The League Is A Joke

**Duggie** · 10/10/2008, 2:12 PM

so ur content with dundalk playing in a dive of a ground(apart from the surface) to crowds of prob less than 1000 at most home games, part time for the rest of time. a longterm picture is needed for the future of the game, if there is one.

**jinxy lilywhite** · 10/10/2008, 2:21 PM

Originally Posted by Duggie

so ur content with dundalk playing in a dive of a ground(apart from the surface) to crowds of prob less than 1000 at most home games, part time for the rest of time. a longterm picture is needed for the future of the game, if there is one.

What are you on about?
OP is far from a dive. Needs refurbishment but is very far from a dive.
We have got consistent crowds of 1300 to 1800 (Shels home match 2,500 last month) that some of the lesser premier sides would only dream of. Stu's figures on the attendence will give an approx figure.
If being Part time means the long term sustainability of my club then so be it. I'm all for it
If our crowds ever hit over 4,000 a game I would want us to go full time.
Listen all my life of being a Dundalk fan we have gone from one financial crisis to another, from being on the brink of going bust even when we where one of the best clubs in the country. We have suffered for that and to an extent we still are. I never want to see us go through that again. At last we have a chairman who is adamant of what comes in will be spent and foundations have been put in place that we'll never ever spend beyond our means. Realism is needed not a effin pipe.
To suggest that all Dundalk fans and Drogheda fans will set rivalry behind them to support a franchise club is rubbish and would never take off. I think this is the only thing that Drogs will agree with me on.

**brianw82** · 10/10/2008, 2:23 PM

Any 'investment' needs to be in facilities, youth programs, etc.
The media needs to give the league some positive press for once.

Businessmen have to stop subsidising player wages, because that is what their so-called investment is doing at the moment.

**Heliodorus** · 10/10/2008, 2:41 PM

I believe that the LOI is simply the first league to show the effects of the world wide downturn. This is going to affect much more than Irish clubs believe me.

**holidaysong** · 10/10/2008, 2:45 PM

Louth United FC

**Schumi** · 10/10/2008, 2:51 PM

Originally Posted by Duggie

clubs merging makes perfect sense. drogs/dundalk cork/cobh maybe wexford/waterford etc. happened in AFL in australia. it makes business sense, more money and combined supporters.

I'm sure you'd be happy to travel to Galway every fortnight to support Connaght Rovers.

Supporters won't support made up teams that have taken the place of their clubs and barstoolers still won't care. As usual, people's 'solutions' to major problems involve daft, short term ideas.

The way the league can get away from its current money difficulties is to operate within its means and build things up slowly. By not wasting all their money on players' wages, clubs will have money to spend on improving stadia, marketing the club and the all the other stuff that nobody bothers with because they're more concerned with winning tomorrow's match than what state the club will be in in 10 years.

**the-blue-harp** · 10/10/2008, 9:06 PM

Originally Posted by Heliodorus

I believe that the LOI is simply the first league to show the effects of the world wide downturn. This is going to affect much more than Irish clubs believe me.

the league of ireland never seen the effects of the worldwide upturn so i dont see how the down turn should make any difference on it.

**ronburgundy** · 10/10/2008, 9:38 PM

lads we have to be realistic. in this countr no club in any sport makes money or is a success. this country doesnt do clubs. its all about your parish or your county, or in rugbys case, your province. if cork had one team they could market it like munster, and get your hangers on and people on the bandwogon. by god do we need them. forget all this purist nonsense because we will have nothing but memores of our clubs left if we dont give the ordinary take it or leave it 'fan' something to shout for and feel part of. sad but true

**Heliodorus** · 10/10/2008, 9:59 PM

Originally Posted by the-blue-harp

the league of ireland never seen the effects of the worldwide upturn so i dont see how the down turn should make any difference on it.

Were you around in the 1980s? If you think things are bad now it was much worse back then.

**jebus** · 10/10/2008, 10:07 PM

Originally Posted by ronburgundy

lads we have to be realistic. in this countr no club in any sport makes money or is a success. this country doesnt do clubs. its all about your parish or your county, or in rugbys case, your province. if cork had one team they could market it like munster, and get your hangers on and people on the bandwogon. by god do we need them. forget all this purist nonsense because we will have nothing but memores of our clubs left if we dont give the ordinary take it or leave it 'fan' something to shout for and feel part of. sad but true

So what's your suggestion? Scrap clubs and form provences and ask the Scots and the Welsh if they want to leave Uefa and form a Celtic league? Or scrap clubs like Limerick FC and form......Limerick FC

**Terry** · 10/10/2008, 10:10 PM

you could start clubs Jebus that represent there counties and call them maybe ..... I dont know..... Limerick 37, Galway United, Sligo Rovers, Derry City, Wexford Youths, Waterford United ...etc.

**Longfordian** · 10/10/2008, 11:35 PM

It's only kind of on topic but the more I talk to people within our club the more I know that the majority see that we've come a good way since the dark days of the early '90s even if our league position this year is nothing to write home about. For example the main ambitions of the club now seem to be to get ourselves into a position whereby we can draw down lottery funding and do what needs to be done in Flancare whilst still keeping some team on the field. We've had our successes but there's no chance of us meeting that budget again any time soon so keep a team alive and work towards capital projects and that's all we can realistically aim for in the next year or two.

**Kingdom** · 13/10/2008, 1:36 PM

I think the killer in all of this is the lack of cohesion between the various strands of football in the country. I've said in discussions with friends at home etc that its a scandal that clubs like Belvedere, Stella Maris have no senior representation, yet they ship as many kids as possible off out of this country as they can. With the quality of players going into these clubs at a young age, they should have an outlet within their own clubs for kids to play football at senior level. I'm not sure whether these clubs are catered for in the U20's league but i believe they should be.

As an outsider, it would appear to me that football, both in standards, facilities and indeed atmosphere has improved very well in the LoI. There is more exposure of recent times, both good and bad, but surely this can only increase. Its hard to feel for clubs who have purposefully overshot themselves when they fall on hard times, yet it has been brilliant to see Irish clubs do so well on European adventures.

Of the LoI clubs how many field underage teams?

**Battery Rover** · 13/10/2008, 2:00 PM

Originally Posted by Kingdom

Of the LoI clubs how many field underage teams?

All of them field at least one Under 20 and one under 18 as it believe it is a category A part of licensing to have these

**Kingdom** · 13/10/2008, 2:51 PM

Originally Posted by Battery Rover

All of them field at least one Under 20 and one under 18 as it believe it is a category A part of licensing to have these

Battery thanks, but I didn't ask the correct question. How many of them would have complete schoolboy/girl structures a la Bohs, Shamrock Rovers etc?

**bigmac** · 13/10/2008, 3:05 PM

Originally Posted by the-blue-harp

the league of ireland never seen the effects of the worldwide upturn so i dont see how the down turn should make any difference on it.

Yes we have seen the effects. Massive unsustainable wages and clubs spending way beyond their means to gain short term success. Where do you think all the money came from?

Originally Posted by ronburgundy

if cork had one team they could market it like munster, and get your hangers on and people on the bandwogon.

Cork essentially does have one team - Cobh have a small hinterland to draw from but even in their unopposed position in the city and with plenty of recent success, Cork City struggle to get sufficient support to run a professional full-time club.

**Battery Rover** · 13/10/2008, 3:12 PM

Originally Posted by Kingdom

Battery thanks, but I didn't ask the correct question. How many of them would have complete schoolboy/girl structures a la Bohs, Shamrock Rovers etc?

All clubs again must have these as part of the club itself or ties to a club within their area as an affiliation agreement. The club then passes on money to the underage affiliate from part of their solidarity money received from UEFA

**Dodge** · 13/10/2008, 3:17 PM

Originally Posted by Kingdom

Battery thanks, but I didn't ask the correct question. How many of them would have complete schoolboy/girl structures a la Bohs, Shamrock Rovers etc?

Pats and Shels have similar.

**mypost** · 13/10/2008, 3:20 PM

We have got consistent crowds of 1300 to 1800 (Shels home match 2,500 last month) that some of the lesser premier sides would only dream of. Stu's figures on the attendence will give an approx figure.
If being Part time means the long term sustainability of my club then so be it. I'm all for it
If our crowds ever hit over 4,000 a game I would want us to go full time.

Only the English league draws full houses. Look at the crowd at Pats match in Berlin. 7,000??

The top teams in Spain draw full houses when they play each other, but rarely at other times. You can buy tickets for any Italian game, even you can buy Ireland home tickets relatively easily at the moment, going by the ticket threads.

With the amount of football on tv these days from all over Europe, and working class fans the first to feel the effects of the economic situation, people are going to spend that €15 or so here and elsewhere, on more important things, like providing for their families, and securing their homes.

€50 a ticket to watch Liverpool home games plus travel expenses, or watch free on tv? For most, it's a no brainer tbh.