Offaly Express

[gaaa head]

I'm not sure do any Offaly Express reporters contribute to this website, but to be frank I really don't care.
Their coverage of the Rhode v Edenderry quarter final last Saturday was far from accurate and in my opinion was a smart cheeky ploy in getting clubs to submit their team format correctly.
Indeed Rhode did not do this, and should be fined as a result. The programme did not conform with the actual team and caused some confusion. It is unfair to ask patrons to fork out 50c and not receive the proper team layout and numbers but it is equally unfair to ask the GAA reading public to fork out €1.70 for a newspaper and not receive an accurate account of a match. Some players were playing the game of their lives, in a game they never in took part in? And it is stupid to suggest the reporter in question was not aware of this
Anyway I'm sure many other people feel aggrieved at the report also.
So if there is any Offaly Express journalists browsing this board, sort it out! Your not doing yourselves any favours and 2 wrongs don't make a right.

[seamroga]

Well, as a neutral attending that match, I was raging with Rhode and their craic with the numbers. I actually posted a topic on it, if you wish to have a look. OK, the facts should have been checked in advance but it's not easy for someone to do that if the team, their management and officials are all on the pitch inside the wire. The responsibility is on the club to get it right in fairness to supporters, reporters, etc.[/code]

[doobane man]

In fairness to Rhode the programmes for the game were late arriving in O'Connor Park - later than anticipated rather than late. However surely the names on the programme came from the club and were not the brainchild of someone in the County Board.
My sympathy to the journalist - (s)he should have double checked the facts. Not easy though when so many names were incorrectly attributed to numbers.

[Treasurer]

programmes for the game were late arriving in

But it's the clubs who send in the names in the first place, shouldn't need the programme.

[gaaa head]

The reason I wrote in was because I really felt the reporter in question was just trying to prove a point about the programmes and i didn't think that was right to bring it to light in the newspaper.
Maybe I am entirely mistaken, and he literally didn't know the team.
But having attended many club and county matches in the past few years I find I don't normally need a programme other than for double checking! I assume most local journalists can identify likewise with me here, and hence I don't think the programme is a valid excuse for this blunder.

[Lone Shark]

I very much doubt this was anything political on behalf of the Express. If it is the reporter I think it is, he's a Laois guy on a three month contract with the paper. To expect him to know all the Rhode players anyway is hardly fair. It would be different if this craic of wearing wrong numbers was commonplace, but it's not - Rhode and only Rhode are guilty of it this year.

Granted it's a bad sign when he got it wrong with the most high profile club in the county, but I've been going to a lot of games in recent years too, and for example last week - I'd know the Ballycumber lads fair enough, but if any of the non-county Brigid's players were wearing the wrong numbers, then I just wouldn't know them. Call me ignorant if you like, but there are a lot of club teams out there, and to know the 18 odd main players for each to see from 100 yards away is a big ask, let alone knowing the same for the hurling clubs as well.

I've covered a decent amount of games this year - I've seen every one of the senior football clubs in the county, and 12 of the 15 hurling teams, and barring Michael Casey wearing 25 for Brigid's when he was supposed to be wearing 20, every other club has been able to give the county board a list of numbers and play in those jerseys. Why this is too much for Rhode to manage seems beyond me.

[gaaa head]

Yes, perhaps if he is a complete outsider he wouldnt have a clue alright. Still don't believe the paper should be reliant on a programme all the same. Like there are times when programmes are available and sometimes when they are not.If anyone reads it they will see how stupid it sounds!

[Lone Shark]

Still don't believe the paper should be reliant on a programme all the same. Like there are times when programmes are available and sometimes when they are not.

If the programmes are 100% reliable for every other team in the county, as they have been for some time, why would he not rely on them? I accept that it was a bit dozy not to cop on from the shouts in the crowd that maybe the names were wrong, but let's not forget here, it's only Rhode that have done this all year. To shift the blame away from Rhode GAA club in this instance is scapegoating. As far as I'm aware the county board has the right to fine the club in this instance - that should straighten it out - otherwise we're looking at the farcical situation of a glossy programme for the county final this year which could be completely worthless. Every other team supplies an accurate list of numbers - albeit in most cases lining out completely differently, but at least with the right numbers on their backs. Rhode should just cop on and do the same.

I've yet to a see a game when programmes are not available - they might be scarce, and not to be had from ten minutes before throw in, but I haven't been at a senior game in the last two years where one wasn't printed.

[gaaa head]

Senior matches yes. But reports go in for underage games too, where do they get their information there, only direct from the clubs. There was an obvious discrepancy, a phonecall and a scolding at the officials of the club was all that was necessary.
Furthermore, they hadn't even the correct photographs from the ballycumber croghan game. They had to dig up some old material. Not that this is at all important, but it was obvious the other club matches at the weekend were priority ahead of the smaller teams like bally and croghan.

[Lone Shark]

If it was an underage game, then of course you get it from the clubs - that goes without saying. The point is that it wasn't - a programme was issued that had numbers for players on it, and there was no reason to believe that it was going to be erroneous - after all it never is for any other club.

The discrepancy was only "obvious" to someone who knows the Rhode players.

Regarding the photography, well that could be for any number of reasons. That's a different issue. Generally where I'm from the Offaly Indo is our local paper, so I couldn't comment with regard to the general standard of the Express - but in this case I wouldn't blame them, it was Rhode's fault.

[gaaa head]

The discrepancy was v obvious to me anyhow!Just felt the express did a lazy job in general. I'll switch to the indo now. I hear they adapt a much more professional approach and lets pray the programmes are ok from here on