1st Divison run in!

**Terry** · 01/10/2006, 7:35 AM

2 games in hand, and in fairness I'd rather the points on the board than the games in hand. Seriously doubt that they will go back on the 3 points deduction as well.

Do ye think many of ye will make the journey down on friday? Will ye fill yer allocation of 400 tickets? If we beat ye friday, we will be six points ahead, which virtually cancels out the 2 games in hand ye have

**hoopy** · 01/10/2006, 9:43 AM

Originally Posted by Terry

Do ye think many of ye will make the journey down on friday? Will ye fill yer allocation of 400 tickets?

I'd be surprised if we don't. Pity the game's not on Saturday, we would've got double that

**Conor H** · 01/10/2006, 2:31 PM

Stupid post."pity it's not on a Friday"...Sure every club will bring more fans on a Saturday!Game is on Friday and proper order!

**Conor H** · 01/10/2006, 2:58 PM

No you idiot my point was there's no point even hoping for the game to be moved to a Saturday just so yee can bring a few more fans.Rovers requested the game be changed last time to a Saturday so they could bring more fans.Why should or would we?That was my point!

**mypost** · 01/10/2006, 3:26 PM

Originally Posted by Terry

2 games in hand, and in fairness I'd rather the points on the board than the games in hand.

Another game has been postponed following the cup win last night, most likely Mons at home, so it's 3 games in hand, all at home in Fortress Tolka, so effectively a 9-point banker. We will finally have our chance to start collecting them after the trip to Galway.

**Conor H** · 01/10/2006, 3:28 PM

Originally Posted by Roverstillidie

no-one is saying you should, but you could double the crowd if it was a saturday. just dont come to us whining when next you are in money troubles... we tried our best to bring a big crowd down. you do understand the concept of 'bigger gate reciepts'?

Money trouble??Whining to Rovers fans??

Too many pints in Athlone?

**JC_GUFC** · 01/10/2006, 4:56 PM

Originally Posted by Roverstillidie

no-one is saying you should, but you could double the crowd if it was a saturday. just dont come to us whining when next you are in money troubles... we tried our best to bring a big crowd down. you do understand the concept of 'bigger gate reciepts'?

The game is pretty sure to sell out anyway so it won't actually make any difference to the crowd that it's on Friday.

And mypost if I recall correctly earlier in the season you predicted that you'd be 9 points ahead with a game in hand when you'd come down to Terryland this season.

I think Dundalk's result was the best of the weekend as they have now played both Rovers & Cobh in this series, whereas United have only played Monaghan & Limerick. Of course having the 2 big games at home is a huge advantage for United.

It's really a fascinating run-in and last night's cup game showed that the standard isn't as bad as most people think.

**oriel** · 01/10/2006, 6:40 PM

latest odds from paddy power

Rovers 6/5 (10/11)

Galway 15/8 (2/1)

Dundalk 2/1 (5/2)

A point dlk/gal/rovs fans all seem to be agreeing on is the improved standard this season, i`d also go with the improved atendances too in the first div, we`ve been getting avg 1,500 per home game for last 3 mths, with about 3,500 (max) for rovers game last week. The galway v rovs game next weekend should be the biggest yet in the division, 4 or 5,000 ?

Jc maybe our result was the best of the weekend, but i still thought your score was the most impressive esp after 1-0 down, I see you have to visit Donegal in a few weeks time, always tricky, so have we but not til last game of season, harps will hopefully be going through the motions then.

And Rovers fans, what is it about those late goals, you did same to us in Tolka on day 1, equalised in 80th min and got winner in 92th, then in oriel last week, an equaliser with 7 mins to go, then again that was well deserved.

not to mention cobh, athlone etc etc

Whoever wins this will divison will do so by a point, maybe 2, def no more than that. Well unless one or two of the 3 collapses, and that seems very unlikely at the minute.

3 very good sides, all more than capable of winning the title.

**dfx-** · 01/10/2006, 6:44 PM

Originally Posted by oriel

A point dlk/gal/rovs fans all seem to be agreeing on is the improved standard this season

If that's the improved standard......

I don't have many memories of the games even between the top teams of being remotely good..

**Conor H** · 01/10/2006, 6:49 PM

Good post oriel.Agree on nearly everything!Has there been such a close 1st Divison in years?I remember the year Harps won in 04' it was awful close between themselves,UCD and Bray.Bray fell off but it was extremely close but was it as close?

If it goes down to the last game of the season GUFC have the easiest game definitely.

Kilkenny v GUFC
Harps v Dundalk
Cobh v Rovers

Still i'd expect all 3 to win those games.

**oriel** · 01/10/2006, 7:03 PM

dfx - thats a bit harsh

I cant talk for any rovs/gal games, but defintely the first half of our game v you last week was pretty good in oriel, well until the lights and storm ruined the contest. The otehr two were ok, first game of season not bad, the 0-0 draw in tolka - a bore.

I`ve only seen us play Galway once this year, our 1-0 win in oriel in june i think, very clsoe affair which we just deserved to win, skin of our teeth, but again galway looked avery organsied team

Conor - if all 3 are in contention on last w.e, never mind about the tough games thats 3 superb satuday nights away for the boys ! You got the best one in Kilkenny, Balybofey always a good laugh, cant comment re Cobh, never been.
I think its a disgrace the loack of coverage the three clubs are getting and the first division this year, ok you might say i`m only saying that as we`re in it, but the excitement and football is far better than like of reports of total paint drying events like bray v wat`d, and any game involving longford etc

**dfx-** · 01/10/2006, 7:11 PM

I think you can maybe say entertaining, but still not good. Rovers were all over the place last week in the first half, but the wind has to be taken into consideration for that. There's still far too much hoofball, simple passes astray - you know the simple things. That's not good football. The two homes games against Galway were close with only one goal, but the football on display was awful.

Having said that though, Bray, Waterford, Longford, UCD (when I've seen them, before I berated) and sometimes Pats are at that type of football as well, Galway, Rovers and Dundalk would probably hold their own in the Premier.

But the games still aren't necessarily good.

**JC_GUFC** · 01/10/2006, 7:17 PM

The games aren't good but they're far better than they were over the last few seasons. Pat Scully's brand of football is very much based around not conceding and that has been very effective in this division and so Rovers games tend to be pretty dull affairs.

All the games between the top clubs have been very tight and although you may find it hard to believe Kilkenny & Monaghan haven't been all that bad compared to the bottom sides in Division 1 in previous years!

**hoopy** · 01/10/2006, 7:32 PM

The league is more exciting because the 3 teams are pushing each other to get better, whoever finishes top will deserve it. Conor, I wasn't having a go re the game on friday night, just saying that from a Rovers perspective there would've been more on a Sat night. If you imagine a scenario where Galway were mid table with nothing to play for, then I'm sure you would've been only too glad to accept another 4k at the gate from us. As it is you're gonna get a big home gate so maybe it's a case of the fewer of us that travel, the better for Galway and as a home fan that's fair enough

**Guitd** · 01/10/2006, 7:52 PM

this game has a limit of 3500 no matter as part of the ground is closed off as the new stand will be starting soon so we are only obliged to let 350 visiting fans in to our home games i think we sent rovers 400 so even if it was sat night only 350-400 rovers will be allowed in as the rest of the tickets will be given to locals

**hoopy** · 01/10/2006, 8:03 PM

That's fair enough, cheers

**Conor H** · 01/10/2006, 8:06 PM

Hoopy totally agree sorry for the misunderstanding.Do ya reckon yee might surpass yere allocation?

**DmanDmythDledge** · 01/10/2006, 9:43 PM

Originally Posted by Conor H

Good post oriel.Agree on nearly everything!Has there been such a close 1st Divison in years?I remember the year Harps won in 04' it was awful close between themselves,UCD and Bray.Bray fell off but it was extremely close but was it as close?

2 points between Harps and UCD in 04. When down to the wire. UCD went up to Ballybofey in the run-in and got a victory which brought down to the last game.

**geezer** · 01/10/2006, 10:28 PM

gufc played on sat a few weeks ago becuase they were in cobh midweek and the attendance plummetted by half. in fact the next home game on a friday against mons had over double the crowd of the sat nite. We have been marketing "friday night football" for over 4 years now and despite connaught rugby trying to move in on friday nights less than a mile away Utd are still holding their own. Sat for whatever reason is a disaster