A New Low For Cobh Ramblers

UnitedIrishman wrote: »

But the whole Shels thing has made everyone sceptical about how far a club can go without breaching the rules and going into something near liquidity.

What happened to Shels (and Rovers) is precisely why so many clubs are (supposedly) struggling financially at the moment - the FAI are imposing tight financial controls to ensure such situations do not arise again. However, I'm of the opinion that the media is exaggerating much of it, particularly with regard to Cork. It seems negative stories about the EL sell far more newspapers than positive.

UnitedIrishman wrote: »

Something big needs to be done with the league, revamped big time with different ideas.

No ****; now why has nobody else thought of that? :rolleyes:

UnitedIrishman wrote: »

There are staff not good enough in the positions they are in and at the minute there's too many plasterers trying to do a chefs work.

Forgive me, but that sounds like the basic "the EL is **** and so is everyone associated with it."

UnitedIrishman wrote: »

Paying a player €3,000 a week (highest in the league I think) is scandalous.

It still pales in comparison to what players can earn in Britain:

Emmet Malone wrote:

Football, of course, is a particularly virulent example of a free market, and players cannot be blamed for looking to maximise their income over short careers.

What's more, wages here are still so comparatively low that interest in a player from a major British club makes it utterly impossible to keep him.

At present, a good top-flight player - that's someone not quite seen as part of the elite but nevertheless a cut above the average - might expect to earn about €80,000 gross (though tax compliance has dramatically improved because of a variety of factors over the last few years, most deals are actually still talked about within the game in terms of net pay).

That's roughly what Paddy McCourt is said to have been on at Derry City when he left for Celtic during the summer.

His contract was in its last year and City were keen that he sign what would presumably have been a much improved one, but the Scots are believed to have offered him around 10 times as much.

Even if he doesn't make the breakthrough at the Glasgow giants that's an impossible opportunity to turn down, and it demonstrates how difficult it will be for Irish clubs to retain their best players as standards improves here.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2008/0805/1217628552618.html

CantGetNoSleep wrote: »

No I am completely aware of financial issues in other leagues, I just feel it is proportionally much higher in Ireland.

What do you mean “proportionally much higher”? You mean Irish clubs are in more severe financial difficulties than clubs in other countries? I don’t know about that. Or do you mean that a greater percentage of clubs in Ireland are in financial difficulties than in other countries? Again, I doubt that’s the case. Take England for example; according to a BBC report, less than half of all Premier League clubs posted a profit in 2005/06. Outside the Premier League, reports of clubs in financial turmoil are not at all uncommon, e.g. Leeds, Luton, Cardiff, Southampton. The difference is there is more transparency in Ireland due to the FAI’s new rules.

Jonny Arson wrote: »

Cobh, Cork City, Derry City, Finn Harps, Galway United, Sligo Rovers, Athlone Town, Kildare, Waterford makes 9 clubs who have had financial problems this season.

I think it’s fair to say that pretty much every club in the league has financial “problems”, largely due to lower-than-desired attendances. That doesn’t necessarily mean that every club is having serious financial difficulties.

Jonny Arson wrote: »

the FAI made a great start to their tenure in charge of this league by rightly punishing Shels but the mess that has proceeded under their watch since then is dispicable.
...
i'm also absolutely stunned at the gross incompetence shown by so many clubs after Shels' spectacular meltdown, honestly could there not have ever been a better example about how NOT to run your club?

I think it’s pushing it a bit to suggest that there are clubs in the same sort of situation that Shels found themselves in – I think people are getting a little carried away on the back of the Cork story (which basically amounts to Arkaga trying to pull out of a legally-binding contract, from what I’ve read).

CantGetNoSleep wrote: »

Do all the posters arguing here genuinely feel the league is going places when clubs are paying players up to €3,000 a week with the gate receipts at the level they are at?

Why are gate receipts at the level they’re at? Because the league is perceived by the majority of people in this country to be of a poor standard. If wages drop, then it will be even more difficult for Irish clubs to compete with British clubs for players and hence, the standard here will most likely drop, making it even more difficult to increase attendances.

Personally, I don’t have a clue how to convince people to go to games. No matter what Irish clubs achieve in Europe, people such as yourself will continue to dismiss them as no better than “pub teams” – how many pub teams do you know could hold a team containing at least 6 Swedish internationals (Elfsborg) to a 2-2 draw away from home and in doing so, triple the number of goals said team have conceded at home this season in all competitions (one before last night)? Face it; the argument that people don’t attend EL games because the standard is poor just doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.

I already mentioned the Ireland-Cyprus game at Croke Park last year, which had an attendance of about 55,000 (I think), for what was an absolutely shocking performance. If that number of people showed up to watch EL games every weekend (i.e. average of 5,000 at every game), we’d be laughing.

Does no one else think its funny that a cork city supporter started a thread to criticise Cobhs financial resources. Currently CCFC are thinking of applying for examinership from the high court.

OhNoYouDidn't wrote: »

I said just that. I was told I was 'bitter'.

You my friend are the Dublin version of Gimmick

gimmick wrote: »

All sorts of talk that ramblers are on the verge of striking at the moment. The smart money says they don't. What is certain is that there is a massive stand off between the players and the board at present.

The chairman told the players that they would not be paid again this season. Obviously the players took exception to this. On asking where the gate reciepts from this Saturdays derby will go, they were told "we owes lots of companies. Guiness and Diageo are two". On hearing this a player informed the chairman that they are the same company, the chairman accused the players of greed and should not have accepted the contracts they were offered!!!! At this stage the manager told his players to up and leave, and ripped in to the chairman for wasting everyones time and insulting their intelligence.

You could not make this kind of crap up.

That is unbelieveable. Shouldn't have accepted the contracts they were offered?? What bullsh!t