National Forum

The Laois Rising.

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Replying To Maroonatic:  "American tourist (Yank) falls into conversation with a local (Auld Fella) in a bar not far from Croke Park
Yank: Glancing towards Croke Park. "That's a mighty fine stadium. I hear you guys play that game called hurling there"
Auld Fella: "Best game in the world boy"
Yank: "Yeah, it looks awesome but I don't quite get how you eventually end up with two teams in the All Ireland final. Could you explain it to me?"
Auld Fella "You know there are four provinces in Ireland?"
Yank: "Yeah Munster, Leinster, Connacht and Ulster"
Auld Fella: "Well first you play in your respective province. The top teams then qualify for the next stage"
Yank: "Right, so a round-robin system in all four provinces?"
Auld Fella: "Yes on the round-robin no on all four provinces. We really only bother with two, Leinster and Munster"
Yank: "I see. So what happens then?"
Auld Fella: "Ok, the top three teams in each of the provinces remain in the overall All-Ireland competition"
Yank: "I can follow that. So, you have 6 teams still standing after the provincials?"
Auld Fella: "No. You have other counties who can then join in"
Yank: "Right! I guess those are the guys from Connacht and Ulster?"
Auld Fella: "No. Sometimes it might be one team from Ulster but never any Connacht counties"
Yank: "Really? What happens Galway. I hear they play and they're from Connacht"
Auld Fella: "They compete in Leinster"
Yank: "Hmmm. Figures, right?. Anyway, I hear Kilkenny and Wexford played a final already. How did those guys qualify for that final?"
Auld Fella: "By beating Carlow by a bigger score than Galway and Dublin did"
Yank: "Okaaay. Umm..How have Kilkenny been doing? I got family from Mullinavat"
Auld Fella: "The Cats have lost two games already this year but they're still in the championship"
Yank: "Cool and how many games have Dublin lost?"
Auld Fella: "Two as well"
Yank : "Phew. So they're still in it too?"
Auld Fella: "No. They're out"
Yank : "Really ? And this format has been the same for over a 100 years?"
Auld Fella: "Not at all. We in Ireland move with the times and yet manage to keep with tradition. All it takes is a bit of imagination"
Yank : "You guys got that alright"
Auld Fella "Now. The Munster Championship. There's tradition for ya. Let me explain.."
Yank : "You know what, it's been great but my vacation only lasts two weeks and I still got some sight-seeing to do. Nice meeting you sir"
Auld Fella: "Best game in the world boy. Remember that. Slán""
Wouldnt use a Yank as an example. They have leagues where 30 teams play 162 games to decide which 10 enter the playoffs

Breezy (Limerick) - Posts: 1236 - 08/07/2019 21:15:54    2208164

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so a kk man is complaining about the standard in leinster,on the back of the closest run leinster championship in history,the final being a great match.
are you sure you aren't just peed off that kilkenny arent able to waltz through it like they once could?
i would have said laois won because they were hungrier for it,played better,and were bouyed by the home crowd.
i am not so sure who would have got a win there on sunday,but i think they would have matched anyone in the country the way they played

perfect10 (Wexford) - Posts: 3929 - 08/07/2019 22:08:59    2208208

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Great for hurling that Laois won. I was always in favour of the Joe McDonagh cup. Its a very competitive competition in general. Likewise the league format up to this year gives the weaker teams competitive games and a chance of winning games. The league system for 2020 is a joke really as some teams are going to get big beatings in games. Its the wrong call in my opinion.
In the longer term they may need to look at the number of teams in the leinster cship if the Joe Mc winners keep going up and down but for now it's an excellent format in my opinion.
My only question is should teams feel aggrieved that second tier teams are in the first tier cship when they are knocked out? In theory that doesn't make sense and was probably only designed as a token gesture with no one expecting them to win. In theory Westmeath (unlikely to ever happen) - the Joe Mc runners up could win the All Ireland and stay in the Joe Mc the following year.
I like the idea but similar to the league where fourth placed 1B teams get to Q finals while 5th and 6th 1A don't - there's no real logic in it.
It could be argued if Dublin for example got relegated this year they'd have a far easier route into the Liam Mc knockout stages next year.

Not trying to take from Laois' win however and I actually agree with the system...for now. The Joe Mc has been a great success in my opinion but every pundit out there has disagreed with it...until now at least.

tiobraid (Tipperary) - Posts: 4119 - 08/07/2019 22:21:58    2208218

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Replying To Breezy:  "Wouldnt use a Yank as an example. They have leagues where 30 teams play 162 games to decide which 10 enter the playoffs"
Best Game all right, Teams going out losing on purpose so another team gets knocked out. Still they wont get knocked out.

SAMMYTHEBULL (Galway) - Posts: 1646 - 09/07/2019 03:54:04    2208268

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Replying To SAMMYTHEBULL:  "Best Game all right, Teams going out losing on purpose so another team gets knocked out. Still they wont get knocked out."
I wouldnt go calling baseball the best game

Breezy (Limerick) - Posts: 1236 - 09/07/2019 13:29:39    2208433

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Replying To Breezy:  "I wouldnt go calling baseball the best game"
I think he was being sarcastic. I dont mind baseball but it is absorbing rather than exciting......

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 11715 - 09/07/2019 15:56:52    2208513

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Replying To perfect10:  "so a kk man is complaining about the standard in leinster,on the back of the closest run leinster championship in history,the final being a great match.
are you sure you aren't just peed off that kilkenny arent able to waltz through it like they once could?
i would have said laois won because they were hungrier for it,played better,and were bouyed by the home crowd.
i am not so sure who would have got a win there on sunday,but i think they would have matched anyone in the country the way they played"
Just because it was close doesn't necessarily mean that the standard was high.

are you sure you aren't just peed off that kilkenny arent able to waltz through it like they once could?

Why can't you and some other (not all) Wexford supporters on here just enjoy your victory and look forward to the semi-final, instead of making snide remarks about Kilkenny. It smacks of an inferiority complex.

Cockney_Cat (UK) - Posts: 2446 - 09/07/2019 18:36:03    2208586

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Replying To Cockney_Cat:  "Just because it was close doesn't necessarily mean that the standard was high.

are you sure you aren't just peed off that kilkenny arent able to waltz through it like they once could?

Why can't you and some other (not all) Wexford supporters on here just enjoy your victory and look forward to the semi-final, instead of making snide remarks about Kilkenny. It smacks of an inferiority complex."
I thought it was a great match and I thought when TJ put KK a point up with 10 to go KK would drive on for home.
To be fair Cockney_Cat, Kilkenny are coming across as awful sore losers. Complaining about the referee, complaining that the standard wasn't good. Some of the scores which were taken in that game, I am thinking TJ, Jack O'Connor, Liam Og, Conor Mc, Adrian Mullen, were outstanding. I don't see why Kilkenny supporters are being so critical of everything to do with the match, Leinster hurling, refereeing, etc.
It smacks of being bad losers if you ask me. And yet I'd love to see us meet again later in the summer for round 3!

StoreysTash (Wexford) - Posts: 1732 - 09/07/2019 19:50:56    2208614

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Replying To StoreysTash:  "
Replying To Cockney_Cat:  "Just because it was close doesn't necessarily mean that the standard was high.

are you sure you aren't just peed off that kilkenny arent able to waltz through it like they once could?

Why can't you and some other (not all) Wexford supporters on here just enjoy your victory and look forward to the semi-final, instead of making snide remarks about Kilkenny. It smacks of an inferiority complex."
I thought it was a great match and I thought when TJ put KK a point up with 10 to go KK would drive on for home.
To be fair Cockney_Cat, Kilkenny are coming across as awful sore losers. Complaining about the referee, complaining that the standard wasn't good. Some of the scores which were taken in that game, I am thinking TJ, Jack O'Connor, Liam Og, Conor Mc, Adrian Mullen, were outstanding. I don't see why Kilkenny supporters are being so critical of everything to do with the match, Leinster hurling, refereeing, etc.
It smacks of being bad losers if you ask me. And yet I'd love to see us meet again later in the summer for round 3!"
So would I! An all Leinster final would put all the "substandard Leinster Championship" talk to bed! At the same time Im not rushing down the bookies either!! We ll see what we see. We (as in all the posters on all the threads) have only 5 more games of intercounty hurling left to argue, debate and enthuse over. Make the most of them!!

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 11715 - 09/07/2019 20:15:04    2208626

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Replying To greysoil:  "Well I guess you are above this site. So long buddy xx"
*"old" chat

Bon (Kildare) - Posts: 1898 - 09/07/2019 22:15:35    2208727

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Replying To Bon:  "*"old" chat"
Eh???

greysoil (Monaghan) - Posts: 965 - 09/07/2019 22:52:50    2208750

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No stopping Laois they put Meath to the sword, 1-13 to 0-7 tonight. To book a provincial final place against us in Tullamore Friday week.

Great week for Laois GAA.

TheUsername (Dublin) - Posts: 4445 - 09/07/2019 23:35:32    2208781

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Replying To perfect10:  "so a kk man is complaining about the standard in leinster,on the back of the closest run leinster championship in history,the final being a great match.
are you sure you aren't just peed off that kilkenny arent able to waltz through it like they once could?
i would have said laois won because they were hungrier for it,played better,and were bouyed by the home crowd.
i am not so sure who would have got a win there on sunday,but i think they would have matched anyone in the country the way they played"
Sure, what do you want me to say, Perfect 10? "This is one of the greatest Kilkenny teams of all time. The backs are rock solid and the forwards are a well-oiled scoring machine. Enda Morrissey is earning a reputation amongst Kilkenny fans as "the new Tommy Walsh" and the performances of Alan Murphy in attack have prompted more than a few observers to ask "Henry who?""

To paraphrase Martin Luther King, "we've been to the mountain top", we're not stupid, we know mediocrity when it's staring us right in the face.

ballydalane (Kilkenny) - Posts: 1246 - 09/07/2019 23:51:12    2208794

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Replying To TheUsername:  "No stopping Laois they put Meath to the sword, 1-13 to 0-7 tonight. To book a provincial final place against us in Tullamore Friday week.

Great week for Laois GAA."
Looking forward to Under-20 football final in Tullamore
- a good choice of venue, much preferable to Newbridge in my opinion.

Re. Laois win in the hurling last Sunday - being old enough to remember Laois knocking on the door in the eighties (Offaly pipped us for the breakthrough) I do find some of the reaction slightly patronising. Ok, Laois have been in the doldrums for the past 20-25 years but a properly prepared Laois team would never fear Dublin in senior hurling. Yes, last Sunday's result was an upset but not really a seismic shock.

Now next Sunday is another matter entirely. Tipperary are serious contenders for the All-Ireland and Laois are novices in big time hurling. There's plenty of skill in that Laois side but they are quite obviously total outsiders next Sunday.

PudsyRyan (Laois) - Posts: 15 - 10/07/2019 00:15:50    2208807

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Replying To ballydalane:  "Sure, what do you want me to say, Perfect 10? "This is one of the greatest Kilkenny teams of all time. The backs are rock solid and the forwards are a well-oiled scoring machine. Enda Morrissey is earning a reputation amongst Kilkenny fans as "the new Tommy Walsh" and the performances of Alan Murphy in attack have prompted more than a few observers to ask "Henry who?""

To paraphrase Martin Luther King, "we've been to the mountain top", we're not stupid, we know mediocrity when it's staring us right in the face."
I agree in terms of KK. I remember when I thought I would never see better than DJ Carey and ye came out with a whole team better.

Doesnt mean other teams in Leinster arent improving. We are hopefully looking at Wexfords best team since 96.

But also hopefully not as good as 96 :)

Breezy (Limerick) - Posts: 1236 - 10/07/2019 02:43:13    2208817

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Replying To ballydalane:  "Sure, what do you want me to say, Perfect 10? "This is one of the greatest Kilkenny teams of all time. The backs are rock solid and the forwards are a well-oiled scoring machine. Enda Morrissey is earning a reputation amongst Kilkenny fans as "the new Tommy Walsh" and the performances of Alan Murphy in attack have prompted more than a few observers to ask "Henry who?""

To paraphrase Martin Luther King, "we've been to the mountain top", we're not stupid, we know mediocrity when it's staring us right in the face."
Shame, I really do feel for you, much as you would have when you were lording over everyone. Even Kilkenny supporters got so bored with your superiorty they left early when an All Ireland trophy was being presented. Glad Wexford, Limerick, Laois are all on way up and hopefully Offaly get themselves sorted in near future.

Jedobi (Wexford) - Posts: 134 - 10/07/2019 05:06:01    2208821

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Replying To ballydalane:  "Sure, what do you want me to say, Perfect 10? "This is one of the greatest Kilkenny teams of all time. The backs are rock solid and the forwards are a well-oiled scoring machine. Enda Morrissey is earning a reputation amongst Kilkenny fans as "the new Tommy Walsh" and the performances of Alan Murphy in attack have prompted more than a few observers to ask "Henry who?""

To paraphrase Martin Luther King, "we've been to the mountain top", we're not stupid, we know mediocrity when it's staring us right in the face."
I agree 100%. But there are very few intercounty hurlers playing currently that would have been certain starters on that Kilkenny team had they been born there back in the day. Great players dont grow on trees. Morrissey and Murphy are still only chaps really. Tommy Walsh and Henry Shefflin didnt hit their peak til their mid/late 20s. Ok so its not the greatest Kilkenny team ever in terms of u21 titles won or greatest of all time hurlers but half the team are only in their early 20s. And regardless of all that, the fact that Alan Murphy isnt Henry Shefflin doesnt make the Leinster championship mediocre. Great teams go in cycles. Limerick in the 30s, Cork in the 40s, us in the 50s, Tipp in the 60s, Kilkenny and Cork in the 70s (which was unfortunate for ourselves and Limerick who both had good teams in the 70s) etc.....I for 1 am enjoying the last few years better than the noughties as like in the 90s there are many teams around the same level with a different 1 raising its standards each year to bring home Liam. Exciting stuff!

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 11715 - 10/07/2019 09:38:12    2208861

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Replying To Breezy:  "I agree in terms of KK. I remember when I thought I would never see better than DJ Carey and ye came out with a whole team better.

Doesnt mean other teams in Leinster arent improving. We are hopefully looking at Wexfords best team since 96.

But also hopefully not as good as 96 :)"
Kilkenny are still in it and could yet win it youd swear by some of their posts it was them got knocked out by Laois. Breezy ye brought home Liam last year you surely wouldnt begrudge us a go off him?!

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 11715 - 10/07/2019 09:41:46    2208862

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Replying To Jedobi:  "Shame, I really do feel for you, much as you would have when you were lording over everyone. Even Kilkenny supporters got so bored with your superiorty they left early when an All Ireland trophy was being presented. Glad Wexford, Limerick, Laois are all on way up and hopefully Offaly get themselves sorted in near future."
limerick on the way up..?????? are we not at the top.? were you in hibernation last year.?

munsterchamps (Limerick) - Posts: 1095 - 10/07/2019 10:43:27    2208907

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Replying To ballydalane:  "Sure, what do you want me to say, Perfect 10? "This is one of the greatest Kilkenny teams of all time. The backs are rock solid and the forwards are a well-oiled scoring machine. Enda Morrissey is earning a reputation amongst Kilkenny fans as "the new Tommy Walsh" and the performances of Alan Murphy in attack have prompted more than a few observers to ask "Henry who?""

To paraphrase Martin Luther King, "we've been to the mountain top", we're not stupid, we know mediocrity when it's staring us right in the face."
You seem to be of the opinion that the only reason Wexford won Leinster is because Kilkenny were mediocre?

You had a once-in-a-generation team, all came together, and trounced all before them. In Leinster, this coincided with probably the worst Wexford teams in living memory. That was 100% our own fault and we learned from it.

Wexford (and Limerick, Clare, etc) have upped their game massively in recent years, maybe it is other counties upping the ante rather than Kilkenny being mediocre and you are struggling to deal with this loss of invincibility?

In all the Kilkenny defeats in my life (I was 6 in 2004 so I can only remember 1 victory over them 2 years ago), I have never once begrudged them the victory. The opposite isn't the case and KK are coming across as very bad losers. Blaming the referee, saying it was a mediocre Leinster championship yet it was decided in the space of 5 minutes who was in and who was out? The same happened in Munster last year and the amount of hyperbole was unbeliveable about what a great championship it was?

StoreysTash (Wexford) - Posts: 1732 - 10/07/2019 13:50:20    2209050

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