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Can Offaly hurling be saved?

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    #32
    arctictree
    Registered Users Posts: 4,285 ✭✭✭arctictree


    DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »
    People forget just how small a pool they have to chose from. Basically about 9 clubs in a small area. It's nearly exclusively a south offaly game.

    Roughly the same amount of hurling clubs as Wicklow.


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    #33
    ebbsy
    Registered Users Posts: 6,737 ✭✭✭ebbsy


    arctictree wrote: »
    Roughly the same amount of hurling clubs as Wicklow.

    And they will both be in the same division next year.

    Hurling has the right idea with the tiered championship. You are where you are for a reason. People say its hurting Offaly etc, but you have to play at your own level. And judging by the results so far Offaly's level is the Christy Ring.


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    #34
    grbear
    Registered Users Posts: 693 ✭✭✭grbear


    cms88 wrote: »
    I've been saying this for years and i'd also put Antrim in the same bracket. Why does hurling ''need'' a strong Offaly or Antrim? Why not someone ealse?

    Carlow with a lot less have gone about their business and are competing at a higher level than both and you don't hear any complaining form them. Westmeath also going the same. Kerry and Laois have gone back a small bit but they still just get on with ti
    I'd class Antrim differently to the other countries you've listed purely because of the population. Obviously a decent chunk of people in the county won't be interested in GAA but even a fifth of the county would be a larger base to work from than the entirety of Clare for instance.


    I've already said in this thread that I wouldn't want to see Croke Park giving extra funding to Offaly until their County Board can at least show that they've started to implement a plan to improve the development of players within the county. I don't expect them to be challenging for an All-Ireland anytime soon but they need to address why they are falling so far off the pace.


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    #35
    grbear
    Registered Users Posts: 693 ✭✭✭grbear


    Pogue eile wrote: »
    Donal Og talks rubbish the best of times and always does seem to have an alterior motive to be fair, but dismissing all he says here as old guff is a bit of the 'boy who called wolf' scenario.

    There absolutely is an element of the 80's and 90's being the exception and that on the back of an outstanding generation Offaly simply overachieved, at both codes for that matter.

    This of course if not in any way to absolve the county board of blame who have been shameful in their neglect of hurling. The catchment area is tiny in Offaly and comparable to that of North Kerry, they were never realistically going to be able to maintain competitiveness with the traditional hurling counties.

    Offaly's true standing lies somewhere in between the great days and the position they are in now and the will doesn't seem to exist in the County Board to invest properly to drag them out of the abyss.

    I'm dismissing what he said because it's ignoring the biggest issue just so he can get a few digs in at other pundits who didn't like the way Clare played while Donal Og was involved.

    https://www.the42.ie/tommy-byrne-disaster-liam-hogan-offaly-hurling-3523342-Jul2017/

    Why didn't he raise the issues highlighted there? He was well able to roar and shout about poor administration when he was playing for Cork but he went on the national broadcaster to make excuses for a useless board in another county. He wouldn't accept that crap in Cork so why should it be ok in Offaly?


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    #36
    Blinky Plebum
    Closed Accounts Posts: 314 ✭✭Blinky Plebum


    DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »
    People forget just how small a pool they have to chose from. Basically about 9 clubs in a small area. It's nearly exclusively a south offaly game.


    21 clubs fielded teams in this years hurling leagues.

    The hurling area stretches a little bit farther than just a few miles around Birr.


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    #37
    Pogue eile
    Registered Users Posts: 2,862 ✭✭✭Pogue eile


    grbear wrote: »
    I'm dismissing what he said because it's ignoring the biggest issue just so he can get a few digs in at other pundits who didn't like the way Clare played while Donal Og was involved.

    https://www.the42.ie/tommy-byrne-disaster-liam-hogan-offaly-hurling-3523342-Jul2017/

    Why didn't he raise the issues highlighted there? He was well able to roar and shout about poor administration when he was playing for Cork but he went on the national broadcaster to make excuses for a useless board in another county. He wouldn't accept that crap in Cork so why should it be ok in Offaly?

    More power to you, but you are doing the exact same thing that you are accusing Donal Óg of!

    If Donal Óg commented on the workings, or lack of, of the Offaly County Board he would be accused of talking about something he possibly couldn't know anything about!


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    #38
    Blinky Plebum
    Closed Accounts Posts: 314 ✭✭Blinky Plebum


    nice_guy80 wrote: »
    there used to be hurling clubs around Edenderry. now there are none (afaik).
    Tullamore won the senior A club only a few years ago so that is not south offaly
    there always were a few north offaly lads on county panels but that has changed hugely
    you have the situation where bigger clubs are allowed poach good young players from smaller clubs (Crinkill)
    clubs seem to be amalgamating a lot at underage and it is less about maximising participation than fielding the strongest teams possible

    Daingean had a hurling team up until the mid 00's and up until the early 2000's they were fairly competitive at Junior B Level.
    Rhode always had a hurling team up until about the same time at the same level.
    Edenderry were intermediate about 10 years ago but I've looked at this years championship fixtures and they don't seem to have a hurling team anymore.

    Those 3 parishes make up the North East of the County and probably have close to a quarter of the county's population and they're not fielding any hurling teams at adult level (don't even think there are underage teams either now).

    No effort was made to promote the sport in the north of the county in non traditional areas when it would have been perfect to be doing that when the county team was going well, people form the North followed the hurlers well but the county board never capitalised on that and got people playing hurling in the North of the county.

    The constant crap about matches not being played in Birr was a big excuse for year but it was just a smokescreen to cover the lack of work being done ein hurling in Offaly in the last 20 years.


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    #39
    CorkFenian
    Registered Users Posts: 623 ✭✭✭CorkFenian


    Looks like Offaly will be in Christy Ring after weekend....Hopefully there is a way back, I would agree with the majority of the posters though, they will need to earn it and follow Carlows lead!!


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    #40
    Mantis Toboggan
    Registered Users Posts: 17,653 ✭✭✭✭Mantis Toboggan


    Beaten by Kildare in the minor, looks like Offaly have learned nothing from the last few years. Things will continue to get worse and they can blame no one but themselves.

    Free Palestine 🇵🇸



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    #41
    nice_guy80
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,723 ✭✭✭nice_guy80


    Mantis Toboggan wrote: »
    Beaten by Kildare in the minor, looks like Offaly have learned nothing from the last few years. Things will continue to get worse and they can blame no one but themselves.

    Naas alone would beat most McDonagh and Christy Ring counties at any age group from U14 up


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    #42
    Mantis Toboggan
    Registered Users Posts: 17,653 ✭✭✭✭Mantis Toboggan


    nice_guy80 wrote: »
    Naas alone would beat most McDonagh and Christy Ring counties at any age group from U14 up

    True Naas are putting alot of work in underage. Still though this isn't a blip for offaly, things will continue until they get their house in order.

    Free Palestine 🇵🇸



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