'Righteous fanaticism of a LOI fan' - Brian O'Connor in the Irish Times

[PartySaint]

Pointless article, I'm not sure if he even fully knows what he is trying to say.

Would agree with a previous poster, it's kids clubs need to targeting to attend games and become fans of the future. The majority of the barstoolers will never bother with the League and dismiss it out of hand. There is the odd one here and there that you could possibly convince to come to matches and if you achieve this congratulations.

I'm actually sick and tired of people asking me 'who do you support?' and when I reply 'Dundalk', they say no what 'proper' team do you support.

I generally find most people who support a EPL team are open to the idea of at least going to one LOI game and seeing what it is like. You usually have to work on them but when they see the passion you have for you're team they give it a shot. I have convinced 6 people in the off season to come to one or more of Pats first few games this season and am hoping to get 1 0r 2 more down

Now there is a few who totally dismiss it but I tend not to bother talk football with them to try get them to games

[Dunny]

Brian, from an LOI fan, blow it out yer arse ya hack.

[El-Pietro]

He gets some things right in his article; the passion and identity for example.

However, he seems to think that passion should only exist at the pinnacle of sport. No need for the likes of Crewe or Charlton, when there is Manchester United or Chelsea.

Which is more ridiculous, a young lad from Bray with Bray tattooed on his arm or the same lad with a city in northern England tattoed on his arm. To LOI fans the answer is clear, but not to Mr O'Connor apparently.

I was at a Charlton game on Saturday - 26,500 or so at a 3rd division game (it helped that they sold all tickets for £5)

[Stuttgart88]

The most annoying thing about that article was the sheer pointlessness of it. It seems that after Matt Williams last week, The Irish Times on a Monday is the place for unsolicited pointless digs at Irish football.

So what if Brentford can afford to offer pro footballers a better living than an Irish club? A basic lesson in economics explains that.

What was the need for the tattoo and security firm references? Class prejudice again I reckon, sanctioned by the sports editor. Embarrasing really.

[Mr A]

I say we get in contact with him posing as a security firm, then crucify him while using a blow torch on his nether regions and dripping acid on to his head.

That will teach him to call us fanatics.

[Jofspring]

It's actually articles like this which make LOI fans hate the die support of English teams even more if you ask me.

Instead of pointing out that their are many LOI fans that support both he seems intent on pointing out a split and that basically the LOI is a mickey mouse league and we should all just support the top teams in England because its totally like the bestest ever.

If we really want to support the best league around then maybe it should be suggested to him that all the fans of English teams and LOI teams should just shift allegiance to Spanish league teams because "Why would any player dream of making it in an English team when he could make it at one of the top two teams in world football currently at Barcelona or Real Madrid?

[outspoken]

Pointless article, I'm not sure if he even fully knows what he is trying to say.

I'm actually sick and tired of people asking me 'who do you support?' and when I reply 'Dundalk', they say no what 'proper' team do you support.

Oh so its not just longford barstoolers that say that haha its so annoying, the other response is eh but like what english club? my response is always so what the fai cup isnt a proper trophy, they get lost then

[born2bwild]

What a pointless waste of ink.

I hope for his sake 'neglible' 'inconvertible' are typos.

[Sonny]

Just another barstooler desperately searching for some intellectual justification for their deviance, and another hack journo desperately searching for an audience. Nothing to see here.

[Charlie Darwin]

What a pointless waste of ink.

I hope for his sake 'neglible' 'inconvertible' are typos.

The online articles usually go up with grammatical mistakes and typos intact. It's always interesting to see which journalists turn in proofed copy and which don't have a clue. Guess which camp Mr. O'Connor falls into...

[A N Mouse]

Four tickets for the Brandywell to anyone linking to an article
a) published this week in a national paper
b) of similar length
c) about the League of Ireland
d) by someone not normally associated with the league
e) advocating going to see a game.

[Finlay Harp]

Four tickets for the Brandywell to anyone linking to an article
a) published this week in a national paper
b) of similar length
c) about the League of Ireland
d) by someone not normally associated with the league
e) advocating going to see a game.

That sounds like a punishment!

[gormacha]

Class prejudice again I reckon, sanctioned by the sports editor. Embarrasing really.

Bingo.

Most pertinent comment I've read on this all day.

[cheifo]

I say we get in contact with him posing as a security firm, then crucify him while using a blow torch on his nether regions and dripping acid on to his head.

That will teach him to call us fanatics.

Cue ritual burnings of the IT with chants of death to the infidel outside league of Ireland grounds this week. Will make great TV and generate much needed publicity for the league.

[sheao]

That guy probably wrote that from the comfort of his armchair as it is clear his footballing experience is confined to there.
Armchair supporters talking making a pointless attempt to have a dig at the league.

[superfrank]

I like how he used Stephen Hunt as an example of a player who was released by his youth club then stayed in England with a lower-league team, while ignoring a player like Keith Fahey who, arguably, had a more illustrious youth career in England (how much did Villa pay Arsenal for him?) before returning here (to the LSL, iirc) to make his name and eventually working his way into the national side.

[northwestexile]

While I agree with some of the points it's the negative slant on the article that I take issue with. Like a lot of the national newspapers the majority of news articles related to football in Ireland is portrayed in a negative way from the national team down. He makes out that for players who didn't make it in England coming back to the LOI is a failure. It could quite easily be turned around and say that players are now coming back to the LOI as a viable option and a way of playing in a competitive league with the prospect of being signed again when they have matured a bit more and are more likely to handle the pressure.

In the past players came back and were lost to the game. Anthony Tohill got released by Man Utd and Trevor Gilles got let go by Arsenal but yet they are seen as having been hugely successful (and rightly so) but yet they were lost to football. In a few years a player like Stephen Hunt might look to come back to an Irish team rather than go to the lower leagues.

[Spudulika]

Guys, he's writing for the IT, which means he's a wannabe writer, who isn't good enough to get a job on RTE, who is too crapscared of taking the chance to go to a proper newspaper, and who's stuck in Ireland typing one handed while he fiddles with himself watching re-runs of Bosco on tv. He ruins valid points (a la George Hook) by being a clown and looking for readership. I don't read the IT as there is nothing to it.

[geezer]

This evening at Lansdowne many Galway United fans will attend to both celebrate our former Goalkeeper David fordes appearance and also of course remember Chick Deacy.

Sadly the whisper in high echolons of football this morning was that GUST were going to "protest" . GUST have purchased international tickets for years many years when the International team qualified for nothing. The money was accepted willingly and never has there been a protest, any form of trouble or even hint of trouble.

GUST members will be in Lansdowne this evening to celebrate Davids appearance, remember Chick and support our boys in green.

We would ask senior whisperers in high positions who should no better and put the head of security in the fai on "notice" about some protest and who read this forum to refrain from continuously attacking, damaging the reputation of the very genuine Galway United supporters that have put their hands in their pockets at LOI level, Junior, Juvenile and International levels


Cmon the boys in Green

[A face]

To be fair i dont think anyone thinks this guy has come up with a new angle or opinion, its just rehashed stuff we've seen loads of times before. Its boring and doesn't captivate the readership, either LOI fans or otherwise.

Next !!!!