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In fairness, the champions route is by far the easiest route to a Group stages now so winning the league every year is a must if you realistically wanna progress in Europe. Strange to prioritize the league though and then not prioritize the reward that the league win gives you access to...
He is prioritising tomorrows game, not gonna put out a reserve team, and Im sure he fully hopes maybe expects to win. I dont know why managers bother with these old nuggets as they dont really deflect attention or expectation. The opposition is hardly going to fall for the old 'priorities lie elsewere' stuff. Has to be more just throwing something to the media.
The league is the smart priority for the long term. With what we have done so far we will be seeded in the first round of the CL next year which if we win it would give us 3 ties in a row where winning one guarantees group stages.
But to get there u have to win the league. Winning the league this year is more important than the short term and is likely to lead to long term success. Would still love to win and get there this year.
They’re going to walk the league
There's no suggestion that the league isnt the main aim of the season but this one game is hardly unimportant to Bradley and therefore he will be going all out to win it (by more than 2). It doesnt compromise the league campaign. The group stage could influence things but get through, bank the 3mil and everything after is a bonus. So yeah of course the bread and butter of the league is a priority but it doesnt mean tomorrows game is not important as Bradley seems to be implying. Maybe he doesnt have faith in the depth of his squad1? With the additional revenue it would go a long way to adding to a squad that could cope with both group stage football and compete domestically next season.Quote:
Originally Posted by sbgawa
No, believe it or not it was the post from the paul o'shea guy I was referring to.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nesta99
Don't want you think I'd be critical of your even handed analysis of Rovers chances in Europe!!
Tonight’s European results mean Pats under 19s will be playing UEFA Youth League football this season. Draw is on Tuesday and includes the below
Deportivo La Coruña (ESP)
Köln (GER)
Empoli (ITA)
Angers (FRA)
Genk (BEL)
AZ Alkmaar (NED)
Trabzonspor (TUR)
Midtjylland (DEN)
Rangers (SCO)
Sparta Praha (CZE)
APOEL (CYP)
PAOK (GRE)
Crvena zvezda (SRB)
Hajduk Split (CRO)
Hammarby (SWE)
Rosenborg (NOR)
Maccabi Haifa (ISR)
Kairat Almaty (KAZ)
Minsk (BLR)
Gabala (AZE)
Septemvri Sofia (BUL)
Csikszereda (ROU)
Pogoń Szczecin (POL)
Žilina (SVK)
Domžale (SVN)
MTK Budapest (HUN)
Žalgiris Vilnius (LTU)
Daugavpils (LVA)
Akademia e Futbollit (ALB)
Shkëndija (MKD)
Zvijezda 09 (BIH)
Saint Patrick's Athletic (IRL)
In regard to Bradley's comments on priorities I'd say there's more than a hint that he feels we f**ked it right up in the 1st leg and it's gonna be difficult tomorrow (which I agree with), and as stated above getting back here next year, with some more experience and maybe a few changes in personnel, and having another crack at group stages is most important.
The game against bohs on sunday will be determined by the result tomorrow, but obviously its a cup final for them!! 😉
He didn't really say it was unimportant, just that the league was the focus at the start of the year while Europe is something they want while not being the main focus. And that's all as it should be. It's fantastic that winning the league has more weight now. It's almost as important to remove the Champions Path from another club as it is to get it for yourself and it's the better long term play versus relying on the lottery of one-off fixtures for a big pay day. You still have to do the latter of course but if you win the league every year you're going to have more lottery tickets to work with.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nesta99
Putting all the focus on European runs without focusing on the bread and butter of the league is Dundalk's game. You're very good at it mind you....
Ah yeah its a huge game that would be a massive bonus to win no doubt about it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Nesta99
Huge credit in Rovers has to go to Jonathan Roche who as Chairman told the members 2 years ago that the advent of the ECL was a game changer and we needed to position the club to take advantage of UEFA throwing the smaller leagues some crumbs. He told us then that regular group stage appearances was a possibility for Irish clubs.
I remember thinking he was a nice guy but a bit deluded :rolleyes: but he could see the bigger picture and that idea doesn't seem so fanciful now.
This is 100% correct, the possibility for even an unseeded club to get to group stages is pretty high and 3m could transform an already good team (who had by definition won the league the year before) into a juggernaut.Quote:
Originally Posted by ontheotherhand
I'm generally happy to cheer for Irish clubs to get an individual result in Europe but i'm to bitter and twisted to wish anyone but Rovers a shot at domination :D
Umm Im not sure if that is tinged by sarcasm or not but I will take it regardless lol.Quote:
Originally Posted by placid casual
I was never a fan of Roche and it's nothing to do with SRFC. I think it was pretty much on the cards that we all needed to be in position to take whatever opportunity arose. There was initial concern that smaller leagues would again be excluded from CL, as it turned out it's non champions excluded from EL which wasnt so bad and the money is reasonable where the fear was that t would be a big drop from EL. Nothing bitter about not wanting rivals to get too far ahead financially - Id generally hope for the best for Irish clubs but tonight I am more likely to lose sleep over Rovers additional spending power than our champions being battered by Estonians. It also sticks in bold how badly P6 have shot themselves in the foot and by extensions DFC and fans.Quote:
Originally Posted by sbgawa
I agree with yer observation on other clubs not getting the advantage of the champions pathway. As aluded to above I always felt that last years league was pivotal and the most important title race in LoI with the potential on offer. It was a chance for P6 to meet their objectives and kick on, even setting us on the road to ground development progress in Europe. They fluffed it. The risk is that clubs go for broke chasing down the pot of gold again. It would be better for general competition of the league if Rovers lose, its good for the league if other clubs can step up and challenge Rovers sustainably and the league's standard, ranking and rep grow if they win. I'm p1ssed that Dundalk are not in the mix but mostly as there is little excuse with the budget at Oriel and how it was fecked up, it's harder than ever really having the resources to being in with a shout tbh. That said if Dundalk had got it right i'd be a complete hypocrite and be delighted that my club would potentially spoil the competitive nature of LoI and continue to dominate.Quote:
Originally Posted by ontheotherhand
I wont say good luck to Rovers, but I will say that if they get through it will be a big achievement and done the hard way which shows bottle from the squad and Bradley (though he will have gotten lucky as as said before I think he was the real weak link in previous games with his tactical setup).
Vitesse 2-0 up on Anderlecht with half 25 mins to go (5-3 aggregate). We could've been looking at another group stage qualification if only it had been one of the LOI's top 8 sides playing them in the last round ;)
Elsewhere Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar lead Riga 3-2 on aggregate in the 110th minute!
Stewie Byrne pretty much summed up the difference between the sides in the 1st leg - Rovers may be fitter, but Flora were smarter.
The Cheeky Imps have done it!
Rovers playing some decent stuff,just final ball letting them down….
Greene should be finishing that really. Rovers rampant the last 10 mins
That is utterly mentalQuote:
Originally Posted by ger121
Why are Rovers wearing their away kit here?
Trying to get one last European game out of it.Quote:
Originally Posted by pineapple stu