COYBIG

weldoninhio

valoren wrote: »

Backtracking? If you were an Astana or Qarabeg supporter you'd love to qualify for the CL. You seem to misinterpret my initial comment about it being a yawn fest in terms of the quality of football and that Ireland not being there would somewhat detract from that. We are hoof merchants.

It's a yawn fest because it's the quantity over quality. Be under no illusions, we're ****. And the fans of Astana et al also know they are ****. But they support them regardless of that. As a football fan I want to watch Spain play Brazil when it matters, but as I'm Irish it is considerably less of a boring tournament if we were participating in it and particularly as it's only every four years, it is a major sporting event albeit an extremely drawn out and yes for the majority of it, dull and boring. It's a major sporting event but when we (rarely) qualify it's a national event. And once again it is about the subjective experience when we qualify not the objective nature of out **** tactics.

Here's a tip for you :cool: don't bother with the group stages if you don't like it. Its quite a revolutionary tactic, but i've used it over numerous years for various things I found boring, from football to rugby to GAA and even socially for parties etc. It's also universal, works just as well for your local team as it does for FIFA World Cups.

Dr. Mantis Toboggan

seachto7 wrote: »

It's pathetic. I'd be embarrassed. There were some right gob****es on an Off The Ball vox pop after the game the other night. It was all about them them them and how the team ruined it for them them them. Twats.
Joe.ie will lose out on clickbait material next year.
No videos of lads with traffic cones on their heads on a roundabout or cleaning up broken beer bottles, which they'd never do in Ireland either. All for the cameras.

The team ruined it for them??? It just ruined the opportunity for pissed up bellends in soccer jerseys (that last fit them in 2002), to send embarrassing snapchats to each other like idiotic teenagers.

There's an individual in my workplace who went to the Euros, apparently he drank 36 pints in one sitting. Fcuking disgusting behaviour.

When he came home he had to take a week off because he was 'sick.' Depressed from drinking around the fcuking clock more like for a week or two.

Ridiculous behaviour for grown men.

valoren

weldoninhio wrote: »

Here's a tip for you :cool: don't bother with the group stages if you don't like it. Its quite a revolutionary tactic, but i've used it over numerous years for various things I found boring, from football to rugby to GAA and even socially for parties etc. It's also universal, works just as well for your local team as it does for FIFA World Cups.

That's the plan :pac: Although, I'll watch the England games out of interest that's the only concession I'll make. I'm a sucker for their quadrennial hype machine!

mattser

Dr. Mantis Toboggan wrote: »

The team ruined it for them??? It just ruined the opportunity for pissed up bellends in soccer jerseys (that last fit them in 2002), to send embarrassing snapchats to each other like idiotic teenagers.

There's an individual in my workplace who went to the Euros, apparently he drank 36 pints in one sitting. Fcuking disgusting behaviour.

When he came home he had to take a week off because he was 'sick.' Depressed from drinking around the fcuking clock more like for a week or two.

Ridiculous behaviour for grown men.

They should get out and attend LOI matches if they're homesick for Irish football.
99% of the leprechaun army never saw the inside of a LOI ground I'm sure.

Doltanian

Dr. Mantis Toboggan wrote: »

The team ruined it for them??? It just ruined the opportunity for pissed up bellends in soccer jerseys (that last fit them in 2002), to send embarrassing snapchats to each other like idiotic teenagers.

There's an individual in my workplace who went to the Euros, apparently he drank 36 pints in one sitting. Fcuking disgusting behaviour.

When he came home he had to take a week off because he was 'sick.' Depressed from drinking around the fcuking clock more like for a week or two.

Ridiculous behaviour for grown men.

Green with envy are you? He was off doing his thing whilst you were in the office was it? I myself was thinking to go to the Euros last year but decided to bide my time hoping and thinking we might get to Russia. I am thinking to maybe do the Trans-Siberian now next summer instead and maybe take in one or two games along the way, ideally an Argentina or other Latin American team group game.

Dr. Mantis Toboggan

Doltanian wrote: »

Green with envy are you? He was off doing his thing whilst you were in the office was it? I myself was thinking to go to the Euros last year but decided to bide my time hoping and thinking we might get to Russia. I am thinking to maybe do the Trans-Siberian now next summer instead and maybe take in one or two games along the way, ideally an Argentina or other Latin American team group game.

Nice one amigo, sounds like the place for you.

DEFTLEFTHAND

mattser wrote: »

They should get out and attend LOI matches if they're homesick for Irish football.
99% of the leprechaun army never saw the inside of a LOI ground I'm sure.

I've friends who actually laugh in my face when I suggest going to a game on a Friday evening. We've a team 40 mins down the road from us.

These guys consider themselves to be football men and will spend their Saturday afternoons parked on the sofa guzzling cans and watching the Premiership.

Stacksofwacks

Our biggest problem is the standard of our league. All our talent is going across the water because that's where the money is. 90% of our soccer fans support an English team and many spend money going across to watch them. While this is the case, the Irish league will never be feasible, despite some brave performances in Europe recently. Its a grand provincial league but thats all it ever will be.

What the FAI needs to do is to follow rugby's lead. Form a professional team for each province. Have a Dublin/leinster team playing out of the Aviva and a Munster team. have an Ulster team playing out of Windsor park. Then knock heads together with the Scottish and Welsh teams and form a celtic league.

Now the welsh teams are already in the English league so they may not want to leave that honey pot. So what they could do then is have the Dublin and Belfast teams apply join the Scottish league. The scottish league may not be great shakes but The idea of a Celtic/Rangers team coming to town every few months would be an attraction. Having such teams would give an outlet for keeping some of our best players in the country.

weldoninhio

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

Our biggest problem is the standard of our league. All our talent is going across the water because that's where the money is. 90% of our soccer fans support an English team and many spend money going across to watch them. While this is the case, the Irish league will never be feasible, despite some brave performances in Europe recently. Its a grand provincial league but thats all it ever will be.

What the FAI needs to do is to follow rugby's lead. Form a professional team for each province. Have a Dublin/leinster team playing out of the Aviva and a Munster team. have an Ulster team playing out of Windsor park. Then knock heads together with the Scottish and Welsh teams and form a celtic league.

Now the welsh teams are already in the English league so they may not want to leave that honey pot. So what they could do then is have the Dublin and Belfast teams apply join the Scottish league. The scottish league may not be great shakes but The idea of a Celtic/Rangers team coming to town every few months would be an attraction. Having such teams would give an outlet for keeping some of our best players in the country.

The Scots already do that with one of their cups. There were a few NI and Welsh clubs in it.

Stacksofwacks

weldoninhio wrote: »

The Scots already do that with one of their cups. There were a few NI and Welsh clubs in it.

Yes but Im talking about forming 3 new teams to play in the Scottish league, one based in Dublin and the others in Munster and belfast, much like how the professional rugby teams do it

weldoninhio

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

Yes but Im talking about forming 3 new teams to play in the Scottish league, one based in Dublin and the others in Munster and belfast, much like how the professional rugby teams do it

And what about the current established teams? What’s the break-even number of fans needed to make the Aviva cost effective? Would the IRFU allow Thomand be used on a biweekly by a competing sport? Who finances the teams?

Stacksofwacks

weldoninhio wrote: »

And what about the current established teams? What’s the break-even number of fans needed to make the Aviva cost effective? Would the IRFU allow Thomand be used on a biweekly by a competing sport? Who finances the teams?

Valid questions. No doubt it would affect the LOI should these teams be a success. A munster team would be problematic to get up and running given that neither Cork or Limerick has a state of the art stadium ready and available. I think a Dublin team playing out of the Aviva could definitely work. of course you need investment and people like dermot desmond willing to put their money into such a venture instead of Celtic or other such English teams. But its still something worth exploring imo

Fr_Dougal

Doltanian wrote: »

Ireland of 2002 would have defeated Spain in the last 16 had Roy Keane not threw his toys out of the pram when it most mattered. I personally think it is a disgrace he is left near the Irish team today after r talent at the moment and the FAI is ran as an old boys club with money for the boys all round.

McCarthy sent Keane home, Keane was in the right. The Genesis Report that came out vindicated him.

johnnyryan89

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

Yes but Im talking about forming 3 new teams to play in the Scottish league, one based in Dublin and the others in Munster and belfast, much like how the professional rugby teams do it

Would fall on it's arse after one season, wouldn't waste my money supporting some newly made up franchise playing in the Scottish league. People love the league of ireland because it's supporting your local team in our own national league.

Stacksofwacks

johnnyryan89 wrote: »

Would fall on it's arse after one season, wouldn't waste my money supporting some newly made up franchise playing in the Scottish league. People love the league of ireland because it's supporting your local team in our own national league.

It might well do and Im sure alot of people do love the LOI because of that reason but it seems to have worked for the rugby, maybe soccer is a different proposition.

pgj2015

if people got off their arses and went to some league of ireland games (12 euro a ticket) instead of paying hundreds of euro travelling to manchester or liverpool etc to support a team they have no connection to, then the league would get a lot better, and we would have teams qualifying for europa league and champions league.

Stacksofwacks

pgj2015 wrote: »

if people got off their arses and went to some league of ireland games (12 euro a ticket) instead of paying hundreds of euro travelling to manchester or liverpool etc to support a team they have no connection to, then the league would get a lot better, and we would have teams qualifying for europa league and champions league.

better standard of football, better players, better facilties, better atmosphere and all round better matchday experience. I dont have anything against the Irish league if thats your thing fair play to you but it can never compete with the the glamour of the English league.

pgj2015

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

better standard of football, better players, better facilties, better atmosphere and all round better matchday experience. I dont have anything against the Irish league if thats your thing fair play to you but it can never compete with the the glamour of the English league.

yes but the standard of our own league would improve dramatically if irish people decided to support our own league thus no need to fly to the uk to watch a match.

Stacksofwacks

pgj2015 wrote: »

yes but the standard of our own league would improve dramatically if irish people decided to support our own league thus no need to fly to the uk to watch a match.

maybe ban sky sports in our country it would be start and only show Irish league matches in pubs

pgj2015

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

maybe ban sky sports in our country it would be start and only show Irish league matches in pubs

i dont care if people dont support our own league, thats up to them, i will though, i just think its silly to say we won when talking about arsenal when you are from somewhere like achill :pac:

Stacksofwacks

pgj2015 wrote: »

i dont care if people dont support our own league, thats up to them, i will though, i just think its silly to say we won when talking about arsenal when you are from somewhere like achill :pac:

I know. A mate of mine was in the depths of Africa one time, Uganda or somewhere and a local guy comes up and asks him if he knows the Leeds result!

johnnyryan89

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

It might well do and Im sure alot of people do love the LOI because of that reason but it seems to have worked for the rugby, maybe soccer is a different proposition.

It worked in the rugby because the four provinces have a rich history dating back God knows how long. They weren't just four made up teams that have only existed since the game went professional in 95, they just decided to make the provincial teams professional while keeping the club teams amateur.

Plus nobody gives a toss about the Scottish league so can't see people rushing out to watch Munster United play some team from the Scottish non league because even if the Scots did decide to let teams from Ireland into their leagues it ain't gonna be straight to the spl to play Celtic which would be the only team that would draw a crowd in Ireland and even then barely 12,000 showed up to watch them play Inter Milan in Thomond Park.

Stacksofwacks

johnnyryan89 wrote: »

It worked in the rugby because the four provinces have a rich history dating back God knows how long. They weren't just four made up teams that have only existed since the game went professional in 95, they just decided to make the provincial teams professional while keeping the club teams amateur.

Plus nobody gives a toss about the Scottish league so can't see people rushing out to watch Munster United play some team from the Scottish non league because even if the Scots did decide to let teams from Ireland into their leagues it ain't gonna be straight to the spl to play Celtic which would be the only team that would draw a crowd in Ireland and even then barely 12,000 showed up to watch them play Inter Milan in Thomond Park.

The Scottish league may not be great but it is a better standard overall than the LOI. The SPL might let the Irish teams straight to the top tier as they would see it as a chance to improve their own league and revenues. The ideal scenario would to be allowed into the English leagues or the formation of British and Irish Super league featuring rangers/celtic and the Irish teams as mentioned. But Celtic and Rangers applied to get into the English league and got turned down so I cant see that happening anytime soon. The possibility of a European super league remains on the horizon so I think it is a valid discussion in that context- an Irish professional team in it?

As for interest, it may take time to build up the brands. I think people will in the long run be eager to support Irish teams if they are well run and competitive. Of course I am speculating and the idea might never work but it is interesting to ponder all the same.

johnnyryan89

johnnyryan89 wrote: »

It worked in the rugby because the four provinces have a rich history dating back God knows how long. They weren't just four made up teams that have only existed since the game went professional in 95, they just decided to make the provincial teams professional while keeping the club teams amateur.

2 men and a dog used to watch the Inter Pros. There was no rich history, except of people having a day out when national southern hemisphere sides like NZ toured...because they wanted to see the opponents. In 1994, there was zero interest in Munster, you had a few hundred at matches.

Which is not to say I support the provincial league idea for football at all. I mean, while Munster have done well, has it really improved national teams? We've always been awful at the rugby World Cup, but are Scotland and Wales reaching more semi finals?

Hannibal_Smith

pgj2015 wrote: »

i dont care if people dont support our own league, thats up to them, i will though, i just think its silly to say we won when talking about arsenal when you are from somewhere like achill :pac:

I never understand why people support English teams but not their own. The quality of stands will improve if people pay the money to go see them. We've been to a few league games and the atmosphere is great. There are people who follow their local teams round the country and I consider them the true Irish football fan.

mattser

Hannibal_Smith wrote: »

I never understand why people support English teams but not their own. The quality of stands will improve if people pay the money to go see them. We've been to a few league games and the atmosphere is great. There are people who follow their local teams round the country and I consider them the true Irish football fan.

Thank you. It's bad enough that the ' fields of athenry ' clan don't bother their bo**ix, but the top brass are rarely if ever seen either.
Talk about leading by example.

weldoninhio

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

The Scottish league may not be great but it is a better standard overall than the LOI. The SPL might let the Irish teams straight to the top tier as they would see it as a chance to improve their own league and revenues. The ideal scenario would to be allowed into the English leagues or the formation of British and Irish Super league featuring rangers/celtic and the Irish teams as mentioned. But Celtic and Rangers applied to get into the English league and got turned down so I cant see that happening anytime soon. The possibility of a European super league remains on the horizon so I think it is a valid discussion in that context- an Irish professional team in it?

As for interest, it may take time to build up the brands. I think people will in the long run be eager to support Irish teams if they are well run and competitive. Of course I am speculating and the idea might never work but it is interesting to ponder all the same.

Never happened.

CHealy

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

better standard of football, better players, better facilties, better atmosphere and all round better matchday experience. I dont have anything against the Irish league if thats your thing fair play to you but it can never compete with the the glamour of the English league.

If people supported their own we would be able to get a better standard of player which would lead to better football and better facilities.

By the way, Iv been to numerous games at both Premier League and Championship level in England, but the best athmospheres Iv ever experienced have been in places like Turners Cross, Dalymount Park and Oriel Park.

For me, nothing in this world can compare to going out and supporting my local team, but people are free to do what they like, I just wish more would give it a shot.

PeterParker957

Stacksofwacks wrote: »

better standard of football, better players, better facilties, better atmosphere and all round better matchday experience. I dont have anything against the Irish league if thats your thing fair play to you but it can never compete with the the glamour of the English league.

There is a vast difference between actual fans of a UK team who have been going to games since childhood and someone who got a nice warm feeling in their special place in wither 1999/2005 and decided to follow United or Liverpool.

I'd be the former.

Dr Crayfish

Anyway I'm coming round to normality again, we're not in a world cup once again, get over it.
I'm dying to go to Dalymount again, went to a few matches last year for the first time in years. Honestly Bohemians look like Barcelona compared to Ireland, and the bars in the ground are great craic before the match and half time. And then you have McGowans afterwards, great Friday night out, if you're even a fledgling Bohs fan you should get over to see them when the season starts again. Gypsy Kings!