Okay, a nice round total of 200 votes have been cast in the poll that’s been running here on the site over the last week and a bit so I think it’s time for a formal declaration of the result. This shows that 43% of you (87 votes) think that this year will be the one where we finally get our grubby paws on Sam, 35% (35 votes) reckon that we’ll win Connacht and do okay (but not okay enough) in the All-Ireland series, while 11% (22 votes) feel another All-Ireland defeat is facing us come September. A further 11% (21 votes, so a slightly lesser 11%) believe we’ll tank altogether, with defeat in Connacht and elimination in the qualifiers.
I’m with the majority on this – time, I reckon, to take advantage of those nice 10/1 odds (which have tightened from 11/1 last week) that are on offer for us to win the All-Ireland this year.
Backed Mayo for the league e/w and the provincial and all ire double! Faith!
For mayo to win sam JH will have to make a few changs to his set up .I woud hope he woud revert to a zone defense,croke park is vast area for a defence to cover.Mayos defence were caught napping in all there games in croker.Remember the goal fest in the league against dublin 2 years ago against cork in the leagu final last year again against down dublin and of course DONEGAL, who might have scored four,thanks to David Clarke.Also midfield has to have at least one who has blinding pace with a good engine.Mayo are capable and with right team selection and tactics can happen.What i have seen is players being exposed with goalkeeper coming to their rescue.Only once did Donegal get caught with Colm ONEILL catching inside the full back line and scoring Corks only goal.LEts shore up our defence and mayo wil win sam,Woud hope we can find one or two more forwards, expect Donie Buckley to sharpen existing six or eight,.. YES WE CAN.
Colm O’Neill scored that goal because Donegal only had 2 men back in the full back line at that particular moment, as opposed to the 5 or 6 they normally have. It’s easy to not concede goals if you put half a team in front of your goal. In my view, that all-out defensive tactic is a failure of coaching because it shows that you haven’t trained your defenders well enough in how to defend – so you need numbers to compensate.
To score goals against such a defensive team like Donegal, you need to dispossess them when they are on the attack, look up and see how many they have back and if they are relatively few, deliver a killer ball. Other than that, there’s little point in trying.
Donegal were more all-out defensive in 2011 the game plan in 2012 had them more forward thinking and more open at the back but it helps when you have the likes of Lacey,McGees who are some of the best defenders in Ireland.