being premature.

I would agree with you about Derek McGrath, that was my own view. But I do not see the merits of bringing up Michael Ryan. I wish that there wasn't always somebody that has to bring him up whenever there is a positive or negative regarding McGrath. Can people not just move on?

O'Halloran was fantastic in the league in 2013 as well before getting injured just before the Clare game and not recovering. If he can stay fit he good be a very good forward in the future for Waterford. Not sure I'd be attributing that to McGrath but I don't really know much about his situation and how his injuries are managed.

So far this year has been successful. McGrath deserved a chance once the unfortunate situation had played out to the conclusion of him being appointed, and one year at the helm is not a chance despite what some people think. But as much as its been a success this year so far, there is a long way to go to be calling it a successful year. Championship is king, and always will be.

thesaturdayman

Mountainlad wrote: »

Jamie Barron is 21 and was good enough to play for Waterfords 21s when he was 18, was considered good enough to mark Clare's best forward (Conor McGrath) the following year, he has been starting Fitzgibbon the past two years as soon as became eligible by not being a fresher and was considered good enough at 20 to start for Waterford. He was injured all last year for Waterford pretty much and his club form has been excellent. I think at the very least you could say anybody doubting Jamie Barron was being premature.

I would agree with you about Derek McGrath, that was my own view. But I do not see the merits of bringing up Michael Ryan. I wish that there wasn't always somebody that has to bring him up whenever there is a positive or negative regarding McGrath. Can people not just move on?

O'Halloran was fantastic in the league in 2013 as well before getting injured just before the Clare game and not recovering. If he can stay fit he good be a very good forward in the future for Waterford. Not sure I'd be attributing that to McGrath but I don't really know much about his situation and how his injuries are managed.

So far this year has been successful. McGrath deserved a chance once the unfortunate situation had played out to the conclusion of him being appointed, and one year at the helm is not a chance despite what some people think. But as much as its been a success this year so far, there is a long way to go to be calling it a successful year. Championship is king, and always will be.

lets be honest, jamie barrons club form is hardly the form that is good enough for waterford senior hurling team. the fact he played u21 when he was 18 whilst it is admirable it isnt exactly going to be top of any grade a county players cv! Derek mcGrath himself played 4 years at county minor?? i wouldnt agree he was excellent all last year he was one of the better performers of an average bunch. again no records broke there. my point being from humble starting points i feel he has made serious progress and looks like he is going to deliver (hopefully) on his lofty reputation.

i wouldnt know about o halloran having an "excellent 2013 league" to be honest but that said what does it matter, his 2015 league was certainly excellent. As you say championship is king, waterford should have beaten cork last year but didnt. hopefully they can go one better again although our element of surprise is gone at this stage....

a win sunday would be a fine tonic however....

Mountainlad

thesaturdayman wrote: »

lets be honest, jamie barrons club form is hardly the form that is good enough for waterford senior hurling team. the fact he played u21 when he was 18 whilst it is admirable it isnt exactly going to be top of any grade a county players cv! Derek mcGrath himself played 4 years at county minor?? i wouldnt agree he was excellent all last year he was one of the better performers of an average bunch. again no records broke there. my point being from humble starting points i feel he has made serious progress and looks like he is going to deliver (hopefully) on his lofty reputation.

i wouldnt know about o halloran having an "excellent 2013 league" to be honest but that said what does it matter, his 2015 league was certainly excellent. As you say championship is king, waterford should have beaten cork last year but didnt. hopefully they can go one better again although our element of surprise is gone at this stage....

a win sunday would be a fine tonic however....

He was top scorer as a 20 year old in the Senior championship until the latter stages I'm pretty sure, getting 0-17 points (0-5 from play) against Abbeyside, and struggled with injury at the same time for most of the year. I heard a lot of people crib Paudi Mahony in the years following his debut season in 2011, forgetting how young he still is now even and plenty more improvement left in him at this stage.

Similarly, Dillon is playing well now but wasn't fit at all last year having impressed on his debut season with Waterford.

O'Halloran was brilliant in Division 1A against quality teams, got 4 points from play the first day against Clare setting up lots of scores in the process and while he didn't light up the scoring charts like that again he showed his ability week in week out. He was very good v Limerick and good at the weekend, to be honest I wouldn't be going over board about anybody's performance in the other three games as the opposition performed pretty poorly.

I am very hopeful about that game against Cork, at the very least they should be able to put the wrongs of the replay right. Hopefully they get the win on Sunday too.

stumblingblock

Without meaning to sound disrespectful, I know he was the greatest and all that, but Shefflin’s retirement really opens up the hurling championship for everyone now. I think the fear factor will be well and truly gone from Kilkenny now as his presence alone was enough to inspire Kilkenny in the last couple of years. Their 2 big championship defeats of recent years, AI Final v Tipp in 10’ and quarter final defeat to Cork in 13’ both coincided with Shefflin having to leave the field for contrasting reasons. Through all their strengths and flawlessness over the years, He was still the one guy that really made the whole thing tick. I’m not saying they are going away, they have as much chance as winning an all Ireland this year as anyone else, probably still even favourites. But they will lack that edge of old. I think a different era of hurlers coming through for us will be used to beating them at minor and underage & colleges level, and most of that wounded All Ireland losing team of 2008 have gone or been moved on, bar Brick, Moran and maybe Shane O’Sullivan. We can look forward to a fresh approach to playing them with a fearlessness that we have not seen for a long time. I know other counties will look at it the same way, I’d say Tipp are licking their lips thinking they are the automatic heirs to the throne. But I think 2013 championship is a realistic reflection of how the championship will fare out in the coming years. Its going to be wide open with any one of 8 or 9 teams that will have a realistic ambitions of going on and winning it. Last year I think was one final Hurrah for that great KK team. Going forward it will be all about who can get on a roll at the right time. Like Clare did in 2013. We have been as strong as any county at underage level the last few years now. And with things starting to come together at senior level I see no reason why we cant be challenging for Liam McCarthy again within the next year or 2.

hurler on de ditch

stumblingblock wrote: »

Without meaning to sound disrespectful, I know he was the greatest and all that, but Shefflin’s retirement really opens up the hurling championship for everyone now. I think the fear factor will be well and truly gone from Kilkenny now as his presence alone was enough to inspire Kilkenny in the last couple of years. Their 2 big championship defeats of recent years, AI Final v Tipp in 10’ and quarter final defeat to Cork in 13’ both coincided with Shefflin having to leave the field for contrasting reasons. Through all their strengths and flawlessness over the years, He was still the one guy that really made the whole thing tick. I’m not saying they are going away, they have as much chance as winning an all Ireland this year as anyone else, probably still even favourites. But they will lack that edge of old. I think a different era of hurlers coming through for us will be used to beating them at minor and underage & colleges level, and most of that wounded All Ireland losing team of 2008 have gone or been moved on, bar Brick, Moran and maybe Shane O’Sullivan. We can look forward to a fresh approach to playing them with a fearlessness that we have not seen for a long time. I know other counties will look at it the same way, I’d say Tipp are licking their lips thinking they are the automatic heirs to the throne. But I think 2013 championship is a realistic reflection of how the championship will fare out in the coming years. Its going to be wide open with any one of 8 or 9 teams that will have a realistic ambitions of going on and winning it. Last year I think was one final Hurrah for that great KK team. Going forward it will be all about who can get on a roll at the right time. Like Clare did in 2013. We have been as strong as any county at underage level the last few years now. And with things starting to come together at senior level I see no reason why we cant be challenging for Liam McCarthy again within the next year or 2.

yeh KK could be gone ok since Henry retired cmon lad get a good grip of yourself ,they have won 35 All Irelands and beaten in 25 finals so that is 60 finals out of 128 and you think they might be in demise because of Henry (****ing hilarious)in contrast waterford win an All Ireland once every 64 years ,the last couple of years we managed to get a few minor teams to finals ,but in contrast under 21 were cruel as was the senior team ,,oh correct me if i'm wrong ,xx

HatchetMan7

Nobody here is foolish enough to think Kilkenny are on the "demise" nor was it suggested. But even Kilkenny will feel the loss of arguably the greatest hurler and leader of all time and 2 of the greatest defenders of all time in Tommy Walsh and JJ Delaney.
There is certainly a levelling off over the last 2/3 years which is evident when looking at the odds for the Liam McCarthy this year. If you let Kilkennys past dominance affect you in a negative way then there is no hope for the future of Waterford hurling.

“We are products of our past, but we don't have to be prisoners of it.” - Rick Warren.

Deskjockey

stumblingblock wrote: »

We have been as strong as any county at underage level the last few years now. And with things starting to come together at senior level I see no reason why we cant be challenging for Liam McCarthy again within the next year or 2.

Look I hope you're right and it does look like there is some good talent coming through but let's not overstate the underage thing too much. The last 5 years, Clare have won 3 u-21 titles ( 4 titles in 6 years) and KK have won two AI minor titles.

We have won one AI minor title in the same period.

We have gotten to one minor AI final in this period. Dublin have gotten there twice. Galway have gotten there twice (winning one). Galway have also contested two AI u-21 finals, winning one.


We have been beaten in 4 Munster minor finals in the last five years by Clare twice and by Limerick twice. We last won a Munster minor hurling title 6 years ago in 2009.

Without getting too "PTH" on it let's not get carried away here after winning one minor AI title and getting to (but not winning) Munster finals ( absolutely throwing away one) , and extrapolating this forward too much. Look what happened Limerick after winning 3 u-21's in a row....

Deskjockey looking to manage expectations here :-)

Up the Deise

blueflame

The country is full of top class hurlers who never won a provincial or all Ireland medal at minor or under 21. Shefflin himself admitted last night to being very average at that age and yet look at what he achieved. While underage can be a good pointer, it is all about how players develop between the age of 17 to 25.

In Waterford we have a tendency to write off players if they are not shooting the lights out in every games from the age of 20 onwards particularly those of whom we have high expectations. Supporters have discarded players so young, especially ones that have struggled with injury, which is becoming increasingly common, before they are even close to their peak. I have heard time and again guys write of Paudi Mahoney, Brian O'Halloran, Jamie Barron Jake Dillion, Gavin O'Brien to name but a few and these guys are only starting out on their careers.

The performances this year have been encouraging but so was the start of the league last year when we should have gotten a result after a really strong performance in Thurles against Tipp, we beat Galway, we beat Dublin and then the wheels came off against Clare and Kilkenny and then against Dublin in the play-off. We then have a blinder for half the game against Cork before the disaster really took hold.

This can happen with young teams and it is up to management to instill confidence and belief in players and put in place a game plan to make the most of the talent available.

I hope that our management have learned not only from last year but more so from this year, particularly the games against Laois, Antrim and Offaly. Just getting numbers back in defence and conceding the other half of the field does not work, you will eventually succumb to pressure from good teams. Last Sunday we appeared to target Wexford half Back line by getting in amongst them hooking and blocking and forcing errors and bringing our full forward line in the majority deep to flood the area. Our game plan was helped by Wexford trying to play the short game with a measured build up. Try this against the likes of KK or Tipp and their full back line will quickly start taking the option to by pass the half back line especially if we retreat and give them time. We must mix and match and keep both lines under pressure, by all means get your full forward line to drop back but not at the option of allowing the opposition full backs the time and space to start picking out passes.


I genuinely believe we have at our disposal and coming up through the ranks the talent to help us challenge for the Liam McCarthy. I do not think KK will be as dominant as they have been (thank god) but they will be there or there about every year, as will Cork and Tipperary. Clare Limerick Waterford Galway, Dublin and Wexford if they continue to develop will be I believe be capable of winning it any year also, but they do not have the same belief of the other three.

We need to continue to develop and nurture the young talent we have and while we might not win trophies at minor or U21 we must continue to be competitive.

Looking forward to Sunday and teh rest of they year with fingers crossed.

hurler on de ditch

stumblingblock wrote: »

What did you think of Brick on Sunday? You have been campaigning for his retirement all the year

i thought he went very well ,played most of the game midfield or further back ,think he hit the ball with the hurl on a few occasions,given that opposition were so poor ,it was a handy performance ,also i said he is a midfielder not a forward, so lets see how it goes ,,would you nominate him for an all star on that performance

coopdog85

thesaturdayman wrote: »

any sign of the michael ryan supporters? #derekout

They're probably still laughing at your appearance on the Cheltenham preview panel.

seananigans

It's great to be promoted but we're division 1 before he came along and haven't truly been tested this year we will know more this weekend .

We can't say he has truly proven himself yet and would want to win at least two games in championship against good opposition for me to want him back next year

Mountainlad

waterford28 wrote: »

Is there anyway to get a suspension overturned without video evidence? A player was sent off in the last few weeks in a club football game, it was for a high tackle a yellow would of been more than enough, The player in possession ducked into the tackle more than anything, after the game both management teams agreed that a straight red was a disgrace, making the player in question ineligible for an upcoming county final. Cheers

Depends on the referees report, not sure exactly what that contains but if he were to mention the opposing manager coming to him after the game and stating he felt it was harsh maybe that might have a bearing on a successful appeal? Just conjecture on my part to be honest, Id say the chances of him getting it rescinded are slim.

JeffKenna

seananigans wrote: »

It's great to be promoted but we're division 1 before he came along and haven't truly been tested this year we will know more this weekend .

We can't say he has truly proven himself yet and would want to win at least two games in championship against good opposition for me to want him back next year

Have to agree. While the League has been positive thus far let's wait until the real action starts in the championship.

TyrionPower

waterford28 wrote: »

Is there anyway to get a suspension overturned without video evidence? A player was sent off in the last few weeks in a club football game, it was for a high tackle a yellow would of been more than enough, The player in possession ducked into the tackle more than anything, after the game both management teams agreed that a straight red was a disgrace, making the player in question ineligible for an upcoming county final. Cheers

Without video evidence I dont think you have a case, it doesn't matter how wrong everyone thinks the ref is, if you can't prove he was wrong then it won't be overturned, you can't prove he was wrong by quoting public opinion.

Sorry to hear the player loses out on a county over a bad decision, hopefully the lad in question can use it to motivate him to better things in the future

skaface

Just see that it's €20 to get into the match on Sunday, but if you buy your ticket in
Central or Super value beforehand you get it for €15..
Bit steep if you ask me..
If they charged €10 a head, they would get twice as many people going to matches.
(RANT OVER).

hurler on de ditch

skaface wrote: »

Just see that it's €20 to get into the match on Sunday, but if you buy your ticket in
Central or Super value beforehand you get it for €15..
Bit steep if you ask me..
If they charged €10 a head, they would get twice as many people going to matches.
(RANT OVER).

its on the telly ,be interesting to see what the prices are at other venues

skaface

hurler on de ditch wrote: »

its on the telly ,be interesting to see what the prices are at other venues

Sound, knew it's on TV - Point I'm trying to make is for a lot of folk €20 / €15 will turn a lot
of people not going, whereas if it was €10 a head you would have a lot more families etc.
going.. Think the Gaa need to rethink their prices.

Ropaire

seananigans wrote: »

It's great to be promoted but we're division 1 before he came along and haven't truly been tested this year we will know more this weekend .

We can't say he has truly proven himself yet and would want to win at least two games in championship against good opposition for me to want him back next year

A decent showing in the business end of the league would be nice to see too. To be honest we've steamrolled a poor division, the players seem to be there but we've yet to see a game won from the line, preparation is good though. I'm not a fan of this negative game plan either, I loved the swashbuckling team of the noughties shooting the lights out but if this approach is getting player buy in and results it's hard to argue against it. Seamus is gone, so whats plan B likely to be now?

citykat

skaface wrote: »

Sound, knew it's on TV - Point I'm trying to make is for a lot of folk €20 / €15 will turn a lot
of people not going, whereas if it was €10 a head you would have a lot more families etc.
going.. Think the Gaa need to rethink their prices.

The relegation playoff is €15 (-€5 if bought in advance). TBH I think these prices are generally good value for an inter county game. My bugbear is the prices for games in Croke park regardless of where you're sitting. Whether you're sitting in a seat on the half way line or up in the clouds behind the goal you pay the same. That's wrong.

HatchetMan7

Mahoney said "the team are buying into McGrath’s game-plan borrowed straight out of modern football’s coaching manual".

This is the system that we used against Wexford and it will be the system we use against all the top sides IMO. Eliminate the space in defence and midfield by pulling a corner forward and wing forward into midfield/defence. The other 2 half forwards move between midfield and half forward depending on where the ball is. Once the ball drops and a ruck forms Waterford have sometimes twice the numbers fighting for the ball as seen against Wexford. We won at least 90% of these "rucks".
When we win the ball in this area all the players break looking for a short pass from the player in possession. At this point it becomes difficult for the opposition to pick up all the runners.

Playing the more traditional 15 on 15 will spell trouble against the likes of Tipp, Kilkenny and Cork as their forwards
could run amok with that kind of space. IMO i think we can hold our own against the rest of the teams playing 15 on 15 but we have a much better chance of beating these teams playing the swarm and break system.
Against Galway this weekend the same system will be used and i think it will work although not quite as effective as against Wexford. The difference is that Galway don't really have any small fast forwards anymore, at least 5 of the six fowards are big lads who are good in the air. So Galway will probably hit direct ball into their full forward line hoping to bypass the clutter around their half forward line. But i would think that we'll have an extra player sitting in front of the full back line and our halfback line will push further towards our own goal squeezing the space even more. Galways lack of pace in the forward line means they'll find it hard to get enough space to shoot.

It was mentioned in one of the papers that our style was similar to that of Donegal's in football. All i'll say to this is that i would have no problem with Waterford playing this way and winning their first All Ireland since 1959. Deise abu.

blueflame

Problem with that is hurling is a very different game to football. In football it is relatively easy to defend you goal by packing that area. In hurling we have seen goals scored from 21 year frees with half the opposition on the line. Also n football majority of scores are gotten from within a 20 to 40 yard radius of goal, in hurling a good side will pick you off no problem from 70 - 80 yards out and drag you out. Also the sliothar travels at least twice as far and probably twice as fast as the football.

hurler on de ditch

HatchetMan7 wrote: »

Mahoney said "the team are buying into McGrath’s game-plan borrowed straight out of modern football’s coaching manual".

This is the system that we used against Wexford and it will be the system we use against all the top sides IMO. Eliminate the space in defence and midfield by pulling a corner forward and wing forward into midfield/defence. The other 2 half forwards move between midfield and half forward depending on where the ball is. Once the ball drops and a ruck forms Waterford have sometimes twice the numbers fighting for the ball as seen against Wexford. We won at least 90% of these "rucks".
When we win the ball in this area all the players break looking for a short pass from the player in possession. At this point it becomes difficult for the opposition to pick up all the runners.

Playing the more traditional 15 on 15 will spell trouble against the likes of Tipp, Kilkenny and Cork as their forwards
could run amok with that kind of space. IMO i think we can hold our own against the rest of the teams playing 15 on 15 but we have a much better chance of beating these teams playing the swarm and break system.
Against Galway this weekend the same system will be used and i think it will work although not quite as effective as against Wexford. The difference is that Galway don't really have any small fast forwards anymore, at least 5 of the six fowards are big lads who are good in the air. So Galway will probably hit direct ball into their full forward line hoping to bypass the clutter around their half forward line. But i would think that we'll have an extra player sitting in front of the full back line and our halfback line will push further towards our own goal squeezing the space even more. Galways lack of pace in the forward line means they'll find it hard to get enough space to shoot.

It was mentioned in one of the papers that our style was similar to that of Donegal's in football. All i'll say to this is that i would have no problem with Waterford playing this way and winning their first All Ireland since 1959. Deise abu.

so lets play hurling but make it more like football NICE!as shown from the most successful counties in the history of the game ,you pick 15 men to play 15 men, Cody picks 6 forwards that he knows can score and then the play is to get it into them as fast as possible ,not hand passing it around until you are dizzy ,,ffs has anyone learned anything from Cody in the last 15 years or so ,,if your going to buy into a negative style of play because you dont trust or believe in the players you have ,so you go a few points down and suddenly plan a is not going well ,you either stick with the plan and get more negative ,by that point you could be down 6/7 points ,OR switch to plan B but at that point its useless,negativity breeds negativity, I spoke to loads of Wexford lads this week some of them ex county lads and some very good club lads ,most if not all had the same to say ,Wexford are in an awful state/disgraceful,etc that they could not beat Waterford at home and Waterford playing with such negativity ,help us now if we meet Tipp,KK,or Cork ,