Soccer Thugs in Croke Park

From The Indo today:

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An angry spectator was shown confronting Mr Sludden after the final whistle was blown. He had to be escorted off the pitch by gardai, who shielded him from the unruly mob.

A stadium steward who was helping to escort Mr Sludden also had to be treated for injuries after he was struck by a plastic bottle that had been lobbed at the referee during the melee. No one was arrested, but gardai last night said they would pursue any complaints they received in the matter.

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:rolleyes:

What the hell were they doing then?

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Originally Posted by Réiteoir

From The Indo today:



:rolleyes:

What the hell were they doing then?

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....what the gardai actually said is even more nonsensical. The IT said that the gardai won't take action unless a compliant is made (even though strictly they don't need a complaint to be made to investigate and forward a file). Which pushes the onus on the ref himself to take it forward, which, in my mind, is an absolute disgrace and dereliction of duty by the guards.

In a nutshell, no one is denying there are clowns/idiots/morons following football. Most people can spot them at Ireland/LOI games etc. This is admittedly a generalisation but what I do not like is the element in the gaa that think they are the best fans in the world, there is never any trouble, look at our great amateur ethos and no segregation etc etc.

In reality, the gaa has also got its fair share of morons/idiots etc following the sport. In particular, the lack of respect towards the ref is much higher in gaa than in football imo. Look at you tube, look at the newspapers, you are guaranteed a number of incidents every year where the ref is attacked at a local gaa match. I dont care what the level or prize at stake, attacking the ref at any time in any sport is completely wrong.

Im not in the business of gloating at the gaa's trouble arising from yesterday, I follow the gaa quite a bit but its the ignorance of many of its following to this stuff is appalling. Several excuses like they are not gaa fans, they're probably soccer fans are ridiculous. I have been at plenty of games when tempers get frayed (as they will do in any sport) and the lack of segregation and poor stewarding often leads to very nasty scenes.

No one is saying their sport is better than the other in terms of this behaviour, but the gaa do need to open its eyes to it. They may be an amateur sport in theory but crowds like they command at CP are not amateur attendances and require professional stewarding and control.

I wonder will the Minister for Justice make as bold statements about this as he did Shamrock Rovers fans....

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Originally Posted by Spudulika

Cannot agree with you in any way shape or form.

my post, it's the same as asking a Rovers fan if they'd rather the club won the Champions League or Ireland qualified for the World Cup, or less, if Rovers won the League or Ireland qualified for the World Cup - what would your answer be? Objectivity goes out the window when it's your own kith and kin, village, club involved!

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Crap.

We haven't won the PD title for years, we've won little enough in that time, and referees decisions have played their part in that down through the years. We didn't invade the pitch to attack the ref. We have to live with it.

You brought up the comparison with what happened in Paris. It's 3 years before we can qualify for the next tournament, in front of a global audience. Everyone saw what happened in Paris. Louth can go back to Croker next year in front of a few thousand people. There's no comparison.

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Originally Posted by Spudulika

Cannot agree with you in any way shape or form. A true fan of sports will shout, roar and ultimately turn to his neighbour and just get on with life. People like this have no place in sports and cannot be called sports fans

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Why were they there if they're not sports fans? This repeated line of "they're not real xxxx fans" when there's trouble at a match of any sport is daft. Being a sports fan and being a thuggish moron aren't mutually exclusive. Acknowledging that they're fans doesn't detract from criticism of their behaviour or tar every other fan with the same brush.

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Originally Posted by mypost

Crap.

We haven't won the PD title for years, we've won little enough in that time, and referees decisions have played their part in that down through the years.

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Just for the record you haven't won it since 1994, and its the ONLY top level trophy you've won in the last 23 years. Referees have not played a part in this.


Carry on...

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Originally Posted by Dodge

I wonder will the Minister for Justice make as bold statements about this as he did Shamrock Rovers fans....

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http://www.irishtimes.com/sports/gaa...274552634.html

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Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern said all “right-minded” people would “have to condemn the scenes on the pitch” when the referee was attacked.

Ahern was reluctant to call for fencing to prevent pitch invasions and accepted “it’s very hard for the authorities to keep people off the pitch”.

“If you start fencing in, then that has a knock-on affect and there had been awful incidents at stadia around the world as a result,” said Ahern, who is a TD for Louth and was at Croke Park to support his county yesterday.

“Lessons have to be learned to see if there is any way of ensuring that the referee and the umpires are protected.

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Originally Posted by Réiteoir

From The Indo today:



:rolleyes:

What the hell were they doing then?

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Hello to modern policing.

Great, isn't it?

:rolleyes:

Comparing this incident to the one up in Oriel a few months back is ridiculous, Attacking a ref for a bad decision is ridiculous how any can condone it is ridiculous/laughable, Louth should be banned from all GAA action for the next 3 for not controlling their fans

Oh and before anyone replies to this, i dont care what you think i F*ucing hate the GAA and would rather have English rule in this country than that lot

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Originally Posted by OneRedArmy

....what the gardai actually said is even more nonsensical. The IT said that the gardai won't take action unless a compliant is made (even though strictly they don't need a complaint to be made to investigate and forward a file). Which pushes the onus on the ref himself to take it forward, which, in my mind, is an absolute disgrace and dereliction of duty by the guards.

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Well at least they're feckin consistent. I'd be fairly peed off if they started taking action here, when they've failed for years to do anything in football...

Don't want to worry anyone but Maxi is being mobilised.

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Originally Posted by micls

You can handpass the ball over the bar, but it must be kicked into the goal if it's in your hands.

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Graham Geraghty would have something to say over that.

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Originally Posted by mypost

Crap.

We haven't won the PD title for years, we've won little enough in that time, and referees decisions have played their part in that down through the years. We didn't invade the pitch to attack the ref. We have to live with it.

You brought up the comparison with what happened in Paris. It's 3 years before we can qualify for the next tournament, in front of a global audience. Everyone saw what happened in Paris. Louth can go back to Croker next year in front of a few thousand people. There's no comparison.

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And you neatly sidestepped the statement by poor you'ing and then lording a world cup over a championship a county hasn't won in 53 years.

Since you're a Rovers fan the question is this: would you rather Rovers win the Champions League or Ireland reach the World Cup finals. All sport is insular, all politics local, if you don't believe that then can I come live in your world please???

edit: Just read the Meath statement - it would have been a penalty as Sheridan's dive (from a phantom hand) seemed to have swayed the referee - not the square ball and push in the Louth defenders back just before it. Oddly the Meath board have shown such a lack of cop on that they're making a mockery of the sport - not only Septic Bladder can be so crass, classless, dumb and embarassing!

Speaking to a Tyrone fella who knows Sludden and was having a few pints with him up North on Monday night, he said Sludden knew he 'had got it wrong' and that plenty who were out were giving him stick.....

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Originally Posted by ArdeeBhoy

Speaking to a Tyrone fella who knows Sludden and was having a few pints with him up North on Monday night, he said Sludden knew he 'had got it wrong' and that plenty who were out were giving him stick.....

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In fairness to the man he did note in his report that he had made a mistake. I watched the Sunday Game only yesteday online and the next time I meet Colm O'Rourke he's getting a slap. I cannot understand how anyone can be so biased and so interested in lying can be in any way respected. Sludden made a massive mistake, he admitted it and Louth are in the qualifiers - Meath had a chance to raise themselves and the GAA above a scummy level and showed their lack of class. But what does around....

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Originally Posted by Spudulika

Since you're a Rovers fan the question is this: would you rather Rovers win the Champions League or Ireland reach the World Cup finals. All sport is insular, all politics local

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This is not a question. Firstly I shouldn't have to choose, as I would be delighted with either achievement, but more accurately, Rovers, as with every other LOI club, have zero chance of winning the CL in my lifetime or any other lifetime. I have other clubs in other leagues across Europe to do that for me.

You compared the Louth incident to the global outcry that followed the Ireland-France incident. The France incident was seen throughout the world and made EU summits, the Louth incident was seen on RTE, and made the Joe Duffy show. They're simply not on the same planet in terms of importance. It's already more or less blown over.

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Originally Posted by mypost

They're simply not on the same planet in terms of importance.

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In terms of importance to who? Sport fans don't obey some universally agreed hierarchy of importance. I'd say that for some of the people in croke park, Louth winning a leinster final is more important than any other sporting achievement (save Louth winning an All-Ireland). You applying your individual hierarchy of importance has no relevance to them.

What annoys me about what happened is that the (relative) importance of the occasion is what is used to justify their behaviour. "It would have been our first win in 50 years", "it was in bloody injury time", "he threw the ball over the line" etc.

Im sick of the GAA commentator's trying to blame football for booing in Croke Park. Yesterday on TV3 during the Dublin game they said it's a real shame to hear this booing going on while free's are been taken it seem's to have crept into the game over the last couple of weekends!........more or less saying the football fans have influenced it.........you look at a tape of a Dublin game in Croke Park from anywhere from 2000 onwards and you will hear it going on and thats where it started the Dublin GAA fans not football fans......if only fifa could sew for slander :party:

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Originally Posted by Kieran Burke

Im sick of the GAA commentator's trying to blame football for booing in Croke Park. Yesterday on TV3 during the Dublin game they said it's a real shame to hear this booing going on while free's are been taken it seem's to have crept into the game over the last couple of weekends!........more or less saying the football fans have influenced it.........you look at a tape of a Dublin game in Croke Park from anywhere from 2000 onwards and you will hear it going on and thats where it started the Dublin GAA fans not football fans......if only fifa could sew for slander :party:

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Crept in like all the diving, the tactics, the wing backs, the yellow and red cards, the fitness training, the camps abroad......................and anything else the gah like to copy from football