Would this work

[don ramo]

Would it be a bad idea


An 18 team league consisting
1: Bohemians
2: St. Pats
3: Derry City
4: Cork City
5: Sligo Rovers
6: Shamrock Rovers
7: Drogheda United
8: Bray Wanderers
9: Finn Harps
10: Cobh Ramblers
11: U.C.D.
12: Galway
13: Shelbourne
14: Dundalk
15: Waterford United
16: Sporting Fingal
17: Limerick 37
18: Monaghan United

The first division would then contain 12 teams

1: Longford Town
2: Wexford Youths
3: Athlone Town
4: Kildare County
5: Tullamore
6: Kilkenny City
7: Salthill Devon
8: Mervue United
9: Bohs A
10: Pats A
11: Derry A
12: Cork A

i would say the top 4 teams only should have to field an A team, based in the fact there the biggest and strongest clubs, and they should play in the first division to develope there younger players better, as you would consider the biggers clubs will draw the best young talent,

no A championship, the country isnt at a level to sustain 3 leagues, no matter what size

[brianw82]

Could you not have updated one of the million other threads with ideas about 16/18 team premier divisions instead of creating a new one?

[Paddyfield]

What if Cork A, Bohs A, Pat's A and Derry A were promoted? It would bring a new meaning to the word 'derby' if Bohs were playing Bohs A.

[fionnsci]

Swap Wexford for Monaghan and then we'll talk. I personally dont think it will help, just more teams over spending to compete with top clubs and get into Europe.
Lets see how the 10 team league goes first.

[MariborKev]

Would it work? No.

Move on.

[Graemerz]

Trust me sometimes the more teams the worse the competition becomes.. Look at the Irish League when it went to 16 teams, it was a league filled with dross teams who very rarely give off any sort of shock results, most of the time the only time these teams got points is when they played each other.

It drags a good side down when they are playing dross opposition.

[passerrby]

no because we refuse to play with so many clubs that cant organise there budgets for a season

[Paddyfield]

no because we refuse to play with so many clubs that cant organise there budgets for a season

The truth hurts.

[oldyouth]

What if Cork A, Bohs A, Pat's A and Derry A were promoted? It would bring a new meaning to the word 'derby' if Bohs were playing Bohs A.

Not only that, but they could get drawn in a League Cup game. What, also, would happen if one of those clubs got in to financial difficulty? Both would have to be penalised. Then you get the situation where the A team could get padded out with senior players for an important 1st division game

[Mr Maroon]

What if Cork A, Bohs A, Pat's A and Derry A were promoted? It would bring a new meaning to the word 'derby' if Bohs were playing Bohs A.

They have A (well they call them B) teams in the Spanish league system. They work as if they are any other club except they cannot be in the same league as the first team. Real Madrid B won promotion once a few years back but they stayed in the second division becasue they couldn't be in the same league as Real.

I'm not saying it would work in Ireland, but it does in some countries.

[don ramo]

lad we have A teams already, im saying no point in making every club run an A team, plus given the first division games you would actually be able to make money from your A team, rather than it costing you, there would be what 60 people at an A game, some clubs dont charge to enter, yet have to pay the ref E200, if you put A teams in with equal teams like the first division (maybe lower depending on the strenght of your squad) then you can charge more, as its more of a competative game, even if home fans dont come away ones will,

basically lads only the team that can afford an A team will have one (top 4 clubs) and they can actually make money from them if there playing against better opposition, you cant exactly epect to make money when you have salthill devon thorwn in with 12 A teams,

in the past did we not have a 10 team premier division, there will be a major gap between top and bottom with 18, but theres a gulf now with 12 and there will be with 10 also, there will always be a gulf,

[thischarmingman]

would this work

No. It wouldn't.

[Schumi]

In an ideal world, 18 teams would be the perfect number in the premier, play everyone twice and still have 17 home games but there's no point in having what are currenty mid-table first division teams playing Bohs, Pats and Derry and getting hammered. There aren't enough good players to sustain that size of a top flight unfortunately.

[dcfcsteve]

You're right here Don Ramo.

It would be a bad idea....

[Ash]

In an ideal world, 18 teams would be the perfect number in the premier, play everyone twice and still have 17 home games but there's no point in having what are currenty mid-table first division teams playing Bohs, Pats and Derry and getting hammered. There aren't enough good players to sustain that size of a top flight unfortunately.

The advantage though would be the increased revenue games against bigger
teams would generate for the lesser sides. Increased revenue may lead to
a sounder financial platform for the smaller clubs to build on and bring in more quality players.

[Dodge]

The advantage though would be the increased revenue games against bigger
teams would generate for the lesser sides. Increased revenue may lead to
a sounder financial platform for the smaller clubs to build on and bring in more quality players.

The increase in revenue would be for 4/5 home games only (no real difference in most crowds between mid tabel prem and top of first) so wouldn't have a massive impact. it might be more attractive for spopnsors and the likelihood of TV coverage would help too

However we're simply not big enough as a country to maintain that many top flight teams, without it becoming ridiculously lopsided. some sort of competitiveness needs to be maintained. Also licensing has to be kept up, if only the grounds aspect of it. There are no wehere near 18 grounds close to being abel to stage premier division football that can be watched on Tv

[Mr A]

Didn't we have a 16 team premier when the league had its biggest crowds and international representation as a matter of course though?

[Dodge]

Didn't we have a 16 team premier when the league had its biggest crowds and international representation as a matter of course though?

No. We had a 16 team league for 1 season in 1984/85 (after the addition of Cork City and Longford Town) and from 77/78 to 81/82

[Ash]

The increase in revenue would be for 4/5 home games only (no real difference in most crowds between mid tabel prem and top of first) so wouldn't have a massive impact. it might be more attractive for spopnsors and the likelihood of TV coverage would help too

However we're simply not big enough as a country to maintain that many top flight teams, without it becoming ridiculously lopsided. some sort of competitiveness needs to be maintained. Also licensing has to be kept up, if only the grounds aspect of it. There are no wehere near 18 grounds close to being abel to stage premier division football that can be watched on Tv

Drat ... a flaw in my flawless plan

[Mr A]

It was 16 before that as well though and had been 14 for quite a while before.

Would the top 4 in the first division really lessen the standard that much? I don't think there's too much difference between lower premier and upper first TBH, and Dundalk, Waterford, Shelbourne and even to some extent Fingal would have something to add the the premier.