All Ireland League

[Soko]

I for one think this would be an absolute disaster. They are not as good as us for a start and travel costs would be catastrophic for the smaller clubs. Would a second division be started with the increased number of teams? If so I wouldnt even punish somebody by going to watch that rubbish. Look at the lower divisions in Scotland, they are an absolute joke.


Do we also want all that rubbish some of their teams would inevitably bring with them. No thanks. Look at this for an example: Linfield vs. Rovers - 20,000 crowd swelled by local nationalists and loyalist . Game over 2-1 to either side and there is a riot. Not what we would like to go to see at any game and would hardly be endearing for the popularity of the league.


Derry must be counting their lucky stars they managed to avoid that bog hole of a league.

[yur man]

ive never seen any of those irish league teams play, so ive no idea what theyre like. my uninformed opinion is

i agree. especially with summer soccer. imagine one of those games on the 12th of july

the cost of policin wud cripple it i rekon. they'd bring union jacks and we'd bring tricolours and it wud all get horribly sectarian

[Real ale Madrid]

Originally posted by yur man
ive never seen any of those irish league teams play, so ive no idea what theyre like. my uninformed opinion is

i agree. especially with summer soccer. imagine one of those games on the 12th of july

the cost of policin wud cripple it i rekon. they'd bring union jacks and we'd bring tricolours and it wud all get horribly sectarian


Sounds like Celtic v Rangers.

[Soko]

Originally posted by Real ale Madrid
Sounds like Celtic v Rangers.


Exactly, thats what it would turn into. I was talking a guy in Tenerife from Glasgow but now living in Manchester and he warned me to never go to an Old Firm game at Ibrox as it is the most poisonous, intimidating atmosphere you will experience Likewise for them at Parkhead.


Now transfer that to Windsor Park,Dalymount or Turners X and it would just be chaos.

[A face]

Originally posted by Soko
I for one think this would be an absolute disaster. They are not as good as us for a start and travel costs would be catastrophic for the smaller clubs. Would a second division be started with the increased number of teams? If so I wouldnt even punish somebody by going to watch that rubbish. Look at the lower divisions in Scotland, they are an absolute joke.


Do we also want all that rubbish some of their teams would inevitably bring with them. No thanks. Look at this for an example: Linfield vs. Rovers - 20,000 crowd swelled by local nationalists and loyalist . Game over 2-1 to either side and there is a riot. Not what we would like to go to see at any game and would hardly be endearing for the popularity of the league.


Derry must be counting their lucky stars they managed to avoid that bog hole of a league.


You haven't a clue what you are on about .... everything you are saying is all hear say and none of it is fact.

Second division ..... More than likely it would be regionalised and as you not punishing people, you are doing that already with the crap you are talking. And if you dont want a second division ..... JUST HOW WOULD YOU PROPOSE TO WORK IT OUT (i want an answer please)

"Look at this for example" ........... What do you mean example .... you have just singled out the most likely game where there would be trouble, that in my opinion is not a balancedc example and dont even try and tell me it is. Fool

It is all a forgone conclusion with you .... the end of the world type scenarios, the doomsday factor.

You are a muppet, blowing it all out of proportion, over reacting and it is fools like you that add to all the problems the league would encounter. You post almost welcomes the possiblity of trouble.

You are what this league doesn't need, not the added competition.

[tiktok]

how exactly would a regional second division work? how do you handle promotion and relegation,

one regional team from each section promoted?
do relegated teams have to drop to their regional league?

it'd never work. it'd be unbalanced.

i think it's a no-go until you can prove that an all-ireland cup competition not only works but is a success. i'd be against it.

[TommyT]

1) Belfast is actually closer than Derry to all Premier clubs apart from Longford. Distance wouldn't be a problem.

2) Linfield-Rovers would be a flashpoint match, but if we were getting crowds of 20,000 I don't think we'd need to worry about the adverse publicity that much.

3) They wouldn't drag the standard down, we're 5 not 25 places ahead of them in the uefa rankings.

[Éanna]

i've pushed this idea before and I still think that its the best way forward. A cup competition first would be a good trial run, and if its successful a league would definitely be a runner.

[Éanna]

there was an idea pushed on this in the Irish League forum: here (http://foot.ie/t5458.htm)

Have a look at the ideas- some good ones in there.

[dortie]

As a Derry man i would love to see an All Ireland league, its the only way we will ever play Linfield and Glentoran again (Because we would never go back to that hell hole namely the Irish league).

Unfortunately, being a realist, and being from the North its still not safe enough for these games to take place. I could just picture SRFC fans going into East Belfast or Portadown in numbers (although they seem to agree with us being labeled British recently ?? ;) so they may be ok.

Nah seriously i for one dont want to travel next to near these sectarian holes in the near future, maybe a cup to start with to test the water ???

[max power]

when sligo played linfield a few years ago there ws such troulbe at the sligo game that the return leg was played behind closed doors in cardiff, do we really want that sort of thing on a weekly basis ????

[TommyT]

Originally posted by dortie
Unfortunately, being a realist, and being from the North its still not safe enough for these games to take place. I could just picture SRFC fans going into East Belfast or Portadown in numbers (although they seem to agree with us being labeled British recently ?? ;) so they may be ok.


If the North isn't safe enough for these games to takeplace than how come Cliftonville and Newry manage to play every week ?

What's all this ''recently'' lark, we've been singing ''you're Brits and you know you are for years ?

Also I think you'd be more OK than us being the ''no-tricolours'' club according to ILF ;) Hope you weren't too offended by the several such flags on display Friday.

[dortie]

How many fans do Cliftonville bring to these games ??? Not many, the main reason there is little trouble, its when you have larger numbers of travelling fans when **** happens, especially ones who have no fecking idea where they are !!!

As for your 'Brits' chanting, im fully aware that this has been your favorite piece with us through the years, but its become more frequently used recently....?? Is SRFC more FG these days ;)

You may be right about the Tricolours, we dont see the need to show our colours in the Brandywell anymore, after all the Brandywell is in 'Free' Derry...!!!!

And finally i was quite impressed with your show of our national flag on Friday, very good for a bunch of FG followers :p

[ifk101]

we dont need the north plain and simple. the only reason this is being mooted is because the irish league is dying while the el is being re-born. el teams have progressed immensely in recent years and are on a par technically with the nordic teams (sweden, norway and denmark). A few seasons of summer soccer will see our results in europe improve dramatically which will lead to increase investment in the league. this will not happen if we join with the north as security concerns and bad press will scare off crowds and investors.
i think everyone here is in agreement that the el has been improving so why would we want to risk that improvement by joining with a weaker, semi-professional league?
i think the best suggestion for the league is to bring relegation into the equation regarding the first division. some form of pyramid system has to be introduced into irish soccer - perhaps six regional league systems that incorporate every soccer club in the republic (and i mean every club) - the winners of these regional leagues play off as a home/away cup tie against each other producing 3 teams to be entered a cup semi final with the team that placed last in the first division. the winners of this go into the first division for the next season.

[TommyT]

Originally posted by dortie
How many fans do Cliftonville bring to these games ??? Not many, the main reason there is little trouble, its when you have larger numbers of travelling fans when **** happens, especially ones who have no fecking idea where they are !!!

And finally i was quite impressed with your show of our national flag on Friday, very good for a bunch of FG followers :p

Being serious for a second I've always thought that that would be theway to go, limit travelling support to say 100-150 all-ticket and require people to show their season ticket and/or SC membership before buying a ticket for the game. What do you rckon yourself. If Cliftonville, Lurgan Celtic and your mates at OUS can go to Windsor, Seaview and the Oval in the first round of the Irish Cup with no trouble ...

[dortie]

Your right the only thing that would work would be away support getting tickets through means of season tickets and supporters clubs. This might prevent the bandwagon troubler makers attending, but i still believe there would be serious potential for trouble, a neutral ground might work however.

To be honest im all for a cup competition to test the water but i still would be reluctant to go to Windsor park etc

Im happy away from those gob****es

[tiktok]

i still think that distance is a problem,

cork city could well do without an extra six to eight trips north every season, and what about the first division clubs, cobh and limerick will never afford away trips to the north. while it's nice to be inclusive i think the league is heading in a good direction and doesn't need to be dragged down by the IL.

LOI clubs don't need the expense that extra travelling and policing of grounds would bring.

[A face]

That's three clubs out of how many ??

Many of course there would be stuff that needs ironing out ..... but can i ask you a question first.

How many away games have you been to this season so far ?

Also City are flying ot alot of games this season so it is not a travel thing for us.

Why are you soo worried about Limerick and Cobh all of a sudden ??

[tiktok]

i have been to no away game this season, not a one, nada. then again i haven't been to any home games either, not a one, nada.
the reason for that is that i am currently living on the west coast of the states, look at my location. hope you can forgive me ;)

i'm worried about limerick and cobh because i think an all ireland league would see us lose those two clubs, they couldn't afford it. i think city and waterford would be hard pressed to keep pace with dublin clubs with the added expense of an all ireland league. it does cost money to move twenty five people to belfast six times a season (especially if you are flying).

while the IFA and FAI remain separate institutions this isn't happening, it'd be a power struggle where the clubs would be the losers. ther's too much politics involved. i too think that this idea is being touted because the IL is in decline and the EL is undergoing a facelift and a slight resurgence.

in previous posts i've said that until an all ireland cup competition can be shown to work successfully from a financial, safety and entertainment point of view (i.e. a series where it's not four LOI teams in the semis after the IL teams have been roundly thrashed) the league idea should be shelved. i think that's perfectly logical and reasonable, two traits that are lacking in arguments for the proposal, which to me seems idealistic but unmanageable.

to finish, don't question my loyalty to city (or the LOI)just because i don't agree with the proposal.

[A face]

Originally posted by tiktok
to finish, don't question my loyalty to city (or the LOI)just because i don't agree with the proposal.

C'mon ... dont be silly .... i didn't say that at all.

Have a read of this !! (http://www.redbrick.dcu.ie/~jw/editorials-7.htm) .... it was written a while back.

Man ... I am only asking you to be open minded. Other clubs would also have to travel down. And other leagues have funds set up for clubs in similar situations, we could do something like that. It is only a problem is you make it one.

On the political side of things ........ Hockey, Tennis, Rugby and GAA all have merged (there are alot more codes have done the same aswel) I dont want to run head long into anything, i would be like yourself and want to see some sort of competition running sucesssfully first aswell. That doesn't bring me to condem it at every turn.

[tiktok]

in fairness, i don't think i was being silly, why ask how many away games i'd been to, what has that to do with anything? but maybe i was too sensitive;)

read the article you highlighted (i do keep an open mind most of the time) and i'll admit it's good, the lad has obviously thought a lot about the topic and puts a lot of good points forward. having said that there are still a lot of flaws to his ideas (although many could be ironed out) e.g....

the relegation issue, if two northern or southern teams were to be relegated you can't just keep adding junior teams to the league.

the security issue, he admits that about the 12th of july could be problematic, but tensions would travel beyond a week in the summer, everyone so far has admitted that this is something that has to be addressed.

in the end i think a problem will lay with who runs it and where the money goes, the IFA and FAI are both poorly run from the point of view of their domestic leagues yet i can't see either organisation being organised enough to put this in place successfully.

I also think that people are overestimating the interest that an all-ireland league will create (even in the mid-term), will bohs/city get any extra fans in for the arrival of larne. maybe more importantly, what kind of extra 'fans' will they attract when linfield are down.

i take your point that hockey and rugby are run without political tensions, but that takes me back to the point that we have both the FAI and IFA and two distinct national teams, the adequate running of the league is a big question.

the ideas that are put forward in that article can be applied just as well to the LOI on it's own. especially the relegation from div 1, the youth structure to be put in place etc.

i don't think i blindly condemn it, i do voice what my concerns are. i am opposed to the idea for the forseeable future, but as i've said, if a cup competition can be successfully run, then maybe we can have a look at developing cross border soccer, but only in that case.

[TommyT]

Larne !!!

How big is this league going to be ? 30 teams?

I'm a big supporter of it because we could have a full-time league of teams from urban centres.
Dublin's 4 pro clubs, the two cities, Belfast's big two, Coleraine and Portadown. Plus between 2 and 4 others.

[A face]

What ever you opinion is on this topic, there is definitely not debate that if both leagues merged, that it would improve the standard of football. With the top 6-8 in this league and the top 6-8 in their league, the quality of football would be great.

That in itself would be a good reason to merge.

IFA and FAI would undoubtly have to communicate and work things out between them, of course. You would only expect that (if you didn't see it, you would then worry)

The security issue - It is an obstacle alright but not a brick wall, it can be overcome. To say it cant is cráp. Unbelievable amount of effort would have to be put in and it would take a long time but it could be done.

Actually all the reason to say it couldn't be done are complete crap, if both league wanted to do it ... it could be done and that it, to say otherwise is cobblers.

[Macy]

I'm totally for an all ireland league (18 teams 9 from each), but think any talk is irrelevant at the moment... Even a cup competition would be hard considering we're now operating different calendars for our seasons.... Who'd make the move - them to summer football, or us back to winter?

[TommyT]

Us, summer in the north would be a no-no

[drummer boy]

an all- ireland cup would be a good idea. but you dont know how it could turn out. all the il teams could be knocked out in the first few rounds or even the other way around. i think if they were going to test it out the for the pre- season friendlies teams should get IL instead of LOI first division teams. it should be something that the fai organise instead of the teams themselves, if they want to see what the standards of the two leagues would be like. and if there is a huge difference theres really not much point in even thinking about an all ireland league.

[TommyT]

Originally posted by drummer boy
. but you dont know how it could turn out. all the il teams could be knocked out in the first few rounds or even the other way around.

Look the IL isn't great but neither are we. They're only a few places behind us in the UEFA rankings, and we only overtook them in 1999 having been behind for over a decade.

[southside bohs]

Glentoran recently had this same discussion on their message boards and most of them agreed that it is the only way forward even a few linfield supporters thought it was a good idea but there were a few who thought they would lose their identity.
in my opinion we need it but might regret it in the long term it would only make relations between north and south worse.bohs rovers games are bad enough without having to play linfield or coleraine or even loyal portadown.a cup competition should be considered before deciding a all ireland league.

p.s
would uefa go for it they might force us to have an all ireland team

[patsh]

Originally posted by southside bohs
p.s
would uefa go for it they might force us to have an all ireland team
That would be a major benefit, I think.

[TommyT]

Originally posted by oddboy
That would be a major benefit, I think.

I would've thought so too, however it might put some ogf the Nordies off

[Soko]

Originally posted by A face
You haven't a clue what you are on about .... everything you are saying is all hear say and none of it is fact.

Second division ..... More than likely it would be regionalised and as you not punishing people, you are doing that already with the crap you are talking. And if you dont want a second division ..... JUST HOW WOULD YOU PROPOSE TO WORK IT OUT (i want an answer please)

"Look at this for example" ........... What do you mean example .... you have just singled out the most likely game where there would be trouble, that in my opinion is not a balancedc example and dont even try and tell me it is. Fool

It is all a forgone conclusion with you .... the end of the world type scenarios, the doomsday factor.

You are a muppet, blowing it all out of proportion, over reacting and it is fools like you that add to all the problems the league would encounter. You post almost welcomes the possiblity of trouble.

You are what this league doesn't need, not the added competition.


What a spanner. Of course it cannot be fact as it has never happened but by gauging other peoples reactions it has to be a genuine concern. Am I meant to give an example of every non-event of a match involving bog teams to 'balance' the arguement up or to dumb it down to your neanderthal level?

Linfield fans travelled down to support Rangers against $hels a few years back so I think they might be out in force when 'Fenians' travel to town.


According to you we should ignore all security issues as long as the league can be expanded and improve the product. I would love to see better football but not at that cost. We live relativley sheltered lives (you in particular) in the republic when sectarianism is concerened. The hatred is not the same and it has the potential to blow over.

As for the a second division, it was only a suggestion. I dont think I ever made a blueprint for how it would be run. A Fool, I think you should learn not to lose the run of yourself in the future and get someone else to tell you what the threads mean before you start any more ill-informed rants.

[gspain]

>>>
Linfield fans travelled down to support Rangers against $hels a few years back so I think they might be out in force when 'Fenians' travel to town.
>>>>

Remind me when - only times I remember Shels meeting Rangers were at Ibrox and Prenton Park in Tranmere.

That game only got moved when the ticket sales were poor.

[A face]

Originally posted by Soko
According to you we should ignore all security issues as long as the league

Did i say that (read back and prove me wrong, dont twist it, read back first and then answer)..... you muppet .... if you had your way we wouldn't cross the the road.


Dont have time to get into this but listen, if it were left up to you to do anything, there'd be little hope.



I, for the most part was throwing my tupence, but none of it was "relativley sheltered". I never claim to know it all but i am well informed. And i do recognise that the/any situation is better without people (see, i am not singling you out :) :rolleyes: ) stirring the shíte and making a mountain out of a mole hill.





I actually couldn't be ársed arguing/dumbing out this topic. All i had as for was an open mind. (obviously you couldn't help, with you not being sheltered an all)

[tiktok]

Originally posted by gspain
>>>
That game only got moved when the ticket sales were poor.

I'll leave myself open to correction but i think the guards advised against it's being played in dublin, i think it was a safety issue, i doubt very much that they couldn't sell the tickets for it.

[southside bohs]

it was in 1984 when the linfield fans came down to support rangers against bohs how can anybody forget it bohs won 3-2 and there were riots in dublin after it with many injuries i do agree linfield cannot be trusted in our league and they problay feel the same about bohs,rovers,cork,waterford,derry and the rest and remember it in their view it was the south that left the league not them

[Soko]

Do you agree that security issues are probably the main stumbling block in developing an All Ireland league?

Well if so, then all possible scenarios must be taken into consideration and unfortunatley any games involving teams such as Linfield, Rovers etc... would be a huge potential flashpoint. I like to cross the road, sometimes without even looking right or left but would personally not like to do it any where near Windsor Park.


Your first response was hardly that of an open minded individual. Improving the league is always a huge task but I think we should explore other options through improving marketing the league and attracting new faces. These faces wont be seen if violence is a common problem on matchday around the country.


I did'nt want to start a tit for tat argument but I think that is how a lot of people would like the league to improve, through new players, better facilities, increased exposure etc.... not expansion with an inferior league.

[drummer boy]

i kinda agree not 100% though. if tv3 and sky are also in on the deal got off there backsides. im not saying the coverage is bad im just saying that there should be a game live at least every 2 weeks if not every week. we are a quarter way through the season now and only 1 game has been shown live. this would promote soccer big time. I wouldn like an ireland league but an all ireland cup would be a good idea

[southside bohs]

when you think about it how many dubliners will go to windsor park likewise how many linfield fans will come down here and the same with cork and portadown.southeners know the dangers and im sure many northern people are weary of dublin.but i have heard and saw comments wriiten by a minority of league of ireland fans saying an all ireland league is the only way of testing their strenght.
it is the only way forward but will lead to some devestating matches and i reckon the police or northern clubs would not go for it.national identidy will eventually come into.

[gspain]

Originally posted by tiktok
I'll leave myself open to correction but i think the guards advised against it's being played in dublin, i think it was a safety issue, i doubt very much that they couldn't sell the tickets for it.

A friend from Scotland was coming over for the game - Rangers had only 3 buses booked. tickets were £25 at the time and most
people weren't bothering as Pats were also charging the same to watch Celtic.

If my memory serves me correctly the game was to be moved to 12 noon on police advice and Shels decided to up sticks to Tranmere. Shels would have lost heavily on the game in Dublin and probably not got the Eurosport deal either.

[gspain]

Originally posted by southside bohs
it was in 1984 when the linfield fans came down to support rangers against bohs how can anybody forget it bohs won 3-2 and there were riots in dublin after it with many injuries i do agree linfield cannot be trusted in our league and they problay feel the same about bohs,rovers,cork,waterford,derry and the rest and remember it in their view it was the south that left the league not them

There was a scum element of the SuperProd culture from Northern Ireland causing trouble at the game. I know some Bohs fans blame rovers fans for the trouble from the Bohs end.

I think it is unfair to automatically associate that with Linfield Football Club. I doubt if many of them ever find their way to an Irish League ground. However the security question is valid as these types would be around for a Linfield v Rovers game.

I've openly supported Limerick at Ballymena, Bangor, Distillery & Donegal Celtic without any issues. Ditto for RoI youths at Glentoran and the U23 side at Poirtadown.

For the ordinary fans matches wouldn't be a problem but these games would attract an undesirable element.

However I'd still love to see an All Ireland Cup. As already stated the political problems with an All Ireland league make it a non runner at the moment.

[southside bohs]

fao gspain how many dubs do you get to go to limerick for the matches surely theres not that many.

[gspain]

Originally posted by southside bohs
fao gspain how many dubs do you get to go to limerick for the matches surely theres not that many.

We don't get too many travelling down to games from Dublin - I don't see the point of your question though.

[southside bohs]

i remember your name from the herald in the football page with all the clubs just wondering!

[TommyT]

Originally posted by gspain
If my memory serves me correctly the game was to be moved to 12 noon on police advice and Shels decided to up sticks to Tranmere. Shels would have lost heavily on the game in Dublin and probably not got the Eurosport deal either.


Originally posted by gspain
There was a scum element of the SuperProd culture from Northern Ireland causing trouble at the game. I know some Bohs fans blame rovers fans for the trouble from the Bohs end.

I think it is unfair to automatically associate that with Linfield Football Club. I doubt if many of them ever find their way to an Irish League ground.

While I don't think the secuuirity issues would be insurmountable I do find both of your posts laughable. There are plenty of hooligans (not so super-prod and otherwise) around the IL though I agree it's unfair to blame Linfield alone, there were probably plenty of Glentoran, Portadown, Coleraine fans etc running amok aswell as thousands of Scots. That said Linfield are ''plenty capable'' of causing havoc themselvesas long standing fans of Sligo and Dundalk could testify.

Where on earth (apart from the mouth of a patronising hun) did you here that crap about Shels ? Surely they'd have been MORE likely to get the TV deal if the game was likely to be more competitive.

[gspain]

TV deal is speculation but the game was being switched to 12 noon. I got that from the club. I can't imagine Eurosport would have been too bothered to show a live match at 12 noon rather than at prime evening viewing time.

There would have been a small crowd at Tolka. Tickets were £20 or £25 at the time and this was expensive. The security bill would have been very high and Shels would have lost heavily on the game.

I can see why the club moved the game but I didn't like it.

The trouble at the Bohs v Rangers game was I believe caused by fans from Northern Ireland not Scotland (on the Rangers side) and Dublin on the bohs side however they probably couldn't find their way to an Irish League ground

Both Shamrock rovers v Linfield games in 84 passed off without any major incidents although there was some stone throwing after the game at Milltown.

[TommyT]

I copped what you meant about the TV deal after I posted. Still the game was to be played at 12 noon on police advice so secuirity still caused the move. Rangers would take more than 150 to Kazakhstan for a UEFA Cup match so I'd imagine more than 3 buses would have showed up ''if you go to Dublin we will follow on ''. The Rovers-Linfield game passed off without incident because of the heavy secuiruty in Milltown (All Hoops in the Shed, all Bluemen in the small terrace that ran from the Main Stand to the Gonzaga End) and the fact that the club didn't take up any tickets for Windsor.

Still as you know there would've been plenty of trouble at that time at a big Limerick-Rovers match, no one would've suggested the LOI be split into East/West divisions. I firmly believe that football shouldn't be the only partitioned sport, and if football people in Belfast want to see an end to the game they love being behind Ice Hockey and Rugby (not to mention the GAA) in terms of spectator/media interest, they should embrace an All-Ireland league.

[gspain]

Rangers had restricted the troip to Travel club members who also must be season ticket holders. I had a ticket for a friend who had followed them everywhere and he wouldn't have been able to go on the official trip. He lost money on his boat and ferry etc but went to Tranmere anyway.

There may have been a crowd down from Northern Ireland or scotland without tickets looking for trouble but I doubt it. The game would have passed off quietly in front of a small corwd with heavy police presence and Shels would have lost a lot of money.
The guys who caused the trouble at Tranmere would have miost likely stayed away.

Rovers did bring a few fans to Belfast albeit incognito. i was at the return match. I don't rememebr a huge police presence and there was a little stone throwing afterwards but nothing major. I remember well the trouble a few months earlier at our Cup game in the Markets Field when my Dad's car got damaged.

Rovers are still my least favourite LoI side but I always support them once/twice a year in Europe. I've seen so many jammy Rovers wins v Limerick and so many unlucky European defeats - Linfield 84 & Celtic 86 spring to mind immediately.

[parnell ranger]

i remember the old Tyler cup played between top 4 in both leagues.
Athlone reached the final twice playing linfield on both occasions.
the last meeting was a riot from start to finish.
both flags being burned,a baton charge,the town wrecked,not a bit o notice paid to the game which we won incidentally.
the competition was eventually dropped after further trouble the next year .
Idont think the climate is right yet to start that craic again.
We dont need them at all.

[Shelsman]

Originally posted by ifk101
i think the best suggestion for the league is to bring relegation into the equation regarding the first division. some form of pyramid system has to be introduced into irish soccer - perhaps six regional league systems that incorporate every soccer club in the republic (and i mean every club) - the winners of these regional leagues play off as a home/away cup tie against each other producing 3 teams to be entered a cup semi final with the team that placed last in the first division. the winners of this go into the first division for the next season.

All very well but I don't think these clubs would have the proper facilities!!!

[Shelsman]

Originally posted by A face
On the political side of things ........ Hockey, Tennis, Rugby and GAA all have merged (there are alot more codes have done the same aswel)

Yes, but none of these sports have a history of hooliganism.