Cork City, who need every ounce of credibility, sign Roddy Collins, whose first act has to be to publicly apologise to his previous employers for slandering them on Irish radio and who walked away from a contract with that club to manage a club that looks like it won't exist at the start of the season and Galway United, run by Nick Leeson appoint Sean Connor as manager.
On a brighter note, I presume that this means they will be missing off MNS until they are sacked.
Roddy, my friend, if the Carlisle players thought you came from a Pub league, it's because clubs here appoint pub league managers.
Whats your problem. Our Budget will be among the smallest ever in the Premier while Sligo are signing players for fun for nothing I presume.
Sean Connor will not be on a big wage with us as everyone in Galway knows we havent 2 pennies to rub together yet people are saying he will bankrupt us.I wouldnt be the mans biggest fan but he was by far the most experienced on the shortlist and I feel it might prove a master stroke as he will certainly get the club a lot more coverage in the national & Local press.
We are the Galway Boys Stand up and make some noise"
If they manage to spoof a few good players into the club, and they get a good run going in the league (whichever one they're in) then expect a semblance of decent crowds turning out. And if they're in the Premier and get a good start, wherever they end up playing wil be 75% full. Football fans are relatively fickle and I have a strange (or is that sick) feeling that Cork fans will be chanting Roddy's name by the end of the season, or before he does a legger for the Man U job
I think this is accurate enough to be honest.
As much as Tom Coughlan's name is mud in and around Cork City, the Great Cork Sporting Public (TM) will drag their backsides onto any bandwagon they see gathering pace. If we get a Premier Division licence, Roddy brings back George O'Callaghan, Liam Kearney back, hangs onto Danny Murphy, Dan Murray, Billy Dennehy then people will attend. If we're challenging, numbers will grow and the games against Rovers and Bohs will bring out large crowds.
The attendances towards the end of last season were in the 1200-1700 range, this was buoyed significantly by those people who had season tickets in their pockets and for the last month, those who were getting in free [and trading to get in free] An Post vouchers. The numbers we were getting on the gates did not translate into gate takings.
I think you'll see a sizeable fall off in season tickets this season, though they've put a good package together, and there's a large chunk of the hardcore that won't come back while Tom Coughlan is around. But we had 5,500 against Bohs last season for one match, so there really is a swing of about 3-4,000 people who'll turn up if the weather is nice and if there's nothing else on and there's a bit of a buzz around.
If Roddy can get a bit of a bandwagon rolling, which his bluster is capable of doing, as Dolan's was, then the club should be able to maintain 2,500 through the gates once they're challenging [if they've based their budgets on a crowd of more than that, they're nuts].
The problem the club will have is if it doesn't click and they can't attract the bandwagon contingent. The number of people who would usually be there regardless [I count myself among those] which I reckon was always about 1500-2000 has been decimated. If the club doesn't start the league well, there are off-field problems reported, I think we'll dip into three figures for a league game, something I don't think has happened since the whole Bishopstown fiasco.
Cork City: Making 'Dream Team' seem realistic since 2007.
tiktok, I wasn't being smart-asred about the bandwaggon and I'm glad you saw that, it's the same with most clubs. Fans will follow the devil to hell if it means a cup run and place in Europe. I do wonder what will happen if CCFC start the season in the 1st Division, it means escape to the PL as the main aim, and while it would mean a better budget and a chance to bring through young players, would fans follow the team to Salthill or Wexford in numbers? Derry, if they have a licence, will be a good draw, but put a race for promotion between Cork, Derry and Shels will there be enough in the tank?
I also fear for Cork putting themselves in hock, there was an investigative report on Maltese NetTV last night (obviously didn't see it but got an email with the gist) investigating the devastation in club finances left behind by Roddy. He signed players for okay money, but promised bonuses that the club could never afford, never told the club officers and everything seemed to be owed in January, the arrow therefore pointing to he ran before he was exposed and the club ran him out of town. If something similiar happens in Cork I don't know if the club could recover, and how long will it be until Tom is giving Roddy the boot, followed by a nasty media war and Roddy getting a payoff. Actually Floriana is the only club he's left where he didn't receive a penny to go! (Although a Bohs fan can enlighten me).
Maybe we should move to the Cork City thread
I think we'd bring decent numbers to any away game next season. A lot of the people who are talking about boycotting are still Cork City supporters, they just don't want to give Tom Coughlan money, so many are planning to make all aways instead, regardless of division.
I think next season would be a struggle for us in the 1st, I don't think promotion would be guaranteed, look at the Shels situation, I'd imagine it could be similarly hard for us to get back.
You'd hope that the GM at the club, Liam Meaney, has total oversight over all budgets and contracts. Coughlan's come out in the media down here stating that a strict budget and adherence to uit is Meaney's responsibility.
Cork City: Making 'Dream Team' seem realistic since 2007.
I thought Cork was the league
I could see Cork winning something this season, especially a Cup, and getting promotion if they start in the 1st. But what are the chances of a start in the A?
Cork fans are good travellers, like Rovers and Derry in my experience, and the likes of Waterford, Limerick, Mervue, Salthill and Wexford will be thrilled with a couple of bumper gates, if it comes to that.
I do wonder how much control Liam Meaney has, he seems a good sort (don't know him personally or professionally) and did bring Roddy to heel (apparently) over his retraction and apology. If he and Tom have the bottle to stand up to Roddy then it could work well or blow up before it's too late.
Overall the League can benefit from Derry and Cork in the first, maybe MNS might cover the WHOLE league for a change and the FAI would win a little respect back.
im looking forward to roddy and paul cook first game, i reckon there will be a few slaps and im not talkin about pauls missus
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