Idea to make the Premier Division more interesting....

Not an original idea on my behalf but I noticed the Dutch league will take on a totally new system next year with lots of playing off for European places. Next year the eL will have 12 teams with a fair few meaningless places between the last Inter Toto spot and relegation. So perhaps instead of awarding the Inter Toto spot automatically to 3rd or 4th spot (depending on cup winner) perhaps there could be three or four places to play off for the spot. Maybe three with the highest placed team playing the winner of the lower two or four playing in a semi final tournament. This would make the league more exciting perhaps and reduce the amount of meaningless games giving small clubs a minute hope for Europe. And seeming as it is only the Inter Toto even having the 6th placed team in cannot damage our coefficient plus the playoffs in themselves would be exciting. Would it add some extra welcome interest or be too gimmicky and unfair on the higher placed team?

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Originally Posted by Poor Student

be too gimmicky and unfair on the higher placed team?

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One of the perks of keepign a run going throughout the season is that if you dont get first place, there are some other euro places up for grabs, that is the reward. I think that is enough really, i mean a team could be cráp all season .. scraping it and then smash and grab. No ... keep it the way it is.

Add tigers and lions on chains and let the crowd decide whether a goal should stand or not dependent upon whether the player who scored it has pleased them or not.

maybe you could have fourth and fifth playing a semi-final (at fourth's home ground) to play the third place team in a final (at 3rd's home ground) for the intertoto spot. In a 12 team league that wouldn't be too unfair, and there would still be a real incentive to finish higher up the table.

I think its a good idea.

We could end up sending **** teams to Europe and they'd embarass us in front off those who judge the eL by performances in Europe. But it's not a bad idea, I mean, we can't do worse than Longford's performance last summer. You'd get good crowds for the play offs too.

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Originally Posted by aka Dus

Add tigers and lions on chains and let the crowd decide whether a goal should stand or not dependent upon whether the player who scored it has pleased them or not.

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Ah come on, I only suggested it for the Inter Toto spot. Look at how stale the league is from 5th-8th and the relegation battle only barely even exists because of Rovers' dire financial situation. Next year we'll possibly have an even greater midtable mediocrety zone perhaps given that we struggle to get people going to games we should spice the middle of the table up bit. Due to our low coefficient we lack the number of European places to have an interesting midtable. If we did it now with three places you'd have Derry, Pats and Waterford battling for the off chance of getting a shot at Bohs. Practically every club would have an interest still. And it would also be an added incentive for Cork not to screw up.

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Originally Posted by ShelsTim

We could end up sending **** teams to Europe and they'd embarass us in front off those who judge the eL by performances in Europe. But it's not a bad idea, I mean, we can't do worse than Longford's performance last summer. You'd get good crowds for the play offs too.

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Yeah but its the Inter Toto, it's not paid too much attention to except by the clubs who are in it and the football anoraks plus it has no effect on Irish ranking. Chances are the best team would win the play offs too. Giving them home advantage in the final is probably the best idea to make it fair.

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Originally Posted by Poor Student

Not an original idea on my behalf but I noticed the Dutch league will take on a totally new system next year with lots of playing off for European places. Next year the eL will have 12 teams with a fair few meaningless places between the last Inter Toto spot and relegation. So perhaps instead of awarding the Inter Toto spot automatically to 3rd or 4th spot (depending on cup winner) perhaps there could be three or four places to play off for the spot. Maybe three with the highest placed team playing the winner of the lower two or four playing in a semi final tournament. This would make the league more exciting perhaps and reduce the amount of meaningless games giving small clubs a minute hope for Europe. And seeming as it is only the Inter Toto even having the 6th placed team in cannot damage our coefficient plus the playoffs in themselves would be exciting. Would it add some extra welcome interest or be too gimmicky and unfair on the higher placed team?

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would/are UEFA allowing this? I thought they had strict enough wording on league winners go into Champions League, next is UEFA Cup and highest placed team in the league, not already in Europe, goes into the Intertoto.

The inter toto cup is a competition the clubs themselves have to apply to I think, which is why no English clubs apply for it much, so there's no reason why it wouldn't be allowed.

And I think it's an idea to look at, look what the play offs have done for division one in England.

the intertoto takes place fairly early on in the UEFA calander

If you are adding 2 or 3 games to the end of the league season then they have a very short spell to rest before they need to work on fitness for the Intertoto...

Also if you finis third in the league you are the 3r best team in my opinion.
We should be sending our best teams into europe regardless of competition!

It already annoys me that Longford are in the UEFA Cup again when bohs or Cork have to miss out so the last thing we need is to send a mid table team like Derry or Waterford in too...

CRAP idea....
Sorry,,,

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Originally Posted by joe

would/are UEFA allowing this? I thought they had strict enough wording on league winners go into Champions League, next is UEFA Cup and highest placed team in the league, not already in Europe, goes into the Intertoto.

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The Dutch are doing something like this. It's far more complex and I think i's for the last CL place, UEFA Cup and Inter Toto places. It would definately be ok.

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Originally Posted by higgins

the intertoto takes place fairly early on in the UEFA calander

If you are adding 2 or 3 games to the end of the league season then they have a very short spell to rest before they need to work on fitness for the Intertoto...

Also if you finis third in the league you are the 3r best team in my opinion.
We should be sending our best teams into europe regardless of competition!

It already annoys me that Longford are in the UEFA Cup again when bohs or Cork have to miss out so the last thing we need is to send a mid table team like Derry or Waterford in too...

CRAP idea....
Sorry,,,

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Fair enough, you have your opinion. The argument about it being harsh on the 3rd or 4th placed team is fair but I just think a 12 team league will go quite stale with the middle four or five.

With 4 european spots and 2 down I dont think you can complain that 12 is too many...

Was it last season or the one before that it was only the last game of the season where 1 or 2 teams knew they were safe and couldnt get into europe,,

you need a league where teams are safe as if not then there is no chance to give younger players a game/ to change tactics and try new ideas without losing 3 games and getting sacked/ to be positive in your play knowing your not hovering over the trap door..

A league is a league.

*******ising it by introducing undue artificial means of playing off teams against each other when their positions have already been established over the course of a season doesn nothing for the credibility of the competition - regardless of whether its in the Netherlands, Ireland or wherever. IMO.

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Originally Posted by ShelsTim

we can't do worse than Longford's performance last summer.

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FC Vaduz (basically there whole team) drew with Portugal 2 or 3 weeks ago. I wonder how Shels would get on against Ronaldo and Co. :rolleyes:

it wont be stale next year therel be plenty to worry about at either end of the table.

in argentina they have a 3year average system for relegation.

the worst team over 3 years go down, ie could win it one year finish bottom following year but stay up.or get promoted and cant go down for 2 years.many benefits to this system, benefits big clubs as theyd have to virtually finish bottom 3 years in a row before going down, and benefits small newly-promoted clubs giving them a couple of seasons to get used to the premier,and adapt tactics (ie not be scared to play football, less need to grind out a point here a point there etc),and invest in facilities as opposed to investing in on-field issues. consistently crap teams will be punished but teams with a poor record in a transition phase will have some safety-net
what think ye??




as for longford theres no such thing as cup champions. league champions, cup winners.

Why cant the rest of the eircom league fans in this forum get over longford towns performance in europe last season,ye are pathetic! vaduz are a savage side and thats a fact.
We'l prove ourselves in europe next season,wait and c!!!

Isn't the Inter Toto being scrapped anyway, making this idea redundant ? Also agree re the constant slagging of Longford's performance in Europe this season. I would be more critical of Bohs performance, against a team they beat two seasons ago. There is no team in this league that can point a finger at anyone else regarding poor performances in Europe. As a Pats fan I still vividly remember the horrors of FC Zimbru. However we came back a couple of seasons later to have good results and performances against FC Rijeka and Ghent. As regards being ****ed off that Longford are in Europe again, they won the Cup, what's the problem? Everyone knew at the start of the season that the cup winners go into the Uefa Cup.

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Originally Posted by TonyD

Isn't the Inter Toto being scrapped anyway, making this idea redundant ?

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I've never heard anything about that. Where did you hear it?

yea i thought i heard something like it alrite.going in two years or something.....Might be wrong in this