Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

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ah lethimoutwithit
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Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by ah lethimoutwithit »

I have to say that in the history of the GAA, has there been a more shocking decision than this?

Firstly venue, Nowlan park is a shithole! Toilets, shop, seating in the stand that covered the length of the field all of poor quality.
Secondly, Travel, grand, train from Dublin, but hard to get out of.
Thirdly, and fair enough not really a criteria for picking a game, but it should be considered to some degree. Kilkenny as a city has flourished over the years through becoming a venue for hens and stags and is normally fairly packed at the weekend. Portlaoise or Tullamore should have been considered as places to benefit from the influx of a big crowd for a match, and possible overnights from a large crowd of Dubs.

Fair enough, Portlaoise toilets etc would leave many a person with tears in their eyes through an unnecessary aroma of ammonia too!

Why the fcuk reward Kilkenny who make no effort to promote football with such a high profile game,? That wont change.

Raging with this decision, as on all fronts it makes no sense.
Surely given all the "home" games that the Dubs have had, they should have had to play the game in Portlaoise, and help Laois to promote the game?

Absolute madness!!

SearingDrive
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by SearingDrive »

Seating capacity decided it , as reported in the media. All of Dublin's subsequent games will be in Dublin. Offaly played a football game v Kildare , and replay in 2002. I never found any problem in Kilkenny, we didn't win much there, not the fault of the venue.

ah lethimoutwithit
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by ah lethimoutwithit »

Correct, we played there in 2002.

13 years ago, and I cant remember a Leinster football championship match being held there since.

Yet they get the plum tie for the Dubs, and in the end the Dubs are happy enough to travel & standing is not an issue with many of their supporters..

Just think it would be nice to see the Dubs play in a traditional football venue...they got many a tough game of ourselves and Leix there over the years!

Plain of the Herbs
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by Plain of the Herbs »

I don't see what the fuss is about. I quite like Nowlan Park myself. With the ring road around the city it's easily accessed from all sides.

Laois making quite a song and dance about it, which was fine for a while, but Janey they're persistent and repetitive and boring now.

From an Offaly perspective - wouldn't it be great to have just one big day in Croke Park?

Note Meath don't seem to have a problem playing Dublin in Croke Park. then again this is the county who unfurled a banner reading "We don't whinge, we win" in Croke Park in 1997 - targetted at Mayo who would have liked a say in which of their players should have been dismissed following the 1996 'mill in front of the hill'.
Pat Donegan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

kingscounty
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by kingscounty »

God I wouldn't call Nowlan park a shit hole , always enjoyed watching games there . I do agree somewhat with your point tho , Dublin should be made play in Portlaoise or Aughrim. It's the Leinster councils greed putting it in Nowlan park biggest venue outside Croke park . Can't go blaming Kilkenny or its people, hen and stag parties go where the craic is , I doubt there would be much craic in Aughrim or Portlaoise, few points after the game maybe but a lad could let rip all week end down in the marble city ! :lol: They will be back in Croke park for the next game anyway

ah lethimoutwithit
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by ah lethimoutwithit »

I can't say that Laois are making a song and dance about it, I think they are right to question it.
Its the fact that the Dubs are leaving town for the first time in years, seems a shame that they aren't going to a football venue.
I have no real issue with Dublin playing in Croke park in general as there is nowhere to hold the crowds that usually turn up for the Dubs, and you are being a little over the top in your comments implying whinging from Laois.

Great PR chance for Laois with a big game in Portlaoise, and in fairness nice for the people putting a lot of effort into promoting football in Laois to have a glamour tie on the doorstep.
Seats wise, as I say the main stand in Nowlan Park, seats with no backs, and small jacks, don't offer a much more comfortable environment than O Moore Park.

But seems like its me that has the problem!!

Keyser Soze
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by Keyser Soze »

Plain of the Herbs wrote:I don't see what the fuss is about. I quite like Nowlan Park myself. With the ring road around the city it's easily accessed from all sides.

Laois making quite a song and dance about it, which was fine for a while, but Janey they're persistent and repetitive and boring now.
Making a song and dance about it?
Persistent and repitive and boring?
Shur I'll tell ya' wha', we'll just go and sit on the field and stop the game from taking place. That's the way to go about these things isn't it?

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Lone Shark
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by Lone Shark »

I'm always conscious of the distinction here between county board officials and players, who have a very different brief in situations like this. The job of the county board is to advocate for their team and their county generally, and I'd have no problem with a chairman or a secretary putting it on the record that they felt that the game should be in Portlaoise, both for the sake of their venue and their chances of success.

Put it another way - for the guts of a decade, Offaly got walked on when it came to things like venues, and even now there are plenty of instances where you'd say that we get a raw enough deal. Instances such as playing Clare in "neutral" Limerick or the U21 footballers playing a home game against Laois in Portlaoise spring to mind. Officials should certainly be kicking up a fuss in those instances and doing their best to fight the good fight on the only terms that they can.

Players and management highlighting these things is different however. The attitude that players need to have is that they'll take on anyone, anywhere. That they'll use the advantages that they have, but they won't go putting it out there that they're on the back foot long before a ball is thrown in. That's what you get from Meath all the time, which is why I'm stone cold certain that the next time Dublin get beaten in the Leinster SFC, whenever that might be, it'll be Meath who beat them - even though there are plenty of counties that have far better footballers at their disposal.
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

SearingDrive
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by SearingDrive »

Lone Shark wrote:I'm always conscious of the distinction here between county board officials and players, who have a very different brief in situations like this. The job of the county board is to advocate for their team and their county generally, and I'd have no problem with a chairman or a secretary putting it on the record that they felt that the game should be in Portlaoise, both for the sake of their venue and their chances of success.

Put it another way - for the guts of a decade, Offaly got walked on when it came to things like venues, and even now there are plenty of instances where you'd say that we get a raw enough deal. Instances such as playing Clare in "neutral" Limerick or the U21 footballers playing a home game against Laois in Portlaoise spring to mind. Officials should certainly be kicking up a fuss in those instances and doing their best to fight the good fight on the only terms that they can.

Players and management highlighting these things is different however. The attitude that players need to have is that they'll take on anyone, anywhere. That they'll use the advantages that they have, but they won't go putting it out there that they're on the back foot long before a ball is thrown in. That's what you get from Meath all the time, which is why I'm stone cold certain that the next time Dublin get beaten in the Leinster SFC, whenever that might be, it'll be Meath who beat them - even though there are plenty of counties that have far better footballers at their disposal.
Care to forecast a decade LS?

ah lethimoutwithit
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by ah lethimoutwithit »

Fair enough LS, but I have to say yet again that for the sake of football and all, why not have the game in OMP?
OK extra seats.

Players and management have a right to ask the question as I would be fairly sure that the last time that Kilkenny saw a Leinster football game was 2002, and we thought it bizarre at the time.

Yep we all admire Meath, but Laois probably would rather play the bloody game in Croke Park than enjoy the novelty of Kilkenny seeing as its unlikely that they will ever play a game there again. That's my point, plus reward the officials promoting the game in the Laois!

Anyway we are probably the biggest whingers of all, we cant even agree on where to play our hurling!!

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Lone Shark
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Re: Dubs in Kilkenny for Football?

Post by Lone Shark »

ah lethimoutwithit wrote:Fair enough LS, but I have to say yet again that for the sake of football and all, why not have the game in OMP?
OK extra seats.

Players and management have a right to ask the question as I would be fairly sure that the last time that Kilkenny saw a Leinster football game was 2002, and we thought it bizarre at the time.

Yep we all admire Meath, but Laois probably would rather play the bloody game in Croke Park than enjoy the novelty of Kilkenny seeing as its unlikely that they will ever play a game there again. That's my point, plus reward the officials promoting the game in the Laois!

Anyway we are probably the biggest whingers of all, we cant even agree on where to play our hurling!!
If you're asking me where the game should have been played, then Portlaoise is the answer all day. The only reason it's gone to Kilkenny is because of the extra capacity and while I'm not a big believer in locking supporters out where possible, I'd say 20k would do it here.

My only point was that I don't think players and management should get drawn into it, that was all.
SearingDrive wrote:
Lone Shark wrote:I'm always conscious of the distinction here between county board officials and players, who have a very different brief in situations like this. The job of the county board is to advocate for their team and their county generally, and I'd have no problem with a chairman or a secretary putting it on the record that they felt that the game should be in Portlaoise, both for the sake of their venue and their chances of success.

Put it another way - for the guts of a decade, Offaly got walked on when it came to things like venues, and even now there are plenty of instances where you'd say that we get a raw enough deal. Instances such as playing Clare in "neutral" Limerick or the U21 footballers playing a home game against Laois in Portlaoise spring to mind. Officials should certainly be kicking up a fuss in those instances and doing their best to fight the good fight on the only terms that they can.

Players and management highlighting these things is different however. The attitude that players need to have is that they'll take on anyone, anywhere. That they'll use the advantages that they have, but they won't go putting it out there that they're on the back foot long before a ball is thrown in. That's what you get from Meath all the time, which is why I'm stone cold certain that the next time Dublin get beaten in the Leinster SFC, whenever that might be, it'll be Meath who beat them - even though there are plenty of counties that have far better footballers at their disposal.
Care to forecast a decade LS?
Sooner rather than later - within this one almost certainly. GAA history is full of examples of instances where the gap between certain counties was seen as unbridgeable, only for things to change completely in a couple of years, or less. If the Tommy Lyons era taught us nothing else here in Offaly, we certainly saw that firsthand.
Kevin Egan. Signed out of respect for players and all involved with Offaly.

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