Oriel is at its best this time of year before the Longford fans have showered it with minerals and crisps.
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Oriel is at its best this time of year before the Longford fans have showered it with minerals and crisps.
Having played on the Oriel park pitch just over a year ago it is an awful pitch. I have nothing against artificial pitches having played numerous football and rugby matches on them but they do need to be properly maintained and replaced at the end of their lifespans and Oriel park was/is not well maintained and has definitely come to the end of its lifespan.
I'd be happy for them to put down a new artificial pitch but they would need to do a better job at looking after it than they have with this one.
OK well my argument is that we are the best footballing team in the league whose philosophy is to play the ball on the ground. To do that you need a flat consistent surface. What's your argument and proof behind it?Quote:
Originally Posted by Dodge
My argument is your record away is terrific and if you had a decent pitch to play on you'd be even betterQuote:
Originally Posted by mcgonigle
This isn't about any advantage for Dundalk, it's about a disgrace of a pitch
Isn't there a dedicated thread to the Oriel Park pitch?! There is nothing of an update to this conversation as evverrrything that can be said has already been said dozens of times........
http://foot.ie/threads/198735-Dundal...91#post1833391Quote:
Originally Posted by Nesta99
There it is.. think everything that can be said, has been said
You see this is not correct, I`m not a fan of the pitch insofar I would much prefer grass, as probably most Dundalk fans would. The look of the pitch especially on tv can give it a bad look, up close its fine and has no adverse effect on a match. If it was you would see players slipping all over the place and this doesn't happen, neither is there any un-natural bounce of a ball.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dodge
Taking all into account, I would still prefer grass but I do not see this changing anytime soon given the costs of installing and replacing it.
You ruined any argument you had with this statement.Quote:
Originally Posted by oriel
There is no issue with a bounce, if there was, there would be no way it would have passed tests to host 5 European club games since any version of the pitch was installed.
I think this season is possibly the last year of its lifespan though.
I thought it was noticeable even on Soccer Republic the other day when Cork were forcing Dundalk to go more direct. They were trying to pass longer along the ground but the ball was hopping up.
Any more though than a mediocre poorly maintained grass pitch after a spell of dry weather, or a sodden pitch where there is no bounce, or long grass uncut to make a passing game difficult and so on. The Dundalk pitch should be better and more consistent than what it is for what it is. The ball bobbles too much on a daisycutting pass and maybe bounces too high. But there is room for debate on whether it is that much worse for unpredictability than some other pitches. Kenny took a training session to one of the worst pitches in town at the Army Barracks prior to the Bray game and had balls pinging at the players to get used to adjusting quickly for an unexpected ball movement on a divot. So its not that the Dundalk pitch is good or bad but that is it so much worse than some others at this time of the year especially or during a dry spell in June? It definitely should be more 'true' but it was never the same after the top layer had to be replaced and most of the work was done by GM's workers supervised by the installation company rather than the installation's own men. You could see the joins for example that werent obvious after the original installation. There is a subjective element to observations as the worst ive seen was the Setanta Cup Final v Sligo in Tallaght which was as a result of exceptional weather and remedial work was required but still the game was ruined by the pitch that day unless you are a Sligo fan and it was perfect for protecting a narrow lead. Apologies for not using the other thread but it is in response to observations posted here.
That was my point though, an astro surface shouldn't have the problems of a badly-maintained grass pitch. I don't really care about Dundalk's pitch or think it's a major advantage, I just think it's crap pitch and it's no surprise players hated playing on it even before you were good.
I dont disagree really except that not all players hated it, many players home and away teams have been asked, its probably the most asked question tbh and some really detested it and some said they werent bothered by it. Im sure all if give a choice would pick grass mind. Also before we were good again:p Ive chosen to forget 1998-2013 bar a flash of 2002!
St pats, bohs, sligo and bray management all said last season that the markets field pitch is the best pitch in the league.
This season cobh and roddy collins ( scouting Limerick before they played Waterford) have said the same.
Not many games played on that pitch yet to be fair.
Newly laid with time to bed in, proper drainage too probably so i'd say it will stand up to plenty of games, variety of grass is most likely durable rather than the quick growing types rushed through between seasons. Like all pitches it needs the resources to be maintained to keep it top of all the heaps though.
Are there any plans to do more at markets field. Lovely little ground but a permanent away stand closer to the pitch would be great.
So is this not correctQuote:
Originally Posted by thomas72
http://www.fai.ie/domestic/news/eamo...-the-year-2015
Harps definitely have the most entertaining surface, it's enthralling stuff trying to figure out how many times the ball will bobble between passes or which way it's gonna bounce......if at all.
Harps pitch is much better from last season, they got a lot of work done pre season and you could see the pitch looked
well after a dry spell at the Rovers game.
So Brandywell work to start in June, with the removal of the dog track.
Come July, or maybe slightly later, we'll be playing our games in Maginn Park, Buncrana.
The seats from the Lone Moor side of the Brandy will be installed in Maginn and left there after we leave as a gift.
Matches will be on Friday nights, and transport will be arranged from Derry.
The reason we couldn't use Riverside was that we couldn't get Friday nights and changing match dates would have created issues.
So it'll be six, or maybe slightly less, games in Buncrana, with 300 seats, on their original dates.
Capacity for Maginn hasn't been decided yet, but won't be huge. I reckon the limit of 300 seats could be problematic too.
On the plus side, it'll be nice to get a few trips to Buncrana and maybe we could even garner a few new fans.
Is there not a regulation stating a PD club must have 2000 seats or something along that line? Obviously this is only a temp thing but it's amazing how the FAI can just bend rules as and when it suits them. Roddy Collins is dead right, the whole running of the league is a shambles. And that's not a jab at Derry, it's great to see work going ahead on the Brandywell.Quote:
Originally Posted by brendy_éire
Thought it was 500. Ferrycarrig has 600 odd, IIRC. Still more than 300.Quote:
Originally Posted by outspoken
Take your point though, not great that rules are being disregarded. We could have used Riverside if we changed to Saturdays/Sundays. I know that would mean having to reach agreement with clubs involved, but still, it's not like Maginn was our only option (Finn Park was also mentioned).
Finn Park not an option due to outrageous dugout alignment.Quote:
Originally Posted by brendy_éire
I think the seats rule is 1500. No issue whatever allowing clubs to be under on temporary basis while work ongoing like with Derry.
Although I can understand Longford being bewildered as they made such efforts to comply and then the likes of us are let slide for long periods, albeit that has been largely beyond our control.
Begs the question, would it be better in terms of attracting new teams of the ground regulations were relaxed or almost totally removed. I'm sure they are one of the biggest barriers stopping perhaps the likes of Tralee Dynamos or maybe even an FC Carlow/IT Carlow team of some sort for example entering the league. Would it not be better to get these teams in and then try to build something when we have a solid base of teams to work off?
Some sort of 'A' Championship perhaps. It'll never happen.Quote:
Originally Posted by outspoken
Build what though? Salthill were let in without a single seat. It's not mandatory in the first divisionQuote:
Originally Posted by outspoken
Salthill had zero success or support tho. What if a team like Carlow were to come in and the local community got behind them? With fundraising and new sponsorship etc it's something they could work towards.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dodge
Sure, but my point was that having a **** ground wasn't a barrier to their entry so it's not one to Carlow or anyone elseQuote:
Originally Posted by outspoken
As I said the FAI seem to implement these rules when it suits them to, be better off just scrapping them if they aren't going to be taken seriously.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dodge
Don't scrap the rules.
They are the standard that needs to be achieved.
However there is a need for flexibility within the rules in that clubs should be allowed time to achieve the standard required by the rules.
Things crop up from time to time such as ground ownership, leases etc which might prevent a club from bringing their ground up to the required standard.
Things like the lease at Oriel Park or Derry needing to move to a ground which may not meet the standards so that their own ground can be improved.
Clubs who's grounds do not meet the standards should be allowed into the League provided that there is clear evidence that their grounds can be brought up to standard over time given the availability of finance.
The League of Ireland is a balancing act.
There are times when leniency needs to be shown & there are times to use the big stick.
The truth is if the rules were to be applied rigidly right now to the League of Ireland then a good proportion of the clubs wouldn't make it & I don't think any of us would want that ?
Good post, agree with all of that.Quote:
Originally Posted by disgruntled
Does anyone really believe that facilities are what's keeping clubs from joining the League of Ireland?
Weren't Carlow and Tralee both basically told not to bother proceeding with their interest in the aftermath of the A Championship dying? Proud moment for the league.
FC Carlow collapsed as an entity following the A Championship. It was poorly supported from the start and was always doomed from what I'm told by people here.Quote:
Originally Posted by sadloserkid
PHILIP O’DOHERTY, the Derry City chairman, says the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division club will play out their final fixtures of this season in Buncrana.
O’Doherty was speaking to Eric White of BBC Radio Foyle, where he said the club had ruled out the possibility of a move to the Riverside Stadium in Drumahoe – the home of Irish League club, Institute FC.
With a busy youth club on a Friday at the Waterside venue and Derry City preferring not to play Saturday fixtures, then it will be Maginn Park in Buncrana (main picture), which is a ground owned by the clubs of the Inishowen League.
Derry City will vacate the Brandywell Stadium for redevelopment works, although the exact time-frame is not known as yet, possibly their last six home games of the current campaign.
The Glentoran Stand has already been demolished and a new spectator stand is to be erected in its place on the Lonemoor Road side of the ground.
http://www.donegalsporthub.com/derry...park-buncrana/
The last six games would be from August onwards. So the teams involved would be Pats, Cork, Galway, Shams, Bohs and Sligo.Quote:
Originally Posted by ForzaHoop
Out of interest, would playing in Buncrana encourage or discourage away fans to attend? You'd be looking at an extra 10 minutes travel time from Sligo and Galway, 30 minutes for the others. Would the novelty of Buncrana help?
It wouldn't add any huge travel onto those places though in fairness. You'd make Derry to Buncrana in 15 minutes handy enough for those coming from Dublin direction, only an extra 5-10 minutes for those form Sligo/Galway as you said.Quote:
Originally Posted by brendy_éire
I know for me, it's actually slightly disappointing Harps aren't one of the games in Maginn Park, would love to add in the novelty of a new ground to attend, and I'm sure that'll be the same for others potentially travelling.
I know Maginn Park is away from Ballybofey and that Stranorlar is started but couldnt the develpment of Maginn for Harps been something similar to the arrangement as Cork have with Turners Cross and been developed in conjunction with the local junior scene in Donegal?
Are you suggesting Harps could have moved to Buncrana? There's the same distance between the two as there is Dundalk to Monaghan. Besides, it was suggested before that Harps move to Letterkenny and it was quickly shot down as an option.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nesta99
And if Harps moved away from the Finn Valley area, it would be a bit strange to continue calling the club Finn Harps, being no longer anywhere near the Finn river.