A TWO-GAME Championship campaign always generates a fair amount of blood letting.
Beaten by Derry, then Wexford, Down boss Jim McCorry was the subject of some unpleasant messages that were left on our hotline. None were used.
If Jim has the courage to stand up and manage the team, then the people calling for his resignation should also be prepared to identify themselves.
The following message managed to fall into the boundaries of acceptability.
Like the pundits on The Sunday Game, ‘Concerned’ took issue with McCorry’s comment that promotion to Division One was the main priority for the year.
‘Concerned’ wrote: “Not kicking when you are down Jim but your comments on The Sunday Game! This is County Down. You are not managing an English football club. We are not bothered about Division One. Championship is all that matters to the Manchester United of Ulster football.
“I am 41. I fear that the next time I get to Croker, Translink will give me the spin for free! (For Down County Board members, this means I’ll be over 65 and have free travel).”
PH: I applaud your optimism. I don’t think there is a hope of free travel being available for pensioners in 20 years’ time.
DERRY'S defeat to Donegal also provoked some acrimony. Brian’s McIver’s substitutions were a major talking point.
Towards the end of the game, McIver replaced Eoin Bradley and Caolan O’Boyle.
‘Seamus’ believes the Derry manager made the correct decision when he subbed Eoin Bradley.
He said: “I think McIver did the right thing because Bradley didn’t score from play. Bradley was very poor up front I thought.”
But ‘Sean’ disagreed. He thought Derry carried a greater scoring threat when Bradley and O’Boyle were on the field.
He said: “The Derry management need to look at themselves. They let go of James Kielt, a player who is fit to score from 50 metres.
“James Kielt would have been very useful on Saturday night. He could have kicked the long-range points which we failed to score.
“McIver took off the best forward in Derry, Eoin Bradley and brought on somebody who has never played for Derry. Then he took off Caolan O’Boyle, the only player who scored twice from play.
“How were we going to score in the last 10 minutes? I was happy with the players’ performance. I was not happy with Brian McIver’s performance.”
Brian McIver didn’t want James Kielt to leave the squad. He urged him to stay. Kielt was unhappy and he left of his own accord. Defensively, Derry were superb. In terms of their organisation and tactics, the Oak Leafers were hard to fault and McIver deserves credit for those aspects of the team’s performance. In terms of substitutions, I thought it was a mistake to replace Eoin Bradley with a debutant. But there are many who concur with ‘Seamus’. If James Kielt had replaced Bradley, it would have been fine. It’s just a pity Kielt wasn’t there.
RULE 1.4 of The Official Guide states: “When a player is in possession of the ball, it may be: carried for a maximum of four consecutive steps or held in the hand (s) for no longer than the time needed to take four steps.”
‘Common Low Class Gael from Tyrone’ reckons referees are failing to implement Rule 1.4.
He asked: “Has the offence of over-carrying the ball been deleted from the GAA rule-book? Most players, including Donegal’s goalscorer on Saturday night, are over-carrying the ball.”
PH: A lot of players are being fouled while they are over-carrying the ball so referees just ignore both infractions and allow play to continue.
It might seem odd that it took a Tyrone man to complain about the amount of steps Martin O’Reilly took before he scored Donegal’s goal.
AS ever, the main priority in Derry is club fixtures. In a recent Against the Breeze column, I suggested that counties like Derry shouldn’t link the League to the Championship. Remove the terror of demotion to intermediate football and all club matches in May, June and July could played without interruption.
‘Constantine’ wasn’t persuaded by my argument. He wrote: “Why should the Derry football leagues be turned into a farce – a series of virtual challenge matches – just to suit the county team?”
“The club is the unit of the GAA. Most players (probably more than 95 per cent) are only club players. Why should their interests be trampled on just to suit the elite minority?” [PH: How does the current policy of postponing games or not playing them at all suit the interests of club players?]
“If you turn the leagues into a series of challenge matches, many matches will not be played at all. Worse, the club championship will be turned into a blood sport.
“Clubs do not exist to provide the county team with players and the county board with money to waste on inter-county competitions.
“Inter-county competition was established to raise money for county boards which it could use to support clubs.
“There are far too many inter-county competitions [agreed], most of which do not generate finance – only expense. “
PH: Apart from the clubs involved in relegation, all League matches are basically glorified challenge games.
Clubs should be allowed to nominate themselves to play in the senior Championship. In Derry, the teams at the bottom of Division One are terrified of relegation while the teams at the top of Division Two don’t want to get promoted. The solution is simple. The upheaval is insane.
THIS week’s Against the Breeze column about the qualities of the complete footballer prompted some interesting discussion.
‘Paraic from Cavan’ emailed his “top 10 most complete Gaelic footballers in modern times”.
They are: 1) Anthony Tohill 2) Jack O’Shea 3) Michael Murphy 4) Maurice Fitzgerald 5) Larry Tompkins 6) Sean Cavanagh 7) Michael Donnellan 8) Peter Canavan 9) Colm Cooper 10) Stephen Cluxton
‘Paraic’ reckons Anthony Tohill was better than Michael Murphy. That view is not shared by everyone. A caller said: “I think Paddy Heaney has answered his own question about who is the most complete footballer, Michael Murphy or Anthony Tohill?
“Any player who is targeted like Michael Murphy (pictured) was targeted against Tyrone and is still able to convert the frees which he scored towards the end, then he is the complete footballer.”
‘Carnival Man’ from Derry took a different slant. He reckons another Derry man eclipsed both Tohill and Murphy.
He wrote: “Paddy, long before your time, I can go back, almost a further 30 years, and come up with the greatest of them all.
“Without being biased I have no hesitation in stating that Jim McKeever was the best in his era.
“Mick O’Connell was technically very gifted but when Derry were in trouble in any game the Ballymaguigan man simply rolled up his sleeves and literally brought his own performance to a higher degree of excellence.”
PH: Any appraisal of complete footballers should consider sportsmanship. By all accounts, Jim was a sportsman on the field, and as his nickname suggests, a gentleman off it.
