All-Ireland representative team survey

[Sullivinho]

Good post Sullivinho.

It's eloquent use of imagery successfully conveyed the central pertinent points; I especially enjoyed the poached salmon reference, and the iceberg metaphor.

I was tempted to deduct a mark for the mispelling of 'honour', but.......I let that pass.

10/10.

Swing 'n a miss on 'supersede' too but I'm calling in with mondayitis. Which, continuing the theme, is also not a word.

[Fixer82]

Discomfort, Really? Personally, I see the fact that Gibson and co. don't have to dilute their nationality and settle for the representative XI of the gerrymandered jurisdiction they were born in as a cause for celebration. It makes me a little uncomfortable to see 'the likes' of Niall McGinn applying the panacea of a bowed head when required to observe an ode to his own misrepresentation when that iceberg dirges forth, Union Jack flying proudly from it's tip.

The suggestion that jurisdiction supercedes politics is the kind of convenience that sees the individual motivations of the players disregarded in many of the pieces written on the issue, clearing a path for words such as 'poached'. Whenever their motives are given print or recognition, words such as 'honor' and 'country' come to the fore rather than the jurisdictionally-compliant blubs of freshly abducted salmon.

Great post.
Are you Con Houlihan in disguise?

[Stuttgart88]

I see the IFA (and SFA and the FAW) don't want to be part of a GB team in the Olympics. Jim Boyce says he'll discourage NI players from playing.

It reminds me a bit of Ian Paisley during the foot & mouth crisis. "Ulster beef is Irish, not British!"

[Fizzer]

1. So bored by the constant hijacking of a football site with barely-disguised sectarian bile, tired of skipping through the infantile novellas that pose as posts, that I really couldn't give a sh1te.
2. Ditto
3. Ditto
4. Ditto

I'll leave yis to it

[Sullivinho]

I see the IFA (and SFA and the FAW) don't want to be part of a GB team in the Olympics. Jim Boyce says he'll discourage NI players from playing.

It reminds me a bit of Ian Paisley during the foot & mouth crisis. "Ulster beef is Irish, not British!"

Strange one that. They'd have saved a fortune on flags. Her majesty won't be best pleased that some of her horses are refusing to run.

[CraftyToePoke]

It is a strange one alright, the other three associations seem to be saying they had no part in the discussions and no intention of combining, whereas the London FA are saying something about an historic agreement having been reached to facilitate this. You couldnt make it up.

The poor old IFA, they will have to employ some extra people purely to say 'NO', between the AI and GB lobby's attempts to assimilate them.

[ArdeeBhoy]

1. So bored by the constant hijacking of a football site with barely-disguised sectarian bile, tired of skipping through the infantile novellas that pose as posts, that I really couldn't give a sh1te.
2. Ditto
3. Ditto
4. Ditto

I'll leave yis to it

Who on here is 'sectarian' ?? Do you even know what the word means?

(Ok, know of one person from the other side who is on occasion, but the rest are anything but....)

[ArdeeBhoy]

I see the IFA (and SFA and the FAW) don't want to be part of a GB team in the Olympics. Jim Boyce says he'll discourage NI players from playing.

It reminds me a bit of Ian Paisley during the foot & mouth crisis. "Ulster beef is Irish, not British!"

Sure, knowing them, they want their cake and more....

[Gather round]

It is a strange one alright, the other three associations seem to be saying they had no part in the discussions and no intention of combining, whereas the London FA are saying something about an historic agreement having been reached to facilitate this. You couldnt make it up

You just have (OK, the English FA has). It's a dumb stunt by the BOA and EFA because ticket sales have been surprisingly low (compared with kayaking, badminton, tiddlywinks selling out).

[ArdeeBhoy]

It's got nothing to do with the BOA/FA, just the usual paranoia.
They should grow some balls and strike out on their own if they really "don't want" to be British....

[CraftyToePoke]

You just have (OK, the English FA has). It's a dumb stunt by the BOA and EFA because ticket sales have been surprisingly low (compared with kayaking, badminton, tiddlywinks selling out).

The BBC line on it, I read about it in todays i-paper but cant find a link to that article http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olym...2/13873251.stm

This is now drifting off topic but it seems very counterproductive of the EFA to impose this or to carry on without the support of the relevant other associations surely? Where is the good in that. Or indeed if a GB side made up of English players only is where this will settle.

[Gather round]

This is now drifting off topic but it seems very counterproductive of the EFA to impose this or to carry on without the support of the relevant other associations surely? Where is the good in that. Or indeed if a GB side made up of English players only is where this will settle

They aren't really imposing anything, just being msleading to the point of dishonesty about their supposed 'historic agreement' with the other FAs. All of whom have said that they want nothing to do with the idea, while having to acknowledge that the British side can pick any NI, Scotland or Wales players that they fancy and who agree.

I'm guessing it will be just English in the end- the non-English players will back off facing hostility from the fans.

There'll be no legal action from either the other FAs nor disgruntled players. The law ignores trivia. They wouldn't have a case.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Do we really care, though?

Let them fester in their own colonial BS.

[Fixer82]

1. So bored by the constant hijacking of a football site with barely-disguised sectarian bile, tired of skipping through the infantile novellas that pose as posts, that I really couldn't give a sh1te.
2. Ditto
3. Ditto
4. Ditto

I'll leave yis to it

Hmmmm, don't see how calling for an all-inclusive All-Ireland team could be seen as sectarian

[Not Brazil]

Hmmmm, don't see how calling for an all-inclusive All-Ireland team could be seen as sectarian

It could, however, be seen as a call for a denial of choice.

[Fixer82]

It could, however, be seen as a call for a denial of choice.

You're not gonna draw me into this one.

Re a British Olympic soccer team...they have a British everything else in the Olympics so can't see how they could have just an English or Scottish soccer team. Surely it would HAVE to be Great Britain if they put out a soccer team. And that could include NI players unless those players opt for Ireland a la Wayne McCullough in 1992

[Not Brazil]

Re a British Olympic soccer team...they have a British everything else in the Olympics so can't see how they could have just an English or Scottish soccer team. Surely it would HAVE to be Great Britain if they put out a soccer team.

The Olympic football team will be called "GB".

In practice, it will be dominated by English players - Bale from Wales is interested in playing.

[ArdeeBhoy]

It could, however, be seen as a call for a denial of choice.

Would that be the same 'denial of choice' inflicted upon Ireland and numerous other countries over time?

[ArdeeBhoy]

You're not gonna draw me into this one.

Re a British Olympic soccer team...they have a British everything else in the Olympics so can't see how they could have just an English or Scottish soccer team. Surely it would HAVE to be Great Britain if they put out a soccer team. And that could include NI players unless those players opt for Ireland a la Wayne McCullough in 1992

Worthington today has come out and said his "players are free to play for the British Olympic team".
There is however, one small problem with that scenario....

[Not Brazil]

Would that be the same 'denial of choice' inflicted upon Ireland and numerous other countries over time?

The people of Ireland expressed their choice in 1998.

I'm talking about football - you know, the right of players born in Northern Ireland to have a choice.