Article in Financial Times

[Wolfie]

Irish people love supporting the Premiership, why not give them a team their own to compete in that league, or in a European wide-league should one come to be?.

Even on a hypothetical level, an Irish based Premiership club is outlandish in the extreme. It wouldn't get passed the FA for starters.

If they are unwilling to allow Celtic or Rangers work their way through the lower levels of the English League what sort of response will an Irish based Premiership team, with no stadium or proposed backing or planning permission get?

[irishfan86]

Even on a hypothetical level, an Irish based Premiership club is outlandish in the extreme. It wouldn't get passed the FA for starters.

If they are unwilling to allow Celtic or Rangers work their way through the lower levels of the English League what sort of response will an Irish based Premiership team, with no stadium or proposed backing or planning permission get?

Yes, because if somebody was to bring forth my idea they wouldn't create a plan and get investors for stadia/planning permission, etc.

Regarding Celtic and Rangers, just because they haven't worked out something yet doesn't mean they won't.

For the record, I don't want an Irish team in the Premiership, my ideal situation is an Irish team in a European superleague.

[Dodge]

Irishfan there is only one problem with the league - lack of money. if money was being pumped into it, the stadia would improve, the level of players willing to play in it would improve and then the crowds improve. Rather than the FAI pay to move a team here (as you originally posted) they should spend the money on upgrading the facilities here but they choose not to. It'd cost roughly the same to build 1 premiership ground as it would to build 10-12 grounds suitable for our league. But who pays for it? Thost Paddy part timers would love nothing more than to be full time pros but clubs can't afford to pay them. If they could, they would...

Last week in Serie A in Italy only 2 clubs got crowds over 10,000 (Inter at home got 14,000 and Roma got 45,000). SHould they import an English team? Oh and on your protectionism, the English Premier League has a limit on the amount of non EU players allowed in a team (as does Spain and Italy). Our little insular league doesn't...


(I really tried not to get involved)

[irishfan86]

Last week in Serie A in Italy only 2 clubs got crowds over 10,000 (Inter at home got 14,000 and Roma got 45,000). SHould they import an English team?

How many 10,000+ crowds were there in the Eircom League this entire season?

Was there ever one week where there was a combined league audience of 60,000 in one round?

[galwayhoop]

Regarding Scotland, their attendance is much better than the Eircom League

Attendances
The average attendances for SPL clubs for season 2004/05 were as follows:

Celtic - 57,943
Rangers - 48,676
Aberdeen - 13,577
Hibernian - 12,539
Hearts - 12,272
Dundee United - 8,211
Motherwell - 6,960
Dundee - 6,880
Dunfermline Athletic - 6,192
Kilmarnock - 5,930
Livingston - 5,158
Inverness CT - 4,067

Exclding Celtic & Rangers the attendances are hardly earth shattering and in truth SPL clubs only fill their grounds when the Old Firm come to town and even then it is with 'Away' supporters

Sweden manage to keep the majority of their talent within their country until a good age, and you can see the success they've had as a result by qualifying for major tournaments on a consistent basis, and having clubs compete in the UEFA Cup group stages regularly.
..........

oh i get it - because sweden keep their players at home we (Ireland or the FAI as you said ) should join the English Premiership

[Dodge]

How many 10,000+ crowds were there in the Eircom League this entire season?

Was there ever one week where there was a combined league audience of 60,000 in one round?

Way to miss the point entirely...

[irishfan86]

Attendances
The average attendances for SPL clubs for season 2004/05 were as follows:

Celtic - 57,943
Rangers - 48,676
Aberdeen - 13,577
Hibernian - 12,539
Hearts - 12,272
Dundee United - 8,211
Motherwell - 6,960
Dundee - 6,880
Dunfermline Athletic - 6,192
Kilmarnock - 5,930
Livingston - 5,158
Inverness CT - 4,067

Exclding Celtic & Rangers the attendances are hardly earth shattering and in truth SPL clubs only fill their grounds when the Old Firm come to town and even then it is with 'Away' supporters



oh i get it - because sweden keep their players at home we (Ireland or the FAI as you said ) should join the English Premiership

Despite your belittling of those attendance statistics, they're still better than what the Eircom League is getting. Derry, one of the top teams in the league, has a capacity of about 4000 if I recall correctly.

Regarding your last point, if Ireland had a Premiership or European League (if one were established) team, more Irish-born players would aspire to play for their local Premiership/Euro team, and would thus perhaps be recruited and scouted by this team's academy, instead of having to move away to England to further their careers.

[endabob1]

The idea of a Celtic League for Football is not in theory a bad one, taking the 16 best teams from Scotland Wales & Ireland you'd probably end up with a league of Celtic, Rangers, Hibs, Hearts, Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Kilmarnock, Cardiff, Swansea, Wrexham, Shels, Derry, Cork, Linfield, Glentoran, Portadown. (This is just a simplified ideal so don't get high horse we're a bigger club than A or B)

Given that the Welsh clubs would not drop out of the more lucrative English league and that Celtic & Rangers would want to ensure that they played each other 4 times a season, and the potential for trouble with the Glasgow giants going to Dublin and Belfast it seems a long shot at best.

[Dodge]

Regarding your last point, if Ireland had a Premiership or European League (if one were established) team, more Irish-born players would aspire to play for their local Premiership/Euro team, and would thus perhaps be recruited and scouted by this team's academy, instead of having to move away to England to further their careers.

Didn't you say the EPL was a world league no (and not English?) What makes you think Dublin City would sign Irish people if they could get better quality Frenchmen (e.g.)

[galwayhoop]

on second thoughts 'IRISHFAN ( )' you are right:

buy a team but dont let
'Paddy part-time play'
because you might get
' a select few hardcore fans blinded by the romanticism of days long gone by'
going to the games and next thing you know we'll all be
'down the street in the pouring rain'

why don't the FAI not just buy blackburn rovers (a EPL team from a town with roughly the same population as co. galway) who already have a following here to locate in abbotstown and then we will become a world super power. problem solved - why are we wasting our time developing players here anyhow and all this tripe about development plans and such -


of course the new ' FAI Blackburn Rovers FC ' will develop the game here and not in the slightest be worried about staying in the Premiership (with all its money and glamour) and thus will field an entirely irish team made up of local lads who will go on to become the international equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters and not buy any foreign players at all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OH NO! i just woke up with my nose in my bowl of corn flakes

[galwayhoop]

Regarding your last point, if Ireland had a Premiership or European League (if one were established) team, more Irish-born players would aspire to play for their local Premiership/Euro team, and would thus perhaps be recruited and scouted by this team's academy, instead of having to move away to England to further their careers.

i personally aspire to play up front for ireland and score in the world cup final but this doesn't really mean that i will

[NY Hoop]

on second thoughts 'IRISHFAN ( )' you are right:

buy a team but dont let
'Paddy part-time play'
because you might get
' a select few hardcore fans blinded by the romanticism of days long gone by'
going to the games and next thing you know we'll all be
'down the street in the pouring rain'

why don't the FAI not just buy blackburn rovers (a EPL team from a town with roughly the same population as co. galway) who already have a following here to locate in abbotstown and then we will become a world super power. problem solved - why are we wasting our time developing players here anyhow and all this tripe about development plans and such -


of course the new ' FAI Blackburn Rovers FC ' will develop the game here and not in the slightest be worried about staying in the Premiership (with all its money and glamour) and thus will field an entirely irish team made up of local lads who will go on to become the international equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters and not buy any foreign players at all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OH NO! i just woke up with my nose in my bowl of corn flakes

Irishfan (oh the irony) is a WUM. Knows next to nothing about our league but because there are a empty seats at games we should forget the whole thing because it rains as well

Clueless beyond the normal WUM.

KOH

[endabob1]

One word - Wimbledon.

[irishfan86]

The idea of a Celtic League for Football is not in theory a bad one, taking the 16 best teams from Scotland Wales & Ireland you'd probably end up with a league of Celtic, Rangers, Hibs, Hearts, Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Kilmarnock, Cardiff, Swansea, Wrexham, Shels, Derry, Cork, Linfield, Glentoran, Portadown. (This is just a simplified ideal so don't get high horse we're a bigger club than A or B)

Given that the Welsh clubs would not drop out of the more lucrative English league and that Celtic & Rangers would want to ensure that they played each other 4 times a season, and the potential for trouble with the Glasgow giants going to Dublin and Belfast it seems a long shot at best.

Good post, this kind of creative thinking is what I wished to bring out through my apparently radical statements.

Irish supporters love international competition, and by playing teams from foreign nations more often, I think interest in the game would increase, even if we were entering existing Eircom League teams such as Derry, Shels and Cork as you say.

I am not advocating buying Blackburn Rovers or any foreign based club and moving it here. I am advocating the creation of a new Dublin-wide team, or the rebuilding of an existing Eircom League team that with a concentrated effort could become powerful enough to compete in Europe or at the least within neighbouring countries.

If we had quality opposition to play against, the fans would fill the seats, and a new generation of kids would aspire to become professionals for this Irish team, instead of seeking to go to England to make the big-time.

[Student Mullet]

Good post, this kind of creative thinking is what I wished to bring out through my apparently radical statements.

Irish supporters love international competition, and by playing teams from foreign nations more often, I think interest in the game would increase, even if we were entering existing Eircom League teams such as Derry, Shels and Cork as you say.

I am not advocating buying Blackburn Rovers or any foreign based club and moving it here. I am advocating the creation of a new Dublin-wide team, or the rebuilding of an existing Eircom League team that with a concentrated effort could become powerful enough to compete in Europe or at the least within neighbouring countries.

If we had quality opposition to play against, the fans would fill the seats, and a new generation of kids would aspire to become professionals for this Irish team, instead of seeking to go to England to make the big-time.

What we need is a team representing all of Dublin, from Bray to Balbriggan, playing in a european superleague in front of 80,000 fans in the Bertie Bowl.

When's the last time we heard that? Bonus marks for anyone who can tell us how the team is getting on now.

[Dodge]

Any basis for this? IN reality or otherwise. Or is it a build it and they will come scenario?

[Dodge]

Not sure whether it was Wimbledon or Clydebank that was last. Or do you include Seery's Dublin City? Anyone remember the Ray Treacy (Rovers manager at the time) and Eamon Dunphy backed Dublin City for the Scottish League proposal in the late 80s/early 90s?

[galwayhoop]

What we need is a team representing all of Dublin, from Bray to Balbriggan, playing in a european superleague in front of 80,000 fans in the Bertie Bowl.

.

surely if it is to be truly representitive of dublin it will have to stretch west to kinnegad

[Student Mullet]

Not sure whether it was Wimbledon or Clydebank that was last. Or do you include Seery's Dublin City? Anyone remember the Ray Treacy (Rovers manager at the time) and Eamon Dunphy backed Dublin City for the Scottish League proposal in the late 80s/early 90s?

I'm sorry but I have to take your first answer.

I was, of course, refering to Ronan Seery's Dublin City and the success they had following the proposed model.

[endabob1]

Eirefan I think you missed my point, or maybe not but like the occasional All-Ireland legue thread that springs up here every couple of months the theory is one thing the practical reality is another.
The Celtic league works in Rugby because the 3 Unions involved have similar internal structures, ie. an Amatuer Club game a Professional Provincial tier and the National Side at the top of the pyramid, all 3 unions are at a similar level in terms of developent (you could argue that the Scots are behind the other 2 but in the grand scheme of things they are in the same ball park).
The practical realiy of trying to make a league like this one work would be compliated beyond belief, UEFA/FIFA would have to sanction it the English FA would have to be involved as 3 of the possible clubs ply thier trade in England, as I said the likelihood of the teams actually wanting it to happen would be doubtful, in short it will not happen in my lifetime and I hope to be around for a good few years yet!