Limerick Desmond League 2019/20

**westernflow** · 20/08/2019, 9:34 PM

Adare were fairly poor in the cup final despite having a superb run before that. They will be nowhere near the top half anyway.

Division 1 only taken seriously by a few teams. The rest just tip along and see what happens.

Athea is serious decline for a few years. They've relied on the same few heads and being such a rural club makes it more difficult for them. They struggled to have a team last year and just about saw the season through.
Any other additional teams? Can see a 10 or 12 team div 2.

Probably the lowest no of teams in decades.

**noconnor16** · 21/08/2019, 1:15 AM

Originally Posted by westernflow

Adare were fairly poor in the cup final despite having a superb run before that. They will be nowhere near the top half anyway.

Division 1 only taken seriously by a few teams. The rest just tip along and see what happens.

Athea is serious decline for a few years. They've relied on the same few heads and being such a rural club makes it more difficult for them. They struggled to have a team last year and just about saw the season through.
Any other additional teams? Can see a 10 or 12 team div 2.

Probably the lowest no of teams in decades.

Delegate meeting tonight so we should know or at least have an idea of number of teams for div2. Prob max 12. I heard Ballysteen may struggle for a team too as well as Athea.

**last man back** · 21/08/2019, 5:59 PM

Are Feenagh gone aswell?

**sportsfanatic** · 21/08/2019, 8:26 PM

Originally Posted by last man back

Are Feenagh gone aswell?

Yeah Feenagh are gone from junior football completely this season.

**fanaticfan** · 22/08/2019, 11:20 AM

Good to see an oscar traynor squad back. No surprise half the squad is made up of broadford players since the management are from broadford

**Soreloser** · 22/08/2019, 2:10 PM

Originally Posted by Langerdan007

I see the ref's have "accepted" the only eye witness account of the happening so the season looks like it'll start as scheduled and the team involved ride off into the sunset, i for one am shocked

Be real interesting to see that if that one and only eye witness will have the same story if he is ever asked to put his hand on a bible in a court of law and swear to what he actually saw.

**Kennycon** · 22/08/2019, 2:11 PM

It�s sad to see clubs finishing up , oscar should not be a priority.

**Shearer** · 22/08/2019, 10:24 PM

Any idea if Rockhill Rovers are entering a side?

**noconnor16** · 23/08/2019, 12:03 AM

Originally Posted by Shearer

Any idea if Rockhill Rovers are entering a side?

They didn't attend the delegate meeting but that is not a surprise. Broadford Utd Reserves are gone too. Looking like a small Division 2.

**Shearer** · 23/08/2019, 4:06 PM

Originally Posted by westernflow

Adare were fairly poor in the cup final despite having a superb run before that. They will be nowhere near the top half anyway.

Division 1 only taken seriously by a few teams. The rest just tip along and see what happens.

Athea is serious decline for a few years. They've relied on the same few heads and being such a rural club makes it more difficult for them. They struggled to have a team last year and just about saw the season through.
Any other additional teams? Can see a 10 or 12 team div 2.

Probably the lowest no of teams in decades.

This is more of an aside than a solution for low clubs, but I think that Kilmallock and Charleville would be best served in the Desmond League and would be great additions to a twelve team Premier Division.

**Gazza29** · 23/08/2019, 4:16 PM

Originally Posted by Shearer

This is more of an aside than a solution for low clubs, but I think that Kilmallock and Charleville would be best served in the Desmond League and would be great additions to a twelve team Premier Division.

It would definitely make the relegation battle more competitive

**Abbeyman** · 25/08/2019, 9:11 AM

What is the story with the ever reducing number of teams in Desmond league ?
Is there less males18-35 living in the area ? The gaa might have first call on most of the best athletes in many parish�s but no more so than 10 years ago . Is rugby bigger ? Cycling ? Less community involvement ? Social problems ? Drugs ?
If it keeps going the way it is , 2 divisions will be enough soon

**Shearer** · 25/08/2019, 9:07 PM

Originally Posted by Abbeyman

What is the story with the ever reducing number of teams in Desmond league ?
Is there less males18-35 living in the area ? The gaa might have first call on most of the best athletes in many parish’s but no more so than 10 years ago . Is rugby bigger ? Cycling ? Less community involvement ? Social problems ? Drugs ?
If it keeps going the way it is , 2 divisions will be enough soon

Definitely not a local thing.
CIE Ranch just the other day very sadly withdrew from the Leinster Senior League, a club founded back in 1975.
Limerick & District League has gone from eight divisions to seven this season (not groundbreaking but nevertheless), and one of their clubs (Granville Rangers) were pretty much going to fold twelve months ago only for the intervention of further volunteers.

You've got 16 and 17 year old kids going to play underage League of Ireland that either don't get their game, get dropped or get whacked every week on the pitch and fall out of love with the game as a result. All leads to lack of playing numbers at underage and adult levels.

Even locally at underage level, one hotshot at a small club being picked off by a League of Ireland club or a bigger local club very often leads to clubs not having a team at that age as a result. Other players see their best player gone and think "I'm not staying, we're useless." Things like this are happening regularly.

You've the prevalence of gym culture too, and while it's good that people stay fit it would be better if it was on a Football pitch they stayed in shape.

Bit of a loaded answer that might not even answer your question, but there's so much wrong with Irish Football at the moment that it's hard to pinpoint the cause of anything.

I do honestly feel that if coaches and parents fear that their players or kids are losing interest in Football that it's best to take them away from watching football from a league in a different country on TV and to instead get them invested in their local League of Ireland club; something that's close to home, live, real, and from a player's point of view, is something to aim for and a lot more attainable than a league that they have a 0.012% chance of playing in.

**Ballistinianlad** · 26/08/2019, 8:13 AM

How many clubs have folded (in the sense of not having a junior team) in the last few years.
I can think of kilcolman. St bens. Old mill. Feenagh now. Rockhill (again?) Mountcollins for a while.
As well as a few b teams.
Sad to see clubs like athea struggling now. Ballysteen struggling too
Going to be a very small league.

**Langerdan007** · 26/08/2019, 10:30 AM

Ballysteen struggling to field at all???

Lot of stuff in there Shearer,all probably a part of it, getting lads to commit to 8 months of sunday mornings,particularly younger lads is a big factor as well

**last man back** · 26/08/2019, 12:29 PM

Season too long. Not enough volunteers anymore,( a lot of ex players cycling etc. forgetting people gave their time so they could play). And young lads don’t seem to want to give commitment anymore.

**Kennycon** · 26/08/2019, 9:06 PM

Originally Posted by last man back

Season too long. Not enough volunteers anymore,( a lot of ex players cycling etc. forgetting people gave their time so they could play). And young lads don�t seem to want to give commitment anymore.

Last year in limerick there was a lot of walkovers which is not good for the game, it took away from the valuation of winning competitions . I actually don�t know many x players that are actually coaching a the minute, fair point last man back

**noconnor16** · 27/08/2019, 1:13 PM

Looking like the smallest division2 in a long time.

**Abbeyman** · 27/08/2019, 1:49 PM

Pulled out an old league table from observer circa late 90s, there were 5 divisions , premier to div 4 . 47 teams compared to 33 for last season. A lot of B teams gone and amalgamations mostly the reason for reduction.
NCW A, Feenagh, Foynes A, KilleaneyA , Ballyagran , Shanagolden, Kilcolman, BallyRovers, NCW Rovers, Villa Rovers, NCW B ,Broadford B, Pallaskenry B, Rathkeale C, Foynes B, Adare B, Killeaney B, Askeaton B, Ferry Rangers B are teams not in this years league.
There appears to be 30 Gaelic teams and 30 hurling teams in the Desmond League catchment area which works out fairly similar numbers maybe a small bit more .

**Gazza29** · 27/08/2019, 2:33 PM

Originally Posted by Abbeyman

Pulled out an old league table from observer circa late 90s, there were 5 divisions , premier to div 4 . 47 teams compared to 33 for last season. A lot of B teams gone and amalgamations mostly the reason for reduction.
NCW A, Feenagh, Foynes A, KilleaneyA , Ballyagran , Shanagolden, Kilcolman, BallyRovers, NCW Rovers, Villa Rovers, NCW B ,Broadford B, Pallaskenry B, Rathkeale C, Foynes B, Adare B, Killeaney B, Askeaton B, Ferry Rangers B are teams not in this years league.
There appears to be 30 Gaelic teams and 30 hurling teams in the Desmond League catchment area which works out fairly similar numbers maybe a small bit more .

There seems to be a lot more players now though only playing one sport, where as before you had lads playing everything which would normally end up with the standard being crap at the end of and start of seasons

Speaking of standards, is it just me or does it look like no one has gone back preseason training yet less than 3 weeks before the start of the season