Vikings boss blasts summer soccer

[BrayUnknowns]

Dermot Keely, the manager of deceased eircom League club Dublin City, has hit out at the ongoing summer soccer season, insisting that the venture has been an unmitigated disaster for Irish soccer – and even predicting that other clubs will fall by the wayside before long. .

Full Story here (http://www.eleven-a-side.com/premier/irish_soccer_detail.asp?newsid=23540)

What do people think ?

[Philly]

“Who is going to these summer soccer games on the hottest days of the year? What crowds are we getting? All of this has been done to help get some good results in Europe but does that have to come at the cost of losing a club?

“In any family, everybody gathers around the weakest child. In our league, we only seem to think about the strongest. I’m afraid to say it, but I can only see more dark days ahead.”

He also has a dig at the Euro-centric mentality on show on this forum...

[joeSoap]

I think he's had over 2 years of successful summer soccer....he bitches now because he's unemployed.

[drinkfeckarse]

Old school mentality, move with the times or be left behind.

[dcfcsteve]

Yet another example of Summer soccer getting the blame for any club's ills.

Is Keeley seriously suggesting that Dublin City would magically have been a financial success under winter football ?? As that is the only conclusion you can draw from his comments. Muppet..... :rolleyes:



“In any family, everybody gathers around the weakest child. In our league, we only seem to think about the strongest.

Name me one decent league where this is the case. English Premiership ? SPL ? In fact - name me any league.....

Better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool, Keeley, than to open it and remove all doubt. Enjoy life on the dole - can't see many other teams taking you in......

[Speranza]

I beg posters on here to stop taking this fool's rants seriously. The man is deluded and of the same ilk as Alan Matthews whose only interest would appear to be the destruction of Irish football. Negative disgustng tactics suit Winter football and that is why this mess supports it. Bye bye Keely! :)

[Billy Lord]

Keely's a dinosaur, and a pretty dumb one at that. The reason why EL clubs are in such a state is because they refuse to run their affairs properly and haven't a clue how to market or develop the game.
So instead of going to games in pleasant weather, Keely thinks people would prefer to go out in the cold and rain?
That's village idiot stuff from the manager of a club that could no longer sustain its irrelevant existence.

[Schumi]

Clearly nonsense. The problem is that they spent more than they could afford to. Winter football wouldn't have helped unless Keely thinks it would have added 1,000 to their gates. :rolleyes:

[KildareFan]

Keely has been against summer soccer all along, it's not he is saying this now because of Dublin City.

Aside from the advantages in europe, name one good that summer soccer has done? Has the good weather brought fans to games? no chance, crowds are down due to clashes with holidays, good weather and gaa.

I don't think that my own club, kildare will ever thrive during the summer because there is simply too much competition. Of course, they probably wouldn't thrive in the winter either but they would definitely have more of chance

[Macy]

Clearly Summer football has nothing to do with CHF going under. However, there is a need for an objective look at whether it has been a success or failure across the whole league.

Even the European successes have done nothing with the credibility of the league in my experience - the naysayers simply say it's only because we've a fitness advantage not because of skill level of the league having improved.

[BohsPartisan]

Football is better in the summer. I've lost count at the number of games I've been to in the winter that were ruined by bad weather.

[KildareFan]

Football is better in the summer. I've lost count at the number of games I've been to in the winter that were ruined by bad weather.

I've seen matches ruined in the summer because of crappy hard dry pitches because most clubs don't have a proper sprinkler system

[BohsPartisan]

I've seen matches ruined in the summer because of crappy hard dry pitches because most clubs don't have a proper sprinkler system
I'll take that over a windy night in Bray thannks.

[Macy]

Football is better in the summer. I've lost count at the number of games I've been to in the winter that were ruined by bad weather.
But that's no good with less people through the gate compared to the bad weather, which a high proportion of clubs are experiencing based on the anecdotal evidence. It should be evaluated - I wouldn't be in favour of a return just because I think it'll work (no point in repeating the move to summer football that was done with no real research and basically on the optimistic whim of the clubs).

[Lionel Ritchie]

I've seen matches ruined in the summer because of crappy hard dry pitches because most clubs don't have a proper sprinkler system

Nothwithstading -it's a lot easier to get water onto a pitch than it is to get it off it.

There was a reason we switched to summer football - the weather is sh1tty, wet and cold in winter and punters weren't getting up from their tellys to go freeze to death for two hours when they could watch Sky.

It was scarcely about quality of football playable -it was about making the product more attractive and convenient to the consumer. No it hasn't led to a massive hike in gate receipts but it's improved things for many who go and in that respect it constitutes a step in the right direction and a confrontation of reality on the (hard, grassless as oppsed to frozen or waterlogged) ground.

[Block G Raptor]

I dont think changing the season in which our season takes place is the reason for the crowd drop off. there are more fundamental issue's like the timing of fixtures etc. who's to say that playing games during the english close season at say 3pm on a saturday wouldn't help to improve attendances. on friday nights we're competing with the pub/club culture in this country where not going to get Barstoolers out of the boozers on a friday night FACT !

[garykelly]

Even the European successes have done nothing with the credibility of the league in my experience - the naysayers simply say it's only because we've a fitness advantage not because of skill level of the league having improved.

yeah but the same naysayers wouldnt say that other teams beat irish clubs in europe cos they were fitter in times gone by.no no they had far more skill they'd say. to them type people everything other than what we have is better. if irish clubs do well in europe only becuase they are fitter then i'm all for it. better than getting beat 10-0 on aggregrate to some unknown team in the dark days of euro football.

[Passive]

I say that if we played a winter season Dublin City would have attracted 30-35,000 per game and would probably, somehow, have won the World Cup this summer.

Keely is right, it's all a conspiracy.

[drinkfeckarse]

Even the European successes have done nothing with the credibility of the league in my experience - the naysayers simply say it's only because we've a fitness advantage not because of skill level of the league having improved.


I would disagree with that Macy, the Eircom League has come a fair distance in the last 10 years IMO and that is due to professionalism and summer football.

Yes of course the fitness issue does make a difference but when clubs progress in Europe or equip themselves well then you pick up more experiance and thus in turn improve again. I've got work colleagues here who have mentioned to me whenever they've seen an Irish club get a decent European result that it must be a half decent set up these days.

[Clones Road Cas]

“Who is going to these summer soccer games on the hottest days of the year? What crowds are we getting? All of this has been done to help get some good results in Europe but does that have to come at the cost of losing a club?

“In any family, everybody gathers around the weakest child. In our league, we only seem to think about the strongest. I’m afraid to say it, but I can only see more dark days ahead.”

He also has a dig at the Euro-centric mentality on show on this forum...

Im sorry for DC fans and for Ronan Seery but that quote about family makes me realise how happy i am that kealy got burned on this one. his familial attitude is a remarkably new pill which anyone with one of the 'smaller' clubs is gonna find hard to swallow

[Sheridan]

People don't want to watch your atavistic long ball sh1t in any weather, Dermot.

[Raheny Red]

Attendances not up, results in Europe up - that'll do me nicely ;)

[mypost]

What crowds are we getting?

Now, staff at Home Farm are hardly fit to lecture the rest of the club's about lack of numbers. Their very presence in the league, was one of the reasons why crowds were low. I hope that their replacements bring colour, ambition, and a fan base with them next year, and will be a welcome addition to our league.

[KildareFan]

Their very presence in the league, was one of the reasons why crowds were low.

So it's Dublin City's fault that attendances are low throughout the league???

Sure why not blame them for the trouble in the middle east when you are at it :rolleyes:

[nshoop]

So it's Dublin City's fault that attendances are low throughout the league???

Sure why not blame them for the trouble in the middle east when you are at it :rolleyes:

He said ONE of the reasons and its true,they brought nothing to the league they just made it look like a joke

[BrayUnknowns]

Their very presence in the league, was one of the reasons why crowds were low.

That is just tripe ! how unearth can for example, Finn Harps, Galway, Kildare or Kilkenny blame Dublin City on poor attendences ?

Maybe the crowds that came to watch Finn Harps, Galway, Kildare or Kilkenny play Dublin City were'nt great, but neither are for for matches against the other league sides.

[bigmac]

Their very presence in the league, was one of the reasons why crowds were low. I hope that their replacements bring colour, ambition, and a fan base with them next year, and will be a welcome addition to our league.

Doubt that any team coming in will bring a big set of fans with them - could you expect a Kerry team to bring a big contingent to any away games bar maybe Limerick, Cork or Cobh? As for ambition, DC had too much of that - I'd welcome a team with more realism to the league - it'll be hard to survive for the first few seasons.

Any new teams from non-represented areas are more than welcome in my book though.

[KildareFan]

That is a ridiculous thing to say

The trouble that Rovers fans have caused over the years has turned lots more people away from the Eircom League football than the presence of Dublin City ever would have.

Rovers fans won't like that statement but it's true.

[osarusan]

Has anybody else noticed that most fans from other teams, apart from Shamrock Rovers, have offered commiserations to DC fans and been obective about the situation.

Most of the Rovers fans whose posts I've read seem to take a genuine delight in insulting the club and witnessing its demise.

[nshoop]

That is a ridiculous thing to say

The trouble that Rovers fans have caused over the years has turned lots more people away from the Eircom League football than the presence of Dublin City ever would have.

Rovers fans won't like that statement but it's true.

BOLL*CKS,more fans come out because of our unfair reputation,to have a go at us or the thrill of seeing the dublin scumbags,you're talking out of your hole!

[mypost]

Rovers fans won't like that statement but it's true.

If it's true, then the statement that you don't support Kildare is also true. So it's false.


Most of the Rovers fans whose posts I've read seem to take a genuine delight in insulting the club and witnessing its demise.

Wonder why?? :rolleyes:

[nshoop]

Has anybody else noticed that most fans from other teams, apart from Shamrock Rovers, have offered commiserations to DC fans and been obective about the situation.

Most of the Rovers fans whose posts I've read seem to take a genuine delight in insulting the club and witnessing its demise.

Because they loved relegating us so much and wanted us to go out of existence,f*ck them,they were a waste of time and money!

[OneRedArmy]

Clearly Summer football has nothing to do with CHF going under. However, there is a need for an objective look at whether it has been a success or failure across the whole league.

Even the European successes have done nothing with the credibility of the league in my experience - the naysayers simply say it's only because we've a fitness advantage not because of skill level of the league having improved.The skill levels certainly haven't improved in Longford.

Don't confuse a local problem (Longford having Keely Junior as manager) with the wider League, which, regardless of the overall health of the League, has seen a HUGE increase in skill over the past decade IMHO.

[passerrby]

there is not and never will be enough supporters in LOI to sustain full time footballers and those who try the experimentwill get burned eventually.

[pineapple stu]

I say that if we played a winter season Dublin City would have attracted 30-35,000 per game and would probably, somehow, have won the World Cup this summer.
And they'd still have hideously overspent and gone broke.

[OneRedArmy]

there is not and never will be enough supporters in LOI to sustain full time footballers and those who try the experimentwill get burned eventually.With ambition like that who needs knockers.

If you inserted the word "Monaghan" in your post it may be more accurate.

Full-time football may currently not be paying its way but to say a football mad country with 4million people, rising quickly, cannot sustain a professional League is absolute tripe.

If its done right it can work.

[anto eile]

summer or winter we wont pack our stadia because theyre sh!t holes

so accept that crowds will be sh!t uintil the stadia cease to be

one bonus of summer football is that the european results in a summer season should consistently improve (so far ,overall,they have)
european results right now are how the public judges the leagues credibility

[pineapple stu]

there is not and never will be enough supporters in LOI to sustain full time footballers and those who try the experimentwill get burned eventually.
One word. Denmark.

[anto eile]

Now, staff at Home Farm are hardly fit to lecture the rest of the club's about lack of numbers. Their very presence in the league, was one of the reasons why crowds were low. I hope that their replacements bring colour, ambition, and a fan base with them next year, and will be a welcome addition to our league.
why replace them??
better still cut it down to 20 teams, (2 divisions of 10)
as it stands not one junior club would be an addition to the league. kerry league mayfield castlebar have been mentioned (the latter have a great junior set-up,but really all it is is a pitch with a wall round it and sloped gravel on 2 sides.that shouldnt belong in a professional league) etc.
such clubs wouldnt improve the league

[anto eile]

Has anybody else noticed that most fans from other teams, apart from Shamrock Rovers, have offered commiserations to DC fans and been obective about the situation.

Most of the Rovers fans whose posts I've read seem to take a genuine delight in insulting the club and witnessing its demise.
why should we feel sorry for a cynical wreckless soulless b@stard franchise run by one lunatic going out of business?

[TonyD]

Dermot Keely is(Was:D ) the biggest moany hole in the league and if Dublin City going bust does nothing else but remove him from our midst then it can't be all bad news, can it ? I hope to God the Sun cancel his column now so we don't have to listen to his negative drivel anymore

[BohsPartisan]

One word. Denmark.
And look at Holland, a very small nation, then look at their football legacy.

[bigmac]

One word. Denmark.

Second word - Norway.

[Ozymandias]

our attendances will always be lower than norway and denmark because of the competition in Ireland for effectively the same fans... GAA soccer and rugby are all pulling generally from the same pool..in the scandinavian countries soccer is really the only option of a major team sport..Ireland is Unique in that it is a sports mad nation....all sports...all I know it is better on to go to a game on a friday evening in the summer and a few pints afterwards than trying to do the same in the winter.....maybe if the facilities at all grounds improved on and off the pitch peoples atitude might change..until then C'est la Vie

[BohsPartisan]

Rugby is no competition. Rugby attendances are no great shakes. Rugby attendances in England are far bigger than those here and they still manage to fill football stadia.
Swedish and Norwegian football has to compete with the very popular activities of (Ice) Hockey and sitting in the sauna with naked chicks and still does ok.

[Macy]

Don't confuse a local problem (Longford having Keely Junior as manager) with the wider League, which, regardless of the overall health of the League, has seen a HUGE increase in skill over the past decade IMHO.
That'd be fine, if it was only us that was experiencing it. I've said all i'd like is an evaluation of it's success or otherwise in terms of attendance, media coverage, sponsorship etc. The first two especially as this is what the move was supposed to help. If it comes up with having a positive impact, or even no change then I'm willing to accept that even if I do prefer winter football. I'm not sure what the problem with wanting decisions based on fact, and then evaluated as a success or failure rather than guestimates?

btw we haven't had summer football for a decade, so I'm not sure how you're basing the increase in skill level on that. Imo any increase in skill is more to do with players being available post ITV Digital and our subsequent move up the wage rankings compared to England (for how long though, given it doesn't appear sustainable?)

[Ozymandias]

Rugby is no competition. Rugby attendances are no great shakes. Rugby attendances in England are far bigger than those here and they still manage to fill football stadia.
Swedish and Norwegian football has to compete with the very popular activities of (Ice) Hockey and sitting in the sauna with naked chicks and still does ok.

My point is that it is a major international team sport and has a high participation ..this means that the people that play this are lost to soccer as possible fans not like in scandinavia where the soccer is the only real major team sport to support.... Also we have apopulation of 4 million alot less than england.. like england we have hotspots for rugby ( limerick ) but they are smaller.than the pockets in england......no matter waht way you look at it GAA and Rugby do impinge on the amount of people following eircom league ...its just a fact of life we have to deal with....I agree with the naked chicks issue and therefore my arguement is lost

[CuanaD]

. . . and sitting in the sauna with naked chicks and still does ok.
There's a game we should import:D

[bigmac]

Swedish and Norwegian football has to compete with the very popular activities of (Ice) Hockey and sitting in the sauna with naked chicks and still does ok.

Not during the season - summer soccer there as well. I agree though that if soccer was run in conjunction with the ski season the attendences would be much lower.
Incidentally, Valerenga in Oslo also have an Ice hockey, American Football, and handball team under the auspices of the one organisation.

[dcfcsteve]

Also we have apopulation of 4 million alot less than england.. like england we have hotspots for rugby ( limerick ) but they are smaller.than the pockets in england......

Name me 3 towns in England that are larger than Limerick and where rugby union is the main sport ? (I specify 'Union', because we don't have league in Ireland.)

There's more than enough room for Eircom league soccer in Ireland vis-a-vis other sports. The thousands of people from the island who head to games in England/Scotland every weekend should be proof enough of this.