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Dedicated RL Pitches
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There are no dedicated RL pitches in Ireland.
The problem in the main is the ability to rent pitches. All the pitches we require (ones with rugby posts and in goal areas) are RU pitches and are all privately owned by clubs. There are none available to rent from councils which could be marked up and left that way for many a season.0 -
At two separate locations this summer Junior GAA pitches with room for in goal areas have been rented from DCC & South Dublin Council, for RL!0
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Clarification necessary, rented from municipal authorities or from GAA clubs? For competition purposes-are these pitches available? Goalposts, if GAA -are back stanchions removed? Training or fixtures? Public liability insurance? etc.At two separate locations this summer Junior GAA pitches with room for in goal areas have been rented from DCC & South Dublin Council, for RL!0 -
Merry: One from DCC, one from South Dublin Council not GAA clubs. No stanchions because they are Council pitches. Suitable for fixtures, Public Liability covered by RFL for Republic of Ireland, in the case of South Dublin Council RFL covered the Council direct. Both suitable for fixtures.
Plus there is a Community pitch in West Wicklow off M9 that only needs a set of posts. Pitch side changing room & pub at the back. Downside is that the location is remote.
Assume Merry that you are part of the RLI, if so its time we had a dedicated RL pitch in Ireland. Lots of land for lease at the moment.0 -
Anyone know how many pitches are available solely for RL & where they are?At two separate locations this summer Junior GAA pitches with room for in goal areas have been rented from DCC & South Dublin Council, for RL!
So in answer to your own question there are still no pitches available solely for RL.Merry: One from DCC, one from South Dublin Council not GAA clubs. No stanchions because they are Council pitches. Suitable for fixtures, Public Liability covered by RFL for Republic of Ireland, in the case of South Dublin Council RFL covered the Council direct. Both suitable for fixtures.
Plus there is a Community pitch in West Wicklow off M9 that only needs a set of posts. Pitch side changing room & pub at the back. Downside is that the location is remote.
Assume Merry that you are part of the RLI, if so its time we had a dedicated RL pitch in Ireland. Lots of land for lease at the moment.
I'd also question the suitability of using GAA posts as the dimensions (6.5m wide and 2.5m high) are different from rugby posts (5.6m wide and 3m high).
It's all well and good saying we need a dedicated pitch and that there is loads of land for lease but who is going to pay for it and its upkeep?
I'd be more impressed if you posted solutions rather than problems.0 -
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Why do I need to impress you?couerdelion wrote: »So in answer to your own question there are still no pitches available solely for RL. Didnt say it was resolved!
I'd also question the suitability of using GAA posts as the dimensions (6.5m wide and 2.5m high) are different from rugby posts (5.6m wide and 3m high). Not a practical height problem you just move the crossbar, width has never been a problem with goal posts!
It's all well and good saying we need a dedicated pitch and that there is loads of land for lease but who is going to pay for it and its upkeep? Would need people to come together to form a fund raising organisation with the aim of creating RL facilities in Ireland.
I'd be more impressed if you posted solutions rather than problems.
Who the **** do you think you are. This is a discussion forum for RL. With people like you on here no wonder nobody posts.0 -
Merry: One from DCC, one from South Dublin Council not GAA clubs. No stanchions because they are Council pitches. Suitable for fixtures, Public Liability covered by RFL for Republic of Ireland, in the case of South Dublin Council RFL covered the Council direct. Both suitable for fixtures.
Plus there is a Community pitch in West Wicklow off M9 that only needs a set of posts. Pitch side changing room & pub at the back. Downside is that the location is remote.
Assume Merry that you are part of the RLI, if so its time we had a dedicated RL pitch in Ireland. Lots of land for lease at the moment.
Your assumption is correct, I am part of 'the' RLI - in the same way that any player or referee or supporter is. However, I am not an administrator so I can't provide you with a dedicated rugby league pitch. It seems that you have all your bases covered with the access to pitches that you have. Only reason I asked the questions was the experience the Carlow Crusaders had in 2008 when they rented a pitch from Carlow Town hurling club. After a couple of fixtures they were refused access to the pitch and had to move home games to Cill Dara rugby club.0 -
Merry: Thanks for your considered reply, unlike others! The intent of the post was to see if anyone had got any further than, using RU pitches in the summer or renting junior GAA pitches from the local council. Its the biggest problem facing the sport in my view.
The sport needs to have some dedicated pitches to more forward. One pitch would be nice. Be interested to see how many people would like to get together to bring this about both in terms of funding, right location & maintenance.0 -
Why do I need to impress you?
Who the **** do you think you are. This is a discussion forum for RL.
You don't need to impress anyone, you can continue asking questions and then arguing with the responses you get till your blue in the face as far as I'm concerned. I wasn't aware of any clubs other than the Exiles playing out of South Dublin this summer and they played their home games at Terenure.
I don't think anyone who plays rugby league in this county hasn't considered that RL specific pitches would be great but the reality is that most of the clubs struggle from season to season without an added burden of paying off a loan for a pitch they might buy or the added cost of maintenance. It's been nearly impossible to get sponsorship this season as the recession has bitten but I'd be interested to hear you discuss your solution to getting a company to sponsor purchasing a pitch.
You're correct in stating that this is a discussion forum which is why I said I would be impressed if you had some solutions to the problem rather than just obviously stating how great it would be for the national side to have a national pitch.. However judging from your response I guess you haven't come along to discuss.With people like you on here no wonder nobody posts.
You're most probably right. All I do is put people down and bad mouth the game of rugby league on here.0 -
couerdelion wrote: »You don't need to impress anyone, you can continue asking questions and then arguing with the responses you get till your blue in the face as far as I'm concerned. I wasn't aware of any clubs other than the Exiles playing out of South Dublin this summer and they played their home games at Terenure.
I don't think anyone who plays rugby league in this county hasn't considered that RL specific pitches would be great but the reality is that most of the clubs struggle from season to season without an added burden of paying off a loan for a pitch they might buy or the added cost of maintenance. It's been nearly impossible to get sponsorship this season as the recession has bitten but I'd be interested to hear you discuss your solution to getting a company to sponsor purchasing a pitch.
You're correct in stating that this is a discussion forum which is why I said I would be impressed if you had some solutions to the problem rather than just obviously stating how great it would be for the national side to have a national pitch.. However judging from your response I guess you haven't come along to discuss.
You're most probably right. All I do is put people down and bad mouth the game of rugby league on here.
You're one of these people that never learns but continues to slag off other people who post one here with your smart arsed comments.
Back to thread: With the way RL is structured in Ireland (RU summer keep fit) at the moment it would be impossible for any one club to finance or justify a dedicated RL pitch with so few games.
Maybe the starting point is securing an RL pitch for National use first, in the same way that the pitch at Portlaoise was used until this year. That would mean that a group of enthusiastic RL people would need to come together to make it happen, not necessarily with the RLI. Is that possible?
FYI Two clubs (Ballyfermot/ Detroyers & Tallaght trained on junior GAA council pitches this summer unfortunately without securing any fixtures.0 -
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You're one of these people that never learns but continues to slag off other people who post one here with your smart arsed comments.
You mention the Dublin Destroyers later in your post. Go have a look at the thread they posted about setting up and see who it is posting and offering them assistance if they require it.
You knew the answer to the question you first posted and are just using it to have a go at RL in this country. Now I'll be the first to say it's not perfect but I also know the amount of hardwork that went in over the last few years just to keep the comp running and because of that the only way I'll now be prepared to have a go at those in charge would be if I decided to be a part of the RLI and work towards change from the inside.Back to thread: With the way RL is structured in Ireland (RU summer keep fit) at the moment it would be impossible for any one club to finance or justify a dedicated RL pitch with so few games.
Maybe the starting point is securing an RL pitch for National use first, in the same way that the pitch at Portlaoise was used until this year. That would mean that a group of enthusiastic RL people would need to come together to make it happen, not necessarily with the RLI. Is that possible?
You hit the nail on the head with your first sentence of this quote although those who are taking part every summer might disagree with you calling it RU keep fit. In fact a good deal use RU as our winter RL keep fit. There just aren't enough clubs to justify the outlay of a national pitch to be used 4-5 times a year.
The only way to grow the sport in this country is organically, adding more and more teams each year till eventually we have a presence in the sporting market that the general public are aware of. It's not a case of build it and they will come, that's only a recipe for financial disaster.FYI Two clubs (Ballyfermot/ Detroyers & Tallaght trained on junior GAA council pitches this summer unfortunately without securing any fixtures.
I hope that the destroyers manage to get a team out and compete in the league in 2011. Are Tallaght still chasing the dream of playing in the English merit league rather than supporting domestic Irish RL?0 -
Couerdelion: You do know how to highjack & twist an RL post & promote your RU agenda, by promoting RU in the winter as if its training for Summer RL. This dual code agenda has all but destroyed RL in this country by alianating genuine RL people.
You have a severe lack of in depth knowledge of the clubs that you have mentioned & you have again slagged off people in Ireland who are genuine RL people not dual coder's. I suggest you go back to the Yawnion forum and leave the RL forum to RL people, so that Irish RL can develop its true potential. That potential might not be earth shattering but its deserves to be more than a summer play thing of RU people!0 -
Let's forget about the bickering and personal insults and get back on track with your intial postings and your want of a dedicated RL pitch in Ireland.tollie wrote:using RU pitches in the summer or renting junior GAA pitches from the local council. Its the biggest problem facing the sport in my view.
The sport needs to have some dedicated pitches to more forward. One pitch would be nice.
We've ascertained that there are no pitches to rent so the best thing to do would be to buy some land and create a new pitch. I've had a google search for land. Now a rugby league pitch to meet international requirements needs to be a maximum of 68m x 122m including in goal areas. We would also need room round the sides for the crowds and a little bit behind the sticks so the players don't slide into the fence. Let's say an average of 10m all the way round so 88m x 142m. (12496 m2)
Now we need some changing rooms. Nothing huge I would say. The Fai advise a sample size of 648m2 for a two changing room plan that could be used for rugby as well as football. If we add a little space for just a few cars to park then we're up to around 15,000m2 or 1.5ha.
So a quick google for suitable sites in Dublin returns....
Well nothing that looks ideal. A 2 hectare site in Blanchardstown for 2.5 million is a bit excessive in these recessionary times. A 5 acres (2ha) piece of land though in Lusk just sold for €275,000 so let's say we were lucky and we managed to buy that. Even luckier it's on chalk based land and is free draining so we don't have to do any digging, perhaps it used to belong to a sports turf instutute and there's already turf there so we can just mark up a pitch and we're ready.
Ah i forgot about the changing rooms. The Chartered Surveyors Society reckon you can self build for €1,000 a sq m2 if all the work is done by unpaid help so we're looking at ~€650k for the changing rooms. So all in all just short of a million before we can hold a proper match and that's with a minimum specced location. If we could get a mortgage for the purchase and build we would be looking at paying over €4,000 a month for a 35 year term.
Still think it's viable to have a dedcicated pitch?0 -
Merry: One from DCC, one from South Dublin Council not GAA clubs. No stanchions because they are Council pitches. Suitable for fixtures, Public Liability covered by RFL for Republic of Ireland, in the case of South Dublin Council RFL covered the Council direct. Both suitable for fixtures.
Plus there is a Community pitch in West Wicklow off M9 that only needs a set of posts. Pitch side changing room & pub at the back. Downside is that the location is remote.
Assume Merry that you are part of the RLI, if so its time we had a dedicated RL pitch in Ireland. Lots of land for lease at the moment.
Where in DCC and SDC where these pitches made available? Problem with GAA pitches is that the posts are different sizes and pitches generally are 20 or so yards too long in some cases longer than that.0 -
Couredelion: Buying a pitch is just not an option. Leasing is the only way forward. Yearly leases say for Tallaght RU at the postal club are €4000 per annum, for Dave at Portlaoise RL from the RU club €100 per week approx €5,200 per year both figures are pre recession. In the recession yearly leases for pitches if you can get one should be around say €3000. Its getting one that's the problem in the right location & using it 12 months of the year when you do!
Kellco88: The goals are different, but cross bars can be altered if necessary. The way to go for pitch size is to go for a Junior GAA pitch, which is approx RL pitch area. The pitches hired this summer where at Markievicz Park & Tymon Park.
Good luck to Ireland, Tallaght & Clondalkin u17s this Sunday.0 -
why do they need a ground of there own? the season in ireland is 8 weeks long who is going to maintain for the other 44 weeks they have used allsaa, terenure , and i was told a freebie in portarlington for the two finals its not like it is needed at the moment a ground share is what is required with so many union clubs strapped for money ,, no after drinks matches because of the laws. i could think of quite a few who welcome that extra revenue suttionions who are right beside the dart line for example0
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big barrie wrote: »why do they need a ground of there own? the season in ireland is 8 weeks long who is going to maintain for the other 44 weeks they have used allsaa, terenure , and i was told a freebie in portarlington for the two finals its not like it is needed at the moment a ground share is what is required with so many union clubs strapped for money ,, no after drinks matches because of the laws. i could think of quite a few who welcome that extra revenue suttionions who are right beside the dart line for example
That's a very good idea the poorest sport in the country giving the richest sport money to use their facilities! We have have been doing that for 25years & the result is we are limited to a 10 week season.
RL the sport in Ireland needs its own pitch/ pitches to develop the game 52 weeks of the year. No more dual code excuses.0 -
fact 95% of players who play league in ireland are union players one of the reasons for a low tournout at tallaght was my club had 10 league players playing an important union match that sunday afternoon . please i dont want to get into a union v league slagging but thats the way it is going to be ,, ,, ps if you want to suggest change and your ideas to the rli turn up at the maldron hotel tallaght at 2. 30 this sat.0
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Have to agree with barrie here. people bitch and moan about rli. but none offer their ideas to the people that matter. the fact is rl can't compete with ru we dont have thousands begging to play league like the union clubs do.big barrie wrote: »,, ,, ps if you want to suggest change and your ideas to the rli turn up at the maldron hotel tallaght at 2. 30 this sat.
Its not promoting league its fact0 -
big barrie wrote: »fact 95% of players who play league in ireland are union players one of the reasons for a low tournout at tallaght was my club had 10 league players playing an important union match that sunday afternoon . please i dont want to get into a union v league slagging but thats the way it is going to be ,, ,, ps if you want to suggest change and your ideas to the rli turn up at the maldron hotel tallaght at 2. 30 this sat.
The 95% of players who play league in the Summer do it for same reason the RLI promotes which is 'Summer Keep Fit' to help improve their RU skills for the winter. Its the 5% of players who are genuine RL players (not people who would rather play an RU match than watch their national side play RL) who should be catered for.
Having had dealings with the RLI personalities both in Ireland & with regards to RL in South Africa I have found that they are totally committed to a dual code policy, (nothing will change their minds) which didn’t work in South Africa & hasn’t worked here.
An for example of the power & influence RU has over RL in Ireland. Two Rugby pitches exist on Tymon Park i.e. a public park run by South Dublin Council. Embarrassingly for the Council they were not allowed by the RU to let an RL side use them, but could allow RL to use GAA pitches. It is a Union v League thing and always has been!
This post is about RL having one pitch available for sole use in Ireland, to start to develop the game properly, is that such a bad thing to suggest on an RL Forum!0 -
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I think you might be putting the cart before the horse here lads. I played league in the states for a season two years ago and they're in a similar stage of their development to us. They've got a good few clubs but most are up in the north east with one down in florida that have to travel big distances for games.
the US RL guys spend what resources they have promoting the games and trying to get the message out that league is there and worth taking a look at. It would be much better to try and get a weekly piece in the Herald during the season with a couple of pictures and to arrange a couple of "gala days" where you get all the teams together to play each other and try to get the numbers down. This is what they do in the US and also what they do in Country RL in oz. It gives you a better product and a greater chance that more than just the players girlfriends and wives show up to the matches.
Even look at another minority sport here, American Football, they played the final in Tallaght Stadium, admittedly they only got around 600 bodies along but they were able to really promote that and push it forward, get their name in the paper and on radio. That should be the real effort, not pitches (let's be honest you can play anywhere, the posts are nice to have but wouldn't be the end of the world, we played on soccer fields sometimes in the US or high school football fields). If it's not seen to be a real league with games and players then you can't grow it.
If it's just seen as a mickey mouse thing that potters along you're not going to get people interested. Some RU clubs don't like sharing their grounds thats true but the Exiles share with Terenure, the Titans were in Garryowen and the Eagles play out at ALSAA where Swords are based. I played union all my life and still do but I love league I look forward to playing it every summer, I'd play it year round if i could but it's not realistic. We need to set aside any RU vs RL sh1t and try to get as many people playing as possible and give them the best experience we can. If they like it they'll stick at it and tell more people. There's a clear progression there now too with Johnny Coleman at Sheffield and Wayne Kerr at Oldham so we're turning out real players.0 -
have a look through this site www.jaxaxe.com they're the florida based RL side. See how much work they do in terms of promoting the club and the game. There's a well established union team in Jacksonville as well as a big NFL team but they still work at it and get people down to the games. You'd think they were a super league team the way they market themselves but to be honest carlow, the titans or exiles would smash them.
also look at www.fightrugby.com ,they're the Philadelphia team0 -
Your post is about having one rugby league pitch available on a year round basis. This would provide a venue for rugby league to be played regardless of the playing season of another code. It would also provide the opportunity for 'true' rugby league players to compete and give the opportunity to develop a junior participation in rugby league. It would be a venue for international training camps and possibly coaching and refereeing courses. This pitch would be the home ground for a rugby league team in Ireland that would be in a position to provide competitive fixtures on a year-round basis.The 95% of players who play league in the Summer do it for same reason the RLI promotes which is 'Summer Keep Fit' to help improve their RU skills for the winter. Its the 5% of players who are genuine RL players (not people who would rather play an RU match than watch their national side play RL) who should be catered for.
Having had dealings with the RLI personalities both in Ireland & with regards to RL in South Africa I have found that they are totally committed to a dual code policy, (nothing will change their minds) which didn’t work in South Africa & hasn’t worked here.
An for example of the power & influence RU has over RL in Ireland. Two Rugby pitches exist on Tymon Park i.e. a public park run by South Dublin Council. Embarrassingly for the Council they were not allowed by the RU to let an RL side use them, but could allow RL to use GAA pitches. It is a Union v League thing and always has been!
This post is about RL having one pitch available for sole use in Ireland, to start to develop the game properly, is that such a bad thing to suggest on an RL Forum!
I take these as serious goals from your previous posts on this forum. If such a project becomes viable, I would have no hesitation in supporting the provision of junior and adult participation.0 -
MerryWhistleblo wrote: »Your post is about having one rugby league pitch available on a year round basis. This would provide a venue for rugby league to be played regardless of the playing season of another code. It would also provide the opportunity for 'true' rugby league players to compete and give the opportunity to develop a junior participation in rugby league. It would be a venue for international training camps and possibly coaching and refereeing courses. This pitch would be the home ground for a rugby league team in Ireland that would be in a position to provide competitive fixtures on a year-round basis.
I take these as serious goals from your previous posts on this forum. If such a project becomes viable, I would have no hesitation in supporting the provision of junior and adult participation.
Merry: Yes that's exactly what I am saying. I & others have tried to find somewhere along the M50/ M7 corridor but to no avail. There must be someone who maybe even reads this forum better placed to find somewhere even if its just a field that can be developed.
JonnyF: If your the lad who helped organise the Dublin Blues v Tallaght game Dec 2008, the you should know that to compare the Irish Field sport situation with America is like comparing Chalk & Cheese.0
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