Official opening of Ice Hockey stadium in Dundalk

[Poor Student]

With sports that the Irish don't really care about on the agenda these days with the cricket world cup, the new hockey arena in Dundalk will be used for the first time tonight when Ireland take on the Dundalk Bulls at 8 pm. Three clubs seem to have been founded including the Dublin Rams, but they all seem to be based out of this new arena. The World Championships are around the corner now, they'll take place through April. Tickets are available on the website: http://www.iiha.org/organisation/index.php

[Aberdonian Stu]

We open the championships on the 15th of April against Mongolia with the final game of the round robin tournament (it's a straight league with no playoffs) between Ireland and the Netherlands on the 21st.

Six nations are taking part in all, Ireland, Mongolia, South Africa, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Luxembourg.

[Poor Student]

That's a pretty eclectic gathering. I think Ireland have a possiblity of doing well enough, certainly won't take the wooden spoon anyway.

[BohsPartisan]

I fancy Mongolia purely on the basis that they have the coldest capital city in the world.

[holidaysong]

Dundalk lost 4-2 to Ireland, (Dundalk vs. Ireland - I like the look of that) Ireland scoring in the last few minutes with our goalie pulled. Damn Ireland. There is talk we are going to apply to join the UK league. Dundalk Bulls Belfast Giants derby, I like it!

[Student Mullet]

How much public funds went into this facility? Can GAA be played on the ice? If not, I think it's a disgrace that the youth of Dundalk shall be restricted to a diet of a foreign game like Ice Hockey.

[holidaysong]

Here's the Dundalk jersey.
http://www.dundalkbulls.com/images/jersey.jpg

[Dodge]

Its not foreign. Irish people have been playing hurling on frozen ponds since the 1200s. Its the true national game

[theworm2345]

I used to play left wing for an ice hockey team, maybe if I ever move to Ireland I could play for this team. How is the quality (I suppose do your best to compare it to something, I don't know how you would)
There are a few good Irish hockey players over here (Irish-American or Irish-Canadian that is)
Brendan Morrison is the first one who comes to mind

[holidaysong]

Dundalk beat a Finnish team 5-2 yesterday. Don't know about the quality as I haven't had a chance to get down yet.

[Poor Student]

Holiday, do you know anything about the Dublin that's been founded? Is the plan not to set up a domestic Irish league? I think they want to build up the grassroots of the Irish game slowly rather than jump the gun and send a team into the British league.

theworm, as someone who watches the NHL I find watching the Irish team as excruciating as having my teeth pulled. The standard is very very low from what I've seen. A lot of elementry errors made like taking many penalties for too many men on the ice.

[holidaysong]

There are currently three clubs in the Republic of Ireland. Dublin Flyers, Dublin Rams and the Dundalk Bulls. Yeah the hope is to start up an Irish League but there is big money behind the Dundalk Bulls. They have assembled a good squad and I think the aim for them is the Elite Hockey League in the UK. They have all the under ages teams from under 10 up to 18 in place that are required for EHL entry. However I don't think they have any native players on the side and the EHL have a cap on the number of foreigners that can play for any side. I think they would definitely get the backing of the Belfast Giants as it would at least reduce their huge travelling expenses somewhat. And other clubs coming over from Britain could play each them and us in the same week to cut down on costs.

[Poor Student]

How do two Dublin clubs exist when the only rink in the state has just opened up?

[incident]

Dundalk lost 4-2 to Ireland, (Dundalk vs. Ireland - I like the look of that) Ireland scoring in the last few minutes with our goalie pulled. Damn Ireland. There is talk we are going to apply to join the UK league. Dundalk Bulls Belfast Giants derby, I like it!
To be honest, even if a team based out of Dundalk were to join a UK League it's extremely unlikely they'd ever play a senior competitive game against the Belfast Giants..

The structure next season will be..
- Top flight: Elite League - professional, with mostly imported players.
- 2nd tier: English Premier League + Scottish Premier League - semi-pro (the meaning of which tends to vary by club). Limit of 3 imported players.
- 3rd tier: English National League (split into North and South divisions) + Scottish National League - amatuer.

There's a huge quality difference between the leagues, so it's very rare these days that teams play anyone above or below their own level.. No formal promotion/relegation is in place, for the most part teams get to choose which level they compete at.

Belfast play in the top flight and to be honest there's no chance of Dundalk being accepted at that level, unless there's some huge financial backing behind them.

[holidaysong]

Poor Student, they were only formed (re-formed in the case of the Flyers) during 2006 and will use the Dundalk Ice Dome as their home for training and matches. I think it would be better to get a rink built in Dublin and try and get a Dublin team into the EHL (alongside a Dundalk team) rather than the long wait we would have on our hands to have enough rinks to make a domestic league viable.

[holidaysong]

To be honest, even if a team based out of Dundalk were to join a UK League it's extremely unlikely they'd ever play a senior competitive game against the Belfast Giants..

The structure next season will be..
- Top flight: Elite League - professional, with mostly imported players.
- 2nd tier: English Premier League + Scottish Premier League - semi-pro (the meaning of which tends to vary by club). Limit of 3 imported players.
- 3rd tier: English National League (split into North and South divisions) + Scottish National League - amatuer.

There's a huge quality difference between the leagues, so it's very rare these days that teams play anyone above or below their own level.. No formal promotion/relegation is in place, for the most part teams get to choose which level they compete at.

Belfast play in the top flight and to be honest there's no chance of Dundalk being accepted at that level, unless there's some huge financial backing behind them.


It is the top flight that is being mentioned for Dundalk. One of the lower leagues wouldn't be worthwhille.

[incident]

and I think the aim for them is the Elite Hockey League in the UK. They have all the under ages teams from under 10 up to 18 in place that are required for EHL entry. However I don't think they have any native players on the side and the EHL have a cap on the number of foreigners that can play for any side. I think they would definitely get the backing of the Belfast Giants as it would at least reduce their huge travelling expenses somewhat. And other clubs coming over from Britain could play each them and us in the same week to cut down on costs.
Whats the capacity of the Dundalk rink? From the photos it looks to be quite small, I would expect that they'd need a *minimum* of 2,000 seats to be accepted (given the way that Fife and Dundee were controversially rejected a couple seasons ago).

The cap on imports isn't a significant obstacle - The (very simplified) definition of an "import" is someone who wasn't trained in Britain or Ireland so any Irish side could easily bring in a few British players to make up the numbers. Out of a (typical) 16 man squad, teams are allowed up to 10 imports so it's not like the domestic players get a huge amount of ice time anyway.

[holidaysong]

Whats the capacity of the Dundalk rink? From the photos it looks to be quite small, I would expect that they'd need a *minimum* of 2,000 seats to be accepted (given the way that Fife and Dundee were controversially rejected a couple seasons ago).

The cap on imports isn't a significant obstacle - The (very simplified) definition of an "import" is someone who wasn't trained in Britain or Ireland so any Irish side could easily bring in a few British players to make up the numbers. Out of a (typical) 16 man squad, teams are allowed up to 10 imports so it's not like the domestic players get a huge amount of ice time anyway.

Ok I wasn't sure how much of an obstacle the imports would be. The capacity is 1,250 as far as I know.

[incident]

It is the top flight that is being mentioned for Dundalk. One of the lower leagues wouldn't be worthwhille.
Fair enough, I can't really see it happening but you never know for sure with British Ice Hockey..

The Elite League has said several times that they don't want to go above 10 teams (from what I remember, that was the official reason given for refusing Fife + Dundee entry).

As of right now, they've got their 10 teams - although there's rumours that Cardiff and/or Basingstoke are planning to drop a level. (the Basingstoke rumour appears pretty much every year, Cardiff allegedly have money trouble after moving rink).

If one of those sides were to drop out then it'd open up a spot in the league with no obvious replacement, and so they might possibly be more lenient on the entry criteria. If Cardiff + Basingstoke both stay in the EIHL, then a Dundalk side would be very unlikely.

[holidaysong]

Well I heard that a team from Liverpool are looking to get in, expanding it to 12 with us being the other team. We'll see how the World Championships Division III go in Dundalk in a months time. It could boost the Dundalk Bulls case a lot if it can attract good crowds.

[Poor Student]

Holiday, am I to understand with the scheduling of the Ireland v Dundalk game that Friday would be hockey night if the sport was established here? It'd be annoying to have it clash with the eL on Friday though that wouldn't be a problem in Dundalk.

[incident]

Well I heard that a team from Liverpool are looking to get in, expanding it to 12 with us being the other team. We'll see how the World Championships Division III go in Dundalk in a months time. It could boost the Dundalk Bulls case a lot if it can attract good crowds.
Well, I'd be suprised if Liverpool took part next season as they won't finish building their new arena untill 2008, which makes them unlikely (but sadly not impossible) entrants.

I've heard them mentioned as a probable candidate for 2008/09, but it's really difficult to look that far ahead just now, as things change too quickly.. I guess that the league structures will be much the same, but I'd be surprised if all of the current 10 teams took part, as that would mean a level of continuity not seen in the sport for about 10 years now.. I think there's been team changes nearly every season (sometimes during the season) since the EIHL was formed.

[holidaysong]

Holiday, am I to understand with the scheduling of the Ireland v Dundalk game that Friday would be hockey night if the sport was established here? It'd be annoying to have it clash with the eL on Friday though that wouldn't be a problem in Dundalk.

They also played against a Finnish club side on Saturday night and Sunday night so I would say it would be one of the three. I'm sure they would have more sense than to clash with Dundalk FC.


Well, I'd be suprised if Liverpool took part next season as they won't finish building their new arena untill 2008, which makes them unlikely (but sadly not impossible) entrants.

I suppose all that Dundalk can do is apply and see how they get on. They won't keep paying for the players they have signed though if they can't get a league to play in.

[BohsPartisan]

Don't see how a town the size of Dundalk could sustain a Hockey Franchise. I mean the Giants don't sell out their arena and they are one of the top sides in the elite league and based in a City. Surely the only location for a southern franchise is Dublin? It has to be The Dublin Vikings!

[holidaysong]

It has to be The Dublin Vikings!

Shouldn't that be the Home Farm Vikings?!? :eek: :D

Seriously, I don't know how we'd expect to sustain it either but perhaps people from Dublin would travel up to the games..?!?

[Poor Student]

Seriously, I don't know how we'd expect to sustain it either but perhaps people from Dublin would travel up to the games..?!?

I love watching hockey but there's no way I'd do that, particularly on a Friday. I think a low budget All-Ireland league is the way to go with a view to building the game up to launch an Elite league franchise eventually.

Holiday, who is funding this Dundalk club? Where did they get their players from?

[BohsPartisan]

Well Elite league games seem to be played on Saturdays, Sundays, Thursdays and some Fridays. As there are a few games a week there is no one particular Hockey night. Still Friday games wouldn't clash with footie for most of the season as Hockey is played September to March. Still can't see a Dundalk franchise working though I'd probably head up.

[holidaysong]

I love watching hockey but there's no way I'd do that, particularly on a Friday. I think a low budget All-Ireland league is the way to go with a view to building the game up to launch an Elite league franchise eventually.

Holiday, who is funding this Dundalk club? Where did they get their players from?

I have no idea who is funding it. Most of the players are from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia as far as I know.

[Poor Student]

By the way, is anyone actually thinking of attending the World Championship?

[Aberdonian Stu]

I'm tempted.

[BohsPartisan]

I'll be away for the beginning but hoping to get to some of it.

[Poor Student]

I'll be away for the beginning but hoping to get to some of it.

Lifts on BP.;)

[superfrank]

A week earlier and I'd go. But I have bloody LC Orals.

[BohsPartisan]

Lifts on BP.;)

If you fancy going on my crossbar. :D

[Block G Raptor]

I'll be There if I'm Still Driving

[Poor Student]

If you fancy going on my crossbar. :D

Grand by my me. No petrol money to chip in and you'll do the wheeling.;)

First game is ok to get to I think. It's early on a Sunday. Bus up and bus down in one day.

[holidaysong]

I'll try and get to a few of the Ireland games although the first one is clashing with Dundalk vs. Cobh Ramblers. The tickets are €15 per game. No student prices! :mad:

[Poor Student]

Just looking at the Bus Eireann schedule for Dundalk: http://www.buseireann.ie/site/your_journey/printed_timetable_pdfs/expressway/1.pdf

If every stop in Dundalk in the Dublin direction is drop off only, then how do you get a bus to Dublin from Dundalk?:confused:

[holidaysong]

Just looking at the Bus Eireann schedule for Dundalk: http://www.buseireann.ie/site/your_journey/printed_timetable_pdfs/expressway/1.pdf

If every stop in Dundalk in the Dublin direction is drop off only, then how do you get a bus to Dublin from Dundalk?:confused:

You don't get the Belfast bus, you just get the 100 to Dundalk. Matthews Coaches (http://www.matthewscoach.com/matthews_website/timetable.html) go from outside Paddy Power on Parnell St. and offer a quicker, cheaper service. A lot of their buses are direct to Dundalk so you can avoid Drogheda. ;)

[CollegeTillIDie]

I used to play left wing for an ice hockey team, maybe if I ever move to Ireland I could play for this team. How is the quality (I suppose do your best to compare it to something, I don't know how you would)
There are a few good Irish hockey players over here (Irish-American or Irish-Canadian that is)
Brendan Morrison is the first one who comes to mind

That would be the way forward for the Irish team to go higher in the rankings. Have one or two of those guys to add to the home based talent. There's also a few good Irish-Canadians and Irish-Americans playing for Belfast Giants.
If Dundalk join the UK League I could see them getting some support from Dublin. As there used to be a few teams operating in Dublin when there were two Ice rinks in the city.

[CollegeTillIDie]

Don't see how a town the size of Dundalk could sustain a Hockey Franchise. I mean the Giants don't sell out their arena and they are one of the top sides in the elite league and based in a City. Surely the only location for a southern franchise is Dublin? It has to be The Dublin Vikings!

In these Days of long commutes for punters, Dundalk is practically a suburb of Dublin .... :D

[holidaysong]

In these Days of long commutes for punters, Dundalk is practically a suburb of Dublin .... :D

Careful now.

[Poor Student]

Holidaysong, thanks for the help with the buses. I reckon I'll head down for the Mongolia game (never thought I'd hear myself say that).

[holidaysong]

No problem. We are playing Cobh that day, I'll be interested in hearing how it goes. I wonder if it'll be necessary to buy your tickets online or just turn up...

[Poor Student]

I bought my ticket online. You just print off an e-mail ticket like Ryanair. I'll try and bring a camera and get some pics up.

[Poor Student]

We smashed the hapless Mongolians 11-0. 2 goals in the first period, 7 in a strong second period and 2 more in the third. Ireland played large patches of the game with 4 men and went down to 3 men on at least three different occasions. Ireland mounted offence easily enough with 4 men and scored a good few of their goals shorthanded. At 3 men they were still comfortable defending and took the puck off Mongolia at will. Ice Hockey's lowest tier has its new whipping boys. Ireland's discipline is worrying though and better teams will punish us with so little men on the ice. One plus in that regard is I think we took no penalties for too many men on the ice an amateur mistake we made too many times last season.

Ireland were strong in defence. Good backchecking and they threw down some heavy hits. The only player who stuck in my memory from last year Simon Kitchen looks like Keith Foy if he ate John Lester. This man is a joy to watch when he makes a hit. He absolutely flattened some of them. Our goalkeeper also made a series of solid saves and kept a clean sheet.

Going forward we were ok but were too mechanical. No flair or pace and it will be hard to open up the better teams particularly given our forward opportunities will be rarer.

I have to say the arena looks great. There's an 800 seater stand overhanging one side of the rink and space around the bottom to stand at the glass. The seats are cushioned and strong enough to hold someone standing on them which is just as well because they have a Richmond Park tightness between the rows. There's excellent catering right beside the seated area and you can still look at the match from the balcony while queueing. There's also a merchandise area before you enter the rink with Irish jerseys, Dundalk Bulls jerseys and ice hockey equipment for sale. The place is well run and the staff are very nice and helpful. The girl at the ticket desk allowed me to trade an unused second ticket for another game and then let me change my mind again after the match.:p

Surprisingly there was at least 100 Mongolians at the game and probably more. My bus from Dublin was nearly entirely filled with Mongolians. They made one large clump in the stand and one on the other side of the arena. They were totally mental and yell like native American Indians whenever they crossed the blue line. It made a good spectacle. There was also a fair few North Americans and continentals at the game. There was a good Irish presence but I couldn't hear any chanting or anything. All in all an enjoyable experience and I hope we can get a league up and running here and a rink built in Dublin.

Any foot.iers driving to the Ireland v South Africa game on Thursday?

[Poor Student]

http://www.iihf.com/Hydra/Tournaments_07/output/wsiii/hydra.iihf.com/data/iihf/output/xml/120/IHM120901_74_3_0.pdf

Here's the stats. Ireland took 52 pentalty minutes, that's insane. Two 10 minute penalties for misconduct and 32 mins worth of niggly 2 min penalties. Sometimes we had 3 men sitting in the sin bin.

We got 43 shots on goal and conceded only 13. Mark Morrisson scored a hattrick, he seemed to be a good finisher alright.

Luxembourg beat South Africa 5-2 today. Dunno what to make of that. South Africa were relegated into our division which would suggest they'd be strong and Luxembourg were the only team we beat last season.

Thankfully Armenia have wirdthdrawn or been expelled. No idea which but they're not there. They loaded up last season with North Americans of Armenian roots and turning from whipping boys into a strong team overnight.

It's good we got to start things off with a handy win and get in a groove. Pity I can't go to the NZ game tomorrow night, I hear they do the haka on ice!:eek:

[holidaysong]

Thanks for the report Poor Student. I'm up to my eyeballs in college at the minute but I hope to get to the Luxembourg game next Sunday.

[Poor Student]

Luxembourg game is on Saturday at 8:00, holidaysong. I hope to head to that one, only problem is getting back from Dundalk for the 8:00 games hence me scabbing lifts here.:p

[Aberdonian Stu]

I might be available for the match on Thursday PS if you have transport (will busses/trains be an option?)