When do the club draws take place?

[Killer B]

Belmont were relegated from junior a last year

[kingscounty]

[quote="Plain of the Herbs"]I don't know meself. I note there are 15 teams in Junior A for 2013 and I am wondering - was anyone relegated? Or were Belmont Junior 'A' last year?


There is only 11 teams in the Junior B seems a bit strange that theres 15 teams in Junior A, maybe Bally/Villa 2nd team were meant to play in Junior B and it was changed for some reason, is the format the same as last year?

[cantona]

Belmont were junior a last year. they gave drumcullen a walkover in the relagation final

[kingscounty]

ah right that answers that

[timber]

Looking at the football the senior is very predictable. Stroll in the park for Clara in their group. They have landed a very handy group again this year. Edenderry and themselves will walk out of that.

Rhode and Tullamore would be expected to ease through their group. Ferbane are the team to watch though and will be interesting to see how they get on with the big expectations.

Intermediate again looks seriously competitive. Ballyfore, Durrow, Raheen, and Cappincur are teams that have alot expected of them this year. But overall its a far more competitive championship than the senior which has a number of teams that wouldnt be as strong as some in the intermedite arguably.

One thing I see in Junior A is shamrocks are there. I could be wrong but have shamrocks pulled a team from that championship the last two years. If memory serves me right, I think they got heavy beatings in early games both years and couldnt field a team for the rest of the games and had requested the last two years to be regraded. Should they not have been automatically relegated for not being able to fulfill the fixtures? Is this another county board cock up?

[Lean Times]

Looking at the football the senior is very predictable. Stroll in the park for Clara in their group. They have landed a very handy group again this year. Edenderry and themselves will walk out of that.

Rhode and Tullamore would be expected to ease through their group. Ferbane are the team to watch though and will be interesting to see how they get on with the big expectations.

Intermediate again looks seriously competitive. Ballyfore, Durrow, Raheen, and Cappincur are teams that have alot expected of them this year. But overall its a far more competitive championship than the senior which has a number of teams that wouldnt be as strong as some in the intermedite arguably.

One thing I see in Junior A is shamrocks are there. I could be wrong but have shamrocks pulled a team from that championship the last two years. If memory serves me right, I think they got heavy beatings in early games both years and couldnt field a team for the rest of the games and had requested the last two years to be regraded. Should they not have been automatically relegated for not being able to fulfill the fixtures? Is this another county board cock up?

I completely agree with your comments on the junior. Shamrocks, Gracefield and Ballycumber have all given walkovers in this championship in the last few years. Not only does it make a farce of the competiton but it is also unfair on teams that genuinely might have ambitions of giving the competition a real go. Say for instance, Ballycumber or Gracefield win a first round game against the likes of Ballycommon. They then go and lose a few players to their first team and interest wains in the second team and end up giving walkovers/pulling out of junior. Ballycommon (in this instance) pull the short straw. This has happened a number of times in recent eyars and has to be addressed. The only second teams in the county that give junior their full respect are (in no particular order) Clara, Tullamore, Edenderry, Ferbane, Rhode. Shamrocks and Gracefield in particular have been guilty of walkovers/pulling out. Really annoys me how they are always let back in the next year again!

[timber]

Yes leantimes it is very annoying.

To be fair I know shamrocks requested to be put in Junior B the last two years but the county board didnt not allow it. From talking to players around there, they are more or less getting anyone who has a pair of boots to play a bit of junior but when they are in Junior A against fairly decent standard of teams a few hammerings and you wont have these lads who just turn up for the odd game. Junior A is not a grade for that type of player. They are probably a weak junior B side at best and the county board should have let them drop down. Last year proved that.

Gracefield have been decent at junior level in the past but the loss of some players in the club has meant they lost a good few players to senior so I can see why they have given walkovers. That can happen midway through a season and not much can be done about it.

County board really have to start taking junior championships a bit more serious and stop overlooking things like this. In fairness if it happens one year you could understand but the same thing happens a number of years the county board has questions to answer.

[Plain of the Herbs]

Kilcormac-Killoughey entering four teams - Senior, Inter. & both Junior grades. I know they're on the crest of a wave at the moment and they've a population of c3k, but that's still impressive stuff.

[brian fantana]

Looking at the football the senior is very predictable. Stroll in the park for Clara in their group. They have landed a very handy group again this year. Edenderry and themselves will walk out of that.

Rhode and Tullamore would be expected to ease through their group. Ferbane are the team to watch though and will be interesting to see how they get on with the big expectations.

Intermediate again looks seriously competitive. Ballyfore, Durrow, Raheen, and Cappincur are teams that have alot expected of them this year. But overall its a far more competitive championship than the senior which has a number of teams that wouldnt be as strong as some in the intermedite arguably.

One thing I see in Junior A is shamrocks are there. I could be wrong but have shamrocks pulled a team from that championship the last two years. If memory serves me right, I think they got heavy beatings in early games both years and couldnt field a team for the rest of the games and had requested the last two years to be regraded. Should they not have been automatically relegated for not being able to fulfill the fixtures? Is this another county board cock up?

I completely agree with your comments on the junior. Shamrocks, Gracefield and Ballycumber have all given walkovers in this championship in the last few years. Not only does it make a farce of the competiton but it is also unfair on teams that genuinely might have ambitions of giving the competition a real go. Say for instance, Ballycumber or Gracefield win a first round game against the likes of Ballycommon. They then go and lose a few players to their first team and interest wains in the second team and end up giving walkovers/pulling out of junior. Ballycommon (in this instance) pull the short straw. This has happened a number of times in recent eyars and has to be addressed. The only second teams in the county that give junior their full respect are (in no particular order) Clara, Tullamore, Edenderry, Ferbane, Rhode. Shamrocks and Gracefield in particular have been guilty of walkovers/pulling out. Really annoys me how they are always let back in the next year again!

That would be rhodes third team that is in the junior they have a team in the intermediate aswell, and they fulfilled all fixtures last year and stayed junior a.

[timber]

Kilcormac-Killoughey entering four teams - Senior, Inter. & both Junior grades. I know they're on the crest of a wave at the moment and they've a population of c3k, but that's still impressive stuff.

Yes KK have loads of hurlers. Big area to pick from.

They will be very fancied to win the intermediate and will also be very strong at junior A. Think its the 1st year they are entering a fourth team but obviously they think it would be worthwhile so the players must be there. The club is very much on a high.

[timber]

That would be rhodes third team that is in the junior they have a team in the intermediate aswell, and they fulfilled all fixtures last year and stayed junior a.

Yes but Rhode had the players to compete at those grades. If they had a poor panel to pick from and were in Junior A getting hammered, I doubt very much the interest would be there to fulfill the fixtures.

Look at it logically. The likes of Shamrocks or Gracefield that were mentioned already have obviously lost a huge amount of players. They are probably fielding alot weaker first teams as result and then entering a junior team to facilitate the players not on 1st team panel. That could be say 10 lads for example. They then do their best to make up a team by getting some retired players etc to "sure come along and bring the boots, you might be needed". If that is the case and you know its going to be the case then that team should be entered at a grade fitting its ability or else not enter a team at all and leave some interested players with no games to play in the year. That would be very unfair. Every club has alot of junior b standard players who want games.

Its like A and B grades at underage. Would you want a team that is being bet by 30 points in every game being forced to stay in A championship because they were good 3 or 4 years ago at that grade even though they are now a completely new bunch of players getting slaughtered. Does nothing to encourage lads to play.

The county board again have been stubborn about a very obvious issue and its not only to the detriment of the club that has to pull a team from the championship but also to the teams in that group. They should cop themselves on.

[Lone Shark]

I know this isn't what you meant, but Rhode fielding three teams or KK fielding four at adult level doesn't just happen by accident - plenty of people emigrate from Rhode and Kilcormac too. Those clubs just do a better job of keeping players interested than basically any other clubs in Offaly. Though there are several others who make a decent fist of it too. I note, not without envy, that Clara have three sides entered again this year in the football championship.

However I don't think even the most bitter of clubs with teams in the Junior B grade would resent Shamrocks being let drop down a level. They clearly have struggled on a regular basis and even in the first round of the season they aren't strong at Junior A. Gracefield is a bit different, they've they ability to field decent junior A sides by times and while they do tend to drop off, they would be the kind of team that if they did get their act together, would walk through Junior B. I don't think anyone would worry about Shamrocks doing the same. The problem is that they were in a Junior A final so recently. I'd say it's hard for a lot of officials to look past that.

[timber]

I know this isn't what you meant, but Rhode fielding three teams or KK fielding four at adult level doesn't just happen by accident - plenty of people emigrate from Rhode and Kilcormac too. Those clubs just do a better job of keeping players interested than basically any other clubs in Offaly. Though there are several others who make a decent fist of it too. I note, not without envy, that Clara have three sides entered again this year in the football championship.

However I don't think even the most bitter of clubs with teams in the Junior B grade would resent Shamrocks being let drop down a level. They clearly have struggled on a regular basis and even in the first round of the season they aren't strong at Junior A. Gracefield is a bit different, they've they ability to field decent junior A sides by times and while they do tend to drop off, they would be the kind of team that if they did get their act together, would walk through Junior B. I don't think anyone would worry about Shamrocks doing the same. The problem is that they were in a Junior A final so recently. I'd say it's hard for a lot of officials to look past that.

Loneshark you are spot on in everything you said there. Exactly what I was getting at.

To be fair Shamrocks have pulled the team the last two years from the championship unable to fulfill fixtures. The county board should have been well aware of the problem. Shamrocks have tried to get regraded the last two years but refused on both occasions. They just want to play at a grade where lads can get a game, nothing serious. They would struggle to win a game in junior B with what they have so I am baffled that the county board have let this happen again.

The first round will be played, they will get hammered. Maybe play the second game, same story. Not able to field a team after that and you have another year that they pull out and the teams who were due to play them suffer.

[lostinjuniora]

Have to remember Shamrocks got to Junior A county final 2 or 3 years ago!

[boomcha]

Have to remember Shamrocks got to Junior A county final 2 or 3 years ago!

They would of won if they had a free taker that day too!........probably what keeps them coming back to Junior A.