Kilkenny GAA Thread Part 2 MOD NOTE POST 1*

greenspurs · 26-04-2018 09:57AM

Is there any need for the amount of training then ?
How much is needed for 2 games in April? and the "possibility" of a 3rd.

Is there an overkill as regards training? As was mentioned by PHKK , lots and lots of training and only 2-3 matches.

Village87 · 26-04-2018 10:55AM

greenspurs wrote: »

Is there any need for the amount of training then ?
How much is needed for 2 games in April? and the "possibility" of a 3rd.

Is there an overkill as regards training? As was mentioned by PHKK , lots and lots of training and only 2-3 matches.

2-3 Months of training, preperation, challenge matches picking the right team etc are needed for 2-3 matches early in the year.

greenspurs · 26-04-2018 11:42AM

How did they manage before Clubs became professional in their preparation for 2/3 matches?
I personally think its too much, but I'm sure it has been discussed numerous times.
I don't see how a lad hurling junior , has to train so much. But I think the reason is the 'bainisteoir's' of these teams see teams in higher grades/other clubs doing 2 nights training, so they decide to do 3.... (and running sandhills, drinking litres of water before running etc)
Its ridiculous , and I expect all the people that know a lot more about it than I do to argue why they need it. But, they don't !
Senior hurling , yes. But not the lads that enjoy the game at lower levels , and want to play a game. Do they want/need beeptests/aerobic tests / BMI etc ?
Anyway, that's my opinion on it.
The fixtures seem to be a mess, looking from the outside, but do we know all the facts/reasons as to why they are ? I don't think so.

greenspurs · 26-04-2018 11:44AM

Village87 wrote: »

2-3 Months of training, preperation, challenge matches picking the right team etc are needed for 2-3 matches early in the year.

Who has decided that 2-3 months ( a big difference in 2 OR 3 months) is required?
Its that "Shur the lads in ****** are doing it, so we'll do a few extra" mentality.

babyjesus14 · 26-04-2018 02:46PM

citykat wrote: »

Fair play to the Galway county board. Less than 3 weeks out from the first round of the Leinster but playing club games.

Jesus wept the Galway County hurling board are being held up as purveyors of best practice! This is the same board that is pretty much broke from nonsensical attempt at building a centre of excellence despite the fact one already exists in the county. They also decided this week that the 2017 Under 21 Roinn A championship will not be completed as four months into 2018 they were still stuck at the quarter final stages, probably some thing to do with the fact that their wasn't a single senior club match played in the county for the best part of 4 months last summer.

tbiggertycome · 26-04-2018 07:11PM

Colin Fennelly, Paul Murphy & Richie Hogan are all back training with Kilkenny this week.

brookville · 26-04-2018 07:27PM

tbiggertycome wrote: »

Colin Fennelly, Paul Murphy & Richie Hogan are all back training with Kilkenny this week.

Yea I heard that.Thankfully no set back with richie hopefully he can have a good run now.I'd presume them 3 will be on the bench for the dublin match.

tbiggertycome · 26-04-2018 07:37PM

babyjesus14 wrote: »

Jesus wept the Galway County hurling board are being held up as purveyors of best practice! This is the same board that is pretty much broke from nonsensical attempt at building a centre of excellence despite the fact one already exists in the county. They also decided this week that the 2017 Under 21 Roinn A championship will not be completed as four months into 2018 they were still stuck at the quarter final stages, probably some thing to do with the fact that their wasn't a single senior club match played in the county for the best part of 4 months last summer.

Q. How long will it be before Kilkenny club players play another competitive game this year?
A. 4 months (2 weeks April, May, June, July, 2 weeks August) this is when the next match has been provisionally scheduled by the county board. If Kilkenny are knocked out earlier they will aim to move some games forward but you may be sure clubs will object as lads will be away because they were told this is when the matches are on. I'm not blaming the Co board completely here its a mess that has been forced on most counties.
Did Kilkenny need/ask for this change? Absolutely not we used to run our club season very efficiently.
Have Kilkenny dealt with it well? Absolutely not and anyone who thinks that "Kilkenny" club players (or intercounty for that matter) are happy with the situation they've got there head in the sand. I know a full panel of senior players, I know a handful of county players and I know a fair few players from all levels all around the county and I can tell you one thing, I have not meet one yet that isn't pissed off with the situation. A few of the Kilkenny players I know wanted to play club last weekend.
Personally I think with the amount of games Kilkenny have played so far that they could have easily trained mid week (last week) and let the lads play the games last weekend.

greenspurs wrote: »

How did they manage before Clubs became professional in their preparation for 2/3 matches?
I personally think its too much, but I'm sure it has been discussed numerous times.
I don't see how a lad hurling junior , has to train so much. But I think the reason is the 'bainisteoir's' of these teams see teams in higher grades/other clubs doing 2 nights training, so they decide to do 3.... (and running sandhills, drinking litres of water before running etc)
Its ridiculous , and I expect all the people that know a lot more about it than I do to argue why they need it. But, they don't !
Senior hurling , yes. But not the lads that enjoy the game at lower levels , and want to play a game. Do they want/need beeptests/aerobic tests / BMI etc ?
Anyway, that's my opinion on it.
The fixtures seem to be a mess, looking from the outside, but do we know all the facts/reasons as to why they are ? I don't think so.

I don't agree to be honest. If you look at any local Sunday morning soccer team they normally do 2 months preseason before they kick off. The difference of course is that soccer matches happen every weekend and once the season starts it keeps going week after week until you either win it or are eliminated.

We have the farcical situation where teams are preparing for matches which are months apart it actually makes no sense. People are then giving out about the amount of training being done well when you have to be ready at all times of the year you have to train for most of the year. Players want to play games and there is no reason they can't play more. You look at the lads playing Sunday morning soccer most would not me close to the level of fitness of a Intercounty hurler yet they can play up to 20 weeks in a row!!!

I'm not comparing apples and oranges here but just an interesting little highlight on the difference in frequency of games.
Wayne Rooney played 54 matches in 10 months in 2007 (I know he's a professional)
Henry Shefflin played 54 (Championship)matches from 1999 to the Leinster final in 2010!

The whole GAA is lopsided towards training

randd1 · 26-04-2018 08:07PM

Whatever you say about the new inter county format, there is one huge plus to it, and that is that everyone knows when they’re playing.

At minor level, the change to U17 shouldn’t affect the adult club sides in terms of players available.

Within the county, there are 12 teams at each level, and then we go into Junior A & B at club level in Kilkenny.

Now given that, and that almost certainly that the county team is picked from the top 3 grades, I have an idea.

Change the format of the championship structure for the clubs to a full round robin.

County Championship
- 11 rounds, every team plays each other once.
- The QF’s would be based on your final standing, 1v8, 2v7, 3v6 and 4v5. The winners would obviously advance to the SF’s.

Relegation Final
- Teams 11 & 12 would playoff to see who goes down. The winner would go to the county shield.

County Shield
- The 4 losing QF teams would join teams 9 & 10 and the winners of the relegation final in the court shield. The best placed QF loser in the round robin would be seeded in the SF. The other 6 sides would play QF’s.

Here’s the thing though. The last two round robin rounds and all the Knockout games would be scheduled for after the AI final in the possibility we might get there. For the other 9 rounds, play them from April to August, at pre-determined dates, but have it so the county players are available for 4 rounds of the 9, with the clubs fulfilling 5 rounds without the county players. Once the schedule is fixed and we know what rounds the county lads will be available, then make the fixture list for the clubs.

We’d still have 6 rounds and all knockout games with the county players on show, which is actually more than we have now, but the club players would have more meaningful games.

The added bonus for the County Board would be the increased revenue, and a set season to keep the clubs happy.

suirway · 26-04-2018 09:46PM

randd1 wrote: »

Whatever you say about the new inter county format, there is one huge plus to it, and that is that everyone knows when they’re playing.

At minor level, the change to U17 shouldn’t affect the adult club sides in terms of players available.

Within the county, there are 12 teams at each level, and then we go into Junior A & B at club level in Kilkenny.

Now given that, and that almost certainly that the county team is picked from the top 3 grades, I have an idea.

Change the format of the championship structure for the clubs to a full round robin.

County Championship
- 11 rounds, every team plays each other once.
- The QF’s would be based on your final standing, 1v8, 2v7, 3v6 and 4v5. The winners would obviously advance to the SF’s.

Relegation Final
- Teams 11 & 12 would playoff to see who goes down. The winner would go to the county shield.

County Shield
- The 4 losing QF teams would join teams 9 & 10 and the winners of the relegation final in the court shield. The best placed QF loser in the round robin would be seeded in the SF. The other 6 sides would play QF’s.

Here’s the thing though. The last two round robin rounds and all the Knockout games would be scheduled for after the AI final in the possibility we might get there. For the other 9 rounds, play them from April to August, at pre-determined dates, but have it so the county players are available for 4 rounds of the 9, with the clubs fulfilling 5 rounds without the county players. Once the schedule is fixed and we know what rounds the county lads will be available, then make the fixture list for the clubs.

We’d still have 6 rounds and all knockout games with the county players on show, which is actually more than we have now, but the club players would have more meaningful games.

This is very similar to the arrangement in Monaghan which got a lot of publicity in the last few weeks. League games with and without county players. I agree it is the way forward however there are a few areas where the above could and indeed would need to be altered. Just having the same points on offer for league games with & without county players would be unfair on some clubs - those clubs with more on county senior/under 21 panels. For example Mullinavat have nobody on the current senior panel so essentially would be playing all their games with a full strength set up. The likes of the Boro, Shamrocks have 2 or 3 on senior panels etc. Likewise at intermediate some teams such as Freshford, Tullaroan, Glenmore have 2 & 3 on panels whereas likes of Fenians, St. Martins have none. The solution in Monaghan was to award 5 points for a win in those games involving the county players & 2 points for the games excluding county players.

Furthermore, Kilkenny could not even manage two games this season from April to August so there is not a prayer of 4 being arranged next year. The solution would be to play 2 with county players in April, play all those league games without county players for the remainder of the summer and play the balance of 3 plus knockouts once the Inter county season is completed.

Restricting the relegation to the bottom 2 has the danger of some games near the end of the league being meaningless so keeping the current set up of bottom 4 being in relegation would be preferable.

In my opinion a losers shield would be pointless as once teams are gone out of the championship it would be next or impossible to gain interest for a losers shield competition.

Likewise every team has the right to enter the championship - in your proposal teams 9/10/11/12 are essentially excluded from the championship after the league element. The current arrangements of top 4 into QF, bottom 4 first round relegation, middle 4 first round knockout allows all teams to be still in the championship but rewards sufficiently league placings.

One further point - the new Inter county set up has not allowed players know exactly when they are playing. Club players remain awaiting county teams progress in order to know when club championships will take place. So this huge plus you referred to is non existent! Credit for the proposal. It is certainly a vast step up on the current mess.

citykat · 27-04-2018 08:13AM

babyjesus14 wrote: »

Jesus wept the Galway County hurling board are being held up as purveyors of best practice! This is the same board that is pretty much broke from nonsensical attempt at building a centre of excellence despite the fact one already exists in the county. They also decided this week that the 2017 Under 21 Roinn A championship will not be completed as four months into 2018 they were still stuck at the quarter final stages, probably some thing to do with the fact that their wasn't a single senior club match played in the county for the best part of 4 months last summer.

Save your tears baby. Galway county board have to accomodate football and hurling. That'll cause delays. Thankfully in Kilkenny we dont have that problem.

Village87 · 27-04-2018 08:23AM

randd1 wrote: »

Whatever you say about the new inter county format, there is one huge plus to it, and that is that everyone knows when they’re playing.

At minor level, the change to U17 shouldn’t affect the adult club sides in terms of players available.

Within the county, there are 12 teams at each level, and then we go into Junior A & B at club level in Kilkenny.

Now given that, and that almost certainly that the county team is picked from the top 3 grades, I have an idea.

Change the format of the championship structure for the clubs to a full round robin.

County Championship
- 11 rounds, every team plays each other once.
- The QF’s would be based on your final standing, 1v8, 2v7, 3v6 and 4v5. The winners would obviously advance to the SF’s.

Relegation Final
- Teams 11 & 12 would playoff to see who goes down. The winner would go to the county shield.

County Shield
- The 4 losing QF teams would join teams 9 & 10 and the winners of the relegation final in the court shield. The best placed QF loser in the round robin would be seeded in the SF. The other 6 sides would play QF’s.

Here’s the thing though. The last two round robin rounds and all the Knockout games would be scheduled for after the AI final in the possibility we might get there. For the other 9 rounds, play them from April to August, at pre-determined dates, but have it so the county players are available for 4 rounds of the 9, with the clubs fulfilling 5 rounds without the county players. Once the schedule is fixed and we know what rounds the county lads will be available, then make the fixture list for the clubs.

We’d still have 6 rounds and all knockout games with the county players on show, which is actually more than we have now, but the club players would have more meaningful games.

The added bonus for the County Board would be the increased revenue, and a set season to keep the clubs happy.

Waste of time IMO!

Some clubs have 3/4 inter county players others have none. As a spectator i would have little interest in other club matches without the county players. Attendances would start to diminish. County players are club players no.1 that is what makes the GAA the establishment it is.
To keep the Club standard as high as it is then the Clubs need there Senior inter county players, u21 to compete in the league /championship. Kilkenny have a fantastic club competition, club weekends are every bit of entertaining as as intercounty weekends.

Another issue, some county players must be fuming with the one Club match, 44/45 on the panel, lot of mouths to feed come game time. A lot of players had very little game time over the last 3 months

HughCassidy · 27-04-2018 09:05AM

citykat wrote: »

Save your tears baby. Galway county board have to accomodate football and hurling. That'll cause delays. Thankfully in Kilkenny we dont have that problem.

Do kilkenny not accommodate handball, I know a couple of houses where lads play both.

HughCassidy · 27-04-2018 09:25AM

Village87 wrote: »

Waste of time IMO!

Some clubs have 3/4 inter county players others have none. As a spectator i would have little interest in other club matches without the county players. Attendances would start to diminish. County players are club players no.1 that is what makes the GAA the establishment it is.
To keep the Club standard as high as it is then the Clubs need there Senior inter county players, u21 to compete in the league /championship. Kilkenny have a fantastic club competition, club weekends are every bit of entertaining as as intercounty weekends.

Another issue, some county players must be fuming with the one Club match, 44/45 on the panel, lot of mouths to feed come game time. A lot of players had very little game time over the last 3 months

You are not really a club man then where does your county player come from the club the grass roots of the gaa croke park seem to be forgetting this like every walk of life they are pushing the player to get more out of them typical board room mentality . You have good points as regards the local championship but it is dissaponting the way things have happened may be some people wouldn't have cared if we won the league but I think the crowd in the park that day showed there gratitude. time will tell if this will work out but as I said above board room mentality in croke park its like the the big shop pushing out your corner shop .

Hawkeye6 · 27-04-2018 10:14AM

citykat wrote: »

babyjesus14 wrote: »

Jesus wept the Galway County hurling board are being held up as purveyors of best practice! This is the same board that is pretty much broke from nonsensical attempt at building a centre of excellence despite the fact one already exists in the county. They also decided this week that the 2017 Under 21 Roinn A championship will not be completed as four months into 2018 they were still stuck at the quarter final stages, probably some thing to do with the fact that their wasn't a single senior club match played in the county for the best part of 4 months last summer.

Save your tears baby. Galway county board have to accomodate football and hurling. That'll cause delays. Thankfully in Kilkenny we dont have that problem.

Couldn't let this go. There IS football in Kilkenny, the Quarter Finals of the intermediate championship is on this weekend for example. These are Club matches too. Played by the same players that play hurling. If clubs really wanted matches they would put time into football as well. And don't tell me the lads you are talking about don't like big balls, I guarantee they have no hesitation playing soccer or rugby. The players involve deserve even greater respect. Feile football is also on this weekend and our development squads led by DJ Carey will play Waterford.
Again I would remind you and your cronies, about the Under-19 games this weekend. 15 games to be played (30 clubs). An important age group to provide games for before the exams kick in. Kilkenny way ahead of most in this respect to fill the gap of moving minor to Under-17. You seem to think that Club is Only Senior. You are obviously linked to a city Senior club and that's all you see,
Seeing as you are a strong supporter of Galway GAA, you will surely recall that the 2017 Galway senior hurling final was played in December and the delay had nothing to do with football!! And that's not unusual.
Why do you hate Kilkenny so much? Nothing is perfect, and the parameters were set by others under the name of democracy, but in fairness Kilkenny is still one of the best setups in the country.
On that note, well done to the posters who actually took time to put ideas out there. You are the type of people who should be county board reps, so as things can be discussed and consensus found.

Village87 · 27-04-2018 10:41AM

HughCassidy wrote: »

You are not really a club man then where does your county player come from the club the grass roots of the gaa croke park seem to be forgetting this like every walk of life they are pushing the player to get more out of them typical board room mentality . You have good points as regards the local championship but it is dissaponting the way things have happened may be some people wouldn't have cared if we won the league but I think the crowd in the park that day showed there gratitude. time will tell if this will work out but as I said above board room mentality in croke park its like the the big shop pushing out your corner shop .

County players come from the many hours spent by volunteers and resources of clubs to make sure these kids can reach there full potential. Many volunteers like myself get get reward from seeing these kids progress to adult level with the club especially, also great to see some play inter county level. I myself love to see these players progress and represent there club and see the club do well at senior level. Then i feel the many hours spent with the youth is not a sacrifice but an investment for the club. The new hurling calendar and talk of players not representing there club and only playing inter county is and would be devastating for clubs all over the country.

How would the underage coaches in Bennettsbridge feel watching the bridge take to the field without therre 4/5 inter county players in league/championship and more than likely getting well bet in every match

Grats · 27-04-2018 11:03AM

As Brian Cody said in an interview just yesterday, Kilkenny voted against the new structure. He's no happier with it than the rest of us and the knock on effect on the Senior/Intermediate club scene in Kilkenny. The bad weather disrupted fixtures and our participation in the League Final further complicated matters. Croke Park must take note and action. The CPA and GPA must do likewise. What did any of them do to lend support to the many hurling counties who foresaw the potential problems and voted against the new structures? And what do the CPA/GPA intend doing about it now? No point in just issuing statements.

It's worth noting that just one round of senior club hurling was played in April in Kilkenny last year. We were to have two rounds in April this year, one of which was postponed due to our involvement in the League Final. Two rounds were played in May last year. As the month of May 2018 is saturated with with the Leinster Championship there was no scope for any club matches. This situation has to be reviewed by Croke Park and it is imperative that the CPA/GPA add more than just their voice to proceedings.

Wexford were complimented on this thread for having club fixtures during April. Well their last club matches took place last weekend and the county's first outing in Leinster is a week after our first outing. Furthermore they headed off to Spain earlier this week for warm weather training, in April!

Roll on the 1st of May when we can put this debacle behind us and look forward in earnest to the Leinster Championship. While in the meantime appreciate the feast of local hurling that goes on regardless.

citykat · 27-04-2018 11:20AM

Hawkeye6 wrote: »

Couldn't let this go. There IS football in Kilkenny, the Quarter Finals of the intermediate championship is on this weekend for example. These are Club matches too. Played by the same players that play hurling. If clubs really wanted matches they would put time into football as well. And don't tell me the lads you are talking about don't like big balls, I guarantee they have no hesitation playing soccer or rugby. The players involve deserve even greater respect. Feile football is also on this weekend and our development squads led by DJ Carey will play Waterford.
Again I would remind you and your cronies, about the Under-19 games this weekend. 15 games to be played (30 clubs). An important age group to provide games for before the exams kick in. Kilkenny way ahead of most in this respect to fill the gap of moving minor to Under-17. You seem to think that Club is Only Senior. You are obviously linked to a city Senior club and that's all you see,
Seeing as you are a strong supporter of Galway GAA, you will surely recall that the 2017 Galway senior hurling final was played in December and the delay had nothing to do with football!! And that's not unusual.
Why do you hate Kilkenny so much? Nothing is perfect, and the parameters were set by others under the name of democracy, but in fairness Kilkenny is still one of the best setups in the country.
On that note, well done to the posters who actually took time to put ideas out there. You are the type of people who should be county board reps, so as things can be discussed and consensus found.

You're some spoofer. Are you really trying to claim that that football and hurling are given equal prominence in Kilkenny? At what level? Not at club anyway. What's the ratio of training sessions between the codes? Football does not impinge on the hurling schedule at the business end of the competition - never has. I'll be at the football feile Sunday morning for my sins. I know one of the city clubs is going to be understrength due to a soccer match. Seems the players themselves are voting with their feet.

danganabu · 27-04-2018 12:05PM

randd1 wrote: »

Whatever you say about the new inter county format, there is one huge plus to it, and that is that everyone knows when they’re playing.

Having campaigned strongly against the new system, this was the one crumb of comfort I was left with when the new structure was passed, however unfortuantely this hasn't happened at all, in Tipp we were assured that we would have 5 rounds of club ( 2 football and 3 hurling) played before the 'break' and then back in first weekend in September. Several of our younger players though lovely, train accordingly Jan - March, play the 5 games and after exams etc off to the states for the summer.

What has transpired is 1 football and 2 hurling and at last weeks county board meeting it was announced from the top table that if Tipp are knocked out early the club championships will be brought forward which is obviously unacceptable to the clubs and players and is a shambles.

In one way I'm actually kind of hoping that a few of the high profile hurling counties are not able to complete their championships in time and will not be in a position to put forward a team for the provincial club championships as it will highlight the utter madness of the new structure and calendar and force a rethink to those that voted in favour of it ( the huge majority of whom were football first counties which is another joke). But on the other side I appreciate it would be wholly unfair on the champions in a county that fails to make the deadline.

Be under no illusions and I am not being over dramatic here but the fabric of the organisation that is built around the ethos of the club is in grave grave danger in the next few years, I really hope our new president is cognisant of this fact as direction will need to come from the very top.

danganabu · 27-04-2018 12:07PM

citykat wrote: »

You're some spoofer.

One good thing that has come from all this is the exposing of this lad as a complete fraud and bluffer.

Hawkeye6 · 27-04-2018 12:08PM

citykat wrote: »

Hawkeye6 wrote: »

Couldn't let this go. There IS football in Kilkenny, the Quarter Finals of the intermediate championship is on this weekend for example. These are Club matches too. Played by the same players that play hurling. If clubs really wanted matches they would put time into football as well. And don't tell me the lads you are talking about don't like big balls, I guarantee they have no hesitation playing soccer or rugby. The players involve deserve even greater respect. Feile football is also on this weekend and our development squads led by DJ Carey will play Waterford.
Again I would remind you and your cronies, about the Under-19 games this weekend. 15 games to be played (30 clubs). An important age group to provide games for before the exams kick in. Kilkenny way ahead of most in this respect to fill the gap of moving minor to Under-17. You seem to think that Club is Only Senior. You are obviously linked to a city Senior club and that's all you see,
Seeing as you are a strong supporter of Galway GAA, you will surely recall that the 2017 Galway senior hurling final was played in December and the delay had nothing to do with football!! And that's not unusual.
Why do you hate Kilkenny so much? Nothing is perfect, and the parameters were set by others under the name of democracy, but in fairness Kilkenny is still one of the best setups in the country.
On that note, well done to the posters who actually took time to put ideas out there. You are the type of people who should be county board reps, so as things can be discussed and consensus found.

You're some spoofer. Are you really trying to claim that that football and hurling are given equal prominence in Kilkenny? At what level? Not at club anyway. What's the ratio of training sessions between the codes? Football does not impinge on the hurling schedule at the business end of the competition - never has. I'll be at the football feile Sunday morning for my sins. I know one of the city clubs is going to be understrength due to a soccer match. Seems the players themselves are voting with their feet.

I think we know you are the spoofer who prefers to see lads playing soccer rather than promote Gaelic Football. Prefers the Galway way and has no appreciation for the Kilkenny way. ignores all the relevant points I and other posters have put. Posters who have taken the time to articulate potential solutions. I am proud of Kilkenny, you come across as someone who is not. Do everyone a favour, don't bother going to Feile Football with your sour glare and criticisms of football in Kilkenny. The young players don't need that kind of negative vibe around the place. They deserve the same enthusiasm as the Feile hurlers. Most are the are the same lads.

minty81 · 27-04-2018 07:42PM

I think at inter county finish the league at start of April, start the championship at start of May, play the All Ireland at start of August. Then we have August, Sept and Oct to play the club championship. At least clubs can plan properly that way rather than basically having two seasons in one and club players can plan properly too rather than be in limbo.
Run the club league over the spring/summer without the county players but have some incentive such as the 4 semi finalists are seeded for the championship.

babyjesus14 · 27-04-2018 07:48PM

citykat wrote: »

Save your tears baby. Galway county board have to accomodate football and hurling. That'll cause delays. Thankfully in Kilkenny we dont have that problem.

Well if you knew anything about Galway GAA you would know that they're very few dual clubs, both codes are run by separate boards a football board and a hurling board. Some players who want to play both codes actually have to play with different clubs Daithi Burke (Turloughmore and Corofin) and The Mannion brothers(Ahascragh and Caltra) being examples.

But i wouldn't expect you to know that, as you never seem to lets facts get in the way of your ditwitted arguements!

citykat · 27-04-2018 10:07PM

babyjesus14 wrote: »

Well if you knew anything about Galway GAA you would know that they're very few dual clubs, both codes are run by separate boards a football board and a hurling board. Some players who want to play both codes actually have to play with different clubs Daithi Burke (Turloughmore and Corofin) and The Mannion brothers(Ahascragh and Caltra) being examples.

But i wouldn't expect you to know that, as you never seem to lets facts get in the way of your ditwitted arguements!

Well baby I honestly couldn't care less who runs the GAA in Galway or what they call themselves. The point still stands. They were happy enough to play a round of club matches last week. For some reason we couldnt do so. I think the decision by whoever it was in Galway was respectful of the clubs and was a positive move. You on the other hand find fault with that decision.

MfMan · 27-04-2018 11:37PM

babyjesus14 wrote: »

Well if you knew anything about Galway GAA you would know that they're very few dual clubs, both codes are run by separate boards a football board and a hurling board. Some players who want to play both codes actually have to play with different clubs Daithi Burke (Turloughmore and Corofin) and The Mannion brothers(Ahascragh and Caltra) being examples.

But i wouldn't expect you to know that, as you never seem to lets facts get in the way of your ditwitted arguements!

Um.. no. There's only one (county) board in Galway now, not separate ones. Caltra and Ahascragh are separate clubs but of the same parish. Corofin, Turlough different parishes.

Grats · 28-04-2018 09:03AM

citykat wrote: »

Well baby I honestly couldn't care less who runs the GAA in Galway or what they call themselves. The point still stands. They were happy enough to play a round of club matches last week. For some reason we couldnt do so. I think the decision by whoever it was in Galway was respectful of the clubs and was a positive move. You on the other hand find fault with that decision.

So how many rounds have Galway played so far? They had more scope since they exited the league at quarter final stage in any case. I think we all accept that rearranging club fixtures at short notice is unfair to players who have other commitments outside of hurling. They would have known the fixtures months ago and may well have had other arrangements made. Supporters can chose to go along at short notice, unlike the players.

It's a learning situation for all involved since this structure was foisted on counties, many of the hurling counties who voted against it. It's up to the County Boards, the CPA and the GPA to demand change next year and not wait to see this three year trial period out.

tbiggertycome · 28-04-2018 09:17AM

A good article from the KP which I think outlines the situation very well.

Kilkenny hurling: the big plan will leave club players without matches for who knows how long
John Knox
28 Apr 2018
Email: @kilkennypeoplesport

Kilkenny hurling: the big plan will leave club players without matches for who knows how long
John Lockes (Callan) and St Martin's (Muckalee) provided good fare in the first matches in the IHL but when either side will play again no one knows. The players have been given five weeks off

Kilkenny senior and intermediate clubs are in the dark right now. And there is no one who can turn on the light to help them find the way forward.
The weekend before last the 12 senior and the 12 intermediate clubs involved in the league/championships turned out, all ready, all willing, all firing for the opening action in the competitions.
It was all very good. The matches ran to schedule. Teams and players put in fine efforts.
Okay, by and large the action looked early season stuff, but that’s supposed to be the case.
And clubs, or the vast majority of them, helped with the assembling of the weekend match programme and provided lineouts that were reasonably close to the teams that took the field.
All very good. The clubs looked after their end of the business.
The County Board and referees did the same, and it was good to have the starting times of matches on both Saturday and Sunday staggered so supporters could make their way to a couple of games at their leisure.
Lovely hurling, as they say!
Except it isn’t now. The senior and intermediate clubs, the main clubs in terms of where players are being grooming for the Kilkenny senior team in the immediate future - for the under-21 also; but that local competition won’t start until September - don’t know when the next series of matches will be played.
They have been told it is depends on Kilkenny’s progress in the championship.
Kilkenny are the current National League champions, so it is not unreasonable to think they might do well enough in the championship.
So how might that shape the timeline?
The Leinster championship runs until Sunday, July 1, when the final will be played in Croke Park.
Winners on the day
The All-Ireland championship begins with preliminary quarter-finals on Saturday and Sunday, July 7/8 involving the third placed teams in the Leinster and Munster groups. These games must provide winners on the day.
The All-Ireland quarter-finals involving the runners-up in Leinster and Munster will be played on July 15. The semi-finals are pencilled in for July 28 and 29.
The All-Ireland is fixed for three weeks later, August 19.
With a bit of luck, Kilkenny could do well. In that case, it might be early September before clubs see more serious action.
That might not even be the case. If Kilkenny were lucky enough to make it through to the All-Ireland final, and if that ended in a draw and required a replay, then there would be even more trouble.
The All-Ireland final replay date has been fixed for Saturday, September 8. So it is a possibility, remote, but still not beyond all bounds, that there might be no top end club hurling in Kilkenny until mid-September, at the earliest!
Basically no one has a clue at the moment, and no one wants to spell out the darkest possibility.
And as a result of the uncertainty, most club players have been given a holiday from training. Two clubs we know, on in each division, have called off training.
They will recommence in five weeks time to prepare for what will be the second start, yes, the second start to the season, whenever that might be.
To say clubs are livid is an understatement. Clubs want games. Players want game. Fans want games.
Without regular games, and the training required for them, players won’t improve their skill levels. In fact, they might simply drift away and chase regular action in other codes.
Kilkenny run good competitions. The success enjoyed by the county is not an accident, but is directly related to the competitive competitions run at local level.
The schedule of games for clubs is, in ordinary circumstances, well planned. Clubs get a fixtures booklet at the County Board meeting in March and that lays out the programme of matches as they will unfold for the rest of the season.
If even takes into account time off for county teams to prepare for the Leinster and All-Ireland championships, if the need arises. The only thing it doesn’t take account of is the weather.
If nature explodes and leads to the cancellation of games, well, that’s dealt with at the time.
There is space or what officers term ‘wriggle room’ to readjust the programme.
The point is clubs and players have a reasonably accurate picture of how the season will unfold.
By the time clubs get the fixtures programme parish events like Communion, Confirmation, Field Days, wedding even, plus other events have been considered and the official games programme is shaped around them.
A plan
So everyone steps into the season working off a well laid out, well thought out plan. Players and families can plan holidays. Students can plan American trips on the J1 Visa.
The package is neat and tidy. There is some form of clarity.
And then we arrive at GAA Programme 2018; the new way forward. New structures for inter-county games dominate.
The National League are played earlier.
The Leinster and Munster championships will be run on a Round Robin bases, beginning on May 13 (Leinster) and ending with the finals on Sunday, July 1 (both). Grand!
Not a bad plan, on paper.
April was to be left free for club competitions. Earlier in the season some counties looked down the road and saw problems with April as far as they were concerned.
They pushed their main competitions to the back end of the season, forgetting about April altogether.
Fine, if that’s what they want.
Kilkenny clubs didn’t. They wanted their serious games in the senior and intermediate league/championships as per usual in April, May and July. Then they would take on the serious business of the knockout championship, beginning in September.
There is an even spread of games.
They didn’t want secondary competitions - let’s be honest, all outside the league/championships are second level - providing the main diet of matches during the time we enjoy some of the best weather of the year.
Clubs had accepted that April would accommodate two rounds of the league/championship.
However, when Kilkenny did well in the League, got to and won the final, they lost a week that could have been used for club matches.
GAA Programme 2018!
From Sunday week when the last of the senior and intermediate club matches were played, until May 13 when Kilkenny face Dublin in the first round of the Leinster Round Robin series, is four weeks.
In real terms, that gives Kilkenny manager, Brian Cody, and his selectors three weeks for training and preparing the squad for what is a deadly serious match - it is only light muscle flexing work on the last week before big matches - which is not over doing it.
Naturally, everyone in Kilkenny is hoping the county team does well.
But no one can say it is fair to ask clubs to start a competition in April and then - in the successful counties - to take a huge break until September.
And you start again then! Two starts to the one season…..
Long term that won’t work. It just won’t work. Players will be lost wholesale.
And if the idea that was being floated not so long ago that all club competitions, including the All-Ireland club championships, should be completed within the calendar year ever comes into being then clubs will feel the squeeze even more.
Everything will be rush, rush, rush between September and December, which is not really optimum hurling/football time.
The scenario doesn’t look great. And the current games schedule is supposed to be for a trial, three year period.
One read last week that a high ranking GAA officials asked people to wait until the end of the season so things can be judged in their entirety.
Well, from what I have seen to date and listening to club officials, the people on the ground have already made their judgement.
The problems go deeper than clubs wondering about games and when they might be played.
We know from covering the colleges senior hurling championship in Leinster and at All-Ireland level that there are knock on effects.
What went on there was ridiculous. It appeared some fixtures were being played merely to get them out of the way, to fall in with a schedule.
The championship clash between eventual All-Ireland champions, St Kieran's College and Castlecomer Community School was a case in point.
It was played on an awful day, in wind, rain, snow and freezing temperatures in Jenkinstown. The match went to extra time.
Why? Because a result was needed on the day. Really, the game should have been abandoned because of the weather.
As that competition unfolded, the availability of grounds became a problem.
Because National League matches were being played in quick succession during February and March, pitches all over were taking a bit of a battering.
Colleges games?
Counties reacted by trying to protect them, which is natural enough, between rounds.
But that left no space to accommodate colleges matches in some venues. Consequently we saw St Kieran’s College having to travel to Enniscorthy to play St Peter’s College in their own backyard in a provincial semi-final.
Then even worse, St Kieran’s had to travel to Roscommon for an All-Ireland quarter-final. The story put to us on that one was that a grounds couldn’t be found for the match.
Imagine, there were no grounds available between Kilkenny and Roscommon - a distance just four short of 100 miles.
Also, do you remember the National League quarter-final between Kilkenny and Offaly played in Tullamore in March? It was the second weekend of the snow.
That game and a lot of others were put back a day so the snow might melt and the programme could be kept up to date.
Thanks to the Herculean efforts of the Offaly Board that match was able to be played. The GAA was hard pressed for dates, so it was important that match went ahead the weekend it did.
How did the Offaly officials get the snow off the pitch?
They churned it up using the grass cutter used to maintain the pitch. When the snow was loosened up it melted quicker, apparently.
A true story!
Judge the season in its entirely. Sure, but when the time comes decision makers must remember things like how St Kieran’s were inconvenienced and how versatile Offaly made things happen with outside the box thinking.
And how April, the month for club competitions, didn't happen!

Grats · 28-04-2018 09:36AM

Just read the article now, thank you. It outlines clearly the problems facing county boards and everybody else involved. That is the situation in Kilkenny explained clearly. No point in comparing it to other counties without known the full facts of those counties too. As I said in previous post, the County Board, the CPA and the GPA need to ensure this structure is dismantled next year. Meanwhile, we have to suffer on and bear it for this year.

Davys Fits · 28-04-2018 09:48AM

You just cant please GAA people. Its not long ago since Richie Power was giving out saying that there wawsnt enough of games and hed like to be playing every week.

Grats · 28-04-2018 09:53AM

Davys Fits wrote: »

You just cant please GAA people. Its not long ago since Richie Power was giving out saying that there wawsnt enough of games and hed like to be playing every week.

Richie Hogan?

In all honesty though, many anticipated the problems we now have when the new structure was announced. Of course you can't please everybody but John Knox explains the Kilkenny situation perfectly.

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