The Greatest Achievement In GAA History

TheBigGreen

Kerry Footballers 1975-1986 who won 4 all Irelands in a row

Teddy McCarthy!

Straight Talker

Kerry Footballers 1975-1986 who won 4 all Irelands in a row

gormdubhgorm wrote: »

An obvious great achievement that was left out of his poll was Dublin winning the National Hurling League in 2011.

Another great achievement in the GAA I have not seen mentioned yet is GAA people using 'middle management' Americanise speak.

For example:

Hurling people now seem to like the phrase 'learnings' in particular Derek McGrath.
Football people now seem to love the phrase 'transitions' in particular James Horan.



On a more serious note again shows the GAA's willingness to adapt and take things from other sports. And see if it improves things. In this day and age the GAA is more open to different ways of doing things than it ever has been. While also being firmly attached to its past and history.

Sweepers are no longer just for roads they have entered GAA teams!

You only win one national hurling title since 1939, and you want me to make a big song and dance about it? How is that an achievement worthy of going on my poll, ahead of the Cork double?

Pogue eile

I have to admit that I am not honestly sure anymore if straight Talker is 100% serious

Straight Talker

Kerry Footballers 1975-1986 who won 4 all Irelands in a row

Pogue eile wrote: »

I have to admit that I am not honestly sure anymore if straight Talker is 100% serious

I was wondering were some posters serious, when they said the Cork double shouldn't be on the poll. In my opinion the options i listed, were the four most impressive achievements in modern gaa history, so i fail to see how you have formed that opinion to be honest. I can understand people saying, that other achievements are more impressive than Corks double. But to say that it's not one of the top four most impressive gaa achievements, and shouldn't be on the list is total and utter rubbish really.

Pogue eile

I do like how you have suddenly started to include the phrase 'modern history' when it was pointed out that there was nothing even remotely unique about the achievement.

Maybe you can ask a Mod to change the thread title?

Straight Talker

Kerry Footballers 1975-1986 who won 4 all Irelands in a row

Pogue eile wrote: »

I do like how you have suddenly started to include the phrase 'modern history' when it was pointed out that there was nothing even remotely unique about the achievement.

Maybe you can ask a Mod to change the thread title?

I suspect that you're on the wum. It's up to others decide, where it ranks in the list of achievements. But Corks double is a unique achievement nonetheless.

Pogue eile

Straight Talker wrote: »

I suspect that you're on the wum. It's up to others decide, where it ranks in the list of achievements. But Corks double is a unique achievement nonetheless.

Do you actually understand what 'unique' means, genuine question??

Straight Talker

Kerry Footballers 1975-1986 who won 4 all Irelands in a row

Pogue eile wrote: »

Do you actually understand what 'unique' means, genuine question??

I consider Corks double to be unique, because it was the first double achieved in 100 years. I fail to see other posters problems with that opinion.

dobman88

Straight Talker wrote: »

I consider Corks double to be unique, because it was the first double achieved in 100 years. I fail to see other posters problems with that opinion.

But it's not unique as it had been done 3 times before the 1990 teams did it.

I'm not doubting what an achievement it is, it's an unbelievably fantastic achievement. But if you're counting it as the greatest, it's only on a par with Tipp and you fail to mention them.

Shoehorning in a phrase like modern era to fit a certain agenda just belittles your own argument imo when I actually think this question could have some value.

gormdubhgorm

Straight Talker wrote: »

As for the Cork team that did the double in 1990. Was it really that much of an achievement you ask? Yes it was for the reasons i've already outlined. That Cork football team was the last team, to win back to back all Irelands until Kerry in 2006/2007. The hurling team had a core of players, that won all Irelands in 1984 and 1986 as well. The Cork double should not even be on the poll you say. Ah come on you're on the wind up here!

Winning back to back all Ireland’s is impressive. I will give you that. But looking at the Cork double in 1990 as one of the most impressive feats in GAA is a bit of a myth when you break it down. The only win for the footballers in 1990 where you would have said they would have done well to win was Meath in the final. But even that was a slog. The hurlers did beat Tipp and Galway. Footballers did nothing for over a decade so I think the 1990 win was helped by the luck of the draw. And a poor old Kerry side who would go on to lose to Clare. From a Cork impressive perspective in football I think of that 2010 team or Nemo Rangers for consistency at club level. I would rate Leitrim’s win in 1994 ahead of Corks double. Because we of the strength of Cork the easy draw in the football championship.

gormdubhgorm

Kerry winning the hurling league was a massive achievement for them. As was Dublin winning the hurling league in 2011. I always rate it relative to the strength of a team v their opponents. Another one would be London beating Sligo. Or Sligo winning Connaught. Stuff that is supposed to be a bit out there relative to a teams strength v opponents. That is how I gauge it anyway. Then if it is not a one off victory I look for consistency, how competitive an era was and style of play. The KK hurlers had a job to win Leinster for a while when Offaly and Wexford were strong for example. Then for real bonus points besides consistency I look for style of play.

gormdubhgorm

Pogue eile wrote: »

I have to admit that I am not honestly sure anymore if straight Talker is 100% serious

I think the Clonakilty black pudding and Murphy’s is not a good mix in this hot weather! If Cork did the double double in both codes in successive years then it should be in a poll. Especially if it was a lot of the same players. But it is two different codes the only thing that links them is Teddy McCarthy. Everyone knows Cork are decent in both codes. But the truth is they act like separate counties. A lot of Cork fans are not bothered about football at all. So it is very confusing to link the two. Given there is only one starter in common. If the poll was Teddy McCarthy or even the best era for a GAA supporter from a county and why. Would make more sense. Maybe I should be linking Dublin winning football in 2011 and hurling league as the greatest achievement in the GAA?

MayoAreMagic

Kerry Footballers 1975-1986 who won 4 all Irelands in a row

Interesting topic.
I wouldnt consider dublins achievements to be worthy of that list to be honest. That isnt a jibe at the team or dub fans etc, it is just my honest view. Id view it like a loaded dice, and once that happens in a sporting contest, it is hard to take anything that happens subsequently at face value.

Of the other options, id pick cork. That was a remarkable achievement.

cms88

Kilkenny Hurlers 2000-2015 who won 4 all irelands in a row

While Corks double was a great achievement. There's a chance it could happen again with the likes of Cork, Galway and maybe Dublin.

However something unlikely to happen is someone winning both in the one year like Teddy McCarthy. Even though from what i know he dind't actually play in either Munster final, but i would still say that's the greatest achievement in modern GAA history.

Tombo2001

For me, Offaly's achievement in winning football and hurling all Irelands in consecutive years outweighs any of those.

Ahead of all those, I'd place Brian Cody winning 11 all Irelands (as manager) in 15 years probably at the very top.

slegs

Tombo2001 wrote: »

For me, Offaly's achievement in winning football and hurling all Irelands in consecutive years outweighs any of those.

Ahead of all those, I'd place Brian Cody winning 11 all Irelands (as manager) in 15 years probably at the very top.

I 100% agree...for a small county and a tiny hurling population - Offaly 81/82 is a stunning achievement. On the football side they beat probably the greatest team ever also to win the All Ireland.

For context
Population of Offaly ~75-80k
Population of Cork ~550k

blue note

Dublin Footballers 2011-2020 who won 6 all Irelands in a row

I wonder how many non-dubs voted for Dublin. I wouldn't say too many. On the one hand they couldn't do more, but on the other anything less would be an underachievement. It would be like Galway winning however many Connaught hurling championships in a row. They can't do more, but it's not a huge achievement either.

Obviously it's not quite to the same extent, but it's not as far away as you'd like it to be.

Straight Talker

Kerry Footballers 1975-1986 who won 4 all Irelands in a row

gormdubhgorm wrote: »

Winning back to back all Ireland’s is impressive. I will give you that. But looking at the Cork double in 1990 as one of the most impressive feats in GAA is a bit of a myth when you break it down. The only win for the footballers in 1990 where you would have said they would have done well to win was Meath in the final. But even that was a slog. The hurlers did beat Tipp and Galway. Footballers did nothing for over a decade so I think the 1990 win was helped by the luck of the draw. And a poor old Kerry side who would go on to lose to Clare. From a Cork impressive perspective in football I think of that 2010 team or Nemo Rangers for consistency at club level. I would rate Leitrim’s win in 1994 ahead of Corks double. Because we of the strength of Cork the easy draw in the football championship.

I think your post is full of sour grapes and bitterness tbh. A quote in Brian Corcorans book springs to mind. If they won't give us the credit, we'll gladly take the credit ourselves.;) Sure if i wanted to be a spiteful and bitter so and so, i could dismiss Dublins success based on disproportionate funding, and no serious competition in Leinster, but i'm a bigger person than that.

Pogue eile

Straight Talker wrote: »

I think your post is full of sour grapes and bitterness tbh. A quote in Brian Corcorans book springs to mind. If they won't give us the credit, we'll gladly take the credit ourselves.;) Sure if i wanted to be a spiteful and bitter so and so, i could dismiss Dublins success based on disproportionate funding, and no serious competition in Leinster, but i'm a bigger person than that.

You stated in the opening post that you would like to hear other posters views, but it appears what you really wanted was for everyone to tell you how wonderful Cork were over 30 years ago!

Tombo2001

Straight Talker wrote: »

I think your post is full of sour grapes and bitterness tbh. A quote in Brian Corcorans book springs to mind. If they won't give us the credit, we'll gladly take the credit ourselves.;) Sure if i wanted to be a spiteful and bitter so and so, i could dismiss Dublins success based on disproportionate funding, and no serious competition in Leinster, but i'm a bigger person than that.

Am not being smart - I've been following football and hurling for more than thirty years, there is no way I'd have put Cork's double or Teddy McCarthy in this list. Wouldnt even have crossed my mind. I was actually wondering how it got on the poll.

Dont mean to downplay it - but we are talking about the greatest achievement here, not the top 20 greatest achievements.

Tombo2001

Couple of other unsung -

Its not in the category of 'greatest' but...... Monaghan's recent performance in the League, won division 3 in 2014, won division 2 in 2015 and has now had 6 consecutive years in Division 1. For a county with 60'000 people, and given the level the game is played at nowadays - I think thats a hell of an achievement.

On the subject of Cork - the LGFA team deserves far more of a shout than Teddy McCarthy......

Hammer Archer

Very biased, but the achievement of Sean Boylan in doing what he did with Meath can hardly be understated. In the years prior to Sean taking over, Meath were probably in the bottom 4 or 5 teams in Leinster. They were beaten by Wexford and Longford respectively in the first games of the 81 & 82 championships. In his second season in charge, he got us back to the Leinster final (having taken Dublin to a replay and ET in his first season). In his fourth season, we won the Leinster for the first time in 16 years and then won two All Ireland's in a row in his fifth and sixth seasons.

gormdubhgorm

Straight Talker wrote: »

I think your post is full of sour grapes and bitterness tbh. A quote in Brian Corcorans book springs to mind. If they won't give us the credit, we'll gladly take the credit ourselves.;) Sure if i wanted to be a spiteful and bitter so and so, i could dismiss Dublins success based on disproportionate funding, and no serious competition in Leinster, but i'm a bigger person than that.

No it isnt you are not looking at it logically.

1) The Cork Hurling team and Cork football team are two DIFFERENT TEAMS they are not tied bar one player who started for both and one sub
Yes it is great for you as a general Cork FAN. But how are those achievements intertwined for a start. If it was 60%/70% of the same players I would understand. But there is a clear divide between cork hurling and cork football even outsiders know that. It is not a mutual achievement. Maybe from a FAN perspective but not from a team one.

2) It has been done before.

3) There are only two counties that are so called 'dual counties' historically - Galway and Cork -which is the only reason that it is not done more often. That is not really an achievement just an accident of history.

Dublin could do the Double at some stage of AI's but I would not view it as an intertwined achievement unless the two teams overlapped. And I think the days of the dual star is over. So it is unlikely to happen.

If you want to claim a greatest GAA achievement from a Cork perspective surely Teddy McCarthy would be the one. Not the Cork Double as he was the main link from the two.

I think you are mixing up achievement from a team perspective to your joy as a fan. The Cork double just looks silly in that poll and that is the truth of it.
The others relate to the same teams the Cork one relates to different codes and different games. Also one of them the football win looked very soft to me anyway.

gormdubhgorm

Hammer Archer wrote: »

Very biased, but the achievement of Sean Boylan in doing what he did with Meath can hardly be understated. In the years prior to Sean taking over, Meath were probably in the bottom 4 or 5 teams in Leinster. They were beaten by Wexford and Longford respectively in the first games of the 81 & 82 championships. In his second season in charge, he got us back to the Leinster final (having taken Dublin to a replay and ET in his first season). In his fourth season, we won the Leinster for the first time in 16 years and then won two All Ireland's in a row in his fifth and sixth seasons.

Amazed Boylan is not on the poll along with Mickey Harte to be honest.
Maybe Heffernan should be put in as well as he dragged Dublin from nowhere.

The list of achievements in the poll seemed to have a pattern (eras and the same teams) and then the Cork double was thrown in.

gormdubhgorm

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Couple of other unsung -

Its not in the category of 'greatest' but...... Monaghan's recent performance in the League, won division 3 in 2014, won division 2 in 2015 and has now had 6 consecutive years in Division 1. For a county with 60'000 people, and given the level the game is played at nowadays - I think thats a hell of an achievement.

On the subject of Cork - the LGFA team deserves far more of a shout than Teddy McCarthy......

And that Cork wan that won a load of AI's Renna Buckley. 18 she has!

cms88

Kilkenny Hurlers 2000-2015 who won 4 all irelands in a row

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Couple of other unsung -

Its not in the category of 'greatest' but...... Monaghan's recent performance in the League, won division 3 in 2014, won division 2 in 2015 and has now had 6 consecutive years in Division 1. For a county with 60'000 people, and given the level the game is played at nowadays - I think thats a hell of an achievement.

On the subject of Cork - the LGFA team deserves far more of a shout than Teddy McCarthy......

This is often said but is it true? In reality how many counties are their in Ladies Football and Camogie? There are afaik no Provincial championships in Camogie and for a long time in Ladies football it was only Kerry and Cork in Munster.

Tombo2001

cms88 wrote: »

This is often said but is it true? In reality how many counties are their in Ladies Football and Camogie? There are afaik no Provincial championships in Camogie and for a long time in Ladies football it was only Kerry and Cork in Munster.

Ah will ya give over.

Dublin have played Kerry or Mayo in all their all-ireland finals bar one in the mens game.

Galway in the 80s could win a hurling all ireland after two matches.

cms88

Kilkenny Hurlers 2000-2015 who won 4 all irelands in a row

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Ah will ya give over.

Dublin have played Kerry or Mayo in all their all-ireland finals bar one in the mens game.

Galway in the 80s could win a hurling all ireland after two matches.

But Dublin still play in more than one game in Leinster, some would say they don't play any but that's another story, what does the fact they've played Kerry and Mayo in the finals got to do with anything?

Yes they should but they only won two so that's not really relvent is it?

gormdubhgorm

blue note wrote: »

I wonder how many non-dubs voted for Dublin. I wouldn't say too many. On the one hand they couldn't do more, but on the other anything less would be an underachievement. It would be like Galway winning however many Connaught hurling championships in a row. They can't do more, but it's not a huge achievement either.

Obviously it's not quite to the same extent, but it's not as far away as you'd like it to be.

Not completely true. No way is it comparable to Galway winning hurling in Connaught.

Dublin 2011 - 2020 is the development of a team and a system who adapted and changed. From the outside looking in many would forget / not know of the evolution of Dublin tactically both prior to 2011 and until 2020. They were not made overnight.

Why tactical evolution did Galway hurling bring??

The 2011 win was a smash and grab - Kerry got caught cold.

The 2013 win was a hard fought one - Dublin won by a point v Mayo. It could be argued Mayo made a balls of it.

The 2015 win was probably the best one as it involved beating Kerry on a dirty day. Plus the tactics of Dublin were changed as a result of the 2014 loss to Donegal the previous year. There was a clear shift and tactical development more patience and strategic thinking

The 2016 win v Mayo that Dublin really should have loss. Went to replay and all. Again you could argue Mayo blew it

The 2017 win Dublin's game management was superb the win v Tyrone in the SF and controlled win v Mayo in the final even if Dublin only won by a point

The 2018 win was the finest display of accuracy in a final I have ever seen v Tyrone. Look up the stats to see how many wides Dublin hit

The 2019 win was superb against Kerry. Jim Gavin used cluxton as a extra man out field when Dublin went a man down in the first game. To level it up. Leaving Tommy Walsh free to be picked up by Cluxton

Genius tactical stuff and analysed by a Kerryman. They know what they are talking about.

The 2020 win - I honestly don't really count a mickey mouse all Ireland win. Not proper at all. Aussie Rules lads were the main variables as a result of COVID19.

--

As I said before Dublin have had to face many teams who are given second chances. Who would otherwise have been knocked out in other eras.

Tombo2001

cms88 wrote: »

But Dublin still play in more than one game in Leinster, some would say they don't play any but that's another story, what does the fact they've played Kerry and Mayo in the finals got to do with anything?

Yes they should but they only won two so that's not really relvent is it?

Your point is that Cork in the 2000s didnt face strong opposition, I would say the same is true of Dublin the mens game, there are 2 counties in the country that can take them on. Beat those - (or one of those if there is a Mayo Kerry semi-final) and they have won the all Ireland.

A better comparison is Kerry's 4 in a row team.

The structure of the LGFA championship when Cork were winning was that the top 4 teams got a bye to the QF stage.

Which is very similar to Kerry in Munster - the played a dead rubber against Tipp or Clare in a munster semi-final - the they played Cork in the final, AI semi, AI final.

Nobody is bring that issue up - why do it for the Cork LGFA team.

1979 munster semi final score- Kerry 9-21, Clare 1-9. Wonder how often 9 goals have been scored in a championship match.