LSFC Longford V Offaly Friday May 16th 2014

[bracknaghboy]

6 months away I know, but its in the news.
Firstly, its an away fixture for us. Secondly, Leinster Council want to play it on Friday night. Thirdly, our county board do not want to play it on a Friday night. Can't see it going ahead myself but whats peoples thoughts?

Friday fever is not for Offaly

The Leinster Council wants to kickstart its senior football championship with some Friday night fever next May ... but the proposal looks set to be opposed by one of the two counties involved.
The hope is to play the Pearse Park clash between Longford and Offaly on the third Friday of the month – May 16 – and the matter will be discussed at a full meeting of the provincial council tonight.
However, the Herald has learned that Offaly have concerns about the proposed timing, primarily because of the travel distances involved.
In a nutshell, they don't view Longford as a local derby and have issues with asking players and supporters to undergo such a journey after a normal working day on a Friday evening. For example, the distance between Edenderry and Longford town is 47 miles and would take one hour and 18 minutes, according to the AA website.

Contacted yesterday, Offaly chairman Pádraig Boland stressed that discussions within his county were still ongoing and they had yet to formulate a firm position.
He revealed that Offaly football manager Emmet McDonnell was due to talk to his squad last night, while he had also emailed members of his county board executive to elicit their views ahead of tonight's Leinster Council discussion.
Asked for his own personal perspective, Boland stated: "It would be far easier for us, from both a player's perspective and a supporter's perspective, if we were playing Laois in Portlaoise or Westmeath in Cusack Park. Longford isn't as near to us.
"If you are living in Edenderry – as many of our players are, never mind supporters – Longford is a long journey. Friday evening after work mightn't be the easiest thing for people.
"I have spoken to a couple of the players already, and they have flagged that," he added. "Emmet will be consulting them collectively. I would imagine that players wound find it difficult enough."
The Offaly chairman concluded: "My own gut feeling is we would sooner play it at any other time."

Both county boards have been circulated with the proposal, emanating from Leinster's competitions control committee (CCC), but a final decision is not expected at tonight's meeting as provincial chiefs anticipate more questions from the counties.
Longford chairman Brendan Gilmore confirmed that the matter is due to be discussed at meetings of their executive and full county board tomorrow night. "I have no problem with Friday night – that is my own personal opinion," he outlined.
According to Gilmore, playing on the Friday night would be "ideal" from the perspective of facilitating club action later in the weekend. "You could play senior league matches on Sunday whereas now you are confined. It would cut down on the fixture pile-up at the end of the year," he suggested.

COMPLICATION

One complication could be the level of daylight for a Friday night fixture, given that Glennon Brothers Pearse Park does not have floodlights.
According to Boland, Offaly were not given a specific throw-in time but he cited potential problems if the game was fixed for, say, 7.30pm.
"For pig iron I googled 'sunset' on the date next year and it's somewhere between ten and 18 minutes past nine – it would be tight enough," he maintained.
Clearly, however, the Leinster CCC does not envisage bad light being a factor in mid-May and nor would officials have to worry about the possibility of extra-time, as this no longer applies for early rounds of the senior inter-county championship.

From Hearld.ie

[Plain of the Herbs]

Match is fixed for Sunday 18th May. See fixtures on the Leinster GAA site.

[kinnittyman]

Does anyone know why Longford are at home?

Was it because they were drawn out of the hat first?

Have we got a home and away arrangement with them and it's our turn to travel?

Have we just entered into a home and away arrangement with them from 2014 on and we are travelling first?

Also the winners are away to Wexford. Is our hurling home and away arrangement with Wexford also a football one?

And the hurlers are travelling to Nowlan Park on Saturday June 7th for an evening throw-in.

[townman]

i think the last time we met longford in championship football was 1997 in tullamore could
be wrong, as for wexford they came to tullamore was it 2011 so maybe thats a home away arrangement.

as for kilkenny on saturday evening sure won't it make a great weekend out of it after we win.

[Plain of the Herbs]

Townman is right, the last time Offaly played longford was in 1997 and that was in Tullamore. The previous time was in 1993 and that was played in Longford. I recall that time Offaly played Wastemeath in OCP (was it 2009?) that the Wasters played Longford in a preliminary round and that if Longford had been Offaly's opposition then the match would have been played in Longford. So there is evidence of an away-in-a-home (with thanks to d'Unbelievables) arrangement.

There is an away-in-a-home arrangement in place with Wexford since they tossed for it in in 2009. Wexford won the toss and so the hurling arrangement commenced with Wexford being at home. It was agreed that the football arrangement would be the opposite with Offaly commencing at home. That hit a snag when Wexford and Offaly were drawn to face each other in a football qualifier - Wexford dug the heels in and insisted the away-in-a-home arrangement did not apply to qualifiers, only to Leinster championship matches.


Away-in-a-home arrangements involving Offaly seem to be as follows -

Carlow - Played in Tellamore in 1993 (the only Leinster championship match played at either home venue) but the last one (1997) was played in Portlaoise.
Dublin - Shur Dublin have to play in Croke Park - da hill, da dubz, can't have Dublin travelling to matches loike.
Kildare - Newbridge's limited capacity precludes playing home matches, even against a county with Offaly's massive travelling support.
Laois - The 2006 qualifier counts for home venue (by agreement) so Offaly are due to host the next match.
Longford - Playing in Longford next year.
Louth - With the last three Leinster matches held in Navan there is no evidence of a current arrangement though the 1985 meeting was in Tellamore with the 1986 one in Drogheda.
Meath - Meath refused to toss for venue the last time (2010?)
Wastemeath - Played in OCP in 2009 so Offaly due to travel to Mullingar next
Wexford - played in OCP in 2011 so Wexford are at home next
Wicklow - last played in Croke Park in 1997 - played a draw in Aughrim in 1994 with the replay in Tellamore so there is a possibility on one.

Does anyone know why Longford are at home?

Was it because they were drawn out of the hat first?

Have we got a home and away arrangement with them and it's our turn to travel?

Have we just entered into a home and away arrangement with them from 2014 on and we are travelling first?

Also the winners are away to Wexford. Is our hurling home and away arrangement with Wexford also a football one?

And the hurlers are travelling to Nowlan Park on Saturday June 7th for an evening throw-in.

[turk]

Townman is right, the last time Offaly played longford was in 1997 and that was in Tullamore.


Away-in-a-home arrangements involving Offaly seem to be as follows -


Kildare - Newbridge's limited capacity precludes playing home matches, even against a county with Offaly's massive travelling support.

Note that Willie Heffernan's performance of the century for Kildare v Offaly in 2004 ultimately resulted in the death knell for Newbridge as a championship venue and the beginning of Kildare shamefully imposing his banishment from inter county championship football.

[DAF]

Townman is right, the last time Offaly played longford was in 1997 and that was in Tullamore.


Away-in-a-home arrangements involving Offaly seem to be as follows -


Kildare - Newbridge's limited capacity precludes playing home matches, even against a county with Offaly's massive travelling support.

Note that Willie Heffernan's performance of the century for Kildare v Offaly in 2004 ultimately resulted in the death knell for Newbridge as a championship venue and the beginning of Kildare shamefully imposing his banishment from inter county championship football.

Offaly played 20 minutes of unbelievable football in that game. Heffernan was brilliant for Kildare in that game aswell, whatever happened to him? I think he was an u-21 then but I don't remember him playing too much afterwards