QuoteDidn't Cobh sell tickets for their game against some Roy Keane team outside St Colman's? The "fans" didn't even have to spend a tenner getting into the ground for that one.
That's bound to p off at least a half dozen people.........Originally Posted by MariborKev
Didn't Cobh sell tickets for their game against some Roy Keane team outside St Colman's? The "fans" didn't even have to spend a tenner getting into the ground for that one.
And a huge amount of clubs who bought the tickets to raffle off/auction etc etcThat's bound to p off at least a half dozen people.........
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Ok, two dozen, tops
The ground opener should have been the Irish Rugby Team playing a combined Man United/Dubs GAA team.
No thanks, it's the national stadium, not a Dublin stadium. I'd way rather an Airtricity XI with representatives from every province take on a foreign team than have 22 Dubs running around.
A Dublin league select versus the rest of Ireland select would have been a nice way to open it.
Can I just ask if it was an Airtricity select playing against say Atletico Madrid, what would be the reaction? In my opinion it's a sad anti-premiership and anti-English thing. Still.
Can we not have faith in our own league and get rid of the chips on the shoulders?
Why wouldn't you go to watch the game and support an Airtricity XI beat Manchester United?
Watching Bohs beat Shams 1-0 through a Jason Byrne penalty is not going to bring any more fans to our league. Beating or being very competitive against Manchester Utd will show the Irish public that there are some very good players in this league, and it is actually quite a sellable product.
Like it or not, there will be far more media coverage and exposure by playing Manchester United, and a good performance by our league will be as good an advertisement as we could wish for.
I'm not expecting many people to agree with me, just trying to put the argument forward
Last edited by MuckaTucka; 14/05/2010 at 12:57 PM.
Criticism is prejudice made plausible
They were the two best teams in Ireland last year, and will be up there again. They also have a big rivalry, and attracted a crowd of 6,000 earlier in the season. You'd be better off wondering why part's of the country show no interest in domestic football even in a city like Galway, rather than blaming the big bad Jackeen meedja for everything.
The league is in direct competition for hearts and minds with Man Utd, Liverpool, Glasgow Celtic etc. We're not in competition with Atletico Madrid. It's basic business and common sense.A Dublin league select versus the rest of Ireland select would have been a nice way to open it.
Can I just ask if it was an Airtricity select playing against say Atletico Madrid, what would be the reaction? In my opinion it's a sad anti-premiership and anti-English thing. Still.
It's going to be a load of LoI reserves getting well beaten by one of the 3 or 4 best teams in the world. That doesn't sell a product. Playing Rovers v. Bohs and showing LoI football isn't the ugly stepchild of 'real' football would go someway to getting rid of the impression a lot of the public, and the FAI have, that LoI football is a mere sideshow.Why wouldn't you go to watch the game and support an Airtricity XI beat Manchester United?
Watching Bohs beat Shams 1-0 through a Jason Byrne penalty is not going to bring any more fans to our league. Beating or being very competitive against Manchester Utd will show the Irish public that there are some very good players in this league, and it is actually quite a sellable product.
No there wont. There'll be interviews with Damien Richardson the day of the game, and media taking pictures of Ben Foster arriving in Dublin airport. Plenty of these type of friendlies against English oppoisition have been played before with little interest.Like it or not, there will be far more media coverage and exposure by playing Manchester United, and a good performance by our league will be as good an advertisement as we could wish for.
Thats the bottom line. These games do nothing for the league. its been proven.
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How are they picking the players!?
Sporting F*ck All!
By no means all, but part of the reason why domestic football is in the situation it finds itself is due to the infatuation with football across the water. A walk around Limerick (or any other town or city I'm sure) will reveal loads of people in their Celtic or Prem. League team jerseys.
Although domestic football clubs are, as Jicked says, in direct competition with them, the FAI have decided to bring the biggest of them all over here, a move which will increase that club's exposure in Ireland even more (if that's actually possible). The FAI have gone for the club which will put as many people in seats as possible, and the fact that it will in no way serve to generate interest in the domestic league which they govern seems irrelevant to them.
Attack the argument not the man. Who's talking about Galway or the Jackeen meedja?
It's a national stadium, therefore a national representation in it's first fixture is better than a Dublin derby. By not accepting that, I can only conclude that it's quite an insular view you're holding.
.The league is in direct competition for hearts and minds with Man Utd, Liverpool, Glasgow Celtic etc. We're not in competition with Atletico Madrid. It's basic business and common sense
Why not challenge them instead of ignoring these teams, pretend they don't exist and hoping they go away? When did that ever work? It's Comical Ali reasoning.
Playing them in their pre-season while we should be in full swing should give us a chance to cause an upset, show the public that we are not a hugely inferior product.
I think one of the main problems we have is thinking that the premiership is a different sport to the Airtricity league. By challenging them, and showing that the Premiership isn't all that maybe we'll convince the premiership supporters in this country that they have decent senior club footballers on their doorstep. The standard is just as good, if not better than the SPL, and is at least League One if not Championship level. Some people don't believe that because they see them nearly as two different games.
I honestly don't think that supporting the Airtricity league and watching the premiership need to be mutually exclusive. Surely it would benefit us an awful lot more if we made it complementary.
I'm sorry but outside of Dublin watching Bohs Rovers doesn't set everyones heart racing as much as you might think.It's going to be a load of LoI reserves getting well beaten by one of the 3 or 4 best teams in the world. That doesn't sell a product. Playing Rovers v. Bohs and showing LoI football isn't the ugly stepchild of 'real' football would go someway to getting rid of the impression a lot of the public, and the FAI have, that LoI football is a mere sideshow.
I doubt it'll be a load of reserves. I know I'd way prefer watching Stephen O'Donnell represent my club, city and province playing for an Airtricity select against one of the best teams in the world rather than watch another Dublin derby in a different stadium.
This is just not true. I can't really argue as it is all just supposition.No there wont. There'll be interviews with Damien Richardson the day of the game, and media taking pictures of Ben Foster arriving in Dublin airport. Plenty of these type of friendlies against English oppoisition have been played before with little interest.
An Irish team with representatives from all four provinces taking on one of the best teams in the world, opening a magnificent new stadium will have more media coverage than a Bohs Shams friendly. For it can't be competitive as neither team will give up home rights.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not on the FAI's side. As I said before I would rather it was a Dublin league select against a rest of Ireland select opening up the stadium.
Last edited by MuckaTucka; 14/05/2010 at 1:43 PM.
Criticism is prejudice made plausible
Either you want the cream of the league to play (to showcase the league), or you want a side representing the country to play? Make up your mind. Because if its based on the best players in the league not a single galway man will be near it.
Both cases are deeply flawed too. mainly due to your opinion that a) a team of semi pros that haven't played together will gel together enough to impress against a Man U side that has trained togther for years and b) whatever the result, most Man Utd fans and media commentators will dismiss (rightly) the result as being in a pre-season friendly.
Jicked's point isn't that it should've been Rovers v Bohs, its that Rovers v Bohs would've been better. Or Cork v derry. Or Sligo v Drogheda. or Galway v Pats
NO one serious about football cares about results of pre-season friendlies.
54,321 sold - wws will never die - ***
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LOI section on balls.ie - http://balls.ie/league-of-ireland/
It's not because Rovers-Bohs are from Dublin, but because they're the top two teams in the league, with the biggest rivalry, and big support bases. If Galway and Cork City finished in the top two last year and had a long running rivalry and attracted big gates I'd be delighted to see them play in such a game (especially if they were playing that week anyway as Rovers-Bohs are).
As for your point about "taking on" the Premier League. When you're a league of our size with a budget of our size, against the biggest business in sports then that is a completely lunatic idea.
Exactly. And if that's not deemed feasible for whatever reason, then by all means play a friendly to test out the stadium. But why oh why would you give up a chance to promote your league by having an Irish team play a continental side, and give the PR boost to the biggest club in the world instead. I would really love to have seen the decision making that went on behind this.Jicked's point isn't that it should've been Rovers v Bohs, its that Rovers v Bohs would've been better. Or Cork v derry. Or Sligo v Drogheda. or Galway v Pats
They did indeed. Keane brought over a Man United XI to play Cobh (at Turners Cross) and the tickets went on sale on the same night that Cobh played Harps in St. Colemans. There were 200 people inside the ground watching the Cobh/Harps game and over 2,000 lined up outside looking for tickets to the United game. Whey they didn't put the tickets on sale inside the ground is beyond me.
Three years ago Harps played a home game and put tickets on sale for the first time for the friendly against Celtic. However, the tickets were on sale inside the ground, meaning anyone wanting tickets had to go to the Harps game (I think it was against Shelbourne) and then queue for their tickets. Hundreds (and I'm not joking here), paid the ten or twelve euro into the ground, queued up for their Celtic game tickets and walked straight back out again. You'd think when they had paid the money into the ground they would have stayed and watched at least the first half. At least Harps got the match admission fee from them.
The LOI will never progress when you have football "supporters" like those above.
Up the Harps!!
Last time we played Celtic there were a group of local Celtic fans singing 'You're supposed to be at home' at the City support, apparently without irony.
That's fantastic
I remember when Danny Drew was running us and we played Leeds United's u-19s in Hogan Park. I don't know how many of you were ever in Hogan Park but imagine the worst Eastern European ground you can, then imagine if it was bombed, then burned down.*
FIVE THOUSAND people jammed into the place, we had only pulled 1500-2000 for top of the table clashes against the two Rovers earlier on the season.
*Don't get me wrong, I LOVED Hogan Park.
LOI support remains stubbornly low by standards in other developed countries. Some factors of course are the Premiership, the TV hype with Sky, Setanta and now ESPN and now the Internet. Most of the "foreign fans" I know absolutely love the game - and are lucky enough to have (debatedly) the best league in the World available to watch so easily. They want to see the best players in the world (!) with the drama and tension that goes with it.
I watched Fulham with 20 people in a pub on Wednesday after I watched an u14 club game with 40/50 parents and friends and we had no problem cheering on Fulham. And generally everyone thought it was a good game.
This week-end I will watch a local Junior game the outcome of which will be more important to me than any Premier game. Last night I played with 13 other over 40's for 90 minutes on the local Astro pitch - so like many thousands of others around the country I love football
... So - why dont I see "live" my nearest LOI club more than twice a year.
Simply , they do very little to connect with me - Galway Utd filled terryland v Sunderland 3 years ago, built a new stand to seriously improve the venue - But their management do not have a clue how to connect with their fanbase. Their catchment area would have a population of 300,000 people and they now struggle to get 1000. Any decent junior club connects everyday/week with its community to get sponsorship, lotto tickets, why do LOI find it so difficult to broaden their horizons.
While money is a factor, the "boom" years failed to deliver any steady progress in Europe which is what gives us a huge buzz.
It's not a GAA/Rugby problem IMO. Irish people love their sport - but they want to feel some connection.
As an example of the potential here, the World Cup Play-Off attendance at Croker against France was only matched by the Russia game on the same night and was three times greater than the others.
So we have a huge interest in football at junior youths level, we have an huge interest in the International game - its the Inbetweeners we cant sort out - yet. It will get there - but it could go faster.
In the meantime, if I was still a player I'd be delighted to run out against Man U - hopefully it won't be a leinster 11 tho'
LOI seems small minded, petty, conservative when looked at under the microscope - no razzamataz, still short on technique, stars (even little ones) dour contests and petty officialdom
Or just imagine Jackman Park in a worse part of town, and you've got a pretty accurate image.
Jesus wept.
There was text sent into TV3 the other night after the Europa League final. Went as follows:
"Fulham did us proud!" - Jim, Dublin.
To be fair, there are plenty of English people and Londoners in Dublin. Lots of Jims too.
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