ten quick thoughts about yesterday & today

1. Next years final venue; Portlaoise- ample capacity for voyeurs.



2. There is some doom and gloom in Kilkenny. They didn't win either the u-14 or u-16 All-Ireland last weekend. ( Wexford and Cork respectively ) They'll probably be content enough for a few days but the crisis meetings are probably only weeks away.



3. This blogger is wondering about his advocation of a league-championship system. The Munster championship at least gives some of the other counties a chance for silverware. The six (or so) in a row is on, but if we had a league format, it would be a near certainty.



4. Please God we'll now be spared the wringing of hands guff the day after the Leinster final next year. As we said on July 9th; "we may indeed need to begin edging towards the previously unthinkable idea that the cats are actually now under-rated".



5. One was reminded yesterday, when analysts were musing on how the gap with Kilkenny could be closed, of the white women coming up to Denzel Washington in the movie Malcolm X asking what could she do, for his black consciousness movement. his answer was; nothing. There is almost censorship in the media about the topic, but a dual county could never give a display like we witnessed yesterday.



6. No offence to Michael Kavanagh and Jackie Tyrell, but you'd like your all-star corner backs to have to at least hit the ball occasionally. In fairness at least this year there aren't any other strong contenders.



7. Classy call by R.T.E to refuse to single one player out for man of the match.



8. Newstalk tonight rushed Nicky English and J.B.M into winding up their discussion about the cats with undue haste. There may have been an All-Ireland on but heaven forfend it might get in the way of their hours of soccer coverage.



9. Whether Joe Canning deserved to be on R.T.E's team of the year or not, ( nil, i mo thuairim ) here's a point. He was bested this year, in the Fitzgibbon final and at u-21, by two young full backs, John Dalton and Kieran Joyce, eager to make an impact at the highest level. Wonder what county they are from?



10. A new G.P.A ad for a star hurler; what drives me?; a glorious semi-final defeat so i'm safely in the stand on All-Ireland day, and not on the field facing Kilkenny's wrath.