Kilkenny GAA Thread

Marrooned

is The Leinster final at six on a Saturday afternoon. No trains then for the public. Fair play to the GAA always thinking about the fans.

Billy Ocean

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122187801#Comment_122187801

Same to yourself, Leinster final set up to be a good game, I think Michael Donoghue produced the managerial performance of the Round Robin turning Dublin around from the ramble they were in the league, he's the only man in the last 25 years to get Galway performing consistently, I'd say there supporters are fuming that they ever let him go and give anything for him to come back. No offence to yourselves but after Donal Og and Jackie said on the 1st night of Sunday game that yourselves and Galway in the Leinster final was a foregone conclusion it's pretty funny to see 1 of ye falling by the wayside. Also being at games the last few years alot of Galway supporters look down their nose at Wexford so to I take plenty of satisfaction that ourselves and Dublin beat them comfortably enough.

Billy Ocean

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122187877#Comment_122187877

Joe Mcdonagh final on at 3.30 before it, I think that will be a brilliant game,

Marrooned

the media are trying to highlight the KK penalty decision but don’t mention the earlier call with Mossy and Matthew O Hanlon and last weeks horrendous tackle on Cian Kenny.

randd1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122188101#Comment_122188101

To be fair, I think they're highlighting that the decision was a poor one, in that either he was fouled outside the square which is a 21, or he was denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity which should have been a penalty and a black card. The ref decided it was a penalty and no black card, which was wrong. Personally I thought there was cover so it wasn't a clear goal-scoring opportunity and that we should have been given a 21, but we got lucky.

I'd say the ref knew he messed up the first call and tried to even it up with the second call.

And in fairness to the lads on the Sunday Game, they were even more confused about why the first one against Mossy wasn't given as a penalty and a black card, it was beyond a blatant foul to stop a goal-scoring opportunity.

The decisions to give a penalty for a foul outside the box and no black card was a poor decision by the ref, as was the earlier decision not give a penalty/black card for an obvious instance for which the rule exists.

It's an inconsistent application of the rules, so they're right to highlight it.

Charlie69

I thought our delivery into the forwards has improved since the Carlow game but still huge work to be done here in my opinion.
When our backs are coming out with the ball, if there’s don’t go short they very often just hit it down the line and hope for the best.
I’m not sure if it’s poor movement from the forwards is to blame or what but our forwards like Cody, TJ or Mossy seem to have to battle to win a 50-50 ball first before getting a shot off .

Our backs could do worse than look back on the video of the minor Leinster final and watch the composure on the ball of our young full back Larry Phelan from the village, he got his head up every time and hit a low ball into the space in front of the forward. He never once just skied a clearance no matter what pressure he was under.

tbiggertycome

Happy with the result and some elements of the performance there were a couple of interesting things I noticed which I hadn't seen before. Particularly in the first half for a long puckout or delivery if there were two Kilkenny players under the ball one tried to block both defenders and leaving the spare KK man get the ball it worked perfectly in the first half a few times the most obvious was Tom Phelan I think holding off to yellow bellies for TJ to grab the ball uncontested. Now Tom wasn't fouling he was just blocking and it was enough to give TJ that second of space for the clear catch. In recent years we've often seen two or three Kilkenny players jumping for the same ball leading to the opposition clearing with ease. Another thing I noticed in the first half was Eoin Murphy two or three times running out to the hurl carrier under the Ardan Breathnach I assume it was Michael Rice. I have no idea what was being said but he was obviously trying to get messages up the field. At one stage he was bawling at Deegan to push up on a sideline where we had two men covering the same guy. That leads me on to the thing which I think completely turned the game in our favour in the second half. We pushed up completely on their puckouts and pressured them man to man. This forced Fanning or if he did get a short puckout away the defender to go long from deep. Once this happened our defence got on top with high ball raining down from deep and we built a platform from there. When we hit wides and Fanning could go quick a few times particularly near the end we weren't fully set and they managed to get a man free and then the running/passing game takes off they get to their own 65 and either delivered or shot soon after and allowed them back into the game. The poor wide's from play near the end actually cost us doubly we failed to score and push out our lead and kill the game but we also provided Wexford with the platform to get their running game going and get back into it. They were trying the full press on the puckouts in the first half but too often one forward was trying to cover two defenders and thats how they could get the running game going get the ball to one and the other is automatically the runner on the shoulder. It's great to see the addressed this at half time and it was only quick ball and tired legs that allowed them out.

I think the rule is actually backwards regardless of who's playing. If you take a shot and score The team who has just conceded have to wait for the refs whistle (so he can note the score) allowing the scorers to set their players to defend the puckout. When a player hits a wide the keeper can immediately hit the ball out not allowing the team who missed to reset after their miss. I understand why it is the way it is, to allow the ref to take note but in reality at intercounty the score noting should be the job for a 4th official on the side line. The refs are mic'd up he can just call it out to the 4th official.

Murphy was much improved with his puckouts and there wasn't a huge amount he could do about either goal as the shots were very good and at point blank range. As noted the puck it to Wally everytime was a strange one as we had been doing well on our own puckouts before that. Yes put the odd one on Wally but not all the time. In the warm up they were practicing knocking the ball down for a runner to come on too but for most of the puckouts to Wally when it was knocked down no one was there to try pick it up or they arrived too late.

Butler had a poor enough day by his standards he did some good things but his man also did a lot of damage.

Tommy Walsh was destroyed by McDonald in the first half until Lawlor went in on him, now all the defence were poor in the first half (except Lawlor) because we were letting them run through us. Once we stemmed that tide in the second half all the defenders played better.

Lawlor was excellent as always

Blanch was very strong and I'd still prefer him CB but I don't see that happening this year.

Deegan was quickly moved to midfield which I was happy to see and he contributed well around the field and chipped in with his three scores.

Carey was virtually anonymous in the first half and I would not have been surprised if he was sitting in the stand for the second half. In fairness to him once he went on Chin and high ball started raining down he was like a man possessed he had a huge second half and hopefully he can keep it going from here on out.

Kenny was probably quiet by his standards of late but still got on a bit of ball won a few frees and got a score too.

Reid did well but I still think drifts around too much for a CB at this level against the lesser teams and at club level he's perfect but at the top level you can't leave the centre so open. Once Wexford had to hit long ball he came into his own

Donnelly put in a massive effort and he only had one point to show for it but he was instrumental in that win. He ran himself into the ground and I was surprised he wasn't replaced with 20mins to go as he looked shattered.

TJ was consistent as ever from the frees and it was great to see his consistency back but he hit some terrible wides from play definitely 1 in the first half and 2 in the second when the game was in the melting pot. He's fixed his frees hopefully he fixes his shooting from play now. Other than his wides it is probably the best performance from TJ this year hopefully the trend continues. I still would like to see him spend more time at FF.

Tom Phelan nothing came off for him today but again he worked his socks off not surprised he was subbed.

Eoin Cody looked dangerous and was unlucky not to get a goal with his opening run at goal. He took his point really well in tight space knowing he was close to being hooked. he made a great run for the baffling penalty call but sure we'll take it.

Billy Ryan I would say this was probably Billys best performance for Kilkenny he has scored more before but his attitude, fight and workrate were top notch today the difference was he lashed on 3 points today

Mossy Keoghan made an amount of runs and got on huge amount of ball in the first half and he was often isolated with no support coming so he took on a few shots which didn't work for him but he was causing Wexford consternation and how Gordon didn't give a penalty and black card in the first half I don't know. Mossy was a bit quieter in the second half but still contributed plenty. He just needs to go out TJ with a bag a balls and get the shooting sorted out 😉

Overall a lot more green shoots than the previous weeks and hopefully a good showing and performance in the Leinster final now to book a semi spot.

Village87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122188503#Comment_122188503

Really excellent post and not much to say on the back of that.

When we went with Deegan and Fogarty midfield and Kenny also playing deep we really turned the game into a dog fight and dominated possession, on the back of this we scored a lot from frees as we were fouled a lot in possession. We scored 12 points from play which is not a big total, going off the team that started the second half i am not sure we would have enough firepower to beat a Limerick, Clare or Cork in Croke Park.

The_Tank

Credit to Wexford on the comeback but I thought we were 5-6 points the better team yesterday overall. We got really scrappy when we went 6 points up missing some shots and dropping frees short. I just felt 7 points and it was game over. The key for me was getting the matchups right in defence, freeing Cody from the corner and the dubious attention of Reck, and having a better option of an out ball in the forwards (I felt we had 3 up there more often than in the first half where the long balls were always 3-2 in Wexford's favour). That said Wexford will have their own regrets about not bringing in their subs earlier as I thought they gave them a different dimension.

On the different calls. Technically Mossey's wasn't a black card - even though we were all screaming for it and in the spirit that's what it was - but he didn't 'get pulled down' - he tried to pull him down. In the second one, in real time at the game I actually thought it was a black card because once Cody slipped inside a goal was on. I hear people confuse the rule with 'covering defenders' from soccer and that's not there. The rule is if you have control, and you're in the 20 (but away from the sideline) or the semi circle, and the defender pulls you down, trips you or uses the hurl in a careless manner, and the ref things there's a chance of a goal then it's a black/card penalty. So the rule is subjective and I think the fact Cody was in, crowd were excited, and he was clearly dragged around the head was enough to tip the balance. And I think the ref had the first incident on his mind. What was bizarre was the fact that there was no black card to follow it - because everyone could see it was outside.

Btw I counted 8 steps from Rory O Connor for the second Wexford goal and about 20 (I exaggerate ) in the lead up to the first goal - but if someone wants to relook at that and correct me go ahead. I'm biased. The point is I was sick of hearing about Billy Ryan in the previous week which in these days was pretty marginal.

Nedflanders02

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122190100#Comment_122190100

I agree with you that 12 points from play going forward will not be good enough but in defence of our forwards our scores from play against Galway and Dublin in particular have been fairly good, I think a lot of that is down to poor shooting yesterday and Wexford being a really hard team to play against and get scores against.

I know your not a massive fan of Fogarty but I think he has made a big difference in the games he has come on in, he doesn't do anything spectacular and might not see a lot of ball but he steadies up our midfield and it has stopped teams running through us as Dublin and Wexford have been doing in the first half of both games.

I think we're in a good place going into the Leinster final, all the talk will, rightly, be about Dublin knocking Galway out and we'll be coming in nicely under the radar! I think the 2 week break will help too, hopefully Mullen and Wally will be closer to full fitness and it gives us 2 weeks to work more on our puckout strategy which, it must be said, is beginning to on game by game. I have criticised Murphy probably more than most here but it must be said he's been excellent the last two games with his puckouts and general play.

Wing Back

Nowlan Park surface was a disgrace on Sunday. It cut up even worse during the game.

Im actually embarrassed we are offering our ground to host an All Ireland Final this Saturday.

The county board clearly didn't think this through. Hosting a concert mid season while having a home Leinster championship match fixed in the days before we requested to host an All Ireland Final to commemorate James Nowlan.

Money is money, but don't embarrass us by presenting our pride and joy in June....in disgraceful condition.

It's extremely unfair on Offaly and Tipperary players in my opinion. If it was the other way round, I would be thinking kilkenny should ask for it to be moved.

Grats

Portlaoise was in a worse state last Saturday and no mention of it. The minor players appeared to have trouble at times whereas no player seemed troubled by Nowlan Park. I do agree though that it looked awful.

blackcard

A loss to Dublin in the Leinster Final would see us playing either Cork or the winner of Offaly/Laois in a quarter final followed, I think, by the winner of Limerick Clare

A win against Dublin gets us to a semi final against the loser of Limerick/Clare or Wexford/Offaly/Laois.

Have to win against Dublin or all is over

brookville

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122187816#Comment_122187816

Maybe shafted was the wrong word but he definitely got a raw deal. He was one of our most consistent performers all year and was poor against dublin and wasnt even brought on yeaterday. I dont think he is a corner back by the way but teams are targetting tommy walsh aggressively now. This was the very same last year. I blame management for this because the homework after last year was find a few players and a corner back was definitely one of them. We are tipping away nicely tho and doing enough and in a leinster final. Its all about being ready in a few weeks time not shooting the lights out now.The concern i have and ive being saying this a while is this is still mostly codys team he had two years ago. We needed a few lads to break into the team but that hasnt happened. Mossy and donnelly have stepped up a bit alright and although poor yesterday cian kenny has being more consistent.Mullen will probably come in for tom phelan the next day who hasnt recovered from the cw game. Mikey carey had a good 2nd half and generally that half back line is probably the best we have. Butler struggled yesterday but tommy is a big concern especially when all teams are really going after him and trying to get him isolated inside.He was all over the place for the 2 goals especially the 2nd one that he broke lovely for rory o connor.Management will seriously have to look at this but unfortunately we dont have many options and this is a black mark against management because it was well flagged at the end of last year. On a side note i was suprised wexford werent pulled a few times yesterday for a few 3rd man tackles that resulted in them getting scores.

neverbet

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122191796#Comment_122191796

The impression you give is that there are better players out there than are currently on the team and panel. I believe the original panel at the beginning of this year may have numbered as many as 60. Who do you suggest has not been looked at and who do you believe should replace Tommy Walsh? I think Walsh is definitely struggling for his best form , but trust him to come good.

Realt Dearg Sec

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122191846#Comment_122191846

I took him to mean that Shane Murphy could replace Tommy.

brookville

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122191900#Comment_122191900

I think shane would be a better option than tommy at the moment who is really struggling but shane isnt a natural corner back

Yes alot of lads called in but tommy played most of the league and championship no one was tried corner back. Shane has being versatile i know you have to be now i just think more should of being done to try find a corner back at the start of the year.

Charlie69

Is Conor Heary injured at the moment or has he left the panel, I know Lyng was playing him in the forwards during the league but he always looked the part as a defender underage over the years. Has good physicality about him too, I know it’s way too late for him this year but just someone I had high hopes for. Maybe his versatility went against him.

Wing Back

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122190907#Comment_122190907

No question it wasn't great in Portlaoise, but it wasn't as bad as Nowlan park. There's literally no grass in parts of it. And now we want to host an All Ireland Final. It should be nothing short of immaculate. Addin the ticket fiasco that I'm seeing…….which obviously isn't our fault. I wouldn't be surprised if Tipperary and Offaly requested a change of venue to cater for the demand which will far exceed Nowlan park capacity, but also because of the embarrassing state of the surface. And I wouldn't blame them.

Conversations 3

The Leinster final tickets, are they selling a section at a time or are all the decent tickets gone?

The dubs will fill the hill.

neverbet

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122191912#Comment_122191912

Shane has been the only one of the new crop to challenge the current defence/midfield for a place on the team. I agree best suited to half back line but Michael Carey shut that door for now on Sunday last. Fogarty again proved his value in the second half and it is great credit to him for continuing to give his all with limited game time.

kentu

Conor Heary was with the subs other day, so still on extended panel atleast, I thought after his club form over the winter we'd see more of him in the half forward line, wasn't expecting him to be a starter...but him getting a bad injury earlier in the year obviously didn't help his case.

On the Corner back issue Management clearly have no faith in Conor Delaney, Darragh Corcoran and also Padraig Moylan another player I expected to see more of this year, so they are persisting with Tommy all the time. If they did switch things around more for Corner back it would keep lads on their toes that bit more.

jimmythesulk

Our senior management are too conservative.

Charlie69

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122192986#Comment_122192986

Conor Delaney suffers a bit for pace as does Corcoran but neither could do any worse than Tommy at the moment. I don’t mean to be too critical of him because he shows with his club that he’s a good hurler but he’s definitely struggling for form at the moment. I think it’s difficult for anyone to play themselves onto the team in training these days with the quick turnaround for games. It was different in the past when they were flaking one another in Nowlan park during four week breaks between matches.

conor05

Dublin will try and isolate Tommy in Croke Park like Wexford did with Conor McDonald.

Dublin have serious pace in their team but you’d imagine Kilkenny with Adrian Mullen back should get over the line by 3 or 4 points.

Village87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122193089#Comment_122193089

When is the last time Conor Delaney got game time ? For me he is not the man for summer in Croke Park.

Charlie69

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122193288#Comment_122193288

I wasn't suggesting that he was, an earlier poster mentioned him and as I said I think he's a very good hurler but lacks a bit of pace.

Fred Daly

Is the centre of the lower deck of the cusack stand nor for the season ticket holders.

usernamethatsnotinuse

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122194135#Comment_122194135

yes - available for season ticket holders to purchase until the 5th of June

jamesbond2022

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122193288#Comment_122193288

Walsh cup against Wexford in callan maybe can’t remember him starting a league game this year