Galway GAA discussion thread

Moore played full-back and acquitted himself well, as did all Galway and Connacht players. Only 1 team there today, Ulster quite disjointed. Nice to see a long hiatus come to an end.

Will the game be on tv?

Good to see Adrian Varley getting more game-time. Reminds me of an Andy Moran type play-maker, very unselfish in possession and always looking to play his other forwards into good positions.

How long is Meehan going to be out for? On one foot he remains better than the vast majority of the IC forwards in the country.

Meehan pile driver

I agree about Laois hammering us in Port last year. However theyve been utter cack so far whereas we were at least functional at times against Meath. I'd be hopeful. Feeling quite sick at the moment but hopefully will be alright to make the trip tomorrow

Laois 1-20 Galway 0-8

Absolutely shocking stuff. Hello Division 3.

Utopia Parkway wrote: »

Laois 1-20 Galway 0-8

Absolutely shocking stuff. Hello Division 3.

Was looking forward to Mayo/Ros/Galway pow-wows in D2 next year. Don't give up the ghost yet, lads.

There is talent in Galway but its another transitional period and once again the senior players are displaying no leadership and the younger players have to try and pick up the mantle. No-one who has been following Galway is too surprised by this result. Being honest even when past it Padraig Joyce was keeping that side some way respectable almost single handedly.

I don't think going down to Division 3 is the end of the world but Galway are drifting. I don't personally rate Alan Mulholland but we've had a lot of managers in and out and none of them have been able to get this team to the level many would expect. The players need to show that they want it first.

As Joe Brolly said last year Galway aren't serious about their football. All parties involved from county board to players and management are culpable. When you can't be competitive against Laois you're in big trouble (no disrespect). London will fancy their chances and tbh if I was to wager on it right now I wouldn't be backing Galway.

Of course things can change, but if they do in the near term it will just be another false dawn. We need to re-examine everything we are doing from grassroots up, else we could go a decade or two without any silverware (at senior) whatsoever. Thats not being hysterical. Its a possibility.

Winning U-21's with nice footballers is all fine and well but these successes are just tapering over the cracks that exist in Galway football. Biggest problems:

Uncompetitive club championship

Systematic tactical naivety

Inadequate physical coaching

Inability to defend/tackle both individually and collectively as a unit

Living in the past mentality

Most of this needs to be rectified at grassroots level.

Utopia Parkway wrote: »

The thing is Cork beat Dublin this weekend with a lot of young lads that were regularly beaten by Galway at U-21 level in recent years. Just makes no sense. Even with young inexperienced players there is just no way any Galway team should be getting hockeyed by 15 points by an average side. Shameful.

Thats a fair point however the likes of Goold,Kerrigan,Goulding are leading by example how many of the more experienced Galway players are standing up or standing out? Young lads need leaders and strong characters to drive them on i don't see many of those type of players on the current Galway team.

Embarrassing. Yesterday was just completely embarrassing. Possibly a worse low than the Mayo game last year. Hard to see how it can be turned around at this stage either. Players ran out of ideas after about 15 minutes, and the sideline offered nothing at any stage. How Bradshaw was on the field after 20 minutes I don't know, he was coughing the ball up at will to Laois players. The "senior" players overall offered nothing. No heart, no pride, nothing from them. I felt genuinely sorry for O'Curraoin when he came off. Himself and Varley in the forwards probably tried the hardest, and played decently, but he looked truly disgusted coming off. I worry that those young players, who are talented, might be put off playing if things don't change. In fairness to O'Curraoin and Flynn midfield did look like the only place we half had a chance for some of the game but there was no support from any other area of the pitch.
I think there's a good chance too that they're about to lose the "die hard" supporters too. There have been a good few low moments over the past few years, too many for a county like Galway, but last night felt a bit different. Ourselves, like a few other fools, have travelled stupid distances to watch crappy league games and have always gone to the next one. After last night I'm not even sure I could be arsed going 10 minutes down the road to Tuam to see them get a hiding from Down. Seemed to be similar rumblings from a few others too. It's too much money and time being spent to come away embarrassed and annoyed.
And this is exactly why everyone is so annoyed:

The thing is Cork beat Dublin this weekend with a lot of young lads that were regularly beaten by Galway at U-21 level in recent years. Just makes no sense. Even with young inexperienced players there is just no way any Galway team should be getting hockeyed by 15 points by an average side. Shameful.

I was hopeful when Mullholland started he'd get the most out of those players he brought up through u21 but it hasn't worked. I can't understand how two talented u21 All-Ireland winning teams are being squandered so badly. Leadership was certainly lacking yesterday, but players like Armstrong, Sice, GOD, even Kavanagh should be able to offer something.

From listening last night and the other 2 league games, and watching the championship games last year, it's clear that a number of those players have no business being near any county squad. Their attitudes of giving up at HT are shocking and embarrassing. Singling out Bradshaw here, but what kind of player goes away to America after being sent off against Mayo, abandoning the squad, and walks right back into the team in the new year? It would be grand if he was a decent player, but on the evidence I've seen, he isn't. Hardly any point blaming the manager at this stage too, given the number of managers that have tried and failed to get any sort of performances out of this sorry bunch.

Utopia Parkway wrote: »

There is no gameplan. The team don't attack or defend as a unit. There are big gaps between the forwards and the backs. Support play seems non-existant.

You might get away with that stuff at underage where it is more off the cuff and less tactical but if you have no discernible gameplan at senior level you will lose. A lot.

That makes sense. Because, while this is far from the greatest Galway team of all time, there are still some very good players involved and you'd have to think someone else would be capable of getting a fair bit more out of them than we've seen in the last year.