Waterford GAA Discussion Thread 3 ***Updated Mod Note Post 1***

Fair play to Damien Tiernan who has called out Eddie Brennan on Twitter. Brennan uses the hashtag #sportsmanship but then claims people are twisting his words by saying he is accusing Maurice of being unsporting. His put upon whinge is quite delicious.

Obviously not condoning Rushe's stroke but Maurice Shannahan was goading him for some time and obviously was looking for a reaction from him. It's a shame cause it was probably his best performance for Waterford seniors and will be more remembered for this now than anything else. He eventually got what he was trying to achieve after a couple of attempts at winding Rushe up but for me I would have given Maurice a second yellow as well.

Gleeson should have seen a second yellow also for his late tackle on Dotsy for all the difference it would have made.

Impressed once again by Barron midfield & the old reliable's Moran and Brick, consistency personified. SOK was very unlucky with goal, it would have been the save of the summer if he had got to it. Mahonney & De Burca were solid in defence & Bennett has serious potential up front. Not sure if ye have enough to beat Kilkenny yet but should be a good & close semi final.

Gentleman Off The Pitch wrote: »

Waterford twitter users and posters here getting their knickers in a twist that someone may call out their Maurice on his unsporting behaviour, questioning how could anyone know what was said to Shanahan on the pitch, well the same can be said about what Maurice did or did not say to Rushe.

If people wish to accuse Maurice of being unsporting, fine. But they should have the courage of their convictions and admit that is what they are doing. If you are going to put Rushe's stroke into context by saying he was goaded then you are condoning the strike.

deiseach wrote: »

You are condoning Rushe's stroke. Obviously.

No, no I'm fairly sure I haven't.

Giveitfong wrote: »

As far as I am aware, five of the twenty Waterford players who played yesterday have not played in Croke Park before: Shane Fives, Tadhg de Búrca, Colin Dunford, Eddie Barrett and Maurice Shanahan. Colin Dunford was a sub on the minor team that played there in 2011 but didn't come on.

Speaking of Dunford, he does take up good positions and has an excellent first touch. After scoring two early points, I thought he might go on to have a great game, and could well have scored six points with the chances created. It is probably a confidence thing, and I would persevere with him against Kilkenny. People on here seem to be delighted that Jackie Tyrrell won't be available for Kilkenny. On the big Croke Park pitch, players like Dunford and Shane Bennett could really scorch Tyrrell.

While Philip Mahony did a lot of good covering work yesterday, he was in serious trouble in the air against Danny Sutcliffe who won an ocean of ball. This could be a problem against Kilkenny, who are very good in the air.

One of these days you will realize that Croke Park is no bigger than Thurles or the Nowlan Park. Big wide spaces never bothered Jackie before and most certainly would not bother him against Waterford. Every pundit has predicted and every county has tried it the first were paid to say it, the latter could not do it, not in ten or more years of trying. Not Cork, Tipp Waterford Clare nor Galway could do it.

I'd come straight out and call Shanahan unsporting. His team had the game won, he had no business going out holding on to Rushe's hurl, he was rubbing the victory in his face and nothing else. Hate to see it. Rushe was stupid to rise to it but I genuinely think Shanahan comes out of the incident looking worse to be honest. Should show a small bit more class in victory.

Waterford were good yesterday though and deserved the win. Thought Gleeson, Brick and Maurice himself were abolutley superb. Brick never wastes a ball, certainly not the greatest stick man we've ever seen on a hurling pitch but he's one of the cleverest hurlers I've ever seen in terms of using the ball. Thought Gleeson really arrived as a top class intercounty hurler yesterday and playing midfield suited him, gave him more freedom to get forward. He's the kind of guy who'd have fit right in with the Waterford teams of the mid 00's with all their style and off the cuff hurling.

And Maurice definitely is right up there with the top forwards in the game now. Had a great game yet again. Definite All star for him.

Yesterday was my first time to see Waterford in action in person this year as I didn't make it down there for the league quarter final and it's often hard to get a sense of the shape they are playing when watching it on telly but I have to say they weren't anywhere near as defensive as I thought they'd be from what everyone had been saying. Didn't use a sweeper for much of the game really, played 2 in the full forward line mostly, I had expected it to be just Maurice up front on his own for long periods.

Don't see ye beating Kilkenny to be honest, just don't think the firepower is there to score enough to beat them. Would like to see ye do it but hard to envisage.

But who knows, we might get a Galway and Waterford final yet, would be great to see and great for the game.

I am not defending Maurice holding Rushe's hurley, but the game was over at that stage and if you want to talk about holding hurleys and goading or sledging as they like to call it now, there is not an inter-county team or probably club team in the country without guilty culprits. Rushe in my opinion should have gone for his first wild swing when he connected with Stephen Bennett, and if he is going to react like that to every time he is goaded he better get used to a lot of time on the line. Maybe Maurice didn't cover himself in glory but then again none of us knows what he had to put up with throughout the 70 minutes. One things is certain though, he did not strike two opposing players, and if you look at the footage of the altercation that followed i think you will see Rushe had a third jab with the hurley at Stephen Bennett i think it was. As i said in the earlier post i am fed up with double standards where Waterford lads are constantly painted as the villians of the peace while other counties are treate with impunity.

I am not saying that we will beat KK, i think that would be a massive achievement, but the amount of times yesterday that pundits on the radio said that Galway have proven that they could well put it up to KK in the final, and Anthony Cunningham was spot on saying he would meet Cody back in Croke Park in September, before being reminded KK were not yet there, was ridiculous.

One has to wonder what Waterford has to achieve before they will receive due recognition for the fact that they are good, very good hurlers.

My personal view on sledging is that it is harmless enough provided that it is not personal abuse. It's certainly something that multiple players on all intercounty teams partake in. I don't know what was being said on Sunday but I suspect that it was harmless enough goading. I believe that Maurice himself was getting lots off it from some of the Dublin players when he was taking his frees and it was like water off a ducks back. I can see why some people would hate it too but any suggestion that it is worse than physically striking an opponent is just wrong. You cannot equate the two.

galwaylad14 wrote: »

I'd come straight out and call Shanahan unsporting. His team had the game won, he had no business going out holding on to Rushe's hurl, he was rubbing the victory in his face and nothing else. Hate to see it. Rushe was stupid to rise to it but I genuinely think Shanahan comes out of the incident looking worse to be honest. Should show a small bit more class in victory.

Ah lads would want to get a grip here. What Maurice engaged in as far as I could see was a bit of gamesmanship in an attempt to slow the game down. To say the game was won is rubbish. Yes unlikely that Dublin were going to get 2 goals but stranger things have happened (ref Offaly/Limerick AI final 1994). Regarding any verbals (sledging) I played hurling for a long number of years and was on the receiving end from numerous players. Once they didn't get personal (Donegal/Tyrone minor football game tybe of verbal abuse) I never had an issue with it. I gave a fair bit of it too (stuff along the lines "jaysus that was a bad miss there/f@#k it you made a bollix of that pass/ I skinned you for that one Jimmy etc etc) and everytime without exception we'd shake hands at the end of the game and move on. And any time I meet any of these guys these days we can talk about matches past without any difficulty - nobody bore a grudge at the time or subsequently. What I'm saying is that kind of stuff always was and always will be in the game. And players accept it as part of the game (but let me be clear here, the personal stuff excluded).
What you can't condone is a deliberate strike to the head with a hurley. End of.

redlead wrote: »

My personal view on sledging is that it is harmless enough provided that it is not personal abuse. It's certainly something that multiple players on all intercounty teams partake in. I don't know what was being said on Sunday but I suspect that it was harmless enough goading. I believe that Maurice himself was getting lots off it from some of the Dublin players when he was taking his frees and it was like water off a ducks back. I can see why some people would hate it too but any suggestion that it is worse than physically striking an opponent is just wrong. You cannot equate the two.

If sledging isn't personal abuse then what is it? You seriously think that players full of adrenalin won't cross the boundaries from harmless banter 'oh you could have done better there lad'' to ''go **** your mother and sister ya Dublin pikey'' bla bla

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

You seriously think that players full of adrenalin won't cross the boundaries from harmless banter 'oh you could have done better there lad'' to ''go **** your mother and sister ya Dublin pikey'' bla bla

Yes.

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

ok so give me an example of something that would be ok for a normal decent lad to say in the field but dosen't constitute any kind of personal abuse whatsoever

Here's a list commensense prepared earlier