Weekend games 16th to 19th May

[Nesta99]

You obviouly care a lot about your club and football in your area as we all do here so I wont delve deeper, but for a LoI club missing out on millions on an academy player well its fantasy land still even if it shouldnt be, so I'm out! Big decisions at Dundalk cost the club milions so that can be done but not on academy retention.

[Keen2win]

It all depends how much Elding is sold for.. I think he's the best player in League tbh.. I tried my best to speak sense at the time, at least I can't be blamed for LTFC tossing the best player to ever come through it's academy.. I haven't commented for years basically on these matters, but just right now I feel I should for the sake of the club as currently it seems only people with zero experience in the game get to have their say!

[TownManForever]

Being a water boy for the U17s doesn’t count as experience lad.

[2 Year Contract]

It all depends how much Elding is sold for.. I think he's the best player in League tbh.. I tried my best to speak sense at the time, at least I can't be blamed for LTFC tossing the best player to ever come through it's academy.. I haven't commented for years basically on these matters, but just right now I feel I should for the sake of the club as currently it seems only people with zero experience in the game get to have their say!

Elding looks a great young prospect that will go on to have a good career but to call him the best player in the league is all sorts of absolute lunacy but it’s a game of opinions and all that.

Also, do you not see the irony in complaining that your club doesn’t give opportunities to local players and coaches while also calling for English born Sligo based Anthony Elding to manage your first team and praising English born Sligo based Owen Elding as the best player to ever play in your club’s academy?

[MoydowMonty]

It all depends how much Elding is sold for.. I think he's the best player in League tbh.. I tried my best to speak sense at the time, at least I can't be blamed for LTFC tossing the best player to ever come through it's academy.. I haven't commented for years basically on these matters, but just right now I feel I should for the sake of the club as currently it seems only people with zero experience in the game get to have their say!

Lets be honest here, he was only brought into our academy because Anthony was the manager and he brought him along. Owen is not from Longford or anywhere in the midlands. When Anthony left, so did Owen. The club hadn't a hope of holding him down. He's not like an Abankwah who was around Melview and we should have snapped up but slipped through our grasp. I really doubt the club had much power in this scenario.

[TownManForever]

Exactly. He left when his father did.

[Nesta99]

Neer realised how many Longford fan tuned in if not posters, good to see.

[TonyD]

In the LOI , Duff is the monkey, but Bradley is the organ grinder.

Hmm.. Not sure I’d back Bradley to have won the league with that Shels team last year, even given the fact that they basically stumbled over the line, plus the fact that Rovers and Derry performed well below expectations. Bottom line is that Bradley has an in built advantage at Rovers. Of course he has done the job, so deserves credit for that, but how would he get on at a club with less resources ? If Duff gets Europe for Shels again, an has any sort of a decent run in Europe, they will have had a good season.

[placid casual]

Bradley built a team that was in freefall for 6 yrs when he started. The advantage you proclaim he now has been built up in his time there.

[2 Year Contract]

Bradley built a team that was in freefall for 6 yrs when he started. The advantage you proclaim he now has been built up in his time there.
It wasn’t 6 years, unless you count 2 league titles and a Europa League group stage qualification as freefall

[pineapple stu]

He also made no ground at all on the top two for a couple of years until they hit the financial skids.

[Keen2win]

There are multiple Longford players playing around the league. No point playing for Longford when there's no opportunity to progress! Elding would start linking up the academy and the first team, because he is a professional and that's how proper football clubs do it.. that's most important for me, giving young players and coaches a chance from Ireland's most disadvantaged community.. ya I have experience think I'm the only coach from Longford with a LOI medal tbh and involved in local game! ! Some people are just happy losing I think

[sbgawa]

He also made no ground at all on the top two for a couple of years until they hit the financial skids.

To be fair our first cup and league were both won before Dundalk hit the wall

[pineapple stu]

I don't think so - the 2020 title (unbeaten it has to be said) was in part because Dundalk were entering financial trouble. €1.25m lost in 2019 and the 2016 group stage money pretty much burnt through.

Giovagnoli unexpectedly getting them through the easiest group stage qualification run going helped stretch things out for a couple more years, but I think it's still fair to say there were issues in 2020.

[sbgawa]

I think that memorable 3-2 win in Tallaght just before Covid where Jack scored the winner late on was the night Rovers believed they could beat Dundalk for the league and was played agaisnt estentially the 2019 league winning team.
Sure the behind the scenes stuff might have been happening but it was a league winning team on the pitch thast night.

Memory lane stuff

Rogers
Hoare, Boyle, Massey, Gannon
Flores, Sheils, Duffy, Slogget
Smith , Hoban

(Gartland Cleary and Kelly on the bench amongst others)

Rovers

Manus
Grace, Pico, Joey OB
McEneff Watts , Finn, Bolger, Byrne, Farrugia
Greene

6 of them still at the club plus Pohls was on the bench so 7

Two good teams

[TownManForever]

Adrian Massop literally has a LOI first division winners medal. You’ve an U17 C league winners medal. Relax there Mourinho. You’re not the sole Longford man with a league medal.

[pineapple stu]

I think that memorable 3-2 win in Tallaght just before Covid where Jack scored the winner late on was the night Rovers believed they could beat Dundalk for the league and was played agaisnt estentially the 2019 league winning team.
Sure the behind the scenes stuff might have been happening but it was a league winning team on the pitch thast night.
A league winning side and a league winning side wondering where their next pay cheque is coming from can be two different things though.


Adrian Massop literally has a LOI first division winners medal.
Wait - what?!

[Asterix]

A league winning side and a league winning side wondering where their next pay cheque is coming from can be two different things though.


Wait - what?!

They didn't have that problem under peak6. They were throwing money into the club and wrote off loans when they left. It was when there owner was doing interviews saying they had double the budget of anyone else in the league. Money problems started when peak6 left and the new owners couldnt afford the contracts that were left behind.

[Martinho II]

A league winning side and a league winning side wondering where their next pay cheque is coming from can be two different things though.


Wait - what?!

Yeah Adrian Massop was part of backroom staff when town won first division in 2014 Pineapple!

[Nesta99]

They didn't have that problem under peak6. They were throwing money into the club and wrote off loans when they left. It was when there owner was doing interviews saying they had double the budget of anyone else in the league. Money problems started when peak6 left and the new owners couldnt afford the contracts that were left behind.

Eh dismatling a regular league winning side by getting rid of players still in their prime, Gannon and others eg. for crazy, useless, Zahibo types, a chairman telling a manager who to sign - Abibi (Murphy was supposedly Giovagnoli's target). When you look at the 2020 quad that was binned for players that agents that conned the chairman in to signing thinking theyd have resale value......no money wasnt the issue just at that point if you have owners there wlling to subsidise things. Until someone writes a book on the behind the scenes from 2020 to 2025, and suggests otherwise it was madness to push billionaries for local, well not billionires, wait until the eccentric 80 year old gets bored and leaves and or have a former footballer/administratot who knows the suss in as a COO.......

Some of the characters involved should have gotten league winners medals 2020/21!

[Nesta99]

Yeah Adrian Massop was part of backroom staff when town won first division in 2014 Pineapple!

Ok, can we agree not to count league winners medals for players the same as managers and defintiely additional staff??

[TownManForever]

Oh I’d be of the same opinion as you. Massop was head goalkeeper coach at the time. I was just responding to Keen2Wins comment about his U17 c league medal for being a team helper.

[sbgawa]

Players and managers are the only medals that counts. All the rest are like the participation medals at schools sports days...I'd be embarrassed to say I had an loi medal in those circumstances

[Nesta99]

For years players got medals and managers didnt and didnt want medals, it was all about the team. Relatively recently managers have been given medals, maybe started at world cups, but not domestic leagues until associations issued x amount of medals for the clubs to distribute. It used to be you had to play a minimum amount of games to get a league medal. If I got one as say a physio or coach i'd be happy to have it but I wouldnt be calling myself a league winner. Maybe its old fashioned but managers and coaches should take the thanks and leave the medals for the players, like whats next having coaches on the podium at Olympics with the athletes?

[Another Bohemia]

I'd be of the opinion that Managers and Coaches deserve medals. They ultimately build and train the squad that wins whatever the trophy may be, they are also the first ones to be moved on if **** hits the fan. Managing and coaching is a year long job as opposed to being a player where you do have an offseason (although FIFA & UEFA are trying their best to minimise the players off season with new pointless tournaments). After that though I dont think anyone else deserves it. Maybe if you have someone who is a longstanding member of the team and they are retiring e.g. Physio or kitman and you happen to win a league or cup they could get one as a sort of cumulitive recognition for all their work through the seasons but even thats stretching it imo

[Nesta99]

Managers and coaches prep a team to go out and win trophies and they get individual medals also. They played in the match(es). Managers and coaches have it on CV get the accolades, and are on a roll of honour, but league winners medals implies as a player. No harm in awarding a medal i suppose as long as its not seen the same as a players. If I got my hands on a Louth 1957 medal Id be disappointed if it turned out to be a maor uisce. I could purchase a medal and say I have a LoI winners medal mischievously, I wouldnt say I won the league. So maybe it how its presented, or not abused as an reward system. For years, esecially in rugby there often wasnt a trophy but no less valuable to just have the records say triple crown winner eg. As mentioned before many managers didnt want medals and gave thm away. Leave it to the club rather than the competition to reward backroom team efforts.

Its not a big deal, its a minor bugbear of mine, but non playing staff dont win leagues, they facilitate players to be prepered and have the best chance to win a league for a club, they dont put their bodies on the line. Fans play a key role, so should they get a medal, no they get the joy and bragging rights. What about the groundsman, the chairman et al. Seeing GAA managers watching their players going up to collect their medals and trophy from the pitch, grinning ear to ear ala Ger Brennan, thats the way it should be, pride and letting the players take all the accolades. Anyway thats my last thought on the subject.

[Buckett]

I brought Galway Utd to the Champions League group stages on Football Manager, PC version, not mobile, and that was without either Eldings in the squad. Proper football people like me is what this league is crying out for

[Keen2win]

Fair enough lads the experts have spoken lol.. I had forgotten about Mr Massop in fairness, I do believe he may be from a neighbouring county however I stand corrected!

[TownManForever]

Longford man now residing in a neighbouring county