Kerry U-21 Eircom League Squad

Kerry's Eye are currently running a series to mark 10 years since the Kerry U-21 team made their Eircom League debut. Tom McGiff did managerial wonders in taking the squad to the semi-finals in their first season, and when one analyses the strength of that squad - David Hennessey, Shane Guthrie, Maurice O'Rahilly, James Sugrue, Chris Kerins, Peter McCarthy, Billy Dennehy and Seán Kelly among others, there's a strong argument that they should have applied at the first opportunity to join the First Division. Of course, they'd have had no guarantee of acceptance, but with soccer then and now the second-most played sport in the county, they could at least have consolidated like Wexford, if not challenging at the higher end of the division, but we'll never know now.

Sounds interesting. Any links or is it not online?

They have a website, but it's very limited as most articles are in their digital edition, which requires a subscription.

Disappointing that clubs who wanted to join to the LOI in new counties like Kerry and Carlow were blocked or dissuaded, while in Galway we had the ridiculous three club scenario, which has helped contribute to the current malaise here.

Any sign of a Kerry team for 2014 ?

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Originally Posted by Patrick Dunne

Disappointing that clubs who wanted to join to the LOI in new counties like Kerry and Carlow were blocked or dissuaded, while in Galway we had the ridiculous three club scenario, which has helped contribute to the current malaise here.

Any sign of a Kerry team for 2014 ?

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Quite the opposit, Galways clubs only allowed in due the failure of others to step up. When they went again, the lessons learnt from allowing clubs in without neccesary infrastructure stopped them.

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Originally Posted by Dodge

Quite the opposit, Galways clubs only allowed in due the failure of others to step up. When they went again, the lessons learnt from allowing clubs in without neccesary infrastructure stopped them.

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Tralee Dynamos applied to enter the LOI, along with Cobh Ramblers, for the 2013 season.

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Originally Posted by Patrick Dunne

Tralee Dynamos applied to enter the LOI, along with Cobh Ramblers, for the 2013 season.

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And they were unsuccesful. What's your point?

The thread is about a Kerry representative team and the question was posed whether or not they would have been successful.

At the moment, 55% of the clubs in the LOI come from four counties. Fourteen of the twenty six counties have no league team. We know that most of the active sports followers in these counties will give their primary allegiance towards a county based team (as happens generally in GAA and the LOI).

My point is that a larger geographical spread would be desirable, unfortunately not always feasible though.

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Originally Posted by Patrick Dunne

The thread is about a Kerry representative team and the question was posed whether or not they would have been successful.

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Aye, and then you brought up other clubs

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My point is that a larger geographical spread would be desirable, unfortunately not always feasible though.

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No, you said

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Disappointing that clubs who wanted to join to the LOI in new counties like Kerry and Carlow were blocked or dissuaded,

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That's completely wrong. The league and FAI want nothing more than new clubs that can survive in parts of the country not touched by current clubs. But they're right to expect minimum standards of infrastructure and backing before admitting these clubs

Tralee Dynamos, to the best of my knowledge, have a stand, which means they have a better infrastructure than at least two current clubs.

We agree on the core point of bringing clubs in from new parts of the country.

Infrastracture means more than just the ground in fairness

There is a recently setup Facebook page that I found for a Meath Football Team:

https://www.facebook.com/MeathFootba...eagueOfIreland

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Originally Posted by TheBoss

There is a recently setup Facebook page that I found for a Meath Football Team:

https://www.facebook.com/MeathFootba...eagueOfIreland

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Well it wouldn't kill them to support their local team in the East, Drogheda.

Whilst would be welcome you could assume that those in charge of it would be inclined to look at a lack of a club as an excuse to not support another team rather than a reason to support another team elsewhere!

Well here's to them doing it. I wonder what the plans after getting 200 likes on FB are?

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Originally Posted by BonnieShels

Well it wouldn't kill them to support their local team in the East, Drogheda.

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For some Bohs would be pretty close (anyone out Navan/Dunshaughlin direction has a straight road in).

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Originally Posted by Dodge

Aye, and then you brought up other clubs


No, you said



That's completely wrong. The league and FAI want nothing more than new clubs that can survive in parts of the country not touched by current clubs. But they're right to expect minimum standards of infrastructure and backing before admitting these clubs

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Cahermoneen wasn't up to scratch, but Mounthawk Park would, then and now, be capable of hosting First Division football. Rather, because Kerry never formally applied, they never discussed the financial cost, and prior to the A Championship, it was discussions over a business plan which saw the idea binned.

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Originally Posted by Dodge

For some Bohs would be pretty close (anyone out Navan/Dunshaughlin direction has a straight road in).

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But there's no direct bus... :O

I was actually gonna start doing out a whole "Relative to parts of Meath chart" with each club... but I gave up.

I've nowt to do after lunch. Would be a good project. :)

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Originally Posted by BonnieShels

But there's no direct bus... :O

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There is. The 109 from Cavan (through Navana & Dunshaughlin) stops right outside Dalymount. :)

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Originally Posted by Dodge

There is. The 109 from Cavan (through Navana & Dunshaughlin) stops right outside Dalymount. :)

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I knew there was. But one must never miss an opportunity to insert that in when we talk in such ways.

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Originally Posted by culloty82

David Hennessey, Shane Guthrie, Maurice O'Rahilly, James Sugrue, Chris Kerins, Peter McCarthy, Billy Dennehy and Seán Kelly among others

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Stephen O'Mahony deserves more than to be dismissed as 'among others' (if he wasn't part of the original crop I apologise :D ). Limerick benefited better more than most from the Kerry talent of the time (O'Mahony, Sugrue, Kerins, McCarthy, Kelly, Timmy Lynch and David Conway all played first team for us in the space of a few years there).