Ask any corner forward what their worst nightmare is, and they’ll tell you it’s playing with a midfielder or half back who is slow to release the ball.
Corner forward is one of the toughest positions to play in the GAA.
For the majority of the game, you’re feeding off scraps, you’re buzzing around the full forward line but there’s little guarantee of an easy ball. Everything is hard-won in there.
If something, anything, is going wrong in the early stages of a game, no matter if the problem stems from defence or midfield, more-often-than-not, the corner forward gets the blame and is called ashore for an early shower.
They may not have got any ball, they may not have got a chance, but it’s all their fault.
A corner forwards day can be made even tougher when they’re playing with a team who run with the ball from deep, who just won’t let the ball in quick.
We’ve seen many examples of this recently, from the Clare hurlers taking on pot-shots from ridiculous lengths in the Munster final, and blazing the ball, invariably wide, over the heads of one of the most potent full forward lines in the game, to the Kildare footballers on Sunday.
They were passing the ball around the midfield in a non-threatening manner, they took a few of these long shots, instead of lumping the ball into the aerially gifted Paddy Brophy.
It must’ve been so frustrating for Brophy on Sunday, knowing that he took the Meath full back line to the cleaners in his last game, with this high ball, and with the limited service that he did get on Sunday, he also did well.
Kildare’s lack of attempt to utilise the aerial threat that Paddy Brophy offers came under discussion in The GAA Hour Football Show on Monday. Conan Doherty felt that Kildare made a big mistake in failing to send the ball in early to him.
“I think he was completely underused because when he was in possession, he looked like he was going to make something happen. He scored 1-2 from play, and that’s him not being brought into the game enough,” said Doherty.
Pádraic Joyce played in the full forward line for the Galway footballers for many years and he’s well aware of the struggle.
“The perception is that the forward needs to get the pinpoint chest ball. If you’re playing inside, and I played inside for years, it doesn’t matter if there’s four on you or there’s two on you. If you know that the ball is coming in early you have some chance of preparing for it.
“If you’re in there waiting, and the team is playing this lateral game, back and over across the half forward line before the perfect pass does come in, it’s a waste of time because there’s going to be four or five around you to mark you.
“If you know that it’s going to come in in some direction, you’ll anticipate that, you’ll have the move made ahead of the back and you should win it.
Host Colm Parkinson agreed with Joyce and felt that the Kildare team didn’t do Paddy Brophy justice.
“A tactic Kildare could’ve used more often was that long diagonal ball. In the first five minutes, Tommy Moolick got one. In the last few minutes, Paddy Brophy got one, and he got a goal. In between those two bloody polar ends of the game, there was none. I can’t comprehend it.”
“It must be very frustrating and then the fella out the field is looking up, they see their full forward behind their man and suddenly they have to take that extra bounce. Just get the bloody thing in if you’ve Paddy Brophy.
Give your full forward line a chance.
Listen to the lad’s discussion from The GAA Hour Show here from 54″00′ .
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