Setanta Cup Final

[micls]

And if DCFC Steve is correct in his suspicion (above) that this decision was taken to "compensate" Cork for the self-inflicted financial mess they're in, then that would be disgraceful.

I dont think he is. Simply because we were promised home advantage last year too if we made it, before any of this trouble

[EalingGreen]

I dont think he is. Simply because we were promised home advantage last year too if we made it, before any of this trouble

Fair enough.

[derm]

I personally am not so bothered by the home advantage element. Rather, my gripe is threefold.

Really? I'm surprised at that tbh. That would be my biggest gripe if the situation was reversed. I was anticipating my first trip to Belfast before I found out that the cross was the venue.

First, I think the Final should be a prestige occasion for the whole of Irish club football, hosted in the most appropriate venue in Dublin or Belfast. For example, if the Final were between e.g. Glentoran and Derry City, or even Glens and Linfield, Windsor would be my choice.

Not an ideal world I'm afraid. There is no prestige venue of an appropriate size (RDS ?) in the republic and Windsor has the potential to grant unfair home advantage as has been seen.

Second, as someone who wants to see this competition thrive, I am dismayed that there is evident bad feeling on the IFA side, clearly not helped by this decision and the manner in which it was made.

I can understand that. I don't know much about how or when the decision was made tbh but it appears to have been made just before the semi's ko.

Third, whilst I accept that Setanta are putting a lot of money into the competition, their desire to see a large crowd, and maybe even a winner from the larger of the two Subscription TV audiences on the island(?), should not override purely sporting considerations, such as fairness.

I doubt they care who wins it but crowds would and should be an important consideration. To be fair the competition is not going to thrive if the final is played out in a half-empty stadium.

By fairness do you mean home advantage (which doesn't bother you) or ease of travel for fans? If the latter then it could be argued by Setanta that the fact that it is televised live means no fan need miss it.

The fairest way to me seems to play a two-legged final, but then you lose much of the magic of a 'proper' final.

And if DCFC Steve is correct in his suspicion (above) that this decision was taken to "compensate" Cork for the self-inflicted financial mess they're in, then that would be disgraceful.

An unfair speculation in my view and one that puts the "blame" on City. Derry had as much a chance of a home final and there's no guarantee they'd have switched to Windsor. Tbh I think the powers that made the decision were hoping for a Derry win as they'd've gotten a full stadium with a large away support and little (or a lot less) complaint.

Besides, the gate is evenly split* so both teams benefit from a large crowd. City's financial mess has shown me the logic of maximizing crowd revenue, but the logical conclusion to this is a two-legged final.

* AFAIK, at least. Is the competition paying for the rent of the ground and other associated costs of hosting a football game or does City stump up as the price of a home final ?

P.S. This situation didn't just "pan out", like the weather or something. It was a conscious decision, made by people whose motives are suspect. Why should we have to tolerate this, when it is entirely avoidable?

The main problem with the decision in my view is how late it seems to have been made. I think Glens' reputation for bringing big support to away games could have worked against them - why go to the expense and trouble of organizing a neutral venue when you can nominate one of the two best home supported venues to host the IFA's best away supported team?

[derm]

I dont think he is. Simply because we were promised home advantage last year too if we made it, before any of this trouble

That rings a vague little bell ...

[EalingGreen]

Really? I'm surprised at that tbh. That would be my biggest gripe if the situation was reversed. I was anticipating my first trip to Belfast before I found out that the cross was the venue.

I didn't say I was entirely unconcerned by Cork's home advantage; rather I was trying to see the bigger picture i.e. the problems for precedent, prestige, image, acceptance within NI etc. which this decision creates.

Not an ideal world I'm afraid. There is no prestige venue of an appropriate size (RDS ?) in the republic and Windsor has the potential to grant unfair home advantage as has been seen.

I'm not suggesting Windsor. Are you saying there is NO suitable venue in Dublin, or elsewhere in ROI? Surely not.

I can understand that. I don't know much about how or when the decision was made tbh but it appears to have been made just before the semi's ko.

It's not just the timing of the decision, however. The clear implication is that Corcoran and the Setanta Committee seem to have conducted a "consultation" process with the IFA which was actually a sham (the decision already having been made).

I doubt they care who wins it but crowds would and should be an important consideration. To be fair the competition is not going to thrive if the final is played out in a half-empty stadium.

Short-sighted, imo. If a competition is seen to be unfair/rigged, then its credibility will suffer in the long term, along with the crowds.

[lofty9]

Fair enough.

Only two words? Didn't know you had it in you! Well done.

[fionnsci]

http://extratime.ie/newsdesk/articles/972/

Ticket Details Announced for Cross-Border Final

2008-10-23 13:48:28


By Alan Smith

Both Cork City and Glentoran have announced their allocations for the next Saturday night's Setanta Sports Cup Final.
Cork, who will have 'home' advantage in the Final, will receive the entire Curragh Road End as well as the Donie Forde Stand. Tickets were expected to go on sale to Season Ticket Holders tomorrow and are priced at €20 for adults and €10 for children but it is unknown now whether it will be tomorrow or Monday as the tickets have seemingly been held up by the FAI. Any remaining tickets will then be on sale to members of the general public.
The decision by the cross-border competition's committee to host the final down in Cork wasn't greeted too well by fans of the Belfast club and with the rumour that the St. Annes end, which has undergone a recent refurbishment, will not be ready; it means the Glens will be given just 1100 tickets. There will be 850 adult tickets priced at £16 and 250 concessions for £8. These tickets will only be available from The Oval and the full details are on the clubs official website: www.glentoran.com .
It is still unknown whether the St.Annes end will be open for the game as the new roof has yet to be completed. If the stand is open in time, it is expected to be shared between both sets of fans.

[pete]

the St. Annes end,[B] which has undergone a recent refurbishment, will not be ready;

They are building shops/toilets as part of the improvements and it was clear that would not e completed. I believe they stopped working on this last week to ensure there was safe entry points (e.g. paths) for fans so I expect the stand to be open.

[EalingGreen]

http://extratime.ie/newsdesk/articles/972/

Ticket Details Announced for Cross-Border Final

2008-10-23 13:48:28


By Alan Smith

Cork, who will have 'home' advantage in the Final, will receive the entire Curragh Road End as well as the Donie Forde Stand.

It is still unknown whether the St.Annes end will be open for the game as the new roof has yet to be completed. If the stand is open in time, it is expected to be shared between both sets of fans.

Anyone any idea how many (home) fans the Curragh Rd and DF Stands hold? Also the St.Anne's End?

[fionnsci]

The Donie Forde Stand (1900), St.Annes End (2800), Derrynane Road (1185), Curragh Road Stand (1500).

[Réiteoir]

http://extratime.ie/newsdesk/articles/972/

Ticket Details Announced for Cross-Border Final

2008-10-23 13:48:28


By Alan Smith

Both Cork City and Glentoran have announced their allocations for the next Saturday night's Setanta Sports Cup Final.
Cork, who will have 'home' advantage in the Final, will receive the entire Curragh Road End as well as the Donie Forde Stand.

Chuckling somewhat as to the word home being in "quotation marks" there

[dcfcsteve]

I assume the St Annes end will be segregated if shared ?

[SUB of the day]

1 block of St Annes end (696 seats) open for final, ie 2000 empty seats flapping in the wind.Toal fcukn joke, ****- up brewery etc etc....

[corkboy360]

1 block of St Annes end (696 seats) open for final, ie 2000 empty seats flapping in the wind.Toal fcukn joke, ****- up brewery etc etc....

Not suprised origanally thought Setanta were organising this then was told by a friend last week its the FAIlureknew we were ****ed

[Lux Interior]

So, potentially more Glentoran fans than their [Final] ground allocation can accommodate.

Hmmmmmn ......

[micls]

So, potentially more Glentoran fans than their [Final] ground allocation can accommodate.

Hmmmmmn ......

No. Ye are entitled to more tickets if ye need them, even with the reduced capacity(which isnt certain yet).

[dcfcsteve]

A choice of Final location that was wrong on sporting and tournament-prestige reasons now also appears to be going wrong in terms of physical preparedness as well....

If there was even a small risk the St Annes End couldn't be 100% guaranteed available, Turners Cross shouldn't have got the Final.

[corkboy360]

A choice of Final location that was wrong on sporting and tournament-prestige reasons now also appears to be going wrong in terms of physical preparedness as well....

If there was even a small risk the St Annes End couldn't be 100% guaranteed available, Turners Cross shouldn't have got the Final.

Still better than half empty RDS like last years FAI Cup Final plus the atmosphere will be better down here as the placer looks like it will be sold out.

Cork City and Glentoran to be the first 2 teams to sell out a setanta cup final????

[micls]

Very annoyed City and Glentoran fans. FAI have limited kids tickets, we only got 600.

Weve sold out our initial allocation of tickets and more due after the weekend but there'l be plenty of people having to pay 20euro to bring their kids along.

[Longfordian]

We were always having rows with them about kids tickets when we were in the cup finals a few years back. They're stingy with their allocation.