Will the playoff be held in Croke Park ?

[zinedineontour]

If and I really do think we will make the playoffs with the rugby internationals booked for Lansdowne will the GAA let us use Croke Park earlier than expected ? I think under immense pressure they will give in and we will play in croker ..

[tiktok]

Why would Switzerland want to play in Croke Park? ;)

Serously, I'd imagine there would be enough public pressure exerted that Croker would be opened

[Green Tribe]

I would imagine so.....they'd have to.... :eek:

[padzer]

It is true that lansdowne is gonna be booked up on the proposed dates of the playoffs and that Croker wont be available either.

There is a rumour being circulated that Parkhead is a possible alternative.

[Pablo]

It is true that lansdowne is gonna be booked up on the proposed dates of the playoffs and that Croker wont be available either.

There is a rumour being circulated that Parkhead is a possible alternative.

didnt the GAA rule this out earlier in the year?

the rule change allowing the use of Croker was specifically for the period of lansdownes redevelopement......

which isn't November

[Armando]

Dont forget if we do play in croker it will have to be during the day
cause theres no poxy floodlights at croker

No problem there. All our qualifiers used to be afternoon kick-offs. It's up to the home association what time the game kicks off at.

[Cosmo]

Am I the only Irish fan that would prefer all our games played in Anfield rather than Croker :confused: ? (and I dont support liverpool)

[zinedineontour]

Am I the only Irish fan that would prefer all our games played in Anfield rather than Croker :confused: ? (and I dont support liverpool)

I hope you are ... Why would you want our games to be played outside Ireland ??

[paul_oshea]

so he could use his irish accent to score some scouse chicks and ride them. amnt i right cosmo ;) :D

[tetsujin1979]

I doubt it will, the GAA change stated that Croke Park would be offered while Lansdowne Road was undergoing renovations. While it would be a disaster from a financial point of view, seeing as how the bucket seats cannot be installed, the FAI can still use Lansdowne Road, so I don't see Croke Park being offered

[zinedineontour]

I doubt it will, the GAA change stated that Croke Park would be offered while Lansdowne Road was undergoing renovations. While it would be a disaster from a financial point of view, seeing as how the bucket seats cannot be installed, the FAI can still use Lansdowne Road, so I don't see Croke Park being offered

think the fai will prob use anfield if we cant get croker as we could only have 22000 which would not cater for even all the blockbookers ...

[superfrank]

I think it's really embarassing if we have to play a home tie in the UK!!

I don't care if it's Celtic Park, it's still the UK!

Just another sign of what a joke the FAI has turned into. :mad:

[thejollyrodger]

what about Winsor park ? :D

[superfrank]

You never know....

[Kingdom]

The GAA don't have to do anything. And by their own laws they can't do anything. Croker won't be used, as the law that passes it free to other games is only applicable while Lansdowne is under reconstruction, unless of course they have an EGM, and I don't see that happening.

[Green Tribe]

so he could use his irish accent to score some scouse chicks and ride them. amnt i right cosmo ;) :D

:D probably :D

[Superhoops]

I think it's really embarassing if we have to play a home tie in the UK!!

I don't care if it's Celtic Park, it's still the UK!

Just another sign of what a joke the FAI has turned into. :mad:
What do you expect them to do?

They only have three choices for a play-off game:
1) play at Lansdowne in front of 22000
2) play at a UK venue. Croke Park or any GAA ground is not available, therefore it has to be abroad, if we want they want to accommodate the number of supporters that will want to see the game. The realistic choices are Glasgow (will depend if Scotland are involved in play-offs), Liverpool, Manchester or Cardiff. My own preference of for Cardiff.
3) play at a European venue. Amsterdam or Paris would be my favourites.

[zinedineontour]

What do you expect them to do?

They only have three choices for a play-off game:
1) play at Lansdowne in front of 22000
2) play at a UK venue. Croke Park or any GAA ground is not available, therefore it has to be abroad, if we want they want to accommodate the number of supporters that will want to see the game. The realistic choices are Glasgow (will depend if Scotland are involved in play-offs), Liverpool, Manchester or Cardiff. My own preference of for Cardiff.
3) play at a European venue. Amsterdam or Paris would be my favourites.

right straight away choice 3 should be out the door .... has to if not in ireland which seems unlikely be anfield imo easiest for everyone to get to but really dont see why croker cant be opened for this one game .... a afternoon kick off is possible why not ??

[blueanto40]

No it wont be on Croker. 1st GAA rules dont allow it nor do FIFA rules as it does not have floodlighting

[harps1954]

It's not beyond the bounds of possibility that we could end up playing England in the play-offs (provided we get there). Imagine playing both games in England - the away leg at Old Trafford and the 'home' leg at Anfield :confused:

[thejollyrodger]

the GAA are already investigating floodlighting. They are figuring out the bulb power so that a hurling ball can be seen. I guess it is too late. I think it will be anfield.

[jbyrne]

No it wont be on Croker. 1st GAA rules dont allow it nor do FIFA rules as it does not have floodlighting

dont think that a stadium has to have floodlights. werent there none in the faroes?

[Closed Account 2]

Think it could be Cardiff

[Risteard]

what about Winsor park ? :D
I see your laughing smiley but am i the only one who thinks this is a brilliant idea?

[paul_oshea]

They are figuring out the bulb power so that a hurling ball can be seen

would that be a slíothar by any chance?

[paul_oshea]

I see your laughing smiley but am i the only one who thinks this is a brilliant idea?


eh ya! 22,000 as opposed to what 12,000? :eek:

[Cosmo]

If lansdowne isnt available:

Croke Park positives:
- 80,000 irish fans (we hope)
- dont have the 'embarrassment' of playing at home

Croke Park negatives:
- too many leprechaun suit wearing muppets will be in the ground
- we have to give the GAA clowns a fair chunk of money


Anfield positives:
- nice tight ground
- 40,000 crowd is on top of the pitch
- alot of second generation irish should be there who are probably more passionate than alot of the clown that go to lansdowne
- everyone will be on the tear all day even if its a wednesday match which will greatly improve the atmosphere
- very imtimidating atmosphere

Anfield negatives:
- having the 'embarrassment' of playing a 'home' game abroad.

I wonder which ground Brian Kerr would prefer to play in

Oh yeah, as paul o' shea and KT have said, there is that other positive too :D

[gspain]

No it wont be on Croker. 1st GAA rules dont allow it nor do FIFA rules as it does not have floodlighting

Would you mind producing the rule? There are certainly rules re the quality of lights which is fair enough however I'm not aware of any rule prohibiting daylight games in grounds without lights.

This is a non issue as Croke Park will not be available as the GAA rules still prohibit it.

I do have issues with giving the GAA any money given some of the actions in the past towards football clubs, the ban, the broken glass spreading etc etc. however there was clear evidence of change within the GAA in the Republic at the last congress. 24 of the 26 counties voted in favour of opening up Croke Park. The GAA in Northern Ireland is still a different story. they still name clubs and cups after IRA/INLA members etc.

However the alternative of playing home games abroad would be an embarrassment to the country. It would also cost this country hundreds of millions of euro in revenue and probably hundreds of jobs.

[Cosmo]

'It would also cost this country hundreds of millions of euro in revenue'

Never mind the economy, (sure if we topped the group, the economy wouldnt have benefitted anyway), purely on football reasons and giving us our best chance to qualify, where do you think we have our best chance - Anfield (where all our squad have played a few times) or Croker (where it will be the irish teams first time ever playing there)?

[Volcán Masaya]

If lansdowne isnt available:

Croke Park positives:
- 80,000 irish fans (we hope)
- dont have the 'embarrassment' of playing at home

Croke Park negatives:
- too many leprechaun suit wearing muppets will be in the ground
- we have to give the GAA clowns a fair chunk of money

Who's this "we"? Do you work for the FAI?

A lot of the "We" you refer to also like our hurling and football as well as the ol' bit of soccer.



Anfield positives:
- nice tight ground
- 40,000 crowd is on top of the pitch
- alot of second generation irish should be there who are probably more passionate than alot of the clown that go to lansdowne
- everyone will be on the tear all day even if its a wednesday match which will greatly improve the atmosphere
- very imtimidating atmosphere

Anfield negatives:
- having the 'embarrassment' of playing a 'home' game abroad.

I wonder which ground Brian Kerr would prefer to play in

:D

Kerr has already stated in the past that he doesn't like the idea of playing in Croker. He moaned about the "state of the pitch" and how the surface isn't compatible because of the damage done by Gaelic Football.
Of course he's never b1tched about rugby tearing the sh1te out of the Landsdowne road grass. He has a history of being anti "GAH".
Probably a bit like yourself.

[Cosmo]

'Who's this "we"?'

The GAA are over charging the FAI for the ground. As someone that has a keen interest in Irish football, that money could be used towards the development of the domestic game - so therefor 'we', as in football supporters, are losing out

[paul_oshea]

but they are gaining on more ticket sales as its a bigger ground!

is kerr anti (the stupid dublin word) "GAAAAH"? never heard this before but doesnt surprise me given he is a dub

[Cosmo]

'but they are gaining on more ticket sales as its a bigger ground!'

Yeah but gaining nothing if its just thrown back to the GAA :o

Seriously, where do you think we've a better chance of winning - Anfield or Croke Park?

[paul_oshea]

i would think croke park, as the team would be well up for it, no other team would have played in a pitch like croker either,68,000 irish fans would make a hell of a lot more noise than 40,000 in anfield, plus it would be the first game there the players would be unbelieveably up for it, plus its a wider pitch and given where our better players positions are on the wings this would suit us also!

[Cosmo]

Fair points, even though I disagree with ye :p

Hopefully the manager and the teams opinions are taken into account when making the decision ;)

[p_o_r]

'Who's this "we"?'

The GAA are over charging the FAI for the ground. As someone that has a keen interest in Irish football, that money could be used towards the development of the domestic game - so therefor 'we', as in football supporters, are losing out

When the announcement came that the GAA had decided to make Croke Park available to the FAI and IRFU while Lansdowne Rd was being re-development the FAI issued a statement saying they were happy with the decision, however they had not ruled out playing games outside Ireland while re re-development was going on.
In other words, they may not be willing to pay what the GAA will be asking for to use the ground.
Not playing in Croke Park when it is available would be a very bad decision by the FAI if you ask me.
Fair enough the cost may be larger than the UK but in the longer term I believe it would alienate a lot more fans if the FAI were to play ‘home games’ in the UK while a 80K stadium is available just up the road. It would be a very short sighed action; I hope it does not come to it.

[Cosmo]

When the announcement came that the GAA had decided to make Croke Park available to the FAI and IRFU while Lansdowne Rd was being re-development the FAI issued a statement saying they were happy with the decision, however they had not ruled out playing games outside Ireland while re re-development was going on.
In other words, they may not be willing to pay what the GAA will be asking for to use the ground.
Not playing in Croke Park when it is available would be a very bad decision by the FAI if you ask me.
Fair enough the cost may be larger than the UK but in the longer term I believe it would alienate a lot more fans if the FAI were to play ‘home games’ in the UK while a 80K stadium is available just up the road. It would be a very short sighed action; I hope it does not come to it.


Well tbh I agree with the FAI on this one :) . Croker was built as a result of alot of tax payers money, and now the FAI have to pay an enormous amount to the GAA to use it.

As I said, once Kerr and the squad are consulted with on where the match should be played, I won't have a problem with where is decided. Like all that matters is that the team are comfortable about where they're playing their home leg.

Actually, forget it, we still have to make the play offs :eek:

[paul_oshea]

ya exactly. we do, but i think the most important thing is that we play there because the team feel comfortable with the pitch and surface etc, and not any other stupid reasons i.e. dont play cos brian kerr is anti gaelic football.

[gspain]

He has a history of being anti "GAH".
Probably a bit like yourself.

Perhaps you can give some examples of Brian Kerr being anti GAA. Despite having plenty of reasons to be anti GAA given his heritage afaik he actually has an interest in one of the sports or at least had when he was in UCD..

[VinnyL]

another thing about croker - there'll be no fans allowed in the hill terracing so the whole area behind one of the goals will just be empty....

[gspain]

When the announcement came that the GAA had decided to make Croke Park available to the FAI and IRFU while Lansdowne Rd was being re-development the FAI issued a statement saying they were happy with the decision, however they had not ruled out playing games outside Ireland while re re-development was going on.
In other words, they may not be willing to pay what the GAA will be asking for to use the ground.
Not playing in Croke Park when it is available would be a very bad decision by the FAI if you ask me.
Fair enough the cost may be larger than the UK but in the longer term I believe it would alienate a lot more fans if the FAI were to play ‘home games’ in the UK while a 80K stadium is available just up the road. It would be a very short sighed action; I hope it does not come to it.

I agree it would be a bad move by the F.A.I. to go abroad if Croke Park was available. However it would have been equally stupid to say we'd play there at any price. Some ridiculous figures were being bandied about albeit by the rump of bigots who were opposed to allowing football into Corke Park in the first place.

The current administration of the GAA appears to be relatively modern and pragmatic and I'm sure a deal will be done when/if Lansdowne is redeveloped.

This playoff is not covered by the rule change so it may have to go abroad if we reach the playoffs.

[Jerry The Saint]

As has been said, I'm pretty sure this question has come up before during previous play-off games we've been involved in and it came to nothing in the end.

We would need to be drawn/agree with the opposition to play on the Wednesday (16/11) rather than the same day as the All-Blacks game (12/11) but I don't see why we couldn't get the temporary seats in and out in the time available if we REALLY needed to. I wonder if this is something the FAI are putting out there because they could make more money out of the game in a bigger UK stadium?

[gaf1983]

Croke Park WILL NOT be used for any playoff match. FULL STOP.
no point even thinking about it.

its only available while landsdowne road is under reconstruction which will not take place before november!

so its either lansdowne road or abroad.

[SuperDub]

Even if Croker was available i believe the stadium management that run croker would price themselves out of the market. I read somewhere that the reason why U2 only played 3 gigs in dublin was beacuse the gaa were looking for more monry for extra gigs.
Seemingly U2's management were amazed with their attitude for example in europe and the uk if you hire a stadium for for a number of nights the rental goes down pending the number of gigs you have but when u2 looked for extra dates the prices the gaa were looking for was more then any of the dates they already had.

[p_o_r]

Even if Croker was available i believe the stadium management that run croker would price themselves out of the market. I read somewhere that the reason why U2 only played 3 gigs in dublin was beacuse the gaa were looking for more monry for extra gigs.
Seemingly U2's management were amazed with their attitude for example in europe and the uk if you hire a stadium for for a number of nights the rental goes down pending the number of gigs you have but when u2 looked for extra dates the prices the gaa were looking for was more then any of the dates they already had.

I reckon when the time approcahes common sense will prevail on both sides.
And as stated by many above it will not be for this 'possible' play-off but when Landsdowne is knocked so it's a while away yet

[roboyle]

I have to laugh at the assertion that Croke Park used 'alot of taxpayers money.' Here's a few facts:

1. The GAA got E116m of LOTTERY money for the redevelopment of Croke Park. Applications for lottery funds are open to all organisations in Ireland.

2. The Government paid the GAA E25m to use Croke Park during the hosting of the Special Olympics in 2003. Without this they would not have been able to hold the opening & closing ceremonies in the style and fashion that they did.

While no offical data is available, it is believed that this money funded approximately 40% of the redvelopment of Croke Park. The GAA began palnning and redeveloping Croke Park without any public funding.

As a comparison, the FAI and IRFU have been promised E190m of funding (roughly 66%) towards the cost of redeveloping Lansdowne Road. This money has been promised ahead of even planning premission being granted.

The GAA is doing the FAI and the IRFU a favour by allowing them to use their stadium. If the FAI was properly organised they would've ensured that Lansdowne Road was not double-booked for the dates of the play-off once the fixture for the WC qualifiers were made...

[Réiteoir]

Why not use Tolka? :D ;)

[fergalr]

Why not use Tolka? :D ;)
cos Ollie doesn't allow tricolours in!

[RonnieB]

Id sooner goto the far ends of mars than goto croke park.

[jbyrne]

If the FAI was properly organised they would've ensured that Lansdowne Road was not double-booked for the dates of the play-off once the fixture for the WC qualifiers were made...

cant blame this on the fai.... they are tenants in lansdowne and have no control over when australia and new zealand rugby teams go on tour.

the problem with getting the bucket seats in and out again between the internationals is that the crush barriers on the terraces have to be removed to allow the seats go in. when the crush barriers are put back in they have to be load tested for safety reasons and this takes time.
maybe fifa will give us one off permission to use the terraces for the play-offs (provided we get there of course). the terraces are packed for some of the bigger friendlys