Future of Irish Football

[wexfordned]

I think tomorrow night is a huge night for the future of football in this country and I'm not talking about results on the pitch.

Everthing that has gone on this week has been an embarrassment for football in this country. Surely there has to be a large protest from the fans tomorrow night to make John Delaney's positon untenable. It could be a watershed moment for the future.....

When will peolle decide enough is enough?The fact he has a whole thread that's nearly 50 pages long dedicated to his antics is ridiculous.

Its ridiculous that Irish clubs are still waiting on last season's prize money for the league as it's obvious paying John Delaney's rent is a bigger priority for the FAI.

The tennis ball protest mentioned on the radio was brilliant. Simple, almost impossible to police and incredibly embarrasing for the FAI. 36th minute would be the apt time to do it, to coincide with his ludicrous €360k salary together with €36k rent paid on his behalf.

[Cathalsmart]

Tomorrow if any security try to do anything to stop the protests it needs to be recorded, you know how these dictatorships work, they will try hide all the evidence.

[tetsujin1979]

There's no evidence that any tennis ball protest is planned. There was an article in the Times (I think) this afternoon that mentioned it, but no mention of it anywhere before that.

[backstothewall]

There's no evidence that any tennis ball protest is planned. There was an article in the Times (I think) this afternoon that mentioned it, but no mention of it anywhere before that.

That matters not a jot.

I'll have a tennis ball about my person somewhere regardless.

[tetsujin1979]

That matters not a jot.

I'll have a tennis ball about my person somewhere regardless.

Do you also have three points, or the money to pay a fine to UEFA, also secreted about your person, should either be applied to the FAI?

[Eminence Grise]

If only we knew somebody who could lend us a hundred grand...

[Diggs246]

Do you also have three points, or the money to pay a fine to UEFA, also secreted about your person, should either be applied to the FAI?

Are you familiar with Edmund Burke's quote

[jbyrne]

Do you also have three points, or the money to pay a fine to UEFA, also secreted about your person, should either be applied to the FAI?

exactly. the big losers would be the team if such a brain-dead protest happened

[wexfordned]

I think this is one of the few ways to protest and its far from braindead. Fans cant boycott home games like they could for a club side so only a few options available.

Dont know if its its funny or just sad that people are worried about the FAI getting fined by UEFA for protesting.

There's almost 900 posts on the John Delaney thread most of them critical but very few willing to back up their words and try to force him out.

[backstothewall]

I think this is one of the few ways to protest and its far from braindead. Fans cant boycott home games like they could for a club side so only a few options available.

Dont know if its its funny or just sad that people are worried about the FAI getting fined by UEFA for protesting.

There's almost 900 posts on the John Delaney thread most of them critical but very few willing to back up their words and try to force him out.

Once we break through 1000 posts moaning on the internet the bigwigs in the FAI will be forced to sit up and take notice. That'll show em!

The reality is that a protest like this is only gaining traction because of the Stasi-lite response to previous displays of dissent in Lansdowne Rd, aided and abetted by AGS.

Whilst everyone would hope things will fall a very long way short of violence, the reasons why escalation to the level of tennis balls has caught the public mood reminds me of this quote


Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable

[Cathalsmart]

I think this is one of the few ways to protest and its far from braindead. Fans cant boycott home games like they could for a club side so only a few options available.

Dont know if its its funny or just sad that people are worried about the FAI getting fined by UEFA for protesting.

There's almost 900 posts on the John Delaney thread most of them critical but very few willing to back up their words and try to force him out.

That’s the issue with the Irish mentality, we are too fcuking nice. We keep acting like the beta male and letting the FAI do what they like and not make a stand. Other countries have done it so this talk of not supporting the team is horse ****, it’s a reflection of how bad the FAI board have been in their role that we have to resort to protests like this.

[Scrufil]

Are you familiar with Edmund Burke's quote

Edmund Burke …when bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.

[Eminence Grise]

Are you familiar with Edmund Burke's quote

'Right lads, let's get rat-a55ed in the Buttery? It's 1744 after all!'

In fairness, it's not one of his better-known quotes, and may be only attributed to him.

[The Fly]

Are you familiar with Edmund Burke's quote

'Our patience will achieve more than our force'?

:rolleyes:


Edmund Burke …when bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.

Or, to cut to the chase a bit more - all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. (origin disputed though)

[tetsujin1979]

Are you familiar with Edmund Burke's quote
is it

me fail English? That's unpossible!

[geysir]

If some tennis balls were chucked out onto the pitch (by one or two good men) during the half time break, would that constitute a breach of the rules?

[tetsujin1979]

do you think it would stop in time for them to be cleared for the start of the second half?
a suggestion I've seen mooted is to stay after the final whistle, and whatever protests goes ahead can happen then, without disruption to the fixture itself.

[Diggs246]

'Our patience will achieve more than our force'?

:rolleyes:



Or, to cut to the chase a bit more, all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. (origin disputed though)

"Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little." that one is not disputed as far as I know

the point is sitting on our hands and bitching online wont help us. so I would support people who peacefully protest by throwing tennis balls onto a pitch

[tetsujin1979]

and if the protest does damage to the association, in the form of a points deduction or a fine, what then?

can you guarantee that no player, official, or member of the coaching setup will come from harm from a tennis ball thrown from the upper tier of a stadium?

[backstothewall]

and if the protest does damage to the association, in the form of a points deduction or a fine, what then?

can you guarantee that no player, official, or member of the coaching setup will come from harm from a tennis ball thrown from the upper tier of a stadium?

Can you point to a precedent of that happening in response to a protest of this nature Tets? Or can you give another reason why you believe such a penalty might be likely?

[tetsujin1979]

Can you point to a precedent of that happening in response to a protest of this nature Tets? Or can you give another reason why you believe such a penalty might be likely?

I don't know of any punishment for it, but tennis balls have only been used a few times as a protest, so there's no precedent for it working either.

It was discussed on YBIG, although most of the focus has been on where the story came from in the first place, and more or less agreed that using it as a protest could cause more trouble than it fixes.

[backstothewall]

I don't know of any punishment for it, but tennis balls have only been used a few times as a protest, so there's no precedent for it working either.

It was discussed on YBIG, although most of the focus has been on where the story came from in the first place, and more or less agreed that using it as a protest could cause more trouble than it fixes.

If they have been used a few times clearly there is a precedent. It has been used at Dortmund, Nuremberg, Sevilla, Basel, Bolton, Blackpool and Hull.

I can find nothing about fines for any of those clubs never mind points deductions. Different governing bodies obviously but Birmingham City appear to have avoided a points deduction for one of their fans landing a punch on he who must not be named. The idea that one would be applied for chucking a few tennis balls on is out of any proportion.

[geysir]

do you think it would stop in time for them to be cleared for the start of the second half?
a suggestion I've seen mooted is to stay after the final whistle, and whatever protests goes ahead can happen then, without disruption to the fixture itself.

I doubt if some tennis balls thrown by one or two people would amount to a clutter problem. Would such an action during the half time period be regarded with the same severity as throwing them onto the pitch during play? It's just a plain question, not a call to arms.

[wexfordned]

and if the protest does damage to the association, in the form of a points deduction or a fine, what then?

can you guarantee that no player, official, or member of the coaching setup will come from harm from a tennis ball thrown from the upper tier of a stadium?

Yes. Its a tennis ball not a cricket ball. Charlton fans had a game stopped after cushions were thrown on the pitch when protesting and they didn't receive a points deduction. Please point out any situation were a points deduction was enforced for a protest.

If you're concerned about the FAI getting fined because of fan protests then you priorities are f**ked up.

Protesting after the match doesn't make sense. Alot of people haves buses/trains to catch and the live coverage has finished. Protesting during the game gets greater coverage and far more embarrassment for Delaney and the FAI

[Cathalsmart]

I still can’t get my head around people actually arguing against protesting. These crooks have been taking advantage of us for years yet our plan seems to be just do nothing and just let them continue. After what happened on Saturday this is the best time possible to protest just to ram home how we feel live on TV, what is doing it at the FAI HQ going to do? No tv coverage ...

[geysir]

Ryan Nugent in the Indo reported that there was a shop in Ringsend with a sign advertising “tennis balls for sale”.

[backstothewall]

Ryan Nugent in the Indo reported that there was a shop in Ringsend with a sign advertising “tennis balls for sale”.

Have the Pulitzer prize committee been informed of Ryan's big scoop?

😂

[geysir]

Have the Pulitzer prize committee been informed of Ryan's big scoop?


Here you go, the Pulitzer Prize entry site (https://entrysite.pulitzer.org/)

[geysir]

BBC R4 & R5 both reporting on the tennis balls protests at the match and explaining the reasons why.
The Delaney disgrace and news of the tennis balls pitch protest has gone global.

[Cathalsmart]

There we go, I read somewhere on twitter that UEFA are considering fining the FAI. I suggest let’s keep doing this and keep making sure the FAI lose money!

[geysir]

In 2 of the (quality) photos on a Eurosport asia website article about the protest (https://asia.eurosport.com/football/euro-qualifying/2020/ireland-fans-throw-tennis-balls-to-disrupt-euro-qualifier_sto7203427/story.shtml), there are orange vested stewards in among the fans behind the goal. Is that a common measure? if so what's the justification for that oppressive presence? Usually don't stewards hide away out of view, lurking?

[tetsujin1979]

They're usually there, but their numbers were increased last night

[OwlsFan]

I suppose it's been John Delaney's fault since 1921 ? The trouble with football in Ireland goes far beyond the Governance of the FAI but it's easy to identify a scapegoat and put all the football cares of the world on his shoulders. History has shown us that this is a great panacea for some people. I don't see any John Delaneys in the IFA, FAW and SFA but those national leagues are almost as bad and in some cases worse. A few tennis balls aren't going to solve the problems affecting football in Ireland in a global market. They may result in fines on a cash strapped organisation and even if JD goes, who has the magic wand that can combat the "best league in the world" with wall to wall TV exposure and a GAA club in every parish in Ireland?

I am no fan of JD and some of his behaviour has been asinine but I remember the shambles of an organisation he inherited and there have been many improvements made in many aspects of football in this country. Can further improvements be made? Of course but never expect a league similar to the Dutch or others - it's just never going to happen no matter who is in charge of the FAI. Defeatist ? Probably. Realist ? I think so. That said, no one should hold the post of CEO for more that a specified number of years and it was/is time for him to go.

[Cathalsmart]

I suppose it's been John Delaney's fault since 1921 ? The trouble with football in Ireland goes far beyond the Governance of the FAI but it's easy to identify a scapegoat and put all the football cares of the world on his shoulders. History has shown us that this is a great panacea for some people. I don't see any John Delaneys in the IFA, FAW and SFA but those national leagues are almost as bad and in some cases worse. A few tennis balls aren't going to solve the problems affecting football in Ireland in a global market. They may result in fines on a cash strapped organisation and even if JD goes, who has the magic wand that can combat the "best league in the world" with wall to wall TV exposure and a GAA club in every parish in Ireland?

I am no fan of JD and some of his behaviour has been asinine but I remember the shambles of an organisation he inherited and there have been many improvements made in many aspects of football in this country. Can further improvements be made? Of course but never expect a league similar to the Dutch or others - it's just never going to happen no matter who is in charge of the FAI. Defeatist ? Probably. Realist ? I think so. That said, no one should hold the post of CEO for more that a specified number of years and it was/is time for him to go.

Negativity = realism...

No one is saying the league has to be that level, maybe getting to atleast where the SPL is I don’t think is that crazy a ambition.

[backstothewall]

I suppose it's been John Delaney's fault since 1921 ? The trouble with football in Ireland goes far beyond the Governance of the FAI but it's easy to identify a scapegoat and put all the football cares of the world on his shoulders. History has shown us that this is a great panacea for some people. I don't see any John Delaneys in the IFA, FAW and SFA but those national leagues are almost as bad and in some cases worse. A few tennis balls aren't going to solve the problems affecting football in Ireland in a global market. They may result in fines on a cash strapped organisation and even if JD goes, who has the magic wand that can combat the "best league in the world" with wall to wall TV exposure and a GAA club in every parish in Ireland?

I am no fan of JD and some of his behaviour has been asinine but I remember the shambles of an organisation he inherited and there have been many improvements made in many aspects of football in this country. Can further improvements be made? Of course but never expect a league similar to the Dutch or others - it's just never going to happen no matter who is in charge of the FAI. Defeatist ? Probably. Realist ? I think so. That said, no one should hold the post of CEO for more that a specified number of years and it was/is time for him to go.

When one looks at the UEFA co-efficient ranking the League of Ireland is very obviously underperforming. This is not even a case of the League of Ireland standing still. The Moldovan league is ranked above ours. A country which didn't exist in 1991 never mind 1921. A country with a lower population than us. A country who rank 131st in the world for GDP per Capita. Ireland is 5th.

I'm not going to even be as ambitious as Cathalsmart and point to Scotland who obviously get a huge boost from the performance of one club.

But should we not be able to expect domestic football in Ireland to be as strong as domestic football in places like Bulgaria or Slovakia?

[tetsujin1979]

Is there any evidence on the claims that clubs haven't been paid their winning money from last season?

[tetsujin1979]

You can't prove a negative. (Unless you expect all the clubs to send you their bank statements since November:confused2:)

If you were to ask the average person on the street who would you believe Delaney/FAI or Brian Kerr I know what the majority will say.

If you lived in Ireland and had seen the behaviour of the FAI/Delaney over the last few years you'd beleive Brian Kerr too.

Where do you think I live?

[Kingdom]

What tets is doing is protecting this site from a potential legal letter from the FAI over a claim that has no base in evidence, even when requested. The hearsay testimony of someone unrelated to the original claim isn't evidence.

[Diggs246]

Even the FAI know that a legal letter to the fans ( this forum) is bad PR

[wexfordned]

Where do you think I live? Somewhere that isn't Ireland. You couldn't be so defensive about Delaney and so condescending about the fans protests if you were a regular at Ireland games and/or LOI games and seen the FAI "in action"

[tetsujin1979]

Somewhere that isn't Ireland. You couldn't be so defensive about Delaney and so condescending about the fans protests if you were a regular at Ireland games and/or LOI games and seen the FAI "in action"

Interesting.

[Diggs246]

Interesting.

I guess Japan!

[tetsujin1979]

I guess Japan!

Even. More. Interesting.

[SkStu]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/ireland/fai-board-in-talks-about-john-delaney-role-rngt8w57h

Anyone with full access?

[Kingdom]

There's a world of difference between saying something about a person and a publicly accountable sports association.
What could be argued, that they have some reputation to lose?:rolleyes:
The FAI would be some legal eagles best friend if they chose to blow millions sending legal letters to every such criticism of them and would in a flash lose all sports funding.
Imagine the fall out if they had spent the reputed Eur50k to take a challenge to the high court to rail against disclosure of a 100k loan
Kerr's statement has been widely repeated in media. It's evidence until it's not. The FAI, if so motivated, have the opportunity to challenge it with a statement to correct the record, Kerr would either have to put up or shut up.

I've been involved in moderating one forum, and paying the costs of the upkeep of another (hence my reticence to criticise the moderating on this site) where the Irish sport NGB were justifiably criticised. However both sites received letters from solicitors asking for posts making claims without evidence to be removed or further action would be taken. Like Tets has done here, he's asked for evidence, and it's not been provided, for whatever reason.

I can't stand what the FAI have done, I abhor what Delaney's done, but I understand what Tets is doing, and in my very limited experience, he's right.

[tetsujin1979]

24 hours to provide evidence that LOI clubs haven't been paid their winnings from the 2018 season, otherwise I'm deleting the posts.

[backstothewall]

and if the protest does damage to the association, in the form of a points deduction or a fine, what then?

I guess you're going to get your answer Tets.


Disciplinary proceedings have been opened following the European Qualifiers group D match between Republic of Ireland and Georgia (1-0), played on 26 March

Charges against Republic of Ireland:
- Throwing of objects - Art. 16 (2) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations

The case will be dealt with by the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary on 16 May.

https://www.uefa.com/insideuefa/disciplinary/#post_4277712

[tetsujin1979]

Some of the fine should be sent to Ciaran Kennedy c/o The Irish Times

[NeverFeltBetter]

I went looking for previous charges of a similar nature to see the outcomes, last year Liverpool were charged €6K for "throwing of objects" and the setting off of fireworks in the CPL quarter final against Man City, while Barcelona got just a warning for the same offence around the same time after a tie with Roma. Suffice to say it's likely to be figurative slap on the wrist.

[Kingdom]

Some of the fine should be sent to Ciaran Kennedy c/o The Irish Times

Provide some evidence or gtfo.