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Club finals moved to January from next year

  • 29-06-2019 2:17pm
    #1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭


    https://www.gaa.ie/news-archive/news/all-ireland-club-finals-to-be-moved-to-january/

    Well not before time anyway

    The March finish, with provincial finals being played 3 months earlier, and the AI semi a month earlier, was a farcical set-up imo

    Great news for county managers also, and it will enable club players who make the All Ireland final to join up with their county team for full league campaigns going forward

    In my view, a very sensible decision all round, and while it really shouldn't have taken this long its very welcome


«1

Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 37,553 ✭✭✭✭PTH2009


    Good decision

    The players involved may not have as good a Christmas/New years tho as the semis will be played the first weekend of the new year

    It will be quite different on paddys day as I did like watching the finals that day


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    PTH2009 wrote: »
    Good decision

    The players involved may not have as good a Christmas/New years tho as the semis will be played the first weekend of the new year

    It will be quite different on paddys day as I did like watching the finals that day

    True but I know a few Galway teams involved in all Ireland series over the years who trained throughout Christmas regardless. I'd say it'll eventually move to before Christmas though, but this is a good initial step - imo


  • Registered Users Posts: 27,317 ✭✭✭✭super_furry


    It’ll be a shame to lose the tradition of St Paddy’s day but it’s clearly better for the players – even if they still can’t get stuck into the Christmas dinner.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,806 ✭✭✭Jizique


    It’ll be a shame to lose the tradition of St Paddy’s day but it’s clearly better for the players – even if they still can’t get stuck into the Christmas dinner.

    Won’t do much for the attendance at the final given typical Jan weather


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,793 ✭✭✭CrabRevolution


    A sensible decision. I never understood why it took about 6 weeks to run off 3/4 rounds of the provincial championships, but then another 3 months to play the next 2 rounds.


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    January was a much nicer month than march this year.

    May lose a few neutrals but obviously natives of the clubs involved would travel in their droves, even if it was Christmas Day


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,569 ✭✭✭✭ProudDUB


    A move in the right direction. But the finals are still on a month too late. The club season should end in the one calendar year. End of. Play the finals in December, at the latest. Let the players involved be able to enjoy their Christmas & New Year. With the finals on in January, they can't. Finals in December also means the intercounty players get to have a bit of a break before rejoining the their respective panels for the start of league training, the pre-season competitions etc etc. Going straight from playing a club final to playing in the FBD, or O'Byrne Cups won't do much for player burnout.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    Realistically no player involved will play O'Byrne/fbd cup etc. though

    And they will likely sit out at least the first round or two of league aswell.

    But they'll be able to join up with the panel much sooner and will be able to play a large amount of the league potentially

    I'd be surprised if it wasn't moved to December in next three years though


  • Registered Users Posts: 10,914 ✭✭✭✭castletownman


    In fairness, scrapping the pre-season tournaments would free up a lot more calendar space.

    Them yokes are pointless.


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,569 ✭✭✭✭ProudDUB


    jr86 wrote: »
    Realistically no player involved will play O'Byrne/fbd cup etc. though

    And they will likely sit out at least the first round or two of league aswell.

    But they'll be able to join up with the panel much sooner and will be able to play a large amount of the league potentially

    I'd be surprised if it wasn't moved to December in next three years though

    Human nature being what it is, players will still want to play in them, so as not to want to lose ground, or risk someone else getting the starting jersey for league games, because they were off on club duties.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 9,286 ✭✭✭seligehgit


    In fairness, scrapping the pre-season tournaments would free up a lot more calendar space.

    Them yokes are pointless.

    TBF they are oft used by managers to experiment with newcomers as opposed to the league.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,893 ✭✭✭Poor_old_gill


    Good move, although I'd have liked to see these matches played the week before Christmas as part of a series of club finals.

    There is a big lull in matches played in Croker from the AI final to the following March and I feel that this would be a good way of bridging that


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,010 ✭✭✭TheRiverman


    All it does is narrow the time gap between semi - finals and final.Club players are still going to be training and playing in the middle of Winter and the ridiculous practise of starting the club Championships in one year and finishing them in the next will continue.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 314 ✭✭Blinky Plebum


    All it does is narrow the time gap between semi - finals and final.Club players are still going to be training and playing in the middle of Winter and the ridiculous practise of starting the club Championships in one year and finishing them in the next will continue.


    Nothing odd at all about it, every major soccer league in the world does that, the NFL and NBA and NHL in American do it aswell.


  • Registered Users Posts: 21,065 ✭✭✭✭Odyssey 2005


    Jizique wrote: »
    Won’t do much for the attendance at the final given typical Jan weather

    Was a regular attendee on st.Patricks day. Great tradition. Definitely wont be going in January.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 314 ✭✭Blinky Plebum


    Was a regular attendee on st.Patricks day. Great tradition. Definitely wont be going in January.

    Think it's a poor move to be honest.

    It was a great occasion on St Patricks day with a real tradition and meaning behind the occasion as it's our national holiday however all that added significance is gone and thus any neutral support is gone for the finals, and it won't quite have the same significance as a sporting event with this decision.

    I expect the crowds to be a lot smaller going forward and then following this In traditional GAA fashion a whole load of whinging about the crowds being so small and it's needs to be played again on St Patricks day.

    They could easily have just started the provincial club championships in the new year and have November and December as off months to give players a break.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,873 ✭✭✭threeball


    Nothing odd at all about it, every major soccer league in the world does that, the NFL and NBA and NHL in American do it aswell.

    Their season is a very defined 5 to 6 months. Not 13 month seasons like GAA. Some lads have played their first matches of the 2019 league before the 2018 one was finished.

    Why did they go half arsed again. Should have had the final in the first week or two of December and give these lads a proper break.


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,569 ✭✭✭✭ProudDUB


    Nothing odd at all about it, every major soccer league in the world does that, the NFL and NBA and NHL in American do it aswell.

    That's a nonsense comparison. They don't have 13 month seasons that run into each other. Nor do they have a ridiculous 10 week break before their semi finals are played & another 4 week break before their finals are played.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    ProudDUB wrote: »
    That's a nonsense comparison. They don't have 13 month seasons that run into each other. Nor do they have a ridiculous 10 week break before their semi finals are played & another 4 week break before their finals are played.

    It's crazy. And during February and march is impossible to get any proper friendly either. Teams are just doing tedious training to pass the weeks

    I honestly think it was the most farcical scheduling I could think of in any sport, so it's great to see some change

    A teams circumstances could change dramatically during the farcical 3 month gap between the provincial final (all Ireland quarter essentially) and an all Ireland final of the same event - in the format as it was


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,010 ✭✭✭TheRiverman


    Nothing odd at all about it, every major soccer league in the world does that, the NFL and NBA and NHL in American do it aswell.

    Ridiculous comparison.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 14,967 ✭✭✭✭The Lost Sheep


    seligehgit wrote: »
    TBF they are oft used by managers to experiment with newcomers as opposed to the league.
    they are but coaches can still try out new players etc in pre season friendlies and can organise as many or as few as they like.
    Nothing odd at all about it, every major soccer league in the world does that, the NFL and NBA and NHL in American do it aswell.
    ridiculous comparison. Season structure is completely defined in each example you have and properly managed. Season structure in gaa isn't done properly at all.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 314 ✭✭Blinky Plebum


    they are but coaches can still try out new players etc in pre season friendlies and can organise as many or as few as they like.

    ridiculous comparison. Season structure is completely defined in each example you have and properly managed. Season structure in gaa isn't done properly at all.


    I know the season structure in the GAA is crap.

    I was simply pointing out that not finishing within a calendar year was not exactly uncommon. That's all.I'm not defending the rubbish fixture schedule the GAA has.

    BTW I'd argue that the All Ireland Club championships are a totally separate competition form county championships and should be treated as such and played in a different year.They are essentially what the Champions League is for soccer.

    Teams can't even enjoy winning a county championship anymore as they are straight back into the AI club championship basically a week or two after winning the county final.Teams should be allowed to enjoy a county championship win by that being the last game they play in that calendar year.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,428 ✭✭✭Powerhouse


    A sensible decision. I never understood why it took about 6 weeks to run off 3/4 rounds of the provincial championships, but then another 3 months to play the next 2 rounds.

    Whether you agree with it or not, I am very surprised that anyone would not understandthe format of the club championships. The two wettest months of the year according to Met Éireann are December and January. This, presumably is why outdoor concerts and festivals tend not to be held at those times. In a GAA context pitches are in their worst state with many schools, colleges and pre-season tournaments matches being played in obscure venues simply because the pitches are not available. Also the weather is least attractive for the spectators and most dangerous for traffic and postponements are also common. Surely it's not difficult to understand why an organisation might avoid December and January?


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,340 ✭✭✭✭rossie1977


    In fairness, scrapping the pre-season tournaments would free up a lot more calendar space.

    Them yokes are pointless.
    This year they were used to test experimental rules. No FBD/O'Byrne and league would have been a disaster had that handpass rule been allowed. I was at first FBD game and officials hadn't a clue how to enforce it


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    GAA president on RTE saying the January finish will only happen this year as provincial schedule has been laid out already.

    It'll be moved to December from next year. So that should satisfy those criticising the "new year" finish.

    He cited the overall change as being made down to clubs accruing large expenses over the 14 week period after the provincial finals and county teams being shorn of the services of some key players during the league

    All makes good sense and certainly trumps the sentamentality of playing them on Patrick's day


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,014 ✭✭✭TCDStudent1


    jr86 wrote: »
    GAA president on RTE saying the January finish will only happen this year as provincial schedule has been laid out already.

    It'll be moved to December from next year. So that should satisfy those criticising the "new year" finish.

    He cited the overall change as being made down to clubs accruing large expenses over the 14 week period after the provincial finals and county teams being shorn of the services of some key players during the league

    All makes good sense and certainly trumps the sentamentality of playing them on Patrick's day


    Couldn't understand the January date when I read it but this makes sense. To me, making the final a Christmas occasion in Croke Park should be the way to go.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,423 ✭✭✭JustJoe7240


    Think it's a poor move to be honest.

    It was a great occasion on St Patricks day with a real tradition and meaning behind the occasion as it's our national holiday however all that added significance is gone and thus any neutral support is gone for the finals, and it won't quite have the same significance as a sporting event with this decision.

    I expect the crowds to be a lot smaller going forward and then following this In traditional GAA fashion a whole load of whinging about the crowds being so small and it's needs to be played again on St Patricks day.

    They could easily have just started the provincial club championships in the new year and have November and December as off months to give players a break.

    Do you think clubs are going to take a 2-month break before a provincial championship? Get Real


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,797 ✭✭✭munchkin_utd


    Couldn't understand the January date when I read it but this makes sense. To me, making the final a Christmas occasion in Croke Park should be the way to go.
    indeed, crappy weather in December and jan BUT availability of a pitch isn't a problem as croke park is not a pitch that gets flooded , for a good reason....
    "At ground level the drainage system installed is connected to huge suction fans which allow us to blow air through the pitch and suck water out."
    https://crokepark.ie/stadium/technology/pitch
    (I thought I heard it had some voodoo drainage system, so had to look it up!)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86




    Do you think clubs are going to take a 2-month break before a provincial championship? Get Real

    It looks like Antrim struggled to get cushendall lads back into the panel this year - he referenced Antrim alright this morning

    By moving provincials to January - all 32 county teams would be missing club players in January, which would be ludicrous. It would never ever be a goer

    I get some fans will miss the sentiment element of Paddy's Day but believe me the much more important people here - players and officials - will overwhelmingly welcome this move


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭jr86


    indeed, crappy weather in December and jan BUT availability of a pitch isn't a problem as croke park is not a pitch that gets flooded , for a good reason....
    "At ground level the drainage system installed is connected to huge suction fans which allow us to blow air through the pitch and suck water out."
    https://crokepark.ie/stadium/technology/pitch
    (I thought I heard it had some voodoo drainage system, so had to look it up!)

    It's a long time since we've had consistently unplayable conditions in December in Galway anyway

    The freeze of 2010 I'd say

    December's have been very mild and pleasant the last few years.

    January, Feb, and march are usually the worst months


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