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You justified a thuggish, unprovoked attack because of the unionist victims' presumed privilege compared to their working class nationalist assailants. I merely pointed out that thuggish unprovoked attacks are wrong. Whether on the Shore Road, the Markets, New Buildings or anywhere else.Quote:
Originally Posted by punkrocket
And spare us the whataboutery, please.
I did nothing of the sort, but it betrays your own biases to take that from what I wrote.
No, the league is filled with teams affiliated with, run by, and sponsored by companies - it is basically a vanity exercise.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuttgart88
Because our children went to the same school, I got to know a Kiwi who was at the time the head strength and consitioning coach of the Suntory SunGoliath (Suntory is a big beer and whiskey company here), and is now the head training coach of the Kintetsu Liners - he detailed the level of sponsorship involved and how the companies make up a pretty massive shortfall in income.
I think that in the Top League, every team is owned by a company, and the team name includes the company name (as above). It is run on much the same system that the football J-League had the foresight to abandon about 15 years ago, when they forbade companies from owning clubs (more than 50% of clubs, I think) to ensure that clubs were not simply the playthings of the company.
It's kind of tragic that you'd never really hear of the likes of Cork Con, Shannon, Garryowen and those anymore. Do they even read out the results on the news? I haven't heard anything relating to them in years. Sports Stadium were always good for a live game back in the day. Even the rugby dominated 'Off The Ball' don't really mention the All Ireland league as far as I'm aware.
I used to love the late afternoon Sports Stadium rugby highlights, even if Fred Cogley's Mary's featured a bit too prominently.
There's a thread on the score.ie / 42.ie now about World Rugby proclaiming some revolutionary action by bringing the LGBT rugby federation under its wing, and by proclaiming that it has taken the lead over other sports. Yet another example of rugby feeling the need to take a pop at other sports while giving itself a pat on the back. Plenty of other sports, including football for what it's worth, have taken big strides in addressing LGBT issues. Gay World Cup in Football, Dublin Devils FC, World Gay Games...
How's that? The only 'bias' I've mentioned in this thread is against unprovoked thuggery.Quote:
Originally Posted by punkrocket
I don't have a bias against either rugby union (just ignore it) or Irish nationalism (willing to argue it on merits :) )
Yawn.
Same. I remember, in my pre-teen years, seeing that level of rugby on the TV all the time, and the final was always a big deal (of course, growing up in Limerick might have been a factor). It used to be a league/knock-out system right? I definitely remember suffering through one of the finals, probably involving Shannon, that finished something like 6-3 or 9-6, but can't find records anywhere online. But that league seems to get less attention than the LOI now.Quote:
Originally Posted by DeLorean
Remember that too, great memories and the club names stick in the mind too. You have to scan the small print for the AIL results now.Quote:
Originally Posted by DeLorean
Cabinteely relegate rugby to the inside sports pages in this weekends IT, the worm has turned.
I live in England which as you all know is a football mad country.
When the 6 Nations comes around it's pretty much front page on any newspaper sports pull out whether that is the Times, Guardian, Telegraph etc. The Sun and Mirror will do big articles if England are going well.....doesn't mean the whole of the British public are talking about the 6 Nations but most people will watch it on to even if they haven't got a clue what is going on.
Once the tournament is over then normality resumes and football will take over until the World Cup in September.
The Irish rugby team are successful and we have quality players so why shouldn't the press make a big deal out of it? Articles on Munster, Leinster, O'Connell, Schmidt are probably going to get more clicks online than articles on Glenn Whelan, O'Shea and co. They can just buy in the stuff from the British writers to cover United, Liverpool and Mourinho
We aren't producing top class players, until we do the press aren't going to be that interested in banging the football drum I'm afraid. If Roy Keane does something crazy then no doubt they'll do a 14 page spread but I'm sure we'll get a decent bit of exposure when the Polish game comes around.
I agree Shaker, but still I think the press goes overboard both directions sometimes and judge the performance of each team by different criteria. The 2000s was a golden era for Irish rugby yet they totally underperformed in terms of Slams snd 6N success (look at what Wales achieved...) but a few facile wins over a cyclically weak England team had everyone happy. The football team was there or thereabouts, bar Stan, during the same era but were tagged as losers, or cowards (Indo).*
Trap's tactics bored people to death and had the press up in arms, yet Schmidt's current tactics bore me to death yet are heralded as genius. Make no mistake, there was more justification for pragmatic tactics given Trap's resources compared to what Joe currently has at his disposal.
* if you look at where we finished in any qualification group over the 2000s and compared it to the rugby team's 6N finishing position, the results were pretty similar.
Hardly comparing like with like. You don't face Germany, Netherlands, Italy and Spain in every football qualifying group, or Kazakhstan and Gibraltar in the 6N.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuttgart88
Over here, the Daily Telegraph gives RU extensive coverage all year round and regardless of where we are in their World Cup cycle. Their core readership has always been disproportionately interested in the game. It's a price to pay for their generally good coverage of other sports.
I think it's close enough of a comparison. The likes of Gib don't affect the outcome of any group, but the likes of Cyprus can do what Italy do by getting a win or two every campaign. If anything a rugby group is easier for Ireland as there isn't that big a gap - if anything there's a negative gap if you know what I mean - between the best teams and us. In football that gap us usually huge. 2nd is the best we can ever aspire to in football.Quote:
Originally Posted by Gather round
Is it just me or has the build up to the Wales game been pretty tame, given what's at stake?! It's the day after tomorrow and I had practically forgotten about it, only that I saw the team announcement there.
Joe has infiltrated the nation to sampler expectations.
Good article from Ken Early today about the differences in popularity of rugby and football, and the treatment of players by fans and the media: http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/socc...orts-1.2156535
He touched on some of the points raised here on the second captains podcast on Thursday
Good read, that, and something much needed in the mainstream Irish media.
There's Kyle again:
Finbar completely misses the argument:Quote:
Originally Posted by KyleMinnogue
Of course, Early made clear why winning something is that little bit more difficult for our football team; they play in a global sport. Not that our support should ever be dependent on winning anyway. We support Ireland because we're Irish; not when the next bandwagon comes along. And, as Early points out, attitudes to rugby losses differ very much to reactions to football losses anyway.Quote:
Originally Posted by FinbarDaly
Is it true that rugby is more technically difficult? I've never played the game properly, bar us once having a stab at it during a PE session back in St. Columb's, but I never got the impression it would be that difficult to master; catch egg, hold egg tight, run forward, throw egg back... And repeat ad infinitum! :p
No, rugby is not more technically difficult. Sure John Hayes never played the game before 18 and went on to become a legend. The IRFU is scouting successful athletes from other sports, throwers, sprinters etc. If rugby was as technically difficult there is no way you could take up the sport late and succeed. There is a young lad on the fringes of the first XV at Connacht who didn't make the grade as a footballer in England. He has relatively little rugby experience.
Rogers and Wenger both say that in soccer if you haven't got the skill by 11 it's too late. But in rugby you can take it up late and as long as you're coordinated, strong and quick you can still succeed.
The spatial awareness to succeed in football is on a different plane to what is needed by 12 or more rugby playets on a team. Only at 10 and centre, in my opinion, is superior spatial awareness a real asset. In rugby you rarely need to "watch your house" because the game is mainly played in front of you and if you get stuck for an option in possession you can just kick it upfield (like our soccer players do!) or take the hit.
I was in school with rugby internationals. I always feel that tells a story. If all it takes is to be the best in a school like mine to have a chance, the playing universe can't be that big!
This isn't a dig at rugby, just a riposte to the nonsense quoted above.
And Early is absolutely right. It's incredibly difficult to even become a mediocre footballer in the overall scheme of things.
Great post stutts. put that up on the comments section good detail in it.sure even think how competitive rugby union was/is in Australia and they've always been a top 3-5 team. that lock who started playing at 18 and made his debut at 22.can you imagine a Spanish soccer player or Germany or Brazilian taking up soccer at 18 they wouldn't get near their top division never mind anything else.
In rugby when they say technical they don't relate it directly to skill in the same as American football. But what I find funny in gaelic and rugby is the stick they use to beat soccer with turned the other way is why soccer is a far better sport because it's oriented towards skill not size and/or strength. If any sport that you can play against any size individual and still be better at it than any of them then that's surely the best, most skillful, most technical sport.