Kilkenny GAA Thread

upnorth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121986274#Comment_121986274

Great that you don’t do character assassinations of players….. So, what needs to be done?

Marrooned

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121986321#Comment_121986321

well you should by reading all the general complaints I just don’t like calling out players do you?

upnorth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121986347#Comment_121986347

Agree totally, would never call out those who have actually played the game. Just wondering what you think needs to be done

Marrooned

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121986363#Comment_121986363

I couldn’t really do that without crushing some players you have to know who I mean

The_Tank

Whats the story with Tom Phelan?

brookville

Well done to clare i thought they were the better team over the 70 mins.We werent consistent enough tonight. We really should of being in front at half time. A few lads have summed it fairly well.We were hanging in for alot of that 2nd half and its good to see that battling spirit is alive.Our half foward line was wiped out.The last thing we needed tonight was a 8 or 9 point beating and it could of happened but we stayed at it. Our full back line done well considering the space and quility of ball going in.The problem was further out.Clare were hanging on at the end and were relieved to hear the final whistle.A small thing would of won that game and things would look different.

I know a lot of talk about the poorly struck penalty but eoin murphy should of took it. I was looking at him and he was half expecting to be called up. I wouldnt blame cody for that. He isnt a natural free taker. I know the value of tj but everyone else can see the value of him on nights like tonight. The importance of a free taker is huge and we have no one ready to replace tj when he goes. Drennan has gone backwards since last year and the day of carrying a freetaker are well gone.He is grand coming on when the game opens up but he lacks the workrate and this was always the first thing thats required in a kk jersey.if we are carrying a lad to hit frees we are at nothing.

Its being well highlighted how in the name of god is billy ryan still starting. I cant think of a day where he gave a really good display so i just cant understand how is a guaranteed starter.if i was mossy id be fierce dissapointed he is starting ahead him. One thing really dissapointed me with lyng tonight and that taking of hogan before half time. There was lads worse than him and that will do nothing to improve his confidence. They could of waited till half time at least.

This was a good match before the championship and although dissapointed to lose i dont know if clare are that much ahead of us. With mostly everyone back we are as good as any of the chasing pack. The most important thing is to learn from defeats. A couple of defenders going for the same ball is absolutely criminal but this is going on years. Two of them goals were very preventable. Lyng needs to accept going into the championship that he wont get away with deegan center back. Its grand at club level but he hasnt the intelligence at county level.He isnt a defender full stop. He went balls out for that ball and fumbled it and conceded that goal. He makes to many mistakes in the backs.Going into the championship not knowing your center back is dissapointing when we all knew it was a position that needed to be filled. Mikey carey could be an option but i would of prefered Corcoran or moylan get exposure tonight at 6. I accept Fitzgerald is a big man but so is every other Intercounty hurler. They way richie reid was threw out of the way isnt good enough. Richie is on the panel 10 years so if he hasnt presence or strenght by now he wont get it the next few years. Some of his deliveries are very questionable.

Despite things not going our way there was very little between the two teams. We have a few lads that arent good enough but i dont know if the replacements are up to it yet either. We cant go into the championship with players who have being consistently poor.I know we have a few to come back but we desperately need a lad like stephen donnelly to get a few runs and see what he has to offer. He was to be back on the pitch soon. When we were getting murdered in the second half we had no one to win a puckout. The few newcomers that we had hope for were all replaced which is dissapointing. I wouldnt be giving up on molloy. Lets hope kenny keeps improving into the championship.

The u20 were under pressure in the first half against a hurricane. Laois were impressive in this half and going by today they wont fear wexford. I dont want to put to much pressure on a chap still in school but marty murphy is a player our senior team is crying out for. The game complety got away from laois but they have some good players who have got senior experience this year.

The_Tank

nailed it there Brookville - saved me typing the exact same points

points i’ll add for now is

Mullens self indulgence. He’s so talented but he can’t win it on his own and on top of some hail mary shots the one he didn’t put Billy Ryan through on was criminal (despite the fact that he probably had no faith he’d finish it). contrast that with clares first goal

we need six backs that can defend aggressively and cover each other. the playmaker stuff can take care of itself.

john donnelly seamed unusually stuck to the ground for me today - poor to close down which is normally his best trait. he should have been taken off or moved inside

without TJ the two man inside tactic didn’t work. we don’t have the quality (yet?) clares full back line is suspect and we should have pushed on for a period in the first half

david fitz is a fine player but fk me he took another 12 steps for his goal today - but the takeaway was richies defending on it

mossey was a hairs breath from putting shane murphy through at the very end ( and was fouled in the process of making the pass - we didn’t get the breaks on the frees towards the end)

windy shepard henderson

hard luck tonight lads , there is great fight in that team there is no doubt about it , had tj been available tonight the penalty alone would have been converted at the very least and the complection of the game would have looked so much different

taught we were not great tonight , simply because some of our better players were not let play the half back line for kilkenny was incredibly solid tonight , martn keohan made some impact off the bench and mullan had a deaccent game but as many know here he has much more in the locker

while tony kelly was missing for us tonight , we needed all of our remaining established players on the bench to get us over the line . given the fact that there was no mikey butler , tom phelan , or tj tonight and the game still in the balance right to the end , there is surly a lot to take form tonight

jeff bingham

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121985983#Comment_121985983

Strange reputation alright considering he generally throws it in long on top of Colin Fennelly or TJ when he's on the inside line for shamrocks.

usualstripes

Just on Billy Ryan last night.

I know he gets a lot of slack here and sometimes deservedly so but had mullen not been so greedy in the 1st half Billy would surely have raised the green flag. It was the right pass to make smd who knows what would have happened at that stage

droppingball

Great game to get last night, no harm to play without TJ either, he would have made a difference.

Half back line is a funny one, that is the quietest we have kept Clare Half forward line in any of the last three games even the ones we have won. We marshalled Fitz and Duggan fairly well but the running and overlaps created the goals for a period. Deegans deliveries were atrocious last night, hits the ball on the back foot to much and leads to skyscraper ball into the forwards.

Mullens shot instead of given the ball to Billy Ryan drove me crazy it was almost a certain goal and he drove four identical wides. Also Eoin Cody was playing from behind a lot, harder ground will probably suit him. Didn't realise how bad the ground in front of that goal was at the match, when saw the replay of the penalty only realised how muddy it was in that area, explains the penalty as well as a strange lift for it.

Donnelly had a very good 15 minutes in second half, worked clever score of sideline, won numerous rucks, made catch and great pass for goal, doing things he does for the club. Cian Kenny was everywhere and has nailed his place, really impressed with him, thought he would have been motm if we won it.

Mossy made a massive play and deserves a start against antrim after that, 4 points in 40 minutes and was a pest as well.

Still lots of complaints from lads on puckouts on the puckouts, I'll have to watch it back, i thought the first half was our best performance on the puckouts in a long time, we finally created space and got runners onto the ball. We were better at the bunch and break, mullen and ryan got on few balls from it and we had success on one long one. The problem was we held our positions in second half more that likely because of the wind I guess and we lost our platform.

Drennan is lacking workrate but is also short on pace and power, has the hurling but the other three ingredients are what's sets you apart at inter county. Maybe he needs more time buthe is definitely not ready at the moment. It sounds harsh but the subs we bring in come championship have to offer cut and we have to be realistic.

With the two mikeys and TJ to come back and few bits we can take from it we are not in bad place.

We probably should have been a few ahead at half time, the wides really destroyed us but after 15 mins of second half it looked bleak but happy we fought it out without TJ on the field.

Clare will give Limerick a right battle they will need to be better in certain departments but think they won't get carried out and will have learned from last night just as we will. Hogan is a fair corner back, robust, aggressive out first .He is very like Barret from tipp, same style, when he wins the ball should avoid contact, liable to give away frees but you would love to have him.

Bring on the championship.

LohansRedHelmet

Delighted as a Clare fan first off but I don’t think both teams played that well to be honest. The conditions did not lend itself to the hurling we might expect to see but both teams will grow from this match.

Can’t for the life of me understand the penalty and black card considering the fouled player wasn’t even in possession.

Charlie69

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121987039#Comment_121987039

Good post… agree with most of that. Young Hogan was very like a young Cathal Barrett for sure, not one of our favourites here in Kilkenny but one hell of a corner back. Eoin Cody played right into his hands though by getting way too involved in the hard man stuff with him, he should be experienced enough now not to fall for that nonsense and keep his concentration and focus where it should be.

Village87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121986412#Comment_121986412

Absolutely excellent post Brookville. Agree with all of that.
Paddy Deegan was all over the place last night, no pace to recover when needed, going for balls he has no right to go for and not winning them, usually ploughing into other Kilkenny players in the process, opposition pick up ball and charge on goal. Distribution awful, blessed o Donnell didn't intercept another near the end. Himself and Richie Reid are to slow on the one line together. We have a massive problem at centre back

Freneys Treasure

Eoin Murphy gets a lot of stick on here for his puck outs but i thought there were a few occassions were he drilled nice passes to Kilkenny players out the field

Marrooned

firstly in Portlaoise I thought Gearoid Dunne’s penalty wouldn’t be scored with the condition of the pitch, but he did score it and as a poster pointed out he didn’t realise how bad the pitch was till he saw it on the telly I myself would accept this the town goalmouth was in a shocking condition. In a penalty situation you are always worried about the lift and the perfect strike these conditions surely increase the odds.

Marrooned

I know the penalty was not taken at that end I was just saying you could see the damage plainly at that end. It wasn’t a good idea to play Tipp v Cork in the Munster minor championship on Thursday night. My major criticism about Eoin Cody is that he only lays off a pass when his own option is gone and by that time the free man was also checked at this stage. The four best KK forwards of all time always picked out a man in the best position quickly to do maximum damage. Every hurling follower recognises the contribution of the man that passes the ball and laud them for doing so.

Ceist_Beag

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121987167#Comment_121987167

Agreed, especially in the first half he hit some really good passes and I thought I saw improvement there. Lyng was looking for him to offer an overload option on the wing as well after going short so they are obviously looking to mix it up a bit more.

The three goals conceded were all due to mistakes. Deegan not taking it with him on the first, Richie letting Fitzgerald in on the second and Huw dropping a catch on the third. Small margins but credit to Clare for taking them.

A lot of our forwards were beaten to the ball, really only Mossy had a good day so you have to credit the team for the effort and attitude to stay in it.

Overall we're not that far off going into the championship but the biggest concern is the forward line, not enough players taking the opportunity to nail down a jersey there.

Village87

The championship format really suits us. Now it is all about the Leinster final v Galway. We would find it hard to beat 2/3 Munster teams if we do not win Leinster.

droppingball

Just saw clips back of two of the goals.

On the David Fitzgerald one he took around 11 or 12 steps, incredible it wasn't picked up and secondly Richie Reid was very soft in the tackle.

On the first half goal, richie reid had the runner and Tommy Walsh sat off in front of the goal offering nothing except getting in Eoin Murphys way. It meant the runner had a pass and Mccarthy had the world of time to receive and finish and Tommy was in no mans land. Everyone takes a man there and its a tap over point would be disgusted if it happened at minor. Tommy and Richie can't switch off like that.

Mad about baa baas

Nothing much to add about last night other than what already been said.

We could very easily gave won and on the other hand we could have lost by more..clare looked like scoring goals any time the went forward

We had plenty positives too..

The Reality still might be that we have a number of lads who are not quite good enough at this level .

Conversations 3

No doubt TJ would have handed off a few more balls if playing last night, Billy Ryan and Hogan may have been better fed and found more room.

I wonder what team will start against Antrim in 2 weeks.

Will he give Drennan, Hogan and Billy Ryan another go or start a strong team?

Will Phelan be back by then to get a run?

jamesbond2022

Someone else mentioned here all our backs keep going towards the ball in the air or a ruck the ball pops out there’s no one sitting back to sweep up the ball this is how we have conceded most of our goals the last 10 years

I’m not sure whether it’s because of not having a settled back six or midfield or what but it’s something the great 4 in a row team were brilliant at that the back six defended as a unit and there was always someone to cover back

The current team defend as individuals and don’t smell a goal threat for some reason

Alonzo Moseley

So disappointed with Keenan, he started great, correctly penalising Clare and Kilkenny players for steps (and Donnelly for a throw) but then he threw in the towel and the Fitzgerald goal was a joke (Reidy also took at least 10 steps in the build up to that goal).

An abandonment of the rules of the game to create a visual spectacle is short sighted madness. TV commentators having orgasms about goals like Fitzgerald’s don’t help in this respect. It’s making the game too easy and making ordinary players look brilliant.

People here criticise Reid for the Fitzgerald goal, but what can defender do when a player can take 9 steps before dummying and taking another 3 before striking?

Clare marginally deserved the win but if we get our injured players back and get lucky with injuries, we won’t be far away. We will need at least one springer forward (most likely from the 20s) to give us an extra edge.

I’d play Shane Murphy in corner, Carey CB and Deegan or R Reid midfield.

Four of the forwards positions are nailed on, Mossy probably nabbed the 5th last night but we must twist on a corner forward and stop going back for the same options. Maybe Dunne, although I hope Drennan gets another go versus Antrim (I think the two missed frees killed his confidence and the shocking miss early in 2nd was the end of him).

standbehindandletfly

I totally agree with the above comment about Billy Drennan. People forget he is only 20 years old and is expected to just slot in for TJ...that will only happen with more game time and maybe play along side TJ so he can learn from him on the field. He was top scorer in the league last year and is normally 100% accurate on frees and has never missed a penalty. He covered a lot of ground last night, but things just didn't go his way. He has huge skill and ball control and he will come good for Kilkenny in my opinion. Gearoid Dunne is another option for that space, but he hasn't got the skill of Drennan.

The_Tank

Agreed that Drennan has the wrists and the intelligence. I don’t know much about S&C but to me it’s his reaction speed and first few yards to close a lad down that need work. He appears a bit slow to get a tackle in and close a gap.

KanyeSouthEast

Alonszo it was Johnny Murphy not Keenan who reffed it. One as bad as the other but Murphy is a dangerous one he can really fcuk with a team!

High bike

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121989109#Comment_121989109

Fergal Horgan and John Keenan were the 2 best refs we had,what's there now are pathetic

Charlie69

It’s an awful pity Carey wasn’t tried at centre back, he knows how to play the position and has the stature. Maybe there’s time to try him there during the round robin because he definitely comes back into the half back line somewhere.

Deskjockey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121989659#Comment_121989659

Fergal Horgan was shite.