National Forum

The good old days

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Replying To Whammo86:  "We've had this discussion loads on here recently.

I really would hate a change to the rules.

I don't see what isn't exciting about counter attacking?

It's end to end stuff.

Tyrone really played it to perfection vs Derry, they got a goal where they were inside their own 45 and then about 15 seconds later the ball was in Derry's net without a 50/50 ball played the whole way up. Clinical stuff, no team could have done that 20 years ago.

People give out about too much hand passing too but Donegal took Fermanagh to the cleaners with give and go hand passing at the weekend. Was a joy to watch.

Teams try and beat each other still. There have been some really good scores put up this championship so far.

The ultra defensive systems are dying in my opinion. The attackers have gotten used to them and have the patience to pick them off now. Cavan v Armagh and Donegal v Fermanagh being examples of that."
If a team has confidence it should just attack as
the best form of defence instead of counter
attacking. No need for all these systems/ tactics
etc. Play attacking football and try to post a big
score to out score the opposition . At the very
least it will be a better spectacle.

REDANDBLACK30 (Down) - Posts: 1700 - 14/06/2016 16:19:20    1866733

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Replying To waynoI:  "I disagree with the OP.

And I'm also bored of seeing people say "What must the players feel playing defensive tactics not being able to express themselves" or sentiments along those lines...

Clearly, People are happy enough with it, If not, they would opt out no ?

Why would you do something you don't enjoy doing ?"
They love the game Ive talked to many lads who have played and won Sam in recent years in private they will tell you the truth ,equally our current bunch enjoy playing but they are given more freedom than most. I saw the interview that original poster talked about Benny Coulter and how disenfranchised he was with the game , I met Benny in Newry for a tournament before he retired lovely lad I so I take what he was saying on face value.
A Brogan posted similar comments in his post retirement to what Benny said, We have had two players opt out this year in Dublin, When I made my comments I wasn't referring to Dublin , look at the exodus every year to the states and don't tell me lads are enjoying themselves, at club level there are similar patterns of lads leaving the game, there was a thread dedicated to it recently.

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 14/06/2016 16:31:37    1866739

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Today's games. Some are chronic. That bad they make the euros look good.

theborderfox (Monaghan) - Posts: 138 - 14/06/2016 16:46:05    1866751

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Replying To REDANDBLACK30:  "If a team has confidence it should just attack as
the best form of defence instead of counter
attacking. No need for all these systems/ tactics
etc. Play attacking football and try to post a big
score to out score the opposition . At the very
least it will be a better spectacle."
I think that approach was tested in the Dublin v Donegal semi-final in 2014.

Dublin are one of the best teams of all time, they still lost fairly comfortably to a supremely organised team.

Really football today isn't as defensive as people perceive. Yes they get men behind the ball but the good teams also attack with numbers.

The game is about using your players as effectively as possible. What's the point of having 5 players stuck up front picking their hole when the other team has the ball. Plus by bringing them back leaves space for you to attack once you turn the ball over.

Whammo86 (Antrim) - Posts: 4489 - 14/06/2016 16:54:35    1866758

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The good old days is a load of tripe....if you ask me. I do understand why people harp back to those day's usually from counties that used to be successful at football. Football is faster and better now.

yew_tree (Mayo) - Posts: 11539 - 14/06/2016 16:59:18    1866762

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Clondalkin
a lot of the games back in the 90tys were dour, physical games. Very little skill and football on show.
People back then done the same as now whinged about it saying its not as good as the 70tys. I guarantee you in the 70tys you had people doing the exact same thing looking for the 50tys to return.
sure during the last decade nobody liked that Tyrone team they were dragging the game down people were suggesting now the same people look back and say they were a great side that won 3 all Ireland's haha. I just think its a thing people do look back at something and think it was better. To me the skill level nowadays is miles ahead. The angles forwards score from was never even considered in decades gone past.The ability goalkeepers possess compared to out of shape guys who stood there lumping balls out to a group in the middle of the pitch in years gone past is world's apart.
People also love to slate the lack of competitiveness which is astonishing as in the 70tys there was only two teams really Dublin and Kerry. In the last decade again Kerry and Tyrone practically aswell.
nowadays Dublin Kerry mayo and Donegal have all beaten each other nearly in the past five years in big games.

hill16no1man (Dublin) - Posts: 12665 - 14/06/2016 17:02:57    1866770

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Replying To Breffni39:  "You're always beating this drum, but the impression I get is you're much too young to remember 15v15. Give over."
It's quite catching, getting misty eyed over a past you can't remember.

Personally I love reminiscing over the LoI glory days of the 40s and 50s!

I'm sure you remember the Polo Grounds fondly!

MesAmis (Dublin) - Posts: 13792 - 14/06/2016 17:06:18    1866774

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Replying To MesAmis:  "It's quite catching, getting misty eyed over a past you can't remember.

Personally I love reminiscing over the LoI glory days of the 40s and 50s!

I'm sure you remember the Polo Grounds fondly!"
Ah sure I remember it well, I cycled over to New York and sure didn't the aul fella lift me over the turnstiles, wasn't easy for him though I was 17 at the time. The glory days of football before Micko and Heffo came along and ruined football for ever. I have all kinds of of anecdotal evidence to prove this by the way, it's not just a cliched soundbite that impresses spoofers down the local.

Breffni40 (Cavan) - Posts: 12291 - 14/06/2016 18:57:20    1866832

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Too many players are now robotic in their play. Class and off the cuff play is coached out of them. Connlly of Dublin aside and the Gooch at times are the only players in the country worth the admission money any more. Twenty years ago all teams had a few such players. Running and speed and distance etc, Rio for the Olympics is what they should be at. I remember Brian o Driscoll been worried about the rugby crowd trying to make rugby players out of athletes. That's exactly what we have done in the GAA

theborderfox (Monaghan) - Posts: 138 - 14/06/2016 19:26:24    1866845

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Hmmmm, the 1990's, the 1990's, what was it about that decade and Down football, ahh, yes, now it makes sense. A little tip or the OP, get with the times or sit on your bar stool and reminisce about misty eyed nostalgia all you want, its a stark but simple choice, adapt and thrive.

brendtheredhand (Tyrone) - Posts: 10897 - 14/06/2016 20:02:06    1866864

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Yes Down were successful in the early 1990s but they
weren't in the years between 1994 and the early 2000s
when the game was b****rdised. Its not about adapting
its about the game going back to being more open or
remaining a poorer spectacle than it once was.

REDANDBLACK30 (Down) - Posts: 1700 - 14/06/2016 20:36:46    1866881

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Replying To theborderfox:  "Too many players are now robotic in their play. Class and off the cuff play is coached out of them. Connlly of Dublin aside and the Gooch at times are the only players in the country worth the admission money any more. Twenty years ago all teams had a few such players. Running and speed and distance etc, Rio for the Olympics is what they should be at. I remember Brian o Driscoll been worried about the rugby crowd trying to make rugby players out of athletes. That's exactly what we have done in the GAA"
Interesting point , from a Dublin point of view I think of many a skillfull player that would struggle in the present era , Anton O Toole , Tommy Conroy , Dessie Farrell , Jayo , the team ethic and all parts of the machine working in unison is key, today's call is allways keep it simple going it alone is not encouraged, but thats because no matter how skillfull you are going into contact with the mass defences is suicidal , lads could showcase their skills previously as many a game was one on one 15 v 15 , that doesn't happen , game has changed there are still fantastic players out there , but systems rule.

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 14/06/2016 21:07:43    1866900

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I think football is better today than years ago.
I have watched football from around1963, saw all the great Ulster players- Mick Brewster(RIP)PT Treacy Sean o Connoll, Hugh Francis Gribben, all the Down lads of the60's, Charlie Gallagher etc plus our own team of the60's.
No way were those teams as well organised as today. I suppose the money was not there in those days.
If you check back on the final score in provincial finals, All Ireland semi finals /Finals you will find a lot were low scoring enough.
Different rules then, you could challenge the goalkeeper and shoulder him and ball into the net. All free kick/ sidelines taken off the ground. Common to see the full back take the kick out. No Durcan/Cluxtons in those days. No word about a diet then, common to see boys light up a fag while waiting on the presentation of Sam or the McCarthy cup
But I enjoyed it all over the years and football has changed the same as we age
What I will say is the 2012 Donegal team was the best Donegal team I saw
Also we will just have to enjoy football as it is now , it will change again but maybe not in my lifetime.

SamOnErrigal (Donegal) - Posts: 1427 - 14/06/2016 21:16:49    1866910

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Replying To clondalkindub:  "The best games were 15 v 15 man on man may the best team win not this crap were watching nowadays it's brutal. The amount of people I know who've stop going cause they just hate the way the game has gone and then to make it worst it's creeping into hurling ahhhhhh Lord please save us"
No I think that means the best individuals won, not the best team. The game is about the team now and one great individual talent can be stopped. If that talent is stopped it is up to the other team members to step up to the plate.

gotmilk (Fermanagh) - Posts: 4971 - 14/06/2016 22:58:19    1866966

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Replying To woops:  "RedandBlack has a point

Overall, the standard of games is not as exciting as it once was.
When you see both Kerry and Dublin taking a more defensive mindset then you wonder what hope have teams with a lesser squad depth of producing attacking football. There will be 4/5 excellent matches which will have you on your seats but those games are more i nthe minority nowadays.

Currently it's a vicious circle, the amount of training is producing fitter players, players that can run more, handpass more and less kicking is done. The more running with the ball the more play gets bogged down. Players that can kick a ball 45 yards over the bar are becoming redundant.

Dublin and Tyrone are probably ahead in terms of how modern football is played these days.

The last 2 All irelands I couldnt bare watching them again. They were dire stuff especially 2014 where Kerry actually won."
A player who can kick a ball over from 45 yards will never be redundant. That is pure tripe from yourself. Did you watch the two points Donnelly and Quigley hit from play on Sunday? Flynn regularly will put it over from way out the field. There will always be space for a lad who can get scores.

gotmilk (Fermanagh) - Posts: 4971 - 14/06/2016 23:03:41    1866967

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Replying To gotmilk:  "A player who can kick a ball over from 45 yards will never be redundant. That is pure tripe from yourself. Did you watch the two points Donnelly and Quigley hit from play on Sunday? Flynn regularly will put it over from way out the field. There will always be space for a lad who can get scores."
Football is not watchable anymore, with blanket defenses, lack of clean fielding, short kick outs, the bottling up of flair players the norm. In the 80s soccer faced similar problems when negativity was the norm, the likes of Maradonna was virtually hacked out of the 1982 world cup, steau Bucharest were winning European Cups and the back pass was in vogue.Well soccer got it's act together thro updating the rules by favouring the flair players, thro a new offside rule and the near banning of cynical tackles and elimination of the back pass.The messi's and ronaldos of Gaelic football in guise of gooch, Connor McManus,Mike Murphy need proper protection.more space can b generated by going to 13 a side, the reintroduction of mid fielding can b achieved by making all kick outs travel past the 45,until that happens, I don't really have the stomach to waste another summer watching complete dross. I'd rather watch the Euros

Durango (Kerry) - Posts: 3 - 14/06/2016 23:58:20    1866984

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Replying To REDANDBLACK30:  "The modern game is not a patch on the days when teams
played free flowing open football and tried to out score
the opposition. Like dont get me wrong the GAA is still
good and probably teams are fitter, more proffessional
and play with more intensity. There are far too many
players in defence at times though and the game is largely
based on counter attacking. It has changed so much since
the 1990s . The beautiful game has long gone. Do you
agree or disagree???"
A big steaming pile of horse manure. Your post seems to be a lament for Down football more than anything else and a self pitying missive. You really should have put it in an envelope and addressed it to yourself about where it's all gone wrong for Down. TG4's vintage GAA programmes proved that many football games in the 70's and 80's were crap. Down have failed to adapt to the modern game and it's frustrating for the Mourne men. Making excuses and nostalgic whingefests won't change that.

Ulsterman (Antrim) - Posts: 9816 - 15/06/2016 00:59:55    1866994

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I'd rather watch the Euros

You know what is funny about that. I was watching a programme the other night on telly on the Euros and it was interviewing players from the Denmark team of '92 and the Greek team of '04. Both set of players were saying the same thing - that people might have been complaining about the way they set themselves up and went about the games but at the end of the day they played to their strength and it was up to the opposition to find a way to break them down. One of the Greek players asked the interviewer why should they have gone out and tried to play football which was pleasing on the eye but end up out after the Group stage and made no apologies for winning the way they did.

Offside_Rule (Antrim) - Posts: 4058 - 15/06/2016 09:20:14    1867024

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http://www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=256698

Id agree and have covered this point earlier , maybe some see it as a ex player mouthing off , maybe some agree

Damothedub (Dublin) - Posts: 5193 - 15/06/2016 09:51:05    1867040

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i really enjoyed the sligo/roscommon game. plenty of good football there. roscommon's attacking play was a joy to watch. some of the games from the 70s were rubbish (and they were usually the semis or finals (because that is all that was shown live then) heaven help us if we had to go back and watch complete reruns of first round games or league games from that era.

s goldrick (Cavan) - Posts: 5520 - 15/06/2016 10:30:26    1867066

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