Sportscall on RTE 1

[Éanna]

Irish people are just terrible sports fans, it doesn’t matter what the sport is. Club GAA attendances are massively overstated, EL crowds are pathetic, and rugby crowds at AIL level are worse again.
spot on

[Éanna]

??????? The whole country except for those six counties who managed to win something that night.
In ainm dílis Dé - have you lost all reason ?? The France game had **** all importance . That 'Irish' team didn't represent the whole country - far from it. If they were representing the country, they might have shown a bit of passion & not be so f****in interested in singing karaoke and fannyinG about in Lillies until four in the morning.
I knew this day would come: Cop On, I agree with you, wholeheartedly!

[geysir]

Then why did they tell Pablo they'd call him and put him on, but instead let that ignorant ***** come on giving out that they dared to cover other sports. Quite obvious that RTE were the ones deciding the content..
Pablo?? so he can talk?

[fbtn]

When you see that the among the top watched programs in Ireland last year were the Eurovision, Your A Star and Daniel O'Donnell it says a lot!

Sweet Jesus :D

[blutil]

does this take into account people in pubs watching, because i'd think there would definately be more in a pub watching an international then daniel o'donnels christmas special

[Éanna]

Pablo?? so he can talk?
once ya get him started, there's no stopping him :D :D

[madjack]

The Ireland v France was by far the biggest sporting event in the country this year. It was bigger than all the GAA game sput together.

Poppycock. Don't you read the papers or watch telly? Ireland v France was 1 game that got about a week in the media. GAA gets year-round major media.

Its not unusual to see 15,000 - 20,000 at a championship inter-county match. How many eircom league matches even get half of that? I would say FAI cup final barely scrapes that kind of attendance.

Lets get a bit of realism and open mindedness here FFS.

[madjack]

Cop On, never lets the facts get in the way of a good wind up opportunity.

As Bohs fans are wont to say, there isn't a massive interest in hurling nationwide. FACT.

Now get back to your slice of buttered turf lunch, that sileage won't cut itself.
A great example of how some of the sh1te ye are spouting on this string is juvenile at best, bigoted and offensive at worst.

[republic]

Poppycock. Don't you read the papers or watch telly? Ireland v France was 1 game that got about a week in the media.

Lets get a bit of realism and open mindedness here FFS.


GSpain is absolutely right. France v Ireland was the biggest sporting event of the year. Certainly, in terms of viewing figures, both nationally and, importantly, internationally, it wiped the floor with *anything* the GAAH have to offer.

Sometimes I wonder whether I've drifted into a GAAH love-in with some of the comments here. Surreal. :confused:

[patsh]

Sometimes I wonder whether I've drifted into a GAAH love-in with some of the comments here. Surreal. :confused:
So just because you show your contempt and dislike for the GAA, it's expected that everybody on here should have your ridiculous & blinkered view?

[fbtn]

I don't usually watch muck on the goggle box (or what I perceive to be muck in all my pretentiousness, but the missus sometimes has outrageous $hite on in the background), but did ya see yer man last night - Karl Spain. looking for a girlfriend he is. He goes on these 'blind dates' & he brought this chick he's trying to impress to the Shels-Steua game (and correct me if I'm wrong, but did he have a Cork accent ??) Anyway, she wasn't too impressed, nor were the $hel$ supporters in the background !!

He is from Limerick*. Big deal. If he is an eircom League fan he obviously has an interest in other eircom League sides.

I've been at Bohs and Rovers home ties in Europe and I'm from Donegal.

(Any relation to GSpain in this thread by any chance?)

[republic]

What planet are you on ????? 'France v Ireland the biggest sporting event of the year' :D :D :D :D


On this island I can't think of anything bigger to date. Although our friends in OWC might beg to differ. They obviously think last Wednesday's game in Windsor was the big one.

[Macy]

As to the genius that enquired as to the crowds of 50,000+ - who the hell are you kidding ?? Does it ever dawn on you what the populations of these counties is?
Think the population of Galway is more than 200. Which is about how many the totally non event junkie hurling followers of that county brought to their first match of the qualifiers (and I don't care who it was against, that's nearly as pathetic as them giving out about not getting tickets despite being a "lifelong" supporter).

[Macy]

btw I would never dream of listening or watching Des fookin Cahill has got to be the biggest no nothing cúnt in the irish media. Christ, he makes Paul Collins seem informed....

[fbtn]

Touchy, touchy. You not gettin' it these days ?? I was merely makin' the observation that it was a strange choice as these programmes normally go for some $hite other than Eircom league clubs.
You've been to Bohs & Rovers games ?? Horray for you. I've been to $hels, Bohs, Rovers, Home Farm games not involving the Town - and they weren't even bloody European ties - what does that prove ??

Touchy touchy?? Far from it. I thought that your 'observation' you were pointing out that someone with a Cork accent was at a Shels game - you didn't make it entirely clear what your 'observation' was.

Bye bye.

[Macy]

I've been to $hels, Bohs, Rovers, Home Farm games not involving the Town - and they weren't even bloody European ties - what does that prove ??
That you're giving Ollie and Seery far too much money? :D

[Réiteoir]

That you're giving Ollie and Seery far too much money? :D

And that he LOVES THE DUBLIN :D :D

[razor]

Christ, he makes Paul Collins seem informed....Never, he is the biggest idiot on radio, if he had his way the Sports news would consist of GAA full stop. Out and out GAA tunnel vision.

And to be fair after the substitutions were made the other night we had 11 irish men on the field, how does this in anyway resemble the England B team?

[razor]

No way. At least collins MIGHT -- MIGHT -- know something about the gaah, but Cahill is the most ignorant clown on the airwaves. He knows ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about any sport. How the hell did he EVER get employed as a sports commentator ??????The fact i don't usually listen to Radio 1 spares me from Cahill but that tool Collins irritates the hell out of me on TodayFM

[Finn 05]

I was in Manchester driving home and i tuned in to that show.
I'm not a cricket fan at all and i love watching the GAA.
But that fool on the radio was a disgrace. He made all GAA people look like Bigots.

[Macy]

The fact i don't usually listen to Radio 1 spares me from Cahill but that tool Collins irritates the hell out of me on TodayFM
Think I'm being misrepresented here..... Being better than Cahill doesn't mean he's any good. :)

Problem with all the news readers is they try and make out they're an expert on all sports when they have extremely limited knowledge of them. I actually think Collins plays up to the fact he's mainly GAA, where Cahill will start talking bollóx about cricket and then move on to cycling and then on to hockey making out he has a clue....

And I've never seen him in the Carlisle before Bray fans start - I reckon youse photoshop the pics in your programme.... :D

[harry crumb]

Anybody listen to the guy from Galway on the show tonight?

What a tool!

[MariborKev]

Was that the boy about national anthem

Them Tipperary girls, what with their passing water bottles about.........

I switched on, listened to that for a minute, then switched off :D

[thejollyrodger]

what did he say harry ?

[harry crumb]

He came on and said that he used to go to Terryland but doesnt anymore because all they do is kick the ball high and the air, and then he said that the players were TOO fit.

He then said that hurling was the only game. The presenter then asked him was he at the u-21 final yesterday and said that he didnt go because he didnt think they'd win.

A Shels supporter came on first and in a roundabout way said that the league was worth supporting and that the premiership was suffering becuase of negative tactics.

[thejollyrodger]

sounds like a muppet

[Dr.Nightdub]

Who, the Shels fan? Tell us something we DON'T know. :D

[manic da hoop]

What about the presenter trying to find out what attracts him (the Shels fan) to supporting the eircom League by asking him, "What about the violence?" *******!

[paudie]

And another thing that bugged me was the guy giving out about Sean Og's speech being all as gaeilge.

It took RTE a week but they managed to dredge up some begrudger on that point.

[pdooc]

GSpain is absolutely right. France v Ireland was the biggest sporting event of the year. Certainly, in terms of viewing figures, both nationally and, importantly, internationally, it wiped the floor with *anything* the GAAH have to offer.

Sometimes I wonder whether I've drifted into a GAAH love-in with some of the comments here. Surreal. :confused:
"Tyrone's All-Ireland SFC final victory against Kerry yesterday was watched by an average audience of 887,000 on RTÉ Two, equating to a 73% share of the available audience.

At its peak, over 1.1 million viewers were tuning into the match on RTÉ Two.

The average audience for the match was up 20% on last year's football final, which was watched by 743,000 viewers, and puts this year's final at number three in the top ten programmes broadcast in Ireland this year.


The All-Ireland SHC final stands at number eight and the Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifier against France inhabits tenth place.

The figures cap an extraordinary season in terms of those tuning into The Sunday Game Live's GAA coverage on RTÉ, with the All-Ireland SHC final between Galway and Cork watched by an average audience of 726,000 - a share of 74%. "

[CollegeTillIDie]

Sportscall illustrates the problem which is endemic in this country..... we as a people have no taste!

By far the two best spectator sports played in this country are 1/ Soccer 2/ Hurling.

The best attended is by far the ugliest 1/ Bogball..... :confused:


I rest my case

[gspain]

"Tyrone's All-Ireland SFC final victory against Kerry yesterday was watched by an average audience of 887,000 on RTÉ Two, equating to a 73% share of the available audience.

At its peak, over 1.1 million viewers were tuning into the match on RTÉ Two.

The average audience for the match was up 20% on last year's football final, which was watched by 743,000 viewers, and puts this year's final at number three in the top ten programmes broadcast in Ireland this year.


The All-Ireland SHC final stands at number eight and the Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifier against France inhabits tenth place.

The figures cap an extraordinary season in terms of those tuning into The Sunday Game Live's GAA coverage on RTÉ, with the All-Ireland SHC final between Galway and Cork watched by an average audience of 726,000 - a share of 74%. "

Assuming the Swiss game or a playoff doesn't top it then this will be the 2nd time in th epast 17 years that a GAA match has been the top sporting event on RTE as oppsoed to football.

It should be noted that the France game was also live on Sky Sports whose coverage started earlier and ,amy of the 272,000 Sky subscribers in the Republic would have watched the game on this. I attend home football matches but would normally watch Sky's champions league coverage in preference to RTE's. The pubs are hard empty for football games either.

[Dr.Nightdub]

Got this by e-mail from my ex. The "soccer" references are obviously to the Premiership. I especially like #10.

15 Good reasons why the GAA is better than soccer

1) The GAA player who played in front of 80,000 at the weekend will be teaching your children, selling you meat or fixing your drains on Monday morning. The soccer player who plays in front of 80,000 will be moaning about playing too many games and will be trying to sell you his personalized brand of leisure wear.

2) GAA nicknames are better. Soccer players just add a Y to their surnames

3) Dublin vs Meath is a real derby. What does Utd. Vs City mean to Ronaldo or Sibierski??

4) How many soccer players does it take to screw in a light bulb? Answer eleven. One to stick it in and ten to surround and kiss him after he does it.

5) Soccer players go to the papers after a game. GAA players go to the pub.

6) John Terry would run a mile if he came up against Francie Bellew.

7) GAA teams are numbered 1-15. A soccer team reads like the lottery results.

8) All soccer players wear shin pads. Some hurlers wear helmets.

9) Television runs soccer. Schoolteachers run the GAA.

10) The GAA is about where you're from. Soccer is about who you like.

11) No segregation at GAA games.

12) No soccer team has a nickname quite as lovely as the Fighting Cocks
of Carlow.

13) Bubble perms never made it to Croke Park.

14) A scoreless draw in the GAA would be quite a novelty.

15) Roman Abramovich can buy the League…… You can't buy Sam!!!