Article in Financial Times

[Stuttgart88]

....on Saturday. Really interesting, a Swiss Sports Consultancy basically laughing at how badly football clubs appoint managers. always bowing to populism and knee jerk reactions etc etc. If I could find it online I'd stick it up here & also send a copy to John Delaney.

Also, last Monday week's UK Times had an article by Gabriele Marcoti(?) advocating European Leagues outside the big 4 or 5 reconfiguring so you'd have an Atlantic League, a Balkan League, a Nordic League and a central/eastern European league. He listed a sample of the clubs that'd make up each league and omitted to mention any Irish team (:

But I agreed with the jist of it. European club foootball is becoming incraesingly uncompetitive after the group stages and financially the big clubs take all the money.

Just think if we could do what the IRFU does and enter 4 ptrovincial teams into some type of Western European league. Search for the article, I liked it.

Also interesting is reading all the press about the RFU and Andy Robinson. Most papers say that regardless of who's in charge of England, the structure of the English game is killing the competiveness of the national team (too many games, too many foreigners crowding out local talent etc etc.). Almost every paper cites the IRFU as an example of how to progress. I met Sir Clive Woordward recently and he agrees. In a way I saw a similarity with our football situation. Slagging off Stan is one thing, but the total structure of our game is the problem, too many players struggling abroad, national team totally dependent on a foreign system etc etc.

Anyway, gotta go now. Little fella's nap has just come to a noisy end...

[tetsujin1979]

Is this the one you're talking about: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/4cbd97d6-7bed-11db-b1c6-0000779e2340.html

[Dodge]

Just think if we could do what the IRFU does and enter 4 ptrovincial teams into some type of Western European league. Search for the article, I liked it.
Wouldn't work. The majority of el fans would be massively opposed to it and the Man U/Celtic/Liverpool fans would continue to support Man U/Celtic/Liverpool etc

If you want to make 3/4 of the current clubs get bigger and better please do...

[pete]

Large Corporation sin the US are alos gulity of appointed PR friendly Chief Executives. Just have look at all the Encron, WolrdCom etc... stories.

Financial stability is important but Football is a sport first & business second so can't be viewed same as all businesses.

[pineapple stu]

If you want to make 3/4 of the current clubs get bigger and better please do...
Isn't that the whole point of the current Delaney Super Duper league?

(Seriously)

[pete]

Isn't that the whole point of the current Delaney Super Duper league?

(Seriously)

In a word Yes.

[Stuttgart88]

Wouldn't work. The majority of el fans would be massively opposed to it and the Man U/Celtic/Liverpool fans would continue to support Man U/Celtic/Liverpool etc

If you want to make 3/4 of the current clubs get bigger and better please do...

I'd be indifferent to existing clubs getting bigger, or just tearing it up and starting again. The key point for me is being in control of our own affairs rather than relying on the UK for almost everything.

I agree that most eL fans wouldn't be keen but are they that numerous anyway? And given time and a viable alternative maybe the latter category you mention would be won over.

Pete, I was simply citing football as a classic example of bad decision making. Should the process of appointing a manager in football be that different to appointing a managerb in business - any business, not just the mega corporations you mentioned? I laughed out loud when I read this morning that the RFU was rumoured to be considering the inexperienced Martin Johnson as national team coach, with the experienced Dean Richards acting as mentor.

[Stuttgart88]

Is this the one you're talking about: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/4cbd97d6-7bed-11db-b1c6-0000779e2340.htmlThanks Tets, that's the one. I thought it was interesting!

[Stuttgart88]

Here's The Times article by Gabriele Marcotti I referred to above:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,27-2461627.html

[galwayhoop]

....
Just think if we could do what the IRFU does and enter 4 ptrovincial teams into some type of Western European league. ...

it's not as wild a theory as you may think.

if run the same as IRFU situation it could actually work. however it would mean a 'downgrade' if you want of the eL clubs but if you then regionalised the elite players to compete in some type of euro league you would get massive support IMO (a-la munster but dunno bout leinster :D ).

you could then use the eL as a semi-pro system like the rugby all ireland league where the elite players get full time contracts with the regional sides. it would also facilitate the 'regionalised academy' systems for elite players at underage levels and therefore not require them travelling overseas for full time pro careers.

when the rugby went fully pro most people thought we'd sink without trace and then last month we were 3rd in the world!! i don't have much time for the ruggers but they did get the professional system spot on for a small country.

the g14 wouldn't like it but then they could p*ss off and form their own 'hollywood league' which is what they want anyway!

it would require a major rethink but it may not be the total pie in the sky that it orginally sounds!

[Fergie's Son]

Large Corporation sin the US are alos gulity of appointed PR friendly Chief Executives. Just have look at all the Encron, WolrdCom etc... stories.

Financial stability is important but Football is a sport first & business second so can't be viewed same as all businesses.

Eh? They are? You do appreciate that all CEO's of any publically traded corporation are subject to the officer board and the BOD's right? Or that most CEO's are subject to ascertainable benchmarks that directly impact whether or not they have a job?

So no, you're flat assed wrong here.

[Dodge]

I agree that most eL fans wouldn't be keen but are they that numerous anyway? And given time and a viable alternative maybe the latter category you mention would be won over.

Might be small but we're the only group proven to attend football in Ireland on a regular basis. No sporting events that last as long as a football season attract good numbers in ireland, the Irish public have shown time and time again then don't care about sport (until somebody wins something). Even the great Munster Army was getting less than 4k for a celtic league games last year. Event junkies make up the rest and you won't get those people turning up to see Connaught v AZ Alkmaar in foootball

[blobbyblob]

How about the FAI buying a Premiership club and using it as an academy for developing players and exposing them to high quality football and players in much the same way as munster and leinster act?

[Dodge]

Holy ****ing ****!

[Lim till i die]

How about the FAI buying a Premiership club and using it as an academy for developing players and exposing them to high quality football and players in much the same way as munster and leinster act?

Oh Dear, I assume your joking

Either way, expect a lot of very upset people on this thread :eek: :D

[Lim till i die]

it's not as wild a theory as you may think.


It's a ridiculous idea

I'm a Limerick F.C. fan, why in ainm de would I want to follow a Munster team :confused:

[irishfan86]

How about the FAI buying a Premiership club and using it as an academy for developing players and exposing them to high quality football and players in much the same way as munster and leinster act?

Hear hear, it's time big time investment occurs to import big stars to some of the bigger clubs in Ireland, or a foreign club is imported to boost the product.

There is clearly a market in Ireland for Premiership football, as evidenced by the TV ratings- it's time a supply is given.

Ideally we would have a team in a European wide super league.

I find it amazing how willing Eircom league fans are to embrace a foreign game, and yet despise the Premiership so vehemently.

Once Ireland fans drop their archaic, protectionist views, then Irish football will truly explode.

Nobody wants to see Paddy part-time except for a select few hardcore fans blinded by the romanticism of days long gone by.

Football is a business now, and the product supplied in Ireland doesn't match the market and the demand, and that's why you're seeing low attendance figures.

[Dodge]

You've just made my signature. Congrats!

[Billsthoughts]

I agree that most eL fans wouldn't be keen but are they that numerous anyway? And given time and a viable alternative maybe the latter category you mention would be won over.
.

Ouch!
Its still their clubs. why should they have something they actually have an emotional attatchment to taken away from them so you can have a succesful team that plays about 5 times a year? (ie Irish international team)Irish people who obsess over man u / liverpool at al dont have to invest the time and energy into actually going to the games. I doubt whether a lot of them would bother going every week if man u and liverpool played all their home games here. I know all my mates wouldnt for starters. yet they would be first up to the pub to watch them play. Best way forward for Irish football is to promote the existing clubs more and set realistic targets in relation to attendances. invest in making the grounds better and force clubs to manage themselves better financially. Also a bigger interest from the media is a must for generating interest elsewhere. I know its a lazy cliche at this stage but its still true.

[Lim till i die]

You've just made my signature. Congrats!

Like $hels, do you sometimes get the feeling your being wound up?? :eek:

Or do I overestimate the intelligence of your average Irish sports fan :eek: :rolleyes:

[galwayhoop]

It's a ridiculous idea

I'm a Limerick F.C. fan, why in ainm de would I want to follow a Munster team :confused:


i think the whole point arose here in relation to a hypotetical euro league where eL teams were not even mentioned for inclusion in the article. as a small country (who play many sports) we need to look at ways of nuturing talent in this country without relying on the clubs accross the sea for this. it is merely a suggestion whereby the eL clubs remain but the elite players are also selected for provencial teams to compete in a european style legue which is run in addition to the eL. (a-la the heineken cup.)

a bit like the rugby - cork con, galwegians, garryowen .... etc are still in existence and compete in the all ireland league. the elite players then also play for the provencial teams in the heineken cup and then the best of these play for the international side. - this should create a high enough standard where the cream of the crop were at the very least provided with the option of staying at home instead of flocking to britain for supposed fame and fortune.

i honestly feel that the idea, in theory, could actually benefit the game as a whole in the country - as a consequence though the eL would be affected (and as a GUFC supporter obviously this would be hard to stomach) but it is a question to be posed - Where exactly are we going as a nation in relation to football and at the moment the eL (unfortunately) is not an attractive enough product for the vast majority of football supporters in this country.

[NY Hoop]

Amazing there are people like that. And he calls himself irishfan?:D

How about Irish people supporting Irish clubs?

Dont think real fans despise the premiership at all by the way. I look at it the way you look at the monkies scratching their arses in the zoo. With mild amusement but fascinating as well.

KOH

[galwayhoop]

another question to be posed is if we did run a series like the inter-pros with the winner then playing in the CL would the game benefit? would we be able to compete at a higher level?

i'm not saying the above is the answer merely that it is not as wild a suggestion as first thought

[Dodge]

Dont think real fans despise the premiership at all by the way.

Most have a second club in England, pretty much every one of us watches match of the day or Man U v Arsenal type games. Its the intensity of the irish (sic) media coverage of it some have a problem with.

[Lim till i die]

i honestly feel that the idea, in theory, could actually benefit the game as a whole in the country - as a consequence though the eL would be affected (and as a GUFC supporter obviously this would be hard to stomach) but it is a question to be posed - Where exactly are we going as a nation in relation to football and at the moment the eL (unfortunately) is not an attractive enough product for the vast majority of football supporters in this country.

I follow Limerick would have absolutely shag all interest in a Munster set up. The only possible reason for such a notion would be to drag in the knob-end bandwagon brigade ala Munster rugby and even at that they'll only come out for the big games

The only purpose this idea would serve is to kill off the Eircom League once and for all

Have you been at an AIL game recently? :eek: :(

[galwayhoop]

Have you been at an AIL game recently? :eek: :(

have absolutely no interest in the 'egg men'

i know what yer sayin lim but i'm actually thinking of a way whereby the elite players aren't packed off over to england at 15 or 16 years old only to come back home 3 years later or so and feel like total failures, not having developed very much and in many cases packin in the game.

i really think we should look at ways of retaining players in this country untill they are at least 19 or 20 or older. even if there was no inter - pro set up you could still run regionalised academies (think this is on the agenda already) where talented players are kept at home with a full time set up and looked after and not exported in their mid teens to fend for themselves!

then the Q is whether the eL in it's current guise will produce the next genertion of top irish player - or do we need to look at radically overhauling it and not just picking teams on their stadiums and balance sheets for the delaney super-duper league

[irishfan86]

Amazing there are people like that. And he calls himself irishfan?:D

How about Irish people supporting Irish clubs?

The Premiership can hardly be called an English league anymore. The players come from a wide variety of nations, and the teams are very often owned by foreigners (Chelsea by a Russian, Man U by an American, etc), and its great success comes from that internationalism.

The Eircom league is dominated by Irish players, owned by Irish people, and very protectionist.

In this era where people are aware of the kind of quality football that is being played elsewhere, they are unwilling to pay to see inferior football down the street in the pouring rain in a dilapidating stadium played by players who half the time can't even make wages high enough to sustain themselves on football alone.

I don't have access to much Eircom League here, but I watch everything I can get a hold of, and watched a couple of matches in Derry's recent European run.

I'd love the Eircom League to be successful, and well supported by the Irish people, but it simply isn't happening, and thus realistic (if radical) alternatives need to be looked at if football in the country is to improve.

[Billsthoughts]

Just on the rugby comparison; its worth bearing in mind that the provincial system always existed and these teams do actually have histories of their own. they werent just created with the advent of profesionalism. no such structure exists in football.

[Billsthoughts]

In this era where people are aware of the kind of quality football that is being played elsewhere, they are unwilling to pay to see inferior football down the street in the pouring rain in a dilapidating stadium played by players who half the time can't even make wages high enough to sustain themselves on football alone.
.
couple of points
they do it for ireland games(ya cant get more inferior football than what we have been subjected to lately)
If you are talking bout dillapidated stadiums they did the same in england for years before they upgraded all the stadia after hillsborough. and even if we did have these so called "super teams" the stadia isnt here anyway.
I dont see how a players wage should effect whether you go to a game or not? sureley the fact that they are earning more modest salaries should only strengthen the ordinary punters identification with the players rather than weaken it?

[Student Mullet]

There's no point in proposing any radical change untill all the small cack-ups we currently have are fixed. If we can't manage to put together a proper rulebook or fixtures list under the current system the same mistakes would appear and undermine any new system.

[Lim till i die]

have absolutely no interest in the 'egg men'

then the Q is whether the eL in it's current guise will produce the next genertion of top irish player - or do we need to look at radically overhauling it and not just picking teams on their stadiums and balance sheets for the delaney super-duper league

It has absolutely died on its Ar$e

The new super league is a shambles

There's no reason why well run Eircom league clubs into the future couldn't hang on to their best talent until their early twentys upon which time of course they'll move on to bigger things if offered. Its the way of the world

Would Connacht F.C. be able to compete with Man U for a young player??

[irishfan86]

I realize the stadia isn't in place- having a bigger team whether through Premiership association or participation in a wider European league would demand that.

If a larger team arrived, it would invest in the youth system here to greater affect than the Eircom League has done previously, and better training facilities would naturally come along with a decent home ground.

Regarding the salaries, my point was that players on low wages who have to work other jobs can't fully dedicate themselves to their football training and preparation as a result, and so the product drops to even lower levels.

The media obsession with footballing millionaires and the support of tabloids by the masses shows you just how much the public loves to support the working class player in the Eircome League.

[NY Hoop]

The Premiership can hardly be called an English league anymore. The players come from a wide variety of nations, and the teams are very often owned by foreigners (Chelsea by a Russian, Man U by an American, etc), and its great success comes from that internationalism.

The Eircom league is dominated by Irish players, owned by Irish people, and very protectionist.

In this era where people are aware of the kind of quality football that is being played elsewhere, they are unwilling to pay to see inferior football down the street in the pouring rain in a dilapidating stadium played by players who half the time can't even make wages high enough to sustain themselves on football alone.

I don't have access to much Eircom League here, but I watch everything I can get a hold of, and watched a couple of matches in Derry's recent European run.

I'd love the Eircom League to be successful, and well supported by the Irish people, but it simply isn't happening, and thus realistic (if radical) alternatives need to be looked at if football in the country is to improve.

The premiership is in england so it is the english league. That pathetic excuse is always used by the muppets here who "support" an english club.

I dont agree our league is protectionist at all. There are no quotas for example on where players come from. Indeed Joseph Ndo was POTY here.

We play in the summer season now so no pouring rain! Agree that facilities are not the best but are definitely improving.

I think you said it all when you said that you dont have access to the EL. I know nothing about cricket so I dont comment on it.

KOH

[Billsthoughts]

We have been in need of a stadium for the last god knows how many years and we still havent got one...what makes you think some premiership team is gonna build one?
I dont think working part time effects a players ability to deliver "product"
probably effects their ability to get addicted to online gambling and porn and get done for a dogging session with some drunk girl but doesnt effect their footballing ability

[irishfan86]

I think you said it all when you said that you dont have access to the EL. I know nothing about cricket so I dont comment on it.

KOH


I haven't seen a great deal of games, but the ones I have seen have been supposedly the biggest- European games, Setanta Cup games....essentially the showcases of the league.

And it doesn't stand up.

The quality just isn't there, I can see the half-filled dilapidated stadiums.

Irish people love supporting the Premiership, why not give them a team their own to compete in that league, or in a European wide-league should one come to be?

Semi-professional football will still exist if it gets you off, and the majority of football fans will get to see a superior product they didn't have access to before.

[NY Hoop]

It doesnt stand up is merely your opinion.

I'm Irish I support an Irish club. If you travel around Europe supporting your local senior side is normal.

There are full time clubs here. Are you aware of the improved results in Europe? Do you think the leagues in Scotland, Sweden and Finland should give up and import an english club because they dont come up to your standards?

If poeple here love english football so much the solution is simple. Move there.

KOH

[gustavo]

down the street in the pouring rain .

Presumably if the Premiership did come here its sheer brilliance would be enough to banish rain for good.

[irishfan86]

There are full time clubs here. Are you aware of the improved results in Europe? Do you think the leagues in Scotland, Sweden and Finland should give up and import an english club because they dont come up to your standards?

If poeple here love english football so much the solution is simple. Move there.

KOH

I am aware of the full-time nature of some clubs, as well as the improved results.

I am also aware of the average attendances, which is the real indicator of professional footballing growth.

Regarding Scotland, their attendance is much better than the Eircom League, and the Old Firm provide a European interest for the casual fans (where the bulk of the income comes from), Eircom League players and coaches consider it a step up- the manager of Derry, one of the best clubs here, goes to the worst team in the SPL for example- and even with all that, there is always that debate in the background about the Old Firm joining the Premiership.

Sweden manage to keep the majority of their talent within their country until a good age, and you can see the success they've had as a result by qualifying for major tournaments on a consistent basis, and having clubs compete in the UEFA Cup group stages regularly.

I don't know anything about Finnish football so I'm not going to go there, but my point above is that even Scotland and Sweden are miles ahead of us domestically.

[Soper]

I haven't seen a great deal of games, but the ones I have seen have been supposedly the biggest- European games, Setanta Cup games....essentially the showcases of the league.

And it doesn't stand up.

The quality just isn't there, I can see the half-filled dilapidated stadiums.


If you've seen the European games, then you would have seen FULL stadiums, for example the Brandywell against PSG and Gretna and IFK.

So I think you are a liar and a spoofer.

[irishfan86]

If you've seen the European games, then you would have seen FULL stadiums, for example the Brandywell against PSG and Gretna and IFK.

So I think you are a liar and a spoofer.

I really don't have access to many games, I only get to see what people record and post online which is almost nothing when it comes to the Irish league.

I do recall seeing many empty seats during a Shels European game I saw last season.

Points criticizing my knowledge of the Eircom League may be valid, but I am no liar.

[Wolfie]

Irish people love supporting the Premiership, why not give them a team their own to compete in that league, or in a European wide-league should one come to be?.


Even on a hypothetical level, an Irish based Premiership club is outlandish in the extreme. It wouldn't get passed the FA for starters.

If they are unwilling to allow Celtic or Rangers work their way through the lower levels of the English League what sort of response will an Irish based Premiership team, with no stadium or proposed backing or planning permission get?

[irishfan86]

Even on a hypothetical level, an Irish based Premiership club is outlandish in the extreme. It wouldn't get passed the FA for starters.

If they are unwilling to allow Celtic or Rangers work their way through the lower levels of the English League what sort of response will an Irish based Premiership team, with no stadium or proposed backing or planning permission get?

Yes, because if somebody was to bring forth my idea they wouldn't create a plan and get investors for stadia/planning permission, etc. :rolleyes:

Regarding Celtic and Rangers, just because they haven't worked out something yet doesn't mean they won't.

For the record, I don't want an Irish team in the Premiership, my ideal situation is an Irish team in a European superleague.

[Dodge]

Irishfan there is only one problem with the league - lack of money. if money was being pumped into it, the stadia would improve, the level of players willing to play in it would improve and then the crowds improve. Rather than the FAI pay to move a team here (as you originally posted) they should spend the money on upgrading the facilities here but they choose not to. It'd cost roughly the same to build 1 premiership ground as it would to build 10-12 grounds suitable for our league. But who pays for it? Thost Paddy part timers would love nothing more than to be full time pros but clubs can't afford to pay them. If they could, they would...

Last week in Serie A in Italy only 2 clubs got crowds over 10,000 (Inter at home got 14,000 and Roma got 45,000). SHould they import an English team? Oh and on your protectionism, the English Premier League has a limit on the amount of non EU players allowed in a team (as does Spain and Italy). Our little insular league doesn't...


(I really tried not to get involved)

[irishfan86]

Last week in Serie A in Italy only 2 clubs got crowds over 10,000 (Inter at home got 14,000 and Roma got 45,000). SHould they import an English team?

How many 10,000+ crowds were there in the Eircom League this entire season?

Was there ever one week where there was a combined league audience of 60,000 in one round?

[galwayhoop]

Regarding Scotland, their attendance is much better than the Eircom League

Attendances
The average attendances for SPL clubs for season 2004/05 were as follows:

Celtic - 57,943
Rangers - 48,676
Aberdeen - 13,577
Hibernian - 12,539
Hearts - 12,272
Dundee United - 8,211
Motherwell - 6,960
Dundee - 6,880
Dunfermline Athletic - 6,192
Kilmarnock - 5,930
Livingston - 5,158
Inverness CT - 4,067

Exclding Celtic & Rangers the attendances are hardly earth shattering and in truth SPL clubs only fill their grounds when the Old Firm come to town and even then it is with 'Away' supporters



Sweden manage to keep the majority of their talent within their country until a good age, and you can see the success they've had as a result by qualifying for major tournaments on a consistent basis, and having clubs compete in the UEFA Cup group stages regularly.
..........

oh i get it - because sweden keep their players at home we (Ireland or the FAI as you said ) should join the English Premiership :rolleyes:

[Dodge]

How many 10,000+ crowds were there in the Eircom League this entire season?

Was there ever one week where there was a combined league audience of 60,000 in one round?

Way to miss the point entirely...

[irishfan86]

Attendances
The average attendances for SPL clubs for season 2004/05 were as follows:

Celtic - 57,943
Rangers - 48,676
Aberdeen - 13,577
Hibernian - 12,539
Hearts - 12,272
Dundee United - 8,211
Motherwell - 6,960
Dundee - 6,880
Dunfermline Athletic - 6,192
Kilmarnock - 5,930
Livingston - 5,158
Inverness CT - 4,067

Exclding Celtic & Rangers the attendances are hardly earth shattering and in truth SPL clubs only fill their grounds when the Old Firm come to town and even then it is with 'Away' supporters



oh i get it - because sweden keep their players at home we (Ireland or the FAI as you said ) should join the English Premiership :rolleyes:

Despite your belittling of those attendance statistics, they're still better than what the Eircom League is getting. Derry, one of the top teams in the league, has a capacity of about 4000 if I recall correctly.

Regarding your last point, if Ireland had a Premiership or European League (if one were established) team, more Irish-born players would aspire to play for their local Premiership/Euro team, and would thus perhaps be recruited and scouted by this team's academy, instead of having to move away to England to further their careers.

[endabob1]

The idea of a Celtic League for Football is not in theory a bad one, taking the 16 best teams from Scotland Wales & Ireland you'd probably end up with a league of Celtic, Rangers, Hibs, Hearts, Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Kilmarnock, Cardiff, Swansea, Wrexham, Shels, Derry, Cork, Linfield, Glentoran, Portadown. (This is just a simplified ideal so don't get high horse we're a bigger club than A or B)

Given that the Welsh clubs would not drop out of the more lucrative English league and that Celtic & Rangers would want to ensure that they played each other 4 times a season, and the potential for trouble with the Glasgow giants going to Dublin and Belfast it seems a long shot at best.

[Dodge]

Regarding your last point, if Ireland had a Premiership or European League (if one were established) team, more Irish-born players would aspire to play for their local Premiership/Euro team, and would thus perhaps be recruited and scouted by this team's academy, instead of having to move away to England to further their careers.

Didn't you say the EPL was a world league no (and not English?) What makes you think Dublin City would sign Irish people if they could get better quality Frenchmen (e.g.)

[galwayhoop]

on second thoughts 'IRISHFAN (:rolleyes: )' you are right:

buy a team but dont let
'Paddy part-time play'
because you might get
' a select few hardcore fans blinded by the romanticism of days long gone by'
going to the games and next thing you know we'll all be
'down the street in the pouring rain'

why don't the FAI not just buy blackburn rovers (a EPL team from a town with roughly the same population as co. galway) who already have a following here :rolleyes: to locate in abbotstown and then we will become a world super power. problem solved - why are we wasting our time developing players here anyhow and all this tripe about development plans and such -


of course the new ' FAI Blackburn Rovers FC ' will develop the game here and not in the slightest be worried about staying in the Premiership (with all its money and glamour) and thus will field an entirely irish team made up of local lads who will go on to become the international equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters and not buy any foreign players at all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OH NO! i just woke up with my nose in my bowl of corn flakes