Galway deal early blow

Still early days, but Derry need to improve quickly... 

No question, it was a disappointing performance by Derry on Sunday to open up the 2012 NFL season. Galway came to Celtic Park as underdogs and left as favourites to win promotion. That's the difference a 70-minute game of football can make, so the good news for Derry is that there are still another six games in which to make amends.

But a vast improvement is required if Derry are to make up ground.

John Brennan remarked after the game that his side were pin-pointing six points from the three home games and that the defeat has left Derry hoping to just remain comfortable in the division as opposed to harbouring any hopes for promotion. And that just about sums up where this defeat has left the Oak Leafers. But the Derry squad doesn't have time to sit about and look back at what happened on Sunday past. Attentions must swiftly turn to this week's game at Healy Park, where Derry will have to sharpen up considerably if they are to follow up defeat against Galway with a victory over Tyrone.

So where did things go wrong at Celtic Park? In short, Derry didn't get their hands on enough possession. We found it difficult to win primary ball or any of the breaks in the middle of the field. The midfield partnership of Joe Diver and James Conway started reasonably well, but as the game wore on Galway gained a stranglehold, giving themselves a steady platform from which to launch attacks. An obvious conclusion is that Derry need to improve in the breaking ball stakes. We have plenty of players in the middle third with strong, physical attributes, but it takes a smaller, nippier style of player to get down for the second ball. Sean Leo McGoldrick was Derry's best player in this regard on Sunday, whilst Gerard O'Kane's absence was noticeable.

Once Galway got their hands on the ball they were very effective in what they did with it. Nicky Joyce was looking sharp and Micheal Martin is a physically imposing corner-forward who knows where the posts are. But what impressed most about the Tribesmen attack was its variety. Cummins in the other corner didn't trouble the posts, but his pace was causing problems for Derry, enabling Galway to move the ball quickly from midfield and allowed Joyce to find the space a player of his talent revels in. The net result was a difficult afternoon for an inexperienced Derry defence.

It will be an afternoon that Derry's defenders will learn from, and we should remember that five of the six players in our two back lines were not playing in those positions during last year's championship. These guys (including Brian Doyle who came on the first half and Conor Murray who came on at half-time) can only get the requisite experience by facing teams like Galway in the NFL. To that end, John Brennan is doing the right thing by playing them and the hope is that they will find their feet as the spring wears on, strengthening Derry's panel in the process. It should also be noted that Brennan's hands were tied on Sunday with injury ruling out both Gerard O'Kane and Dermot McBride, and things weren't helped by the first half withdrawals of both Mark Craig and Barry McGoldrick.

Injuries aside, the Oak Leafers were guilty of basic errors in this game which helped Galway maintain a healthy lead. We also looked sluggish at times both with possession and without it. Too often was the ball stalled in the midfield third allowing the Tribe's defence to filter back and snuff out any potential threat. When Derry did move the ball quicker, mistakes were less frequent and the forwards had the space to do damage. Chris McKaigue's second-half point was a prime example. Enda Lynn - who added a deal of pace and energy to the Oak Leaf play - made a quick run down to wing to collect the ball from midfield, he quickly fed O'Boyle who had McKaigue running off the shoulder and he slotted the posts. A simple score, but very effective. This type of play needs speeds of movement and speed of thought. The Derry players are capable; they need to produce it more often.

Overall, the forward line did well with the amount of ball that came their way. Cailean O'Boyle continued his early season form with a tally of 1-4 and will have gained a lot of confidence from his performance. He might get a little more attention now against Tyrone, but he really has added a new dimension to Derry's attacking play, and always looks capable of finding the net. His goal may well have been the platform for victory, but - as has happened often in Derry defeats in recent years - we have taken our foot off the gas and allowed the opposition to get back into the game.

It's easy to criticise Derry after a loss like this, but huge credit must be given to Alan Mulholland's youthful and energetic Galway side. There was a great sharpness and variety to their play and they closed out the game very convincingly after the score was brought down to just a point with eight minutes left. As well as the headlining display by their forwards, Gareth Bradshaw was a constant thorn in Derry's side. It looked like John Brennan might have ear-marked him - asking both Barry McGoldrick and Charlie Kielt to mark the right half-back - but his engine, pace and power was unrelenting and he constantly set up Galway attacks, as well as getting up the field to score the game-changing goal. As mentioned above, the Tribesmen are now in the top two in the Division 2 betting, and playing with this amount of confidence they will be hard to beat this season.

As for Derry, Brennan will have been pleased with his team's improvement in the second half and the character they displayed in getting the game to within a point, but he will be disappointed and concerned at how comfortable the away side looked at times in Celtic Park. Sharpness and fitness need to be improved and the mistakes need to be cut out.

After their victory at the weekend in Croke Park, Tyrone are favourites heading into this Sunday's game against Derry, but it is a game that could provide the perfect tonic for this Derry side. The Red Hands have made a lot of changes this year also, so the Derry players should not be in awe of anything facing them in Healy Park. This Tyrone team can be scored against and if Derry can put them on the back-foot a win is there for the taking.

That would be one way to forget about the Galway game.

Some other thoughts from Sunday's game:

• It's easy to see why John Brennan wanted a defensive player on Bradshaw, but Sean Leo McGoldrick might have given him more to think about.
• Good to see Charlie Kielt back for the NFL. Best guess, that he'll start in the half-back line versus Tyrone.
• Brian McCallion again played well at corner back, while Mark Craig looked comfortable at centre back before his injury.
• Nice '45 from Danny Devlin. Memories of possibly(?) the last Derry goalkeeper to score for his county - Conleith Gilligan from the penalty spot for Derry minors in 1997. Ironically, had he not been off the field, Gilligan would probably have kicked that '45 on Sunday.
• The new jersey has acquired the retro style we've seen from the likes of Dublin, Down and Tyrone, but it really could be doing with a red band on the back.
• Galway may have struggled at senior level in the past couple of years, but - without getting carried away after one league game - their success at underage might be about to pay big dividends.
• Tyrone seem to excel in Croke Park, but let's hope they don't look as sharp in the Healy Park mudtrack.

Tribesmen Lose Their Way

What a difference a few weeks make.

In one of my blogging efforts last month I noted how many so-called football experts were touting Galway as real All-Ireland contenders after their impressive win over Tyrone in Omagh.

A few weeks earlier I urged the Galway Advteriser to keep its feet on the ground after describing Galway's NFL victory over Dublin as "epic" and "lyrical". In other words, people appeared to be getting carried away with Galway's early promise.

These same people don't half go the other way when things suddenly turn sour. This week, Ray Silke in the Galway Advertiser described the Tribesmen as "miles off" after "being given a good auld trouncing and a lesson in how to play Gaelic football by Kerry", and losing a place in the NFL Final in the process:

"They were miles off the pace, their handling was abysmal, and an awful lot of hard work and some soul searching will have to be done between now and the championship if they are to retain the Connacht crown."

Galway have some exceptional players, especially in a very talented forward line, but it's at midfield where their biggest problems lie. A huge concession of possession in this sector has led to them losing points in their last three league games, and Silke is in total agreement:

"The management team will have to sit down and reassess their best options at midfield for the up-coming championship and perhaps even over the next few years. Because, let’s be honest here, the combinations they have been putting out have not been doing the business and their ball retention on the few occasions they got it the last day was atrocious."

While Galway have problems at midfield, Kerry have an abundance of options, and the The Kerryman was keen to point this out in its match report from Tralee:

"In came Anthony Maher and Micheál Quirke on Sunday with the pairing looking like they could hold their own against the best in the game such was their dominance. And even if those two were feeling contented at how well the game was going for them they were served a fresh reminder as to the task awaiting them when Darragh Ó Sé and David Moran came on to replace them midway through the second half."

Now that's luxury.

The same article seemed very happy with Kerry's all-round display as they setup an NFL rematch with Derry:

"Such was Kerry's hunger, such was their pace, such was their fitness and such was their class that they simply blew Liam Sammon's Galway away."

I'm not preaching caution to the Kerry pundits at this point, because I'd readily believe every word of that.

It appears that despite their apparent progression this season Galway still have their work cut out to stop Kerry in their tracks come the summer. But if the NFL campaign is anything close to being a trusty indicator then so does every other county!

Derry Dig Deep for Draw

If you can't win a game of football then a draw will just have to do. Often an unsatisfactory result for both sides, it can leave some regret in a victory left behind. At Glen yesterday that was not quite the case as Derry and Galway played out a rather unusual thing - a deserved draw.

Some Derry followers may disagree, and Damian Cassidy reckons that his side were "three or four points" the better team, but at the final whistle the Oakleaf men should have been happy enough with the result considering the position they found themselves in just fifteen minutes earlier.

And this was the most impressive aspect of Derry's performance at the Maghera venue. After Michael Meehan's penalty had put Galway three points ahead, and with Derry facing into a strong breeze, it looked like the Tribesmen would pick up their fifth consecutive NFL victory. But Derry did not yield. They stepped up their game considerably, dominating the midfield exchanges, and kept possession with fair degree of craft and composure. A three point deficit needed to be closed; and a battling Derry side ensured it was.

Even when Derry went a further point down with a couple minutes remaining, they still found a way to save the game. Thanks in no small part to an excellent long-range score from the mercurial Enda Muldoon.

If there is one positional conundrum that this season's NFL campaign has answered, it is this: Enda Muldoon is the partner of choice for Fergal Doherty at midfield. The Ballinderry man was simply outstanding at Glen. Backing up his fielding and passing ability with two excellent (and important) scores, Muldoon adds a creative element to the Derry engine room. Midfield is his best position, and we should see him there come May.

Yesterday (in the absence of Fergal Doherty) Muldoon was ably partnered by Patsy Bradley, who put in an excellent performance himself. So much so that Damian Cassidy conceded after the game that Derry are not reliant on Doherty in this area:

"There's this myth going around that Derry depend on Fergal Doherty at midfield. That myth was just set aside today. It's about the team and one individual cannot be more important than the team. Patsy had a great game today and today we showed that we are a team."

Derry's teamwork certainly showed in the second half when their backs where against the wall. Having lost Barry McGoldrick to a yellow card before half-time and Niall McCusker to injury shortly after, Derry had lost the spine of their defence. Add to this the (somewhat ruthless) half-time substitutions of John Deighan (replaced by Gillis) and Ryan Dillon (replaced by McKaigue), and suddenly the Oakleafers had an almost totally new defence against one of the best forward units in the country.

It didn't phase them however, with Sean Leo McGoldrick and Paul Cartin driving forward at will. McGoldrick was particularly impressive in a ball-carrying role, helping to set up continuous Derry attacks, while Cartin scored an important point.

This was a high-quality and highly interesting game of football. Derry showed considerable stature across the field, and bar their efforts in the midfield region Galway did likewise. Paddy Bradley hit 0-7, but he was eclipsed by Michael Meehan's 1-5. Meehan looked dangerous whenever he came within sniffing distance of the ball, and he did an excellent job of keeping his side in the game, especially in the first half when Derry threatened to open up a half-time deficit. Thanks to Meehan and a bundled goal by Paul Conroy, that deficit never appeared.

Galway boss Liam Sammon was happy that his team managed to get at least a draw:

"I'm happy that we're coming away with something because it looked for quite a long period that we'd get nothing at all out of it. I thought Derry played well in the second half. They created a lot of chances, so we're possibly lucky to get away with a draw. They kept the ball very well and worked it up the field and there were periods we couldn't get our hands on the ball."

Both managers will be pleased that they didn't lose this game, but Cassidy might be more pleased for seeing his team refuse to panic when the questions were asked, and battle hard to gain a result. A team missing Fergal Doherty, Kevin McGuckin and Sean Lockhart were able to dominate a near full-strength Galway team for long periods.

The win wasn't forthcoming, but that is only a minor niggle. Competition for places continues to grow as the summer approaches, and this Derry team progresses with every game played. These are the primary aims of Derry's NFL campaign.

Who knows, it may be summer when these sides meet again. The result will be the only important thing that day.

DERRY: J Deighan; K McCloy, N McCusker, R Dillon; P Cartin (0-1), B McGoldrick (0-2, frees), SL McGoldrick; Patsy Bradley, E Muldoon (0-2); P Young (0-1), P Murphy, B Mullan; Paddy Bradley (0-7, five frees), E Bradley, B McGuigan. Subs: G O’Kane for B McGoldrick (35 mins, yellow), B Gillis for Deighan (half-time), C McKaigue for Dillon (half-time), B McAlary for N McCusker (44 mins), J Kielt for McGuigan

Galway to Provide Tough Examination

The Derry team to play Galway at Glen on Sunday: J Deighan, K McCloy, N McCusker (capt), R Dillon, P Cartin, B McGoldrick, SL McGoldrick, Patsy Bradley, E Muldoon, P Young, P Murphy, B Mullan, Paddy Bradley, E Bradley, B McGuigan.

In recent years Galway have been something of a bogey team for Derry. Certainly on the All-Ireland stage where they beat the Oakleafers in All-Ireland Semi-Finals in 1998 and 2001. Add in a couple of All-Ireland Club Semi-Final defeats for Derry sides against opposition from the Tribes County (Dungiven v Corofin and Loup v Caltra) and something resembling an Indian sign begins to appear.

In the NFL however, things haven't been so bad. Derry recorded victories over Galway in 2006 and 2007, before a defeat at Salthill during last season's campaign prevented the Oakleafers from recording three successive victories.

All history now. The current crop of Derry Senior footballers will be concentrating this weekend on gleaning another couple of league points, and it is Galway who stand in their way. The Tribesmen are the current in-form team in the country. They sit top of Division 1 and have swept aside challenges from the likes of Dublin, Tyrone and Donegal.

While Derry have also recorded comfortable victories in this campaign, Sunday's game at Glen will provide them with a truer examination of their credentials as the hectic league programme continues at pace. And the frenzied nature of the current NFL schedule has brought four changes to the lineup that outplayed Dublin last weekend at Parnell Park.

Fergal Doherty, Kevin McGuckin, Sean Lockhart and Enda Lynn all carry minor knocks and do not feature in Sunday's squad. Damian Cassidy correctly sees little point in risking these players, and their absence will allow him to view a few other options in his panel.

Kevin McCloy and Ryan Dillon come into a defence that will try and shackle the ace marksman in Ireland at this moment - Michael Meehan. It is likely that Dillon will be asked to carry out the unenviable task of trying to mark the Caltra man. It is a chance for the Swatragh player to stake a claim for a more regular place in the side, but he will come up against a forward who notched 1-9 last week against Donegal. Derry's system will concentrate on trying to cut out the supply - the full-back line will hope they succeed!

Patsy Bradley will partner Enda Muldoon in midfield, and Paul Young replaces Lynn at right half-forward. The Loup man suffered an injury prior to last Saturday's game in Dublin, and he will be keen to make use of this week's chance.

Derry's forward unit impressed most in the Capital last weekend, and Oakleaf fans will hope that Eoin Bradley continues in that hot vein of form. But it is Galway's attacking prowess that worries ahead of the the game at Glen. Along with Meehan there is Sean Armstrong, Padraig Joyce and Cormac Bane to contend with. There are formidable playmaking and striking options in their forward unit and Derry's new look defence will have their work cut out.

Donegal faltered against them last week as Galway recorded an easy victory, yet manager Liam Sammon wants to see improvements for the trip to Maghera:

"Going up to Derry next week we'll have to make a big improvement if we are to beat them up there. Certainly that performance [against Donegal] wouldn't produce a win against Derry."

If Derry win on Sunday they will go level on points with Galway, but it is a big ask. Liam Sammon has added a meaner streak to this side - noticeable especially in their victory against Tyrone in Omagh - and when coupled with the lethal attacking options at his disposal, it is clear that Galway will provide an unsettled Derry side with an extremely tough challenge.

It is a game to look forward to though, and Damian Cassidy will once again use a game against top opposition to try and increase the strength of his squad. A win would be a bonus.

Tribesmen Continue Promising Start

Three NFL rounds gone, four more to go. Kerry - with their 100% record - look menacing. Tyrone look like they don't really want to bother much with Springtime football. And Dublin will be happy just to have won their first league points. Nothing unusual to report in all that.

It is Galway however that have the pundits talking. You know what these so-called experts are like. They are forever looking to signpost the season for us before it has even began, and are desperate to spot the next contenders for Sam. Just tipping Kerry, or Tyrone for a back-to-back would be playing it safe. So, after three league wins from three, Galway seem to have got the vote.

In this week's Irish Indepenedent, Martin Breheny writes about how Galway are starting to look like real contenders. It is easy to agree with this assessment. Bar Kerry, the Tribesmen have the best forwards in the country, and judging by last Saturday evening's battle with Tyrone at a rain-sodden Healy Park, they have acquired a bit of steel to match the fluidity of their attacking play.

'Strength in depth' seems to be the phrase of the month among Ireland's top managers, as their teams try to emulate the quantity of quality possessed by Tyrone and Kerry. Galway manager Liam Sammon is eager to achieve just that:

"It's having players competing for positions that we really want. That's the secret really, and that's what will drive the team on to hopefully further success."

Meanwhile over in the O'Neill county, they are having to endure talk of a possible relegation battle. Two successive home defeats would certainly point to this outcome, but Mickey Harte won't be worried. A quiet league campaign and a low-key build-up to the Summer would be ideal for his side. Blustery nights in March will be forgotten come August and September.

NFL Heats Up

After the fireworks of the opening weekend's action in the NFL, Round 2 served up more entertaining fare with high-scoring aplenty and one or two controversial incidents to keep the papers in strong voice for a couple of days. Oh, and Derry are top.

You may have caught a glimpse of the deferred coverage on TG4 of Galway's win over Dublin as you put the kettle on after coming in from Ballinascreen. If you did, you'll have seen an impressive performance from the Tribesmen. There's nothing like a comprehensive victory over the Dubs to put a team on the 'radar'. Usually this is a bad thing, and there'll be pundits and journalists now tipping Galway to win all sorts.

Liam Sammon's team played very well in patches, especially in the first-half, with Padraig Joyce back to his mercurial best. The Galway Advertiser was left drooling over the Killererin man's performance:

"'Genius' is not too strong a word to describe some of his interventions last Sunday. His vision, composure on the ball, and left foot are something to be admired and cherished. The finesse of some of his passes has to be seen to be believed."

High praise. Although hardly surprising, as the same report describes the Galway performance as "epic" and "lyrical". Seriously lads, feet on the ground.

The comfortable nature of Galway's victory might have surprised a few. But when taking a quick glance at the respective forward units, the final scoreline is suddenly explained. Joyce is not the only man opposing defences have to worry about. Players like the in-form Micheal Meehan, Sean Armstrong and Cormac Bane are well capable of racking up the scores. Five of Galway's six forwards notched the 3-12 between them. Meanwhile, over in the blue corner, Bernard Brogan was left fighting a lonely battle.

Dublin could be facing a difficult fight to cling to their newly-found Division 1 status. Westmeath, last year's Division 2 champions, would be the early favourites to join them. The Westmeath Independent struggled to find any positives in the Lake county's 14-point defeat to Derry, claiming that "the second-half performance was a throwback to the dim and distant past to which none of us want to return". That's considerable pessism, right there.

Moving North, and that adorable pairing of Tyrone and Kerry provided one or two talking points in Omagh on Sunday.The Kerryman described the game as 'The good, the bad and the ugly' and it's hard to argue with this assessment of a game that threatened to spill into something very ugly indeed. With regards to the football, Kerry's attack threatened to run amok in the first-half with Gooch Cooper looking particularly lively.

Tyrone were handicapped by the absence of Stephen O'Neill, but they steadied as the game wore on, with the introduction of Conor Gormley helping to nullify Kerry's prowess. The win for Jack O'Connor's side is largely meaningless; he knows what is yet to come. At the moment it looks like both sides are on another early-autumn collision course; and Tyrone, despite defeat, have a menace about them that has been lacking when they've defended Sam in the past.

The benchmark for the would-be challengers won't be dropping any time soon.