Originally Posted by sirhamish
Wild Rover, I have to say this, both Sligo Rovers and the Sligo-Leitrim League were absolutely brilliant in giving me The Showgrounds and McSharry Park for loads of schools semi-finals, finals etc. One of my best memories was when we used the Showgrounds for the Sligo Primary finals in 1999 - club couldn't do enough for me.
However, re. my posts above. For one schools Irish final (I think there was a Sligo school in it but not certain) I wrote to all the Sligo Primary schools inviting them to that game free of charge PLUS they would get a set of good quality footballs if they turned up.
ONE school brought a dozen kids plus their Principal, took the balls and then fcuked off ten minutes into the game.:o :D
OK, it was a test run for me and I honed the process and improved it as time went by with some success but it's not easy improving support levels. It must involve the other things I mentioned - player coaching etc.It's a package really and must be accompanied by an aggressive campaign in the local media.
It would take time to bed in and develop but, in time, you'd be amazed how the support level would increase and also the volume of noise at matches along with it.
That is why I find it impossible to criticise other EL clubs even though I am an Athlone fan to the core. I know what other clubs are going through in flying the El flag, so to speak, so, I feel that the entire EL management should get together and devise (financially backed by the FAI - don't laugh please) to promote the game at local levels.
If the FAI are serious at improving support at The Showgrounds, Finn Park, Turners Cross etc etc - they need to provide the bucks and plans for clubs to be able to finance players coaching at Junior levels. But this also must be part of the player's contract.
For example, in addition to making coaching part of a player's contract, the players would also have to do the various levels of coaching schemes AND referee schemes to. The benefits are plentiful
(1)Lots of players might not be good coaches but it would help them, at the very least, understand what their manager is talking about and they could be handy to assist good coaches if their communication abilties were lacking.
(2)Some players will learn that they have a talent for coaching.
(3)You have decent qualified players coaching at Junior, underage and schools levels - again, building up the connection with their EL club and generating future support.
(4)Players -having completed a referee course - will appreciate the match officials difficulties in actually running a game.
(5)Players with a ref. badge then could become referees themselves and referee at local level (good money in it too) and perhaps graduate to EL level refereeing standard (eg John Carpenter) where, as an ex-player they would have more respect from the EL players because of their playing history.
(6)El players refereeing at local levels will also help to build up the connection between club and potential support.
and so on.
Building coaching and refereeing into a player's contract is vital and would be more expensive - this is where the FAI involvment is essential if they are serious in promoting the game.
Fancy PR campaigns are all good and well but are shallow, meaningless and useless exercises if not accompanied by "on the ground" and local schemes as I suggested above.
The Professional Footballers Association would also be delighted if their members were receiving extra money too so they would back it.
End result is what we all want - increased support and passionate support because the local club - Rovers, Waterford, every club - would actually mean something to the fans and be part of the fans.
I'm not a genius, as you can see from most of my posts:o , but if a gobsh!te like me can come up with the above - what the fcuk are those paid with running the game in this country dreaming about??? You don't need to be a brainbox to devise these simple schemes so are the EL management/FAI/IPFA committee totally stupid or focusing on only a few aspects of promoting the game or just interested in their own little "manors".
