The 2023 All Ireland Senior Football Championship (Sam Maguire Cup)

Yeah but the advanced mark was never supposed to used as 'defensive tactic' a team can play the play back then hit it forward to kill time.

Dublin claimed a few marks yesterday to get tap over frees and or take the sting out of the game. It doesn't look right, whole game stops and yer man gets time to kill the clock. Stops the free flowing nature of the game.

I understand that it was brought in to stop 'scums' in the GAA when players get smothered, but the way it is now it seems just as bad/worse IMO - stops the flow of the game completely. Has to be some tweak they can do instead?

You just want Dublin to win Leinster finals by an even bigger margin. 5-21 to 0-15 this year, 5-17 to 1-15 last year. Defences in good teams can stop goal chances happening for attackers from weak teams. It would just finish up with the weak teams squandering half chances for goals, and scoring even fewer points.

It was mentioned a few times yesterday, the red jersey for Derry is their away jersey. White is their home one.

Common sense would have seen both teams wearing their home jerseys but who knows what went on behind the scenes. Were Derry forced to wear their away jersey etc

I'm not so sure about that. To prevent the 20 yard dink pass for a simple point, teams have to absolutely flood the area behind their 45, leading to minutes of over and back handpassing outside the 45. I very much doubt the mark has improved the amount of lateral hand passing at all.

The long accurate kick into a full forward is still a very dangerous weapon, mark or no mark. Some of the balls the Dubs kicked into Con yesterday were goal chances if he took them on. Kerry use the kick pass very well also.

Did either Derry or Armagh use the mark as it was intended at any stage yesterday i.e. a long kick into the full forward line, I'm not sure I remember them doing so.

When there is a colour clash in Championship both teams are supposed to wear there alternative kit.

Note: In league games it is the home team who wears the alternative kit. There is no such thing as an away kit in GAA.

The tackle in football is such a mess that the long kick into the full forward would more often than not lead to him being surrounded, boxed in and penalised for overcarrying. It's a joke in general the way players can be pinned on the ground by the legs of 3 opposing players and be done for overcarrying when they can't get up!

I think the mark has brought back long kicking and catching in a time of chronic handpassing, and I welcome that.

I agree the little dink pass is a headwrecker though. But I'd take it over another 2 minutes of handpassing.

They should have just brought in a rule that no more than 2 players can tackle the player with the ball.

Kerry and Dublin are far ahead in their provincial championships at the moment. The lobsided Connacht draw exasperated the criticisms of the provincial championships.

Kerry v Mayo and Galway v Tyrone are an interesting start to the group stage. While it is 3 from the group, all 4 will want to get their first win on the board.

A lot of the media are suddenly talking the Dubs up again many seem to have them as second favourites for Sam. I don't get that meself.

Kerry favourites by a long way - Mayo better all round panel than Dublin lots of pace - I would have Galway as dark horses a really settled side lovely balance to it - Derry are great (when everyone is fit) which is similar to where Dublin are damn all between both sides - and with Derry the system is greater than the sum of their parts, so the players can basically manage themselves.

In the real underachieving section I would have Cork, Kildare, Donegal, Tyrone. Of those group I can't help thinking of what a top tier manager (who knows what he is at) would do with them. Plenty of raw material there. Dublin are in danger of falling into this group fast.

The others counties not mentioned are doing OK IMO they have found their levels.

The real championship only starts now so I don't think anyone can be down as 1st, 2nd or whatever favourite. We won't know anyone's real form for a week or two. We can say which teams won't win it but after that who knows.

I think Armagh are beyond the cut off point and also think Tyrone are ahead of Derry based on them having been there a few years ago. All of them should at least have hope of making the final.

Mayo.

Killer instincts 🤣🤣

Ya they just got lucky getting through the knock out rounds to reach all those finals