Dublin City take on Leeds

Neil · 15/06/2001, 3:32 AM

Premier**** club Leeds United will pay a visit to Dublin on Friday 3rd August when David O'Leary's exciting young guns take on a selection from the eircom Leagues new club Dublin City FC with an 8pm kick off at Tolka Park.
It is a massive fixture which will see Dublin's best pit their skills against Champions League semi-finalist losers. Tickets are available from Ticketmaster Nationwide.
Dublin City will also play host to Coventry City on July 19th and Ipswich Town on August 7th.

**Pauro 76** · 18/06/2001, 2:41 PM

Are "Dublin City" trying to pass themselves off as a Premier League team so they can fool Premiership teams into thinknig they're a top class outfit?

**joe** · 18/06/2001, 4:26 PM

Does anyone genuinely believe this 'Dublin City' thing is going to take off? Are people suddenly going to start following Home Farm 'cos they've changed their name?

**James** · 18/06/2001, 4:30 PM

i dont to be honest, as there are too many dubaland clubs as it it. all they will be doing is diluting the fan base. if home farm with a tradition couldnt stay afloat then what hope a new club starting afresh.. I mean what home ground have they..arent they suppoes to be sharing either mortin or whatever?

**pete** · 18/06/2001, 4:38 PM

Many people say it & I now believe it after living in Dublin for a while - Dublin is just not a football/soccer city!

Dublin City aim to play @ Morton Stadium & i'm sure many of ye are aware of the "atmosphere" there

I give "Dublin City" 2 years at most & then they'll go under!

Will be interesting to see the turnout for Bohs in Europe this season & whether like $hel$ last year they need neutrals to boost their attendance.

**joe** · 18/06/2001, 4:42 PM

Dalymount is restricted to 4,500 anyway so I imagine they'll be able to fill it on their own.

**�anna** · 18/06/2001, 5:42 PM

I think it could succeed. You never know, that name is very appealing to sponsors etc., Personally I hope it doesn't, as we need less, not more dub clubs in the league.

**pete** · 19/06/2001, 9:57 AM

$hels are the prime example why 'Dublin City' won't work.

$hels have no traditional support base & eventhough they have been successful for years they still can't attract crowds. The sponsors are attracted to them but when Bohs, pats & rovers improve their grounds the sponsors will jump ship & $hels will be unable to survive in their current state!

**dahamsta** · 19/06/2001, 10:33 AM

I don't know a whole hell of a lot about Dublin City FC, but they seem to be marketing themselves pretty well. Who's behind it? (The money men I mean.) Maybe somebody's finally seen the light?

adam

**pete** · 19/06/2001, 11:01 AM

"Dublin City vowed that they would pursue promotion next season, and they have certainly shown their intent by snapping up five new players......Robbie Farrell, Brendan Markey, Graham Doyle, Stephen Gifford from Bray Wanderers and Shane Jackson from Shamrock Rovers"

And the money men behind.....

The long-awaited arrival of a Dublin City Football Club has become a reality, as the Eircom National League has included the name in its list of clubs for next season.

Or has it? The staggering inclusion among the list of registered names may become the arrival of a new, revolutionising force in Irish football, but it is also an audacious name-change by one of the city's most traditional old clubs.

Home Farm is renowned as Dublin's most respected football nursery, which developed world famous players such as Liverpool's Ronnie Whelan and Leeds United's Gary Kelly.

Although they have only won one trophy, the FAI Cup in 1975, they have been a steady side in the first division in recent years, a small, well-run club.

Yet now the club is hoping to break away from the connotations of their famous name. 'Home Farm Fingal', as they have been known of late, have ambitions far beyond their reputation as simply the "famous academy" of Farm's old boys.

These are the plans: They are going to play in the Champions League as "Dublin City" within five years. They'll be wearing Dublin navy-and-blue colours. And they hope to play in the new Stadium Ireland - in front of 80,000 fans.

"It's new, it's fresh and everybody wants to be a part of it", says club secretary Ronan Seery. "We want to promote Dublin City as the football club of Dublin.

"The city is a massive resource for support. In future, we want all the young people in Dublin to have the ambition of playing for Dublin City in Europe. Everyone, from Bray to Balbriggan!"

The official launch of Dublin City will take place in four weeks' time. The club will hope to unveil some exciting new sponsors, and they have already arranged an impressive curtain raiser with David O'Leary's Leeds United in August. Captained, of course, by Gary Kelly.

"Nobody's taken the step and we said let's go for it," explains Seery. "The interest and support we have had is huge."

"We're hoping to be an Eircom Premier club with a huge support, hopefully playing in Abbotstown and in Europe within five years.

"There's no reason why it won't happen."

The club, its secretary and its supporters can only be congratulated on the vision and ambition revealed by this venture. They're not naive. Rather they're trying to launch something that all Dublin football people know has been needed for many years, our own European Champions League club.

Ronan Seery knows it's a massive challenge but, on the other hand, any entrepreneur is aware that the possibilities in terms of TV sponsorship, marketing and supporters catchment in Dublin are as great as anywhere in Europe.

Yet he hopes the new 'City' can be more than that, a team founded in Dublin for Dubliners to support. With none of the ambiguities of a phoney "Dublin-Wimbledon".

The sceptics will say that it is just another marketing ploy by the Whitehall club. But it should be said that the 'Everton' name change was forced on Home Farm, and the Fingal tag was not designed to have anything like the effect that is intended by this change.

Maybe, just maybe this will turn out to be the venture that will bring players like Roy and Robbie Keane home in years to come - to play international club football from an Irish base.

That's the dream, but it's not to say that club secretary Seery isn't keeping his feet on the ground.

"The players [currently at the club] are thrilled," he says, before immediately putting the remark into a realistic football context.

"Mind you, they'll all be in looking for new contracts tonight!"
� Setanta.com [http://www.setanta.com]

**Macy** · 19/06/2001, 11:56 AM

The Dublin Dons is the aim, without the premiership moving here. They are planning for the European League, that may or may not happen, but if it does it will be invite only.
Not impressed

**Pauro 76** · 19/06/2001, 12:26 PM

Same here, you cant fault their ambition, but seeing as Shels and other Dublin teams such as UCD dont get big attendances, i cant see stayaway being attracted to Dublin City unless they get huge signings. Are they planning to merge with any other teams do you know?

**�anna** · 19/06/2001, 5:32 PM

Macy, I agree 100%. I don't trust it at all.

EddieL · 20/06/2001, 1:23 AM

...you have to applaud them for trying! Personally,they are a bit over-ambitious in some respects,ie playing their home games at Abbotstown,better I think for them to plough their money into upgrading their Whitehall ground.Otherwise,it's a fresh new developement and they've already shown how forward thinking they are by opting to play in the Dublin GAA colours and arranging a certain money-spinner friendly against Leeds.I shall be watching developements with interest,and I wish them the best of luck.

**Macy** · 20/06/2001, 10:24 AM

Well using the county GAA does work to a certain extent - the town did very well out of the away strip last season which was the blue and gold of the county. There were plenty of eveidence of the away kits in croker when we played the dubs (i was in the Red and Black though

). It does however have the downside that people just wear the GAA top rather than putting money into the club. Personally I'm not sure about it, as it smacks of sucking up to the GAA. (I think the media and politicians do a enough of that already)

**Daniel McD** · 20/06/2001, 12:04 PM

To be honest lads, they said their aim was to be a Eircom League Premier Division club, which does it for me ...

I doubt they'll pull it off, but good luck for them, it could spur a lot of other clubs into action ...

Think about it, if it works, other sponsors will see how a bit of backing can really improve clubs, and start investing in another team ...

We've always said our clubs aren't progressive enough .. well this is very very very ambitious, good luck to them, it might wake a few other clubs up

**niamh** · 23/06/2001, 7:55 PM

As a Cork City fan stranded in Dublin while in college and living in the Drumcondra area, I decided to check out a Home Farm Fingal match one Saturday night. It was against Waterford and I'm not joking when I say there was not even 50 people there. There was one Farm fan who actually supported the team vocally. It was appauling. They had to do something because the club isn't viable the way it is. McDonnell isn't a bad manager but he has said that he can't get people to sign for the club because of the state it is in. Changing to Dublin City means they might pick up a couple of fans but the amateur Home Farm side has more fans than the National League team. Plus there's the publicity factor...
I say fair dues..at least they are trying something new, all they want is the club to survive...

**pete** · 25/06/2001, 9:33 AM

Dublin City had promotion on the radio after the news this morning - 2 free tickets for Leeds game + Dublin City jersey for 10th caller.

I suppose at least they trying.......

Its probably the same as the Tallaght stadium - makes other clubs upgrade their own facilities too!