Donegal will beat Tyrone first round and should go on to win it

royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 09/05/2013 14:59:47    1381166

Ulster is a bit like Afghanistan full of landmines , Cavan v Armagh going for Cavan win a young side who will have benefited from three under 21 ulster titles a close one but Cavan has to win sometime Donegal v Tyrone because of the Bally buffet venue the only food on this menu will be Red Meat Donegal to shade a feisty affair don't be surprised if it doesn't end up 13 a side . Derry v Downthe mighty oaks and the aristocrats I think Derry will be the surprise package in this years championship not only in Ulster but further on down have been on (pardon the pun )a downward spiral for a number of years not so much Aristocrats but ally cats which is what they need to do if they have any hope of toppling the mighty Oaks . if Tyrone and Donegal were the Cinderella game in this years championship Antrim v Monaghan are the ugly sisters of ulster at the moment you can slap as much make up on these two teams but am afraid the cracks will still show through in the end . Verdict Donegal v Derry - Donegal

fortyfive (Tyrone) - Posts: 5929 - 09/05/2013 20:31:26    1381389

gotmilk
County: Fermanagh
Posts: 1351

1379992
Can i borrow your crystal ball Mesamis?

Anytime buddy.

Ulster is almost always a 2 horse race but it's unfortunate in some ways, great in others, that the 2 horses are meeting in the first round this year. Once that game's over it's just a question of what round of qualifiers the other counties enter into imo.

MesAmis (Dublin) - Posts: 13846 - 10/05/2013 10:17:01    1381507

Whilst Antrim are the poorest county in Ulster at the minute I think Down are, well, going down. A lot of injuries and players showing little interest you are likely to see them lose to Derry, heavily and then go out of the qualifiers early. Just can't see them doing anything this year. Monaghan on the other hand have shown great improvement under new management. I think Tyrone will beat Donegal and that infact Derry are also better than Donegal at present. So Tyrone and Derry for me, followed by a resurgent Monaghan under new management. Armagh could spring a surprise. Some classy new forwards. Cavan, Fermamangh, Down all some way behind.

gaelantrim (Antrim) - Posts: 1616 - 10/05/2013 11:26:15    1381557

GaelAntrim

Derry are also better than Donegal at present.

hehe. Thanks for that!

DLlegends (Donegal) - Posts: 503 - 10/05/2013 11:41:44    1381567

about 75% of ulster football is on the day. There is no way of predicting Cavan v Armagh. Derry v Down. Donegal v Tyrone. Antrim will struggle but Fermanagh and Monaghan could end up having a big say in the back door. I think that there are a lot of interesting games ahead. I think that Derry are just not good enough to win Ulster yet. Themselves and Cavan should get a good run going in a couple of years

Donegalman (None) - Posts: 3858 - 10/05/2013 11:55:14    1381574

Gaelantrim, Derry are country miles behind Donegal. Though I do fancy Tyrone to beat Donegal in the first round but Donegal to go further in the championship overall. Derry v down, home advantage a big plus for us but the winner will go out at the semi stage to Tyrone. I think Armagh could come back with a sting in the tail and possibly contest and give the final a good rattle.

johnjoseph (Derry) - Posts: 158 - 10/05/2013 17:45:44    1381847

Donegalman
County: All
Posts: 608

1381574 about 75% of ulster football is on the day. There is no way of predicting Cavan v Armagh. Derry v Down. Donegal v Tyrone. Antrim will struggle but Fermanagh and Monaghan could end up having a big say in the back door. I think that there are a lot of interesting games ahead. I think that Derry are just not good enough to win Ulster yet. Themselves and Cavan should get a good run going in a couple of years

haha i love that, where did you get the 75% from.

AthCliath (Dublin) - Posts: 4347 - 10/05/2013 18:40:50    1381867

gaelantrim
County: Antrim
Posts: 1382

1381557
You may be using the National League to forecast Donegal lagging behind Tyrone or Derry, however I see the bookies have not taken that bait this year. No 20/1 or 18/1 odds for Donegal to win Sam this year unfortunately.As for the bigger picture in Ulster, It should be a very Interesting year.

I fancy Derry to beat Down, but really hard to call as Down ran some top sides close this year in the league ( Tyrone and Cork ). Down are a different beast to the others in Ulster, form doesn't come into for them.

Cavan v Armagh is one Im excited to see. Cavan have a huge amount of talent coming up through, and I would actually fancy them to make a run to the Ulster final. However Armagh are too good to write off, I would expect this to be a tight tactical game.

Clearly the Donegal v Tyrone game is the big one. Mickey Harte said recently that he believes Donegal will improve again much like the improvement seen between 2011 and 2012, I agree. They actually looked better in the 2012 league matches than they did last year, despite the fact they got relegated.
This Donegal side have shown a level of consistancy over the last 2 years that I don't recall seeing from Tyrone during the 2003-2008 period. They perform consistantly well game after game, and are possibly the last team in the country I could Imagine been caught on the hop by a lesser outfit.
I have watched Tyrone alot this season, and have to say that while they have clearly improved significantly on last season, I'm just not feeling it. I don't get that vibe from them that they could go win Sam this year, they just haven't looked dominating enough to do so. They no doubt will bust their guts to beat Donegal, but could they continue it and beat a list of top sides like Dublin, Cork, Mayo etc? They are close, but not close enough just yet.
I feel Donegal will win this game, and likely win Ulster then. Whether or not the win their opening game, I reckon an All Ireland semi final will await them.

GaryMc82 (Derry) - Posts: 3057 - 10/05/2013 21:35:25    1381927

fortyfiveCounty: TyronePosts: 51501381389Ulster is a bit like Afghanistan full of landmines , Cavan v Armagh going for Cavan win a young side who will have benefited from three under 21 ulster titles a close one but Cavan has to win sometime Donegal v Tyrone because of the Bally buffet venue the only food on this menu will be Red Meat Donegal to shade a feisty affair don't be surprised if it doesn't end up 13 a side . Derry v Downthe mighty oaks and the aristocrats I think Derry will be the surprise package in this years championship not only in Ulster but further on down have been on (pardon the pun )a downward spiral for a number of years not so much Aristocrats but ally cats which is what they need to do if they have any hope of toppling the mighty Oaks . if Tyrone and Donegal were the Cinderella game in this years championship Antrim v Monaghan are the ugly sisters of ulster at the moment you can slap as much make up on these two teams but am afraid the cracks will still show through in the end . Verdict Donegal v Derry - Donegal

It cant be a Donegal V Derry final

bladecx (Monaghan) - Posts: 147 - 13/05/2013 09:52:45    1382814

I envisage a Tyrone v Armagh final, back to the good old days. If Armagh get over Cavan, they face Fermanagh. If they beat Fermangh they will play either Monaghan or Antrim to get into the final.....you got to say its not a difficult route to clones for Armagh.

cacsmckilly (Tyrone) - Posts: 1294 - 13/05/2013 10:37:17    1382842

Cacs,
If it does end up being Armagh and Monaghan I'd fancy Monaghan. I think they'll have learned much from last years second half failure against Down and have the players to beat Armagh. IMO Armagh just don't have the top players at the minute that are dedicated to county football.
P.S D-day minus 13 days and counting!!

Tir Conaill Abu (Donegal) - Posts: 1686 - 13/05/2013 11:33:36    1382898

Cavan v Armagh. I predict this will be a tough competitive encounter this weekend in Cavan. Armagh are an average enough side, but as mentioned above they always give 100% for the Armagh jersey which means their never easy beat. I'll predict Armagh to win by 2-3 points.

Donegal-Tyrone is obviously the big eye catching draw of the Ulster championship. Have a feeling the match itself could flatter to deceive. I can see both sides resorting to ultra defensive tactics leading to a dull low-scoring affair. I hope I'm wrong and we're treated to an exciting end-to-end game similar to the Dublin-Tyrone league final. Tyrone have been impressive thus far this season, therefore I would see no reason to bet against them as Donegal have yet to ignite. Tyrone by 4.

Derry v Down. This game really could go either way, whoever plays to their full potential on the day will win. Derry have made great progress under McIver in such a short period of time. Down, on the other hand, have been ravaged with injuries to key players. This could turn out to be a real ding-dong battle. Home advantage and a great league campaign means Derry go into the game slight favourites. I wouldn't rule out a draw.

Antrim v Monaghan. Antrim had an extremely poor league campaign, showing no real form. Granted leagues are for playing and championship winning, I can't see Antrim causing any upsets here. Monaghan are well managed and possess some great players. Monaghan to win by 5-6 points.

Fermanagh v Armagh/Cavan. Would fancy the winners of Armagh/Cavan to beat Fermanagh. Always a slight advantage to have a championship game under your belt when playing in the preliminary round game. Fermanagh had a decent league campaign but just lack quality players in depth and can't see them making it past either Armagh or Cavan.

MourneArmy (Down) - Posts: 1787 - 13/05/2013 13:25:03    1382982

Having looked at the RTE schedule, and living abroad (with dodgy IP address ready to go), I have to say I'm delighted with the amount of Ulster games being shown on RTE. I'm really looking forward to Cavan v Armagh next weekend. I think Cavan will come up just short in this one. After that, I think Donegal will squeeze past Tyrone. I think Down will come good in next game, despite the hype around Derry. Monaghan should take care of Antrim. Wouldn't be huge shock if I was wrong on all four of those though, its the nature of the beast in Ulster

petejoeduff (Donegal) - Posts: 329 - 13/05/2013 17:18:48    1383196

Fermanagh V Armagh or Cavan :Cavan
Antirm V Monaghan :Monaghan
Derry V Down :Derry
Donegal V Tyrone :Tyrone

Cavan V Monaghan :Monaghan
Tyrone V Derry :Tyrone

Monaghan v Tyrone :Tyrone

bladecx (Monaghan) - Posts: 147 - 14/05/2013 14:10:15    1383751

So far , so good.

bladecx (Monaghan) - Posts: 147 - 19/05/2013 19:46:37    1386788

*in my opinion

donegal monaghan final.
down and derry is simply too hard to call - down playted some great stuff in the league but psychologically getting relgated and derry promoted may be the difference
tyrone and donegal - think donegal will win by a point in a brilliant match, wont be too many putting big money on that game
cavan will be monaghans toughest opponents on that side of the draw - fermanagh may put up a bigger fight than people think, hope all of this is wrong and down win ulster and sam.. ah.. one can dream

themoderngame1 (Down) - Posts: 39 - 20/05/2013 11:16:58    1387084

We're still in the month of May and there are 7 teams remaining in the Ulster Championship. The 2 fallers being Armagh and Tyrone, my how the times have changed??

green and gold (Donegal) - Posts: 105 - 28/05/2013 11:19:56    1393321

Donegal are Ulster Champions 2013.

Just the formalities now of playing out the remaining games to get through.

MesAmis (Dublin) - Posts: 13846 - 28/05/2013 11:22:44    1393326

Donegal have it, I would be concerned about any other team being such favorites, but McGuinness will not allow complacency to creep in. Can't see anybody else beating them in Ulster anyways, or nationaly for that matter!

Jack Daniels (Westmeath) - Posts: 152 - 28/05/2013 11:32:25    1393341