Games Weekend 23rd ti 25th August

[yurt]

Am I being completely biased thinking that Poehls is a lucky boy for the ref taking the easy decision and giving Walsh a yellow card and a free out?

Walsh is obviously trying to slow the keeper up and bate him into doing something stupid but then to me he ridiculously takes the bate and barges into a player who had every right to stand there?

Probably Galway tinted glasses but I do hate the fact that in football it seems like the goalkeeper can't commit fouls.

[CorribsideSteve]

Am I being completely biased thinking that Poehls is a lucky boy for the ref taking the easy decision and giving Walsh a yellow card and a free out?

Walsh is obviously trying to slow the keeper up and bate him into doing something stupid but then to me he ridiculously takes the bate and barges into a player who had every right to stand there?

Probably Galway tinted glasses but I do hate the fact that in football it seems like the goalkeeper can't commit fouls.

Also thought the same, but there was probably a bit of messing from both of them. Pohls does barge him but Walsh had the look of a guy trying to milk it. Entertaining game. Lovely opening goal and we should have scored a minute or two earlier from a beautifully worked move up the field. It's not all agriculture from Galway, mostly but not always. Very well drilled and hard to score against. Rovers rescued some pride at the end but the title dream is probably over, as bad as Derry and Shels have been lately.

[sbgawa]

Not acceptable imo

[wonder88]

Unlucky not to get the win after a great goal from Hickey (he has been a very good signing). A very competitive top division this year with the overall quality the best it has ever been in the LoI. Superb Galway move for the McCarthy chance also.

Agree Shamrock R goalkeeper very lucky not to have a penalty given against him. Unlikely to get away with that in Europe.

[placid casual]

Unlucky not to get the win after a great goal from Hickey (he has been a very good signing). A very competitive top division this year with the overall quality the best it has ever been in the LoI. Superb Galway move for the McCarthy chance also.

Agree Shamrock R goalkeeper very lucky not to have a penalty given against him. Unlikely to get away with that in Europe.

The polar opposite of what you stated there.
The quality is fu$kin woeful this year.
Rovers have no energy,no enthusiasm,no vigour to really grab this poor quality league by the scruff of the neck. Think derry look most likely to fall over the line now,and I for one wouldn't begrudge Higgins his 1st league - he appears to get little or no respect for his efforts imo.

As for the galway guy dropping like a stone when Pohls was trying to release the ball early, it was embarrassing and he's lucky he didn't get a proper belt for his antics.

[Dermobohs]

Rovers steward arrested after wading into the away end and punching the head off a young fan apparently. That’ll be kept quiet.

[sbgawa]

Rovers steward arrested after wading into the away end and punching the head off a young fan apparently. That’ll be kept quiet.

Find that hard to believe tbh. The rovers stewards mostly are paid security, they don't give a **** one way or the other about the result. Not saying it efinitly didn't happen as i dont know but it won't be kept quiet if it did

[Buckett]

There's a video going around, it's not a good look for Rovers.

[wonder88]

I don't get it why people are saying that the standard in the league is rubbish this year. I went to the UCD v Cork game in Belfield towards the end of last season, lovely autumn Sunday, Cork won. Did both those teams have better and fitter players and were better coached than say the Galway and Waterford teams of last year?

[nigel-harps1954]

If it's a good year for my team - Standard is excellent

If it's a bad year for my team - Worst league ever.

[yurt]

I'd personally think the best gauge of a leagues standard is how good the mid table teams are. That's why I'd rate the EPL as the best league in the world the SPL as a fairly average league even though the top 2 would give them a high ranking in the coefficient.

With that in mind I'd say the league has stayed fairly static quality wise in the last 3 years.

[Dermobohs]

****ing happened, took off his best hopped into the stand and started beating some poor kid. Dragged off by the cops before the Galway crowd killed him, mad ****er.
Similar incident reported during a women’s game last week between the same clubs, another dodgy steward!
Who the hell are doing security down there!!!8

[pineapple stu]

I don't get it why people are saying that the standard in the league is rubbish this year.
Because the league leaders got dumped out of Europe by a Gibraltar side? Because the three dominant teams of the last decade or so - Cork, Dundalk and Rovers - are in various stages of serious decline and nobody's really taken their place as yet (Pat's are threatening to)? Because there's no real proven goalscorer? (The top scorers are on 10 plus a couple of penalties after 28 rounds)

It certainly isn't anywhere near the best quality the LoI has ever been. The UCD team currently second in the First Division has no-one comparable to, say, Colm Whelan, Liam Kerrigan (2021 promotion team), Gary O'Neill, Liam Scales, Neil Farrugia, Georgie Kelly (2018 promotion team), Andy Boyle, Ciarán Kilduff, Greg Bolger, Dave McMillan, Evan McMillan (2009 promotion team), and so on.

[Another Bohemia]

Because the league leaders got dumped out of Europe by a Gibraltar side? Because the three dominant teams of the last decade or so - Cork, Dundalk and Rovers - are in various stages of serious decline and nobody's really taken their place as yet (Pat's are threatening to)? Because there's no real proven goalscorer? (The top scorers are on 10 plus a couple of penalties after 28 rounds)

It certainly isn't anywhere near the best quality the LoI has ever been. The UCD team currently second in the First Division has no-one comparable to, say, Colm Whelan, Liam Kerrigan (2021 promotion team), Gary O'Neill, Liam Scales, Neil Farrugia, Georgie Kelly (2018 promotion team), Andy Boyle, Ciarán Kilduff, Greg Bolger, Dave McMillan, Evan McMillan (2009 promotion team), and so on.

Also worth noting the long time league leaders (Shels) were averaging just slightly above a goal a game, current league leaders (Derry) have serious questions marks over their manager and seem to be on top of the league in spite of themselves averaging 1.75 points a game. Looking at the top 5 leagues last year it was over 2 points per game to win the league and in some cases to even finish second. This low points per game could be the sign of a strong league but anyone who watches the league will know that this is because there is no consistent teams in the league. I'd wager outside of the newly promoted sides & Shels there are very few fans who are happy with their league performances this season. It's an exciting league for sure but the quality is lacking this year.

[Acornvilla]

A lack of consistency can be because of a lack of a clear hierarchy, not that teams are bad.

[pineapple stu]

True, but the lack of a hierarchy is to an extent because the good teams have gone to the dogs lately.

[Kiki Balboa]

One thing the league has now that it never had is a proper academy system... Meaning squads are bigger with a bit more quality on the fringes.

Wasn't long ago there were very few youth players around first teams, with benches not being filled frequently. Or, if there was a youth player, it would be a token gesture.

Maybe there are less top players now in the league, I don't know.. But there is definitely multiples more players at a certain LOI standard.

Dundalk, hardly famous for its underage production, had 5 academy players on the pitch vs Drogheda, and none looked out of place. That's even after losing Senan Mullen to Torino in the off-season.

[pineapple stu]

Dundalk, hardly famous for its underage production, had 5 academy players on the pitch vs Drogheda, and none looked out of place. That's even after losing Senan Mullen to Torino in the off-season.
Equally, you could argue that's why ye're bottom of the league now...

[Kiki Balboa]

Equally, you could argue that's why ye're bottom of the league now...

Sigh...Well... No... that's just a very silly thing to say.

We have a lot of other dross in the squad, had 5 managers, had 4 keepers , and can not score goals.

Anyways, just to help you with the post, I can explain this a little clearer for you:

It was the use of an example to highlight a larger trend in the League.

I am sure every team in the league has more talents in their squad, especially on the bench, because of their academy. This is probably something novel in recent LOI compared to the 2000s and 2010s, and is worth bringing up to talk about the standard of LOI (ie. The higher quality of youth players in the league.)

[Acornvilla]

I am definitely still on the weaker to mid teams are as strong as they've ever been side of the fence. The PD overall has great strength and depth. There can be arguments about whether you like the style of some of the teams, or if you think the managers are getting the best out of players, but the player pool itself is in a pretty good place, and I'd expect as academies grow and mature the player pool will continue in a positive trend. We'll always lose the best players, but the true strength of the league will come from the base level of what's left behind. Derry losing in Gibraltar is an easy stick to beat the entire league with, if you take it in isolation and ignore the 7th placed team drawing with a Turkish side. **** happens.

I think that has lead to a bit of a brain drain from the First Division thou. It's certainly considerably weaker now that it doesn't have Galway/Waterford.

[Another Bohemia]

I am definitely still on the weaker to mid teams are as strong as they've ever been side of the fence. The PD overall has great strength and depth. There can be arguments about whether you like the style of some of the teams, or if you think the managers are getting the best out of players, but the player pool itself is in a pretty good place, and I'd expect as academies grow and mature the player pool will continue in a positive trend. We'll always lose the best players, but the true strength of the league will come from the base level of what's left behind. Derry losing in Gibraltar is an easy stick to beat the entire league with, if you take it in isolation and ignore the 7th placed team drawing with a Turkish side. **** happens.

I think that has lead to a bit of a brain drain from the First Division thou. It's certainly considerably weaker now that it doesn't have Galway/Waterford.

I dunno I think the wages are better but I think the player pool has suffered a hit in recent seasons with lots of players leaving for l1/l2. Strikers for example are a need for almost every club in the league. Full backs are a problem for lots of clubs. Keeper as well is a problem for a few teams as highlighted by the blunders thread. Central midfield is probably the only area that I would say is well stocked within the league between good young players & seasoned veterans.

I think the player quality is going to go in peaks and valleys for the foreseeable future unless there are drastic changes for clubs finances, leagues profile and probably things like European qualification that will make the league more desirable to players.

[Acornvilla]

I think a lot of those issues have always existed, and will continue to for the foreseeable until there's another major jump in investment in to the league. We just had a couple of stronger teams swatting everyone aside and assumed because they're dominating it must mean the league is good

[pineapple stu]

Sigh...Well... No... that's just a very silly thing to say.

We have a lot of other dross in the squad, had 5 managers, had 4 keepers , and can not score goals.

Anyways, just to help you with the post, I can explain this a little clearer for you:

It was the use of an example to highlight a larger trend in the League.

I am sure every team in the league has more talents in their squad, especially on the bench, because of their academy. This is probably something novel in recent LOI compared to the 2000s and 2010s, and is worth bringing up to talk about the standard of LOI (ie. The higher quality of youth players in the league.)
Not silly at all. Yeah, there's dross - four keepers, can't score goals. But if ye're starting five academy guys, you can't put all the blame on the keeper/forwards. Conceding possession in midfield leads to more chances for the opposition leads to more chance of the keeper making an error. It's a team game after all.

I don't agree every team in the league has more "talents" in their squad. First off, I've shown UCD don't. Bohs are signing random players from the continent (some of whom have already been sent packing) because they don't seem to trust their academy players. Rovers' squad is ageing because they don't seem to trust their academy players enough.

But anyway, these guys would have found their way to the LoI anyway - they'd just have signed from Cherry Orchard or Home Farm or Kevin's Boys or Joey's or whoever. The link with the LoI clubs is great, but I'm not sure it's led to an influx of talent as such. And of course Brexit means young players tend to stay here a further two years and then jump ship, which is a help, though it feels a hindrance when you look at the amount of 18-year-olds going from LoI first team to foreign academy.

[Another Bohemia]

I think a lot of those issues have always existed, and will continue to for the foreseeable until there's another major jump in investment in to the league. We just had a couple of stronger teams swatting everyone aside and assumed because they're dominating it must mean the league is good

So I agree a lot of these issues have existed throughout the lifetime of the league but I think they are exceptionally pronounced now. Let's take a good LOI player who has retired as an example.

Would Dinny Corcoran play his full career in the LOI now. 2014 he had a 1 year deal with a Bohs team battling relegation. Scored 13 goals and had 4 assists. Dinny is a Bohs legend in my opinion and a fantastic player in his own right but he was part time for the majority of his career. I think LOI was his level

Promise Omechere went over on the back of 5 goals and 3 assists in the league playing as a striker for a better Bohs team

Afolabi had 15 goals and 5 assists and was snapped up for a significant fee.

If a player like Dinny Corcoran who was a very good LOI player couldn't get a move across the water after arguably better returns than some more recent movers from the same team then I would say the perception of the league has changed but actually the overall quality has dipped because the better players aren't staying as long.

[Acornvilla]

So I agree a lot of these issues have existed throughout the lifetime of the league but I think they are exceptionally pronounced now. Let's take a good LOI player who has retired as an example.

Would Dinny Corcoran play his full career in the LOI now. 2014 he had a 1 year deal with a Bohs team battling relegation. Scored 13 goals and had 4 assists. Dinny is a Bohs legend in my opinion and a fantastic player in his own right but he was part time for the majority of his career. I think LOI was his level

Promise Omechere went over on the back of 5 goals and 3 assists in the league playing as a striker for a better Bohs team

Afolabi had 15 goals and 5 assists and was snapped up for a significant fee.

If a player like Dinny Corcoran who was a very good LOI player couldn't get a move across the water after arguably better returns than some more recent movers from the same team then I would say the perception of the league has changed but actually the overall quality has dipped because the better players aren't staying as long.

Would a lot of that not be down to firstly UK clubs having both more money than ever before, they're mostly unprofitable basket cases, but taking chances on LOI players is still a very low risk strategy, but also a far reduced playing pool to sign players from, Brexit has really limited who lower league clubs can go for, so they're taking the Irish market much more seriously, that with young players getting a lot of first team minutes, and underage international sides doing well, I imagine young players like Promise here are looked on a lot more favorably than they would have been previously.

Afolabi was a huge talent at underage level, that people expected more of, he has a much higher profile than the average LOI player I'd imagine, so someone who would have been watched more eagerly and the second he was doing well he was always going to have options, I have no idea who his agent is, but I'd imagine they're more connected than anyone Dinny ever had looking after him, and as mentioned in Dinny's time UK clubs had a far larger playing pool to go for. Look how long it took Jason Byrne to leave the league in his heyday. Agents are something that has definitely become a far more central aspect in the league in recent times.

[Another Bohemia]

Would a lot of that not be down to firstly UK clubs having both more money than ever before, they're mostly unprofitable basket cases, but taking chances on LOI players is still a very low risk strategy, but also a far reduced playing pool to sign players from, Brexit has really limited who lower league clubs can go for, so they're taking the Irish market much more seriously, that with young players getting a lot of first team minutes, and underage international sides doing well, I imagine young players like Promise here are looked on a lot more favorably than they would have been previously.

Afolabi was a huge talent at underage level, that people expected more of, he has a much higher profile than the average LOI player I'd imagine, so someone who would have been watched more eagerly and the second he was doing well he was always going to have options, I have no idea who his agent is, but I'd imagine they're more connected than anyone Dinny ever had looking after him, and as mentioned in Dinny's time UK clubs had a far larger playing pool to go for. Look how long it took Jason Byrne to leave the league in his heyday. Agents are something that has definitely become a far more central aspect in the league in recent times.

This is kind of my point though. UK clubs now see LOI as a low risk high reward signing & they have a limited market because of Brexit rules. Agents are seeing this and getting more involved in LOI as well. So the slightly above average LOI players (Like Dinny) who would have played their entire careers here previously are now getting a chance in the UK. But that drains a lot of quality from the league very quickly so while wages are almost certainly better now than 10 years ago I don't think the quality of player is. Another example is Conan Byrne he had a season where he scored 18 league goals for Pats, he wasn't top scorer that year either by the way, and he never played for a team outside of the island of Ireland! Aaron Greene, Christy Fagan, Mark Farren, Ronan Finn, Killian Brennan, I'm sure plenty others I'm forgetting, all of these lads, if they were to come through now would more than likely go to the English leagues as it stands they played all their senior careers in Ireland.

[Acornvilla]

This is kind of my point though. UK clubs now see LOI as a low risk high reward signing & they have a limited market because of Brexit rules. Agents are seeing this and getting more involved in LOI as well. So the slightly above average LOI players (Like Dinny) who would have played their entire careers here previously are now getting a chance in the UK. But that drains a lot of quality from the league very quickly so while wages are almost certainly better now than 10 years ago I don't think the quality of player is. Another example is Conan Byrne he had a season where he scored 18 league goals for Pats, he wasn't top scorer that year either by the way, and he never played for a team outside of the island of Ireland! Aaron Greene, Christy Fagan, Mark Farren, Ronan Finn, Killian Brennan, I'm sure plenty others I'm forgetting, all of these lads, if they were to come through now would more than likely go to the English leagues as it stands they played all their senior careers in Ireland.
I see your point, I do think there's still a lot of players comparable to everyone you listed in the league right now thou. As for guys who are around 20-23 now. We can't really compare until they're in their 30's and we can see how their careers shaped up V to the guys you listed.

The brain drain could get even more extreme as time passes and we end up with an incredibly unbalanced league full of 18 and 30 year olds but we'll have to wait and see on that one.

[sbgawa]

We won the league last year and it was a bad year , this year the league is going to be won by either Derry or Shels with the lowest total ever.
Rovers are predictable and poor in general this year hence why we are mid table, Shels are consistant and poor and Derry are inconsistant and poor.
At this stage ill take 3rd and Eurppe

[Jack B]

I don't think there's any great difference in quality/standard than usual, just how it's spread out. As much as there's the argument made of more players leaving for L1/L2 clubs, some of those in recent years have been the likes of Rory Feely, Ciaran Kelly etc, who without wanting to be seen to be slagging off haven't exactly been huge losses to the league, nor has it been reflected in how they've performed since leaving. Meanwhile you're seeing players like Romal Palmer, Ellis Chapman and so forth playing in the league who have good experience at that same level (and in some cases at an even higher one) coming in, so it can work both ways.

For me there's just been poor squad building in the league and it's reflected in a lot of teams. Rovers have plenty of talent yet decided to go with Pohls as #1, Bohs are strong in certain areas of the pitch yet have been a mess in how they've recruited in both the defensive and striker positions, Daly made a bit of a hash of things with Pats in the off season, Derry often make some questionable decisions given their expectations/budget etc. But there's still plenty of good players in those teams and dotted around the league generally. The closest thing approaching a consensus at the moment is that the top of the league is weak relative to usual but the mid-to-bottom of it is better and I think that's a fair take on it.

[placid casual]

There's a video going around, it's not a good look for Rovers.

Rovers statement on the rogue steward
https://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/league-of-ireland/shamrock-rovers-say-steward-removed-during-galway-match-will-never-work-for-the-club-again/a1016354581.html

[gufct]

The firework was let off outside the ground and fired in . Rovers statement is not enough .

[A N Mouse]

I don't think there's any great difference in quality/standard than usual, just how it's spread out. As much as there's the argument made of more players leaving for L1/L2 clubs, some of those in recent years have been the likes of Rory Feely, Ciaran Kelly etc, who without wanting to be seen to be slagging off haven't exactly been huge losses to the league, nor has it been reflected in how they've performed since leaving. Meanwhile you're seeing players like Romal Palmer, Ellis Chapman and so forth playing in the league who have good experience at that same level (and in some cases at an even higher one) coming in, so it can work both ways.

For me there's just been poor squad building in the league and it's reflected in a lot of teams. Rovers have plenty of talent yet decided to go with Pohls as #1, Bohs are strong in certain areas of the pitch yet have been a mess in how they've recruited in both the defensive and striker positions, Daly made a bit of a hash of things with Pats in the off season, Derry often make some questionable decisions given their expectations/budget etc. But there's still plenty of good players in those teams and dotted around the league generally. The closest thing approaching a consensus at the moment is that the top of the league is weak relative to usual but the mid-to-bottom of it is better and I think that's a fair take on it.

I agree, it's all swings and roundabouts.

I mostly remember fiercely competitive title races, with three or even four teams in with a shout in the run-in, hell even the last day teams have won the league from what third? fourth place?

The last decade has been an outlier in terms of having one standout team win the league, head and shoulders above the rest. Maybe with second place snapping at their heels, but for the most part it's been all bark and no bite. For one reason or another they have, so far, been unable to capitalise on any dominance with a changing of the guard.

As others have pointed - there are recent changes that have impacted the league. Contracts, wages and transfer fees have slowed the domestic market. Brexit has slowed youth transfers, but made the league a more attractive proposition to English lower league and Scottish teams. Academies have started to make up the shortfall in domestic movement. Loans and speculation on foreign based player have moved from the periphery to central to most clubs competitiveness, or lack thereof.

Times change. I'm all in favour of not having a procession to the title. Is the league worse off for it? I mean a league where European group stage money means you hoover up all the best players, repeat ad nauseum, isn't great. At the minute we're in the middle of the churn of all the above. As a fan of the league it's equal parts feckin brilliant and frustrating (as a dcfc fan, a bit of a procession would be welcome about now :) ).

How it all shakes out after remains to be seen. Is money all that matters? Are we going to have a top six with money that's almost impossible to break into? Or a premier division of haves and the have nots in the first. You know like the old days, on a much bigger scale.

[Another Bohemia]

The firework was let off outside the ground and fired in . Rovers statement is not enough .

No, no. You misunderstand. Rovers employed this fella but they also employ a company to run security. As this guy doesn't work for the company Rovers employ to run security neither Rovers nor the company can be to blame. The context that this guy reacted to something that was nothing to do with the fans he assaulted has nothing to do with the incident or Rovers or their security company. This statement is the end of the issue. You should act like model club SRFC and accept that. Galway certainly shouldn't release a counter statement or appeal to the FAI looking for sanctions against Rovers. To do so would be rather uncouth.

[sbgawa]

The firework was let off outside the ground and fired in . Rovers statement is not enough .

Rovers statement in summary is that the matter is with the guards and the guy will never work for the club again...

What did you expoect them to say? "The matter is with the guards , he will never work for us again and we have arranged a punishment beating in advance of seeing what the guards do"
Fair play for hgetting out ahead of it early imo but some people will never be satisfied.
In some way im surprised the club have come out so strongly sanctioning him if its still with the guards as he will probably argue we have convicted him already without due process but to be honest im glad you cant have stewards wading into the crowd no matter what the provaction

[Buckett]

Will ya stop, why mention the firework at all? It had nothing to do with us, so it was no excuse for the steward to "react"

[Eminence Grise]

we have arranged a punishment beating in advance of seeing what the guards do

Better than the half-time entertainment most clubs provide, and it just might tempt RTE into covering a live game. Commentary by Paul Reynolds with local celebrity Paddy Holohan as the expert summariser.

[placid casual]

No, no. You misunderstand. Rovers employed this fella but they also employ a company to run security. As this guy doesn't work for the company Rovers employ to run security neither Rovers nor the company can be to blame. The context that this guy reacted to something that was nothing to do with the fans he assaulted has nothing to do with the incident or Rovers or their security company. This statement is the end of the issue. You should act like model club SRFC and accept that. Galway certainly shouldn't release a counter statement or appeal to the FAI looking for sanctions against Rovers. To do so would be rather uncouth.

It must be quite awful to be irrelevant.