Hurling in Tullamore for ever?

[Rynaghs Biffo]

With next saturday's qualifier match in Tulach Mhór, will this set a trend in Offaly GAA to play both codes, football and hurling in O'Connor Park?

In my own honest opinion, I think it should. Playing the football league matches in Tullamore and the hurling games in Birr seems to me to be one of the main reasons for the division within the county. I don't know of any other county that play in seperate venues, maybe with the exception of limerick.

I havent seen the new stand in all its glory yet but it looks well whenever I try to peep through the hoarding!! Looks far more impressive that the set up in Birr, which can be a nightmare to get in and out of when theres a major game on. Now, O'Connor Park ain't all that better either but what county venue is?

So what ye reckon?

[Tom]

I think it definitely should be played in Tullamore. It's now a top class venue. As good as any in the midlands. While Birr is a hurling fortress and steeped in hurling history it might be time to get with the times and play all offaly games in Tullamore. This being said, i bet most of the hurling panel would rather be playing Limerick in Birr.

[Lone Shark]

I'm not so sure. I know that capacity issues will come into play for championship games, and the decision will be made for us, but in saying that, Birr is an advantage. If we have the option, I'm not sure we should play games there for the sake of it.

Obviously if a game is likely to have 10,000 people at it, there's only one choice - but I would say that 3,000 in Birr would be a hell of a lot better than 3,000 in Tullamore. Both are good surfaces, so that's not really an issue, but I don't really see who playing games in Tullamore benefits, other than people from mid and North Offaly, who don't usually go to hurling games anyway. If the panel even had a token few lads from these areas it might be worth a shout, but they don't. We've less lads from outside of the traditional areas than ever.

I think Tom's last line summed it up - where would the panel prefer? That to me is the main issue.

It had to be Tullamore for Saturday night, but I'm thinking for Leinster/backdoor clashes with Laois/Dublin/Westmeath etc., stick with Birr.

[Lone Shark]

In my own honest opinion, I think it should. Playing the football league matches in Tullamore and the hurling games in Birr seems to me to be one of the main reasons for the division within the county. I don't know of any other county that play in seperate venues, maybe with the exception of limerick.

Up until Salthill, Galway was always split as well - Salthill cost so much they had no alternative but to put nearly everything in there. Down certainly has different grounds, as does Waterford, though I think they tend to put championship games in Walsh and only league football in Fraher. Getting a bit nitpicky now, but a lot of Ring/Rackard counties do so too. (Donegal, Roscommon, Leitrim and Armagh all spring to mind)

I'll put it to you another way - I don't know of any other county that plays hurling games outside of their traditional hurling area for any reason other than necessity.

[Bogman]

This game could have been played in Birr. The 4,000 capacity would easily hold the attendance. Offaly has a very small support and how many people are going to travel from Limerick for an evening game after the last Limerick display.

That said I'm looking forward to seeing the stand in all its glory.

[As Such Ger]

I dont agree with your point there LS, when you say that people from mid and north offaly usually dont go to hurling games anyway. you are incorrect there, as the proportion of supporters from these areas is very high.

I think all this talk of mid offaly, south offaly, north offaly is so narrow minded and a massive problem for GAA in the county. If the losses at all 3 levels in hurling over the last couple of weeks have shown us anything it is that the current closed shop is not able to compete with even the mediocre teams anymore. bringing more hurling to tullamore would be a good start for this.

Also, from a practical/economical point of view the county board should be trying to fill the stand in Tullamore at every possible opportunity - every club in the county has paid for it, so all clubs should get the opportunity to see both hurling and football games of the highest level played there.

[Lone Shark]

As many people live east of Capincur as they do south of Cloghan, and bearing in mind that we only had about two or three thousand at every league game, there wasn't a high proportion from anywhere in the county went to games. But certainly I tend to meet very few from that part of the world. I'm not trying to point fingers here by the way - a hell of a lot more mid/north offaly people attend hurling than south offaly people attend football - but that's just the way of it. My estimate would be that for the likes of a minor hurling championship game, like the game against Westmeath, it was 75% hurling offaly and 25% elsewhere. Only a guess I'll grant you though.

You talk about filling the stand - I am in agreement that if there is even a 1% chance of the game in Birr being oversubscribed, then it should be in Tullamore, as in the case of this game. However the question was if all games should be moved there, and I don't see why a league game or a county final should be played there, particularly when you're increasing the distance travelled for at least 70% of the home support.

Finally, as for the struggles of our hurling teams - we should do all we can to help. Personally I think playing in front of a partisan crowd in a familiar venue is worth a couple of points to our lads - and the team winning a tight game as opposed to losing one could make all the difference in their confidence and belief going forward, and then success begets success. Certainly playing in front of an empty-feeling Tullamore won't help. I know that if we end up losing by a point on Saturday in front of a small-looking and quiet crowd, I will certainly believe that the venue was partially responsible.

Playing games in Tullamore will help Tullamore hurling, as well as that in it's environs - however all of a sudden the kids growing up in and around Birr won't be getting used to big hurling days in their town, and we may lose a few that way. Give Tullamore a few big days, but moving all the hurling occasions to a town with not one senior panellist in the vicinity makes no sense to me.

[Treasurer]

It's a tricky one. A lot of "southerners" will be non too pleased if all the hurling switches to Tullamore, and these concerns have been expressed from the start. But no doubt the pressure will be on to use O'Connor Park, and understandably so. I'm not sure how much work Birr did since the audit last year (or year before?) that put them at a ridiculously low capacity, which may well have put them out of contention?

Slightly off topic, the whole O'Connor Park fundraising drive has been a contentious issue for some clubs, particularly smaller ones. There has been a serious imbalance in the numbers of tickets clubs have been levied with. In terms of population our own club levy of 37 tickets is the equivalent of Tullamore being levied with 1,267 tickets.

[Tom]

to be fair, i think the northerners who support the hurlers far out weigh the southereners who support football. maybe it is because the 90's was filled with hurling success and maybe it started from people jumping on the bandwagon. but to be honest this shouldn't be the case. people from Tubber, Clara, Gracefield, Rhode and Edenderry should travel for urling matches, as should people from Birr, Clareen, banagher, Lusmagh to the footballers. Sorry if this is a little off topic.

[Lone Shark]

Not off topic at all, to my mind.

I agree that you will see a lot more Edenderry lads at a hurling game than Birr lads at a football match, but it doesn't change the fact that it was Birr and environs that kept Offaly going throughout the dark years, and without that area we'd be a Nicky Rackard team. Let them keep most of the hurling games.

I'd be all on for a few home double headers in the league though next year. (God knows we'll need to do as much as we can to draw a crowd in division 2!!)

[Treasurer]

think the northerners who support the hurlers far out weigh the southereners who support football.

Probably do, but northern population much bigger too (I'm mad about percentages I am )

[As Such Ger]

The way we talk about Offaly, u'd swear it was a state the size of Texas or something. Drive for 30 mins from Tullamore and ur not too far from anywhere in the county. Everyone has got cars now, so transport to games is not an issue.

I really cant see the point in building a fine stand, and then letting it sit idle when the county board could be reclaiming some of thier loses back on it. I wonder did we ever carry out a study of how many times per year we plan to fill the stand, how many people we need to have in it to make X cash, before we built the thing. Or did we just throw it up without much business/rational thought for the sake of having a nice stand.

[Lone Shark]

The way we talk about Offaly, u'd swear it was a state the size of Texas or something. Drive for 30 mins from Tullamore and ur not too far from anywhere in the county. Everyone has got cars now, so transport to games is not an issue.

It is for young kids - which are the hearts and minds we want to capture. Particularly around 14 or 15 when other influences start to kick in.

I really cant see the point in building a fine stand, and then letting it sit idle when the county board could be reclaiming some of thier loses back on it.

I'm sorry, but I just don't see how 3,000 at a match in Birr brings in any less money to the county board than 3,000 people at a match in Tullamore? If you can tell me that a game in Tullamore will have a lot more people at it, and explain why, then certainly - I don't see it. As we said before - if capacity is an issue, then obviously Tullamore - but if not, then playing it in Birr doesn't mean less revenue.

I wonder did we ever carry out a study of how many times per year we plan to fill the stand, how many people we need to have in it to make X cash, before we built the thing. Or did we just throw it up without much business/rational thought for the sake of having a nice stand.

I'm not sure, but I suspect that might be the elephant in the room we're not supposed to ask about.



I'm all for hurling evangelism, but surely you can see how playing games in front of a crowd that is lost in a bigger stadium will not help results - and right now, more than anything else, that's what we need.

[The Biff]

No reason not to keep the Flexible option, in my book. There will be some fixtures that will be more appropriate to be played in Birr, (like most League games) so do so. Spreading the Offaly League games over two venues could also be of some help to the pitches concerned, i.e. avoid wear-out at a time of the year when grass-growth is low.

Certainly use Tullamore for the more high-profile ones, including this one vs Limerick. Access to a bigger venue should also help to encourage a bigger home support to turn out on such occasions.

[Rynaghs Biffo]

Just a quick question??

How many times in a year would there be a crowd of at least 5,000 people in Tullamore if only the football is to be played there? and would the new stand be put to good use? for how many times of the year?