While we’re waiting for Sunday’s team to be announced, I’ve stuck up a new poll on the site to keep you all amused. This one is about what we should use the upcoming league campaign for – have at it.
The result of the poll on our ambitions for 2009 showed that, despite Johnno’s best efforts to play down our chances, optimism hasn’t quite died out completely. Indeed, 44% of respondents say we’ll conquer Connacht and do okay in the qualifiers this year while almost a quarter of all voters (24% to be precise) think we’re on the road to Croker in September. The remaining third or so of voters (32%) feel that another year of disappointment, similar to the last two, lies ahead of us. Personally, I think the last option is probably the likeliest but, having said that, there’s no point adopting a negative mindset in January. We could have plenty of time for that kind of crack later in the year but, for now at least, we can dream some delusional dreams about summer glory.
Well Willie Joe – the new season is on us. Have to admit I voted that there’d be a tame exit from the qualifiers. Can’t see any prospect of us taking Galway, especially in their back yard. I think we should go hell for leather in the league, pick up some points, avoid the drop and lay down a marker in Tuam/Salthill in April. Momentum is key, this doesn’t mean that there can”t be the odd experiment, but getting badly beaten in the league will make it very hard to get any kind of buzz amongst the players come May/June.
Good to see you resurfacing, DB. I hope that Kerry crowd haven’t brainwashed you too much over the winter! Are you heading to Ballina on Sunday, by the way? Oh, and before I forget, I also need to press-gang you into the mini-league. You’ll be getting an email from me shortly on this.
I see that retaining our status is leading the race in your poll W.J I am not sure does it matter that much, Fermanagh, Wexford,Westmeath all had good runs last year in the championship and they were down the divisions, we used to be the league specialists years ago, indeed I think we have reached league semi’s in 2001/02/05/06/07 with finals in 2001and 2007 and we are still in a rebuild mode. Sometimes we might need to find out a little more about ourselves and be a bit more daring, experimenting might throw up the Pat Fallon, James Horan, Ciaran MacDonald, Dave Brady or Kevin O Neill we are sadly lacking.
I’d be for more experimentation in the league, given that the last two years saw us getting the team all nice and settled by April only to have to go and rip it all asunder when the wheels came off in Connacht. There’s little point going down that road again this year.
By the way, ontheroad, are you going to sign up for the mini-league? I think we could do with a few serious competitors!