Bohs v Shels

[wws]

Wont somebody please think of the schooligans!

[harps1954]

An Eircom League Media Statement issued a while ago.

Media Statement

Following the decision of the FAI Appeal Board in relation to the Bohemians v Shelbourne fixture, eircom League Chairman Paddy McCaul has convened a meeting of the Board of Control for this Friday, November 3rd to consider the decision.

No further statement will be made at this time.

-o-

Below and attached is an updated Premier Division table reflecting the decision. Also attached is an updated Premier Division goalscorers list reflecting same.

-o-

PREMIER DIVISION LEAGUE TABLE, November 1st

P W D L F A PTS
Shelbourne 25 16 7 2 53 21 55
Derry City 25 15 7 3 42 17 52
Drogheda United 26 13 9 4 28 18 48
Cork City 26 12 11 3 31 13 47
Sligo Rovers 26 11 6 9 30 35 39
St. Patrick's Athletic 27 9 9 9 32 27 36
U.C.D. 28 7 11 10 22 25 32
Longford Town 27 7 9 11 19 24 30
*Bohemians 26 8 4 14 25 27 25
Bray Wanderers 27 3 5 19 20 62 14
Waterford United 27 2 6 19 19 52 12

*Denotes deducted three points for fielding a suspended player.

As it was the League's decision that the FAI overturned, it is only the eircom League that can now seek arbitrition. So, are we going to have a situation where the eircom League pays €5,000 to the FAI to take the situation to arbitrition. If so, we then face a situation where we will have three officials of the eircom League sitting at a table with three officials of the FAI and an independent arbitrator to reach a decision. What if the arbitrator rules in favour of the eircom League - as the arbitrator did in the Shamrock Rovers case. The plot thickens . . . . .

[Ronnie]

So does it now go to the EL Mgt Comm to decide to appeal? All 21 clubs or just a subcommittee. Do clubs with a vested interest leave the room?
So is this why we'd had record fines all year. Anyone have a league table fo the most fined club this season?

[Pauro 76]

what an absolute joke. How do you explain that to the barstoolers. they'll have a field day.

[OneRedArmy]

So who makes the decision, is it the Judean People's Football Association or the Football Association of Judean People?

Truly this is an Irish mess. I predict a tribunal within 3 months.

[seand]

I've just had a brilliant idea... why don't Bohs deliberately play an ineligible player in the replay.... the precedent is there now that 'in the interest of Fair Play' the replay would have to be replayed.
Bohs could then deliberately play an ineligible player, or hey, an ineligible squad, in the replay of the replay. Even if they lose 12-0, the precedent is there that there should be a replay (of the replay of the replay). Bohs could keep doing this, until Shels get bored and start sending their under-12s.... then in the 43rd replay Bohs could sneak out their first team, beat Shels, and fook them up.

Hey, its as logical as anything that's come from the FAI.

[Gareth]

Its a terrible mess. Its so very disappointing. Common sense seems to go out the window regarding the league. Its like they have a top-hat with a whole lot of crazy in it and every few weeks the management draws something out of it and runs with it. I'd love a copy of the rulebook.

[Peadar]

Wont somebody please think of the schooligans!

The FAI had their interest at heart when they ruled that they should get another go off the BeBohs. Hope the Herald have their best man on the case.

[DvB]

I have one simple question at this stage, how low do we have to go before this league gets its house in order?

I have to say irrelevant of whomever you support its clear that this decision is morally wrong, if thsi is the basis of future decisions under the jurisdiction of the FAI i genuinely cant see how this league can progress beyond being the butt of the general publics jokes.

A very sad day for Irish football IMO.

[lofty9]

I'd love a copy of the rulebook.

knock yourself out

http://www.foot.ie/showthread.php?t=44599

[Louth4sam]

It's time for the progressive clubs to seriously think about a breakaway league. This current mess cannot continue. Rovers, Bohs, Galway, Derry, Cork, Sligo, Harps and a few others have their houses in order. The Dundalks, Limericks, Longfords and Shels of this world can carry on as they are and the rest of us can start to clean up our game.



KOH

This is the same rovers who were bankrupt a couple of years ago and dont even have a home ground?? If they GAA get their way you wont either. What ya gonna do then??

[higgins]

You do realise who's fault this is Higgins? Don't you?

The people making the decision dont have a pair of balls between them that the reason why we have decision like today.

Its up to Shels/Ollie and every other club in the country to go plead their case. Shels had every right to appeal, which they did, most other clubs would have done the same thing.

The decision makers should have made the decision based on what was the correct thing to do for the league and not what evens things up for previous **** ups...

The league need to get serious, quickly!

The ad hoc decisions are becomming very annoying. They should have ruled in favour of Shels and 3 points in my opinion, or else increase the punishment for Bohs. Last thing I expected them to do was go down the replay route....

It justs proves they couldnt make a decision and stand by it.
They should be shot

[holidaysong]

Joke decision. Dundalk FC don't have as much to gain from replaying our match with Rovers (the original one was a draw) so I doubt we will be seeking one like Shels did. However, if we finish behind Rovers by 1 or 2 points then we might as well look to replay the game (we would have to get it "in the interest of fairness" of course) and try and win it, therefore leapfrogging them. We would have nothing to lose.

[Dodge]

Its is 100% down to the clubs. The clusb run the league and the league's a mess. As are most clubs.

[harps1954]

knock yourself out

http://www.foot.ie/showthread.php?t=44599

That's the FAI rulebook. The eircom League rulebook is a different kettle of fish all together.

What people tend to forget is that the eircom League and the FAI are two seperate bodies. Next season the FAI will be ruling the eircom League and will as such be one body.

The eircom League is the League clubs. It is the league clubs who draw up the rulebook and change it, etc. The FAI have no say in the contents of the eircom League rulebook.

The eircom League clubs have only themselves to blame for a lot of the loopholes that are contained in the rulebook.

However, I've seen a copy of the eircom League rulebook, and there is nowhere in it that states a game should be replayed if an opposing team plays an illegal player. The only rule states that the club that plays an illegal player will have three points deducted. This was the punishement that the eircom league gave Bohemians. The reason for the rest of the ****e we are in today is down to Ollie Byrne, Shelbourne FC and the FAI. The League dished out the punishment weeks ago according to their rulebook.

Just think back a few years ago. Waterford United beat Dublin City and played an illegal player. Waterford were deducted three points but Dublin City wanted the game replayed. However, at that stage, the FAI didn't grant Dublin City their wish. Dublin City missed out in finishing in third place in the First Division to Finn Harps by two points. Because of their protest, appeals etc. the play-off between Finn Harps and Longford Town was delayed by almost three weeks. This is the exact same situation as to the one with Shels, but the FAI today made a completely different ruling - no consistency.

Until the eircom League rulebook states that a game is replayed because a team plays an illegal player, the decision today is totally wrong and goes against what the rulebook says. Why have a rulebook (however bad it is) if people don't obey it.

[lofty9]

To highlight the idiocy of the FAI and the Eircom League what about the fans boycotting The CArlsberg FAI Cup Final in December? That would really embarrass Delaney and put his position in jeopardy.

Sincere apologies to the players of Pats and Derry but something drastic has to be done to remove these idiots from offfice.

[Block G Raptor]

So who makes the decision, is it the Judean People's Football Association or the Football Association of Judean People?

Truly this is an Irish mess. I predict a tribunal within 3 months.

Thats It Right There " Post of the Generation " absolutely No Contest

[wws]

To highlight the idiocy of the FAI and the Eircom League what about the fans boycotting The CArlsberg FAI Cup Final in December? That would really embarrass Delaney and put his position in jeopardy.

Sincere apologies to the players of Pats and Derry but something drastic has to be done to remove these idiots from offfice.

URE HAVIN A LAFF!

[Dodge]

Just so people know. The FAI made this decision. The league's decision was to dock Bohs 3 points.

Lets go to arbritration

[OneRedArmy]

Its is 100% down to the clubs. The clusb run the league and the league's a mess. As are most clubs.

This is basically it.

The clubs accepted a fundamentally flawed and inaccurate rulebook for a number of seasons, with lessons not having been learned from previous debacles.

The FAI haven't covered themselves in glory by making an ad-hoc decision that smacks of appeasement rather than any sense of accuracy and correctness.

Ollie has been opportunitistic, maybe a bit more opportunistic than many other clubs would have been. But then again, thats no surprise as his track record in having a myopic obsession with whats best for Shels is well established and whilst morally questionable, is understandable.

The real loser here is us, the fans.

We pays our money, invest our time, energy and soul and we come out of it feeling like we've been cheated, duped and taken on a ride (and not a good one).

As far as I'm concerned lets skip straight to the Cup Final, give the League to Ollie right away (ideally in an empty, tumbelweed strewn Tolka with only a few onlooking rats watching) and get this damn season over and done with.