Unpopular GAA opinions you hold

CurryFlavoured wrote: »

How is my argument 'done'? I think that Marc's a better man-marker, it's an opinion.

If Lacey was an exceptional man-marker he would have been kept in the FB line, same with Higgins who was moved out to half forward. As all round footballers maybe they're better than Marc, but as a man marking corner back Marc trumps both imo.

We've completely changed tact now Why 'waste' the obvious talent of someone like Lacey when with the system we now have we don't need to take on forward out of the game. We have a set up in place that we can have someone like Neil/Eamonn McGee marking someone of the calibre of Gooch or Brogan and be ok with that. There will be plenty of cover and a set up that their impact is going to be massively hindered anyway.

If for some reason we decided to go toe to toe again (suicide) I have no doubt Karl would be redeployed to the full back line with the sole intention of shutting someone down.

As it stands, the team do that more than well enough so we can utilise Karl elsewhere. He's a brilliant footballer as we all know so he can do that comfortably too.

You said:

Neither of Lacey or Higgins are outstanding man-markers,
great players but not great at shutting out top class forwards like Marc is.

Which is wrong. Lacey is an exceptional man marker and the proof of the same are the two all stars he won playing that specific role. Just because he's now out the field doing another job (brilliantly well) doesn't change that.

And I really like O'Se by the way (how could you not?) but Lacey is right up there with the very, very best of them as a defender no matter what way you want to analyse it.

CurryFlavoured wrote: »

The 2 all star argument doesn't cut it for me though, you can't just look at that and say "Therefore, he is an exceptional man marker". In both those seasons Donegal were knocked out at the QFs, Marc O'Sé is consistently proven to mark the marquee forwards on the biggest stage. If we're using the all star argument we may as well add in John Keane, Charlie Harrison, Mick Foley etc. into the argument.

To wrap up, Lacey is a brilliant footballer. One of the best defenders of the last 10-15 years so stop getting defensive and acting like I'm slagging him off because I never was, but all I'm saying is that he's more of a half back/attacking corner back than a man marker. If we have a match tomorrow and I had to choose between Lacey, O'Sé and Higgins for who I wanted to man mark Gooch/Bernard Brogan/Colm O'Neill etc. type forward I'd choose O'Sé every day of the week. That's my (apparently unpopular) opinion.

I've used the All-Stars just to support his level of performance. Your point about O'Se playing at a higher level is a fair one and I feel given Karl is from Donegal I have to use those all star awards to support what I'm saying.

Again, in 2006 and 2009 he played exclusively as a man marker. His role was to take the oppositions marquee player and stop him. He did so. He did it so well he received an All star. Twice.

That's important here because it's not just my opinion of him as a Donegal person. It shows a certain level of performance in that particular role (which you don't believe he can do as well as someone else.) I contend that he can do. I feel those awards back up my argument about his performance level during those two seasons when Donegal had a (rare) prolonged stay in the Championship.

Going back to O'Sé and it is a very fair point. He was in a team getting to 6 AI's in a row whereas Donegal were on the beer. I can't counter that. Donegal didn't do it at the time and ergo it's not an argument which supports Lacey. In fact at the time Lacey was probably our only real shining light. (Others were on the way down, Murphy was just coming into it)

However

If we have a match tomorrow and I had to choose between Lacey, O'Sé and Higgins
for who I wanted to man mark Gooch/Bernard Brogan/Colm O'Neill etc

It'll come as no surprise that I'd be championing Lacey! I just feel he has that bit more about him.

CurryFlavoured wrote: »

To wrap up, Lacey is a brilliant footballer. One of the best defenders of the last 10-15 years so stop getting defensive and acting like I'm slagging him off because I never was, but all I'm saying is that he's more of a half back/attacking corner back than a man marker. If we have a match tomorrow and I had to choose between Lacey, O'Sé and Higgins for who I wanted to man mark Gooch/Bernard Brogan/Colm O'Neill etc. type forward I'd choose O'Sé every day of the week. That's my (apparently unpopular) opinion.

Its harping back to an argument from a few pages back but O'Se has struggled massively with a few of these marquee forwards in the past. I'm sure Lacey and Higgins have also but I havent seen it to the same extent as O'Se. In the interest of fairness I'd also have to acknowledge that Kerry and O'Se have played in higher profile and higher class games more regularly than the other two

I wouldn't say he's coming out on top of the Brogan battle at this stage. You can make plenty of those compaisons. Higgins has never done badly against Meehan yet O'Se got torn asunder against him. Higgins and Lacey have both fared far better against Colm McFadden also

aveytare wrote: »

Who would you consider Kerry's best defender of the last decade or so, Hulk Hands? They've had a lot of good ones.

Moynihan has to be up there. Best defender in the game in my opinion.

CurryFlavoured wrote: »

Funnily enough I think the exact opposite hulk hands. Marc has gotten the better of Bernard almost every time they went head to head, he always marks Corks main man and whether that was Kerrigan, O'Connor or O'Neill he generally has come out on top. Higgins for example has been made mince meat of by the Gooch, Marc has gone head to head with Gooch at club level (I know its not the same but its the only comparison I can make) and given as good as he's got.

Not true. Bernard came out on top in their 2013, 2011 championship meetings and in their recent league encounters too. You'd have to go as far back as the infamous 'startled earwigs' quarter final of 2009, to find the last game that O'Se got the better of him. Bernard has only been playing since 2007, so there haven't been all that many meetings between the two of them over all.

Bernard scored 6 pts back in 2011. Granted only 2 were from play, but he was able to win a fair few frees off Marc, which counts just as well in my book. He kicked a real beaut from play in the 68th minute, that put us ahead for the first time since half time. He left Marc for absolute dust, when he kicked it. Did you see the league game down in Kilarney in February 2013? He absolutely roasted him there. And I do mean roasted. It was quite shocking to see actually. You just don't expect to ever see that happening to an O'Se, even if it is a meaningless league game.

I thought Marc won in 11. Keeping the reigning POTY to 2 points from play is pretty telling. 2013 Bernard obviously won but Marc is about 33 years old at this stage.

Here's my opinion on Bernard...

He's a level below Gooch and Canavan, but in 2010 he had the best season I've ever seen from an inside forward - better than any single season Canavan or Gooch have had. He almost carried an out of sorts Dublin to an AI final, ripped apart numerous quality defenders and everything he touched within about 35m of goal went over the bar. Right or left foot, free kick tight on the sideline, it didn't matter. He was something else that season, he hasn't been able to repeat that form though. He showed glimpses of it last season in the League but injuries before championship stuttered his form.

He still did it when it mattered last year I suppose.

Godge wrote: »

Yawn, scoring 2-3 in an All-Ireland final and getting man of the match doesn't count, sure it doesn't?

3-19 in a championship where he was dogged with minor injuries, you wouldn't rate either.

I wouldn't rate 3-19, no. Not really.

He had a great game in the final last year, when it really mattered. Absolutely. That's what big players do, and he's a big player for Dublin. There's no disputing that.

Just in the grand scheme of things I'm not overly gone on him.

aveytare wrote: »

Which marquee forwards would you have ahead of him? As a Donegal man do you think Michael Murphy is better?

Yes.

Murphy is quite possibly the best we've ever had. And he's 24. By the time he is 30 it won't even be a debate. He is a once in a generation (probably more) type player.

davidfitz22 wrote: »

1: The MAYO4SAM campaign is the most painful thing to endure in the run up to the championships

It's pathetic. And Backwards.

"Oh wouldn't it be great if they won it. "

why?

"Ah cause they've lost so many, poor creters they deserve one."

If they were good enough to have won one, they would have. Only really in 96 where it was more unlucky than anything else. No medals handed out on sympathy. Feck off.