Airtiricity League XI v Manchester United confirmed for Aviva Stadium on August 4

**Macy** · 12/08/2010, 7:26 AM

Originally Posted by peadar1987

Ah Dodge, you're putting words into my mouth now. We have to fill Lansdowne Road for friendlies, we have to pay teams to do it, and if we're going to do that, I'd prefer the crowd were cheering the Irish side instead of the foreign one.

The ground wasn't full for either United, or Argentina last night. All the national association organising glamour friendlies does is take potential money from domestic clubs that could organise games themselves. Well, they could, if the FAI hadn't signed a contract saying they wouldn't sanction them.

And just to point out, Lansdowne could've been virtually paid for if the FAI had taken up the offer of selling the vantage club seats up front. They decided not to, so now they have to pimp out the league to pay for the ground.

**Rasputin** · 12/08/2010, 2:02 PM

Originally Posted by DannyInvincible

I can't believe you're repeating this in seriousness. Are you aware of the negative publicity such a fixture would generate for the FAI; inviting a team over on sectarian undertones with the expectation that the Irish public would come out in their droves to support the Irish side merely as a convenient by-product of offloading their much stronger hatred of Rangers? I mean, seriously? That's assuming that the Irish public would even care enough about the exploits of Glasgow Rangers to come out in numbers and unleash this supposed "hate".

I read the Northern Ireland fan forum, OWC, now and again, generally to follow what the latest is in the line of ignorance and bile being spouted from that side of the fence regarding the whole international eligibility saga that went to the Court of Arbitration for Sport recently, and the FAI are lambasted as a sectarian organisation day in and day out there for simply calling up northern-born Irish nationals. Whilst I don't see such a practice as sectarian in the slightest, for the FAI to organise a fixture like what you're suggesting would have these types creaming themselves as they'd actually have a serious point to make; that being the shameful sectarianisation of a "friendly" fixture. Not that I'm even suggesting the FAI would entertain your idea anyway; it's an outrageous proposal all round.

Besides, as 'dcfcsteve' says above, stooping to arrange a game against opposition based on how much Irish people are perceived to dislike them would be altogether more farcical than the sorry Manchester United affair we witnessed last week.

What Danny said.

**marinobohs** · 12/08/2010, 2:29 PM

Originally Posted by Rasputin

What Danny said.

+ 1 more

**Ciaran W** · 12/08/2010, 4:03 PM

Still cant get over irish people going to support man united, Eamonn Zayed's column on Extratime made me want to kill one of them fans !

**Straightstory** · 12/08/2010, 4:41 PM

I believe there were more people at the League v Man U than Ireland v Argentina.
I can only deduct that the League of Ireland is more popular than the national team...

**Martinho II** · 12/08/2010, 8:03 PM

Originally Posted by Straightstory

I believe there were more people at the League v Man U than Ireland v Argentina.
I can only deduct that the League of Ireland is more popular than the national team...

I wasnt at the game last night but from going to the man utd game last week and seeing the highlights on rte no way was last nights crowd less than the week before!

**monkey9** · 12/08/2010, 8:12 PM

Originally Posted by Martinho II

I wasnt at the game last night but from going to the man utd game last week and seeing the highlights on rte no way was last nights crowd less than the week before!

There were big gaps in the crowd last night, especially behind the goal to the right of whatever the end is called that isn't the glass end. There were 45,000 thousand there last night, 49,000 thousand the LOI - Utd match last week

**monkey9** · 12/08/2010, 8:24 PM

The thought came to me last night when i was in Lansdowne for the Irish match and the anthems were being played that it would have been brilliant and interesting to see the reaction if, at the match last week before kick off, God Save The Queen was played for Utd and Amhr�n na bhFiann played for the LOI team.

**Ciaran W** · 12/08/2010, 8:30 PM

Or how about just ''god save the queen'' as everyone there is or wants to be english. .

**John83** · 12/08/2010, 10:20 PM

Originally Posted by Ciaran W

Or how about just ''god save the queen'' as everyone there is or wants to be english. .

Hey! There were dozens of LoI fans at that game.

**peadar1987** · 12/08/2010, 10:26 PM

Originally Posted by DannyInvincible

I can't believe you're repeating this in seriousness. Are you aware of the negative publicity such a fixture would generate for the FAI; inviting a team over on sectarian undertones with the expectation that the Irish public would come out in their droves to support the Irish side merely as a convenient by-product of offloading their much stronger hatred of Rangers? I mean, seriously? That's assuming that the Irish public would even care enough about the exploits of Glasgow Rangers to come out in numbers and unleash this supposed "hate".

I read the Northern Ireland fan forum, OWC, now and again, generally to follow what the latest is in the line of ignorance and bile being spouted from that side of the fence regarding the whole international eligibility saga that went to the Court of Arbitration for Sport recently, and the FAI are lambasted as a sectarian organisation day in and day out there for simply calling up northern-born Irish nationals. Whilst I don't see such a practice as sectarian in the slightest, for the FAI to organise a fixture like what you're suggesting would have these types creaming themselves as they'd actually have a serious point to make; that being the shameful sectarianisation of a "friendly" fixture. Not that I'm even suggesting the FAI would entertain your idea anyway; it's an outrageous proposal all round.

Besides, as 'dcfcsteve' says above, stooping to arrange a game against opposition based on how much Irish people are perceived to dislike them would be altogether more farcical than the sorry Manchester United affair we witnessed last week.

Alright, it was just a suggestion, and on the strength of what people have said, not a very good one.

Still, which teams out there would be get a significant attendance, without the arse-licking fest that accompanied "United", and would doubtless follow Celtic, Liverpool, Chelsea or Arsenal as well? I reckon even Barcelona or Inter Milan would get a significant proportion of the crowd cheering them on because they play football the right way instead of those overweight pub team players from the LOI who every barstooler is supposedly better than.

**PartySaint** · 12/08/2010, 10:42 PM

Did you say overweight pub team??

2010-08-10-140457DSC_6426A.jpg

**DannyInvincible** · 12/08/2010, 10:54 PM

Originally Posted by PartySaint

Did you say overweight pub team??

2010-08-10-140457DSC_6426A.jpg

Who on earth is that/ate all the pies?!

**dcfcsteve** · 12/08/2010, 11:02 PM

Originally Posted by peadar1987

Alright, it was just a suggestion, and on the strength of what people have said, not a very good one.

Still, which teams out there would be get a significant attendance, without the arse-licking fest that accompanied "United", and would doubtless follow Celtic, Liverpool, Chelsea or Arsenal as well? I reckon even Barcelona or Inter Milan would get a significant proportion of the crowd cheering them on because they play football the right way instead of those overweight pub team players from the LOI who every barstooler is supposedly better than.

Who cares ??

I really can't see any sycophantic orge at the Aviva stadium involving a 'glamour' overseas team that would benefit the domestic game, so I just don't care.

So in the words of Dragons Den : "I'm out..."

**Straightstory** · 13/08/2010, 8:56 AM

Originally Posted by DannyInvincible

Who on earth is that/ate all the pies?!

Yes - who IS that?>

**Rasputin** · 13/08/2010, 10:40 AM

Originally Posted by PartySaint

Did you say overweight pub team??

2010-08-10-140457DSC_6426A.jpg

I thought Lester had left Galway?

**Schumi** · 13/08/2010, 11:18 AM

I assume it's a Galway fan who won a draw or something to play a few minutes against Liverpool. Is it anyone on here?

**passinginterest** · 13/08/2010, 11:21 AM

I thought Michael Keane was making a comeback... Looks fitter than he did at Pat's.

**SupaJon** · 13/08/2010, 11:40 AM

Originally Posted by Ciaran W

Or how about just ''god save the queen'' as everyone there is or wants to be english. .

The Sex Pistols song?

**Saint_Charlie** · 16/08/2010, 12:03 PM

ON THE same weekend as 80,000 crammed into the Oxegen festival, several Irish musicians were playing to loyal followers, and curious onlookers, in smaller venues throughout the country.
Most of the attendance at the lesser gigs probably enjoyed themselves, but resisted the temptation to ram the message down the throat of the Punchestown partyers: that they should have been supporting their own.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...d-2298606.html