Pairc Ui Caoimh - 60000 all seater stadium!

dzilla

zetecescort wrote: »

Would be against an all seater stadium. Terraces in the Pairc are the best in the country, steep enough that your close to the pitch no matter how high you go up.

The current Pairc reminds me of flying with Ryanair, if you expect no frills you'll be grand. The atmosphere when it's full is brilliant, all fans close to the pitch. Just don't expect any creature comforts.

I hear ya, don't get me wrong I love going to the Pairc and always go to the terrace. I like the bowl affect of the stadium adds to the atmosphere. I think its not modern looking, but thats jus me

Straight Talker

dzilla wrote: »

I hear ya, don't get me wrong I love going to the Pairc and always go to the terrace. I like the bowl affect of the stadium adds to the atmosphere. I think its not modern looking, but thats jus me

I would be happy enough with the current look of the pairc.I just want it to be a safer and more comfortable stadium that is redeveloped at a sensible price.I don't want the clubs to be burdened with a 67 million debt plus intrest!I don't want all the money in the coffers to be blown on a stadium redevelopment project when Thomond Park was redeveloped for half the price.

tomwaterford

dzilla wrote: »

I hear ya, don't get me wrong I love going to the Pairc and always go to the terrace. I like the bowl affect of the stadium adds to the atmosphere. I think its not modern looking, but thats jus me

Blackrock terrace the best terrace for view of the pitch in the country,mile better than croke park....I hope they keep it

lukin

So is it just behind the two goals that there will be terracing? Both sides of the pitch will have covered stands with seating?

Jim Bowen

The whole thing is for nothing unless they do three things:
1. improve the leg room in both stands
2. improve the access into the terraces both access to the toilets and getting out of the thing in the event of a crush.
3. improve access to the stadium

I love the atmosphere a full PUC brings to the Championship on a sunny day but I hate, hate , hate the facilities. I hate the pre-historic nature of the place. I hate that the minor teams have to tog off in a portacabin.

If it was up to me, I'd knock it, sell the land and look for a green field site. The location of PUC is never going to be favourable to an enjoyable day out in the summer.

slingerz

Jim Bowen wrote: »

The whole thing is for nothing unless they do three things:
1. improve the leg room in both stands
2. improve the access into the terraces both access to the toilets and getting out of the thing in the event of a crush.
3. improve access to the stadium

I love the atmosphere a full PUC brings to the Championship on a sunny day but I hate, hate , hate the facilities. I hate the pre-historic nature of the place. I hate that the minor teams have to tog off in a portacabin.

If it was up to me, I'd knock it, sell the land and look for a green field site. The location of PUC is never going to be favourable to an enjoyable day out in the summer.

the location is terrible alright. somewhere out by the dog track would be ideal really with good transport links around it

RoyalCelt

Any update on this lads? Been no news about this or Casement Park recently...

thinkstoomuch1

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/gaas-67m-plan-for-pairc-faces-delays-255243.html

There has been plenty about this in the news.So much for the urgency to get it done,it aborts take off before it even it gets up and running.

Like I always said ,this wont be short of a drama,and wait til its being built.Reminds of the fiasco with the seating a few years ago,the crowd they got in couldnt do right the 1st time.


Look at ravenhill in contrast ,a super project and ahead of schedule or on target.

overshoot

RoyalCelt wrote: »

Any update on this lads? Been no news about this or Casement Park recently...

casement was granted planning mid december
Tender process should be going now, cant imagine they would chance starting it pre planning with 1000 objectors.
given the size of the project it will probably be a few months before we hear a contractor being put in place. Outside of the basic contractors, you also have the fire certs, disability access certs and so on... well not 100% sure on the northern building system

edit - i think the ravenhill redevelopment was in the pipeline before the maze stadium project fell apart and money redistributed to existing stadia. ulster suddenly went from saving for it to having someone else paying for it. The brandywell & windsor are both at more similar levels to casement, not sure if anyone else is getting money

RoyalCelt

Cheers for the updates lads. At this rate I'd say casement will be done well before PUC.

iDave

In Duffys report yesterday he says government funding will be required to bring GAA stadia up to standard for a RWC bid. 6 GAA grounds should be used, 3 are developed or being developed. What could the other 3 be? Salthill, Killarney and perhaps Derry/Midlands/Kilkenny.

overshoot

iDave wrote: »

In Duffys report yesterday he says government funding will be required to bring GAA stadia up to standard for a RWC bid. 6 GAA grounds should be used, 3 are developed or being developed. What could the other 3 be? Salthill, Killarney and perhaps Derry/Midlands/Kilkenny.

official list at original release
croker, casement, pairc ui caoimh

killarney, gaelic grounds, pearse stadium

then lansdowne, rds (also got plans for redevelopment to 26k), ravenhill, thomond

+murrayfield/millenium stadium id imagine - votes & there is a bit of a hole to fill capacity wise between croker & lansdowne

id imagine there will be a press for Derry with the new cross border working group announced today... 4th biggest city, air/rail links, only 2 NI stadiums there anyway and ravenhill wont be getting big games (or derry)

AugustusMinimus

Nice up close shot of the redeveloped stadium.

45,000 is the new capacity and contrary to what people are saying, both stands are being rebuilt.

Eventually, down the road I can see both terraces possibly being rebuilt or at least roofed.

Grats

Lovely stadium, horrible location. Spending €70m won't change the fact that the location is a cul de sac. Worse grounds to access and now they're going to have a bigger stadium with bigger crowds and therefore bigger traffic jams. A joke.

munchkin_utd

It's 2000 extra of a capacity, not 17000 extra like earlier proposed.
The original plan for a 60000 all seater (GAA only) stadium was insane, the current proposal for 45,000 renovation and upgrade is bordering on the illogical, but the alternatives aren't a runner either so it's what's gong ahead.

They could abandon the current stadium, but then what?
Smaller tidy stadium for all but the biggest games, but meaning cork never hosts a Munster final ever again?
Or build a new massive stadium that costs more again- and can't be done in a phased manner!
Or have a decent shared rugby and GAA new guild stadium with a similar capacity to puc? (Leaving thomond as the second stadium in rugby and the debt on that stadium still to be paid, on top of irfu financing the aviva and the new expensive stadium in cork)

AugustusMinimus

Grats wrote: »

Lovely stadium, horrible location. Spending €70m won't change the fact that the location is a cul de sac. Worse grounds to access and now they're going to have a bigger stadium with bigger crowds and therefore bigger traffic jams. A joke.

There's plans to build a new bridge across the Lee from the Lower Glanmire Road. Will hopefully be done within the next 10 years.

I'm sure Frank isn't as much against Rugby and Soccer being played in the Pairc as he was previously. I have no doubt that the Cork County Board will allow these games to be played at the Pairc where possible and will make a nice bit of cash out of it.

I could certainly see Munster games being played there where a large stadium is warranted.

Frank will also look for an All-Ireland semi final in hurling or football. Not sure this will get the go ahead though.

Frankie Lee

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

Eventually, down the road I can see both terraces possibly being rebuilt or at least roofed.

I'd hope not, for the odd fine summer day open terraces are brilliant.

AugustusMinimus

Frankie Lee wrote: »

I'd hope not, for the odd fine summer day open terraces are brilliant.

And this is Ireland sadly

Ideally future development would involve rebuilding the terraces and installing convertible seating as seen at Dortmunds and Munich's stadiums. Takes only 4 or 5 hours to convert the stadium into an All-seater.

munchkin_utd

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

And this is Ireland sadly

Ideally future development would involve rebuilding the terraces and installing convertible seating as seen at Dortmunds and Munich's stadiums. Takes only 4 or 5 hours to convert the stadium into an All-seater.

Why would you want the terraces covered or indeed seated in a stadium that rarely is filled and where the terraces behind the goals are essentially overflow capacity when the normal capacity of the sideline stands are exhausted?
It's actually quite an elegant solution.

And in munich the standing / seating conversion is instant, as the seats are always there albeit they are more uncomfortable and compact than a proper seating area.
I was in there for bundesliga games when it's officially standing and over a month ago the game against man utd when the south curve was officially seating, and the only difference on the terrace is the charade of allocating a seat for champions league matches - which just means less people on the terrace
Everyone stands the whole time and the seats are always installed. Handy for half time though to have a seat in the terrace!

glued

Grats wrote: »

Lovely stadium, horrible location. Spending €70m won't change the fact that the location is a cul de sac. Worse grounds to access and now they're going to have a bigger stadium with bigger crowds and therefore bigger traffic jams. A joke.

PUC is a terrible place to get into on Munster Final day. Terrible location.

ProudDUB

munchkin_utd wrote: »

It's 2000 extra of a capacity, not 17000 extra like earlier proposed.
The original plan for a 60000 all seater (GAA only) stadium was insane, the current proposal for 45,000 renovation and upgrade is bordering on the illogical, but the alternatives aren't a runner either so it's what's gong ahead.

They could abandon the current stadium, but then what?
Smaller tidy stadium for all but the biggest games, but meaning cork never hosts a Munster final ever again?
Or build a new massive stadium that costs more again- and can't be done in a phased manner!
Or have a decent shared rugby and GAA new guild stadium with a similar capacity to puc? (Leaving thomond as the second stadium in rugby and the debt on that stadium still to be paid, on top of irfu financing the aviva and the new expensive stadium in cork)

Musgrave Park only holds a small amount of Munster games. The vast bulk of them are held in Limerick and will continue to be. Thomond draws much bigger crowds than MP does, which is rarely full. Munster Rugby and/or the IRFU have zero incentive to spend more money on another stadium in the province, when Thomond is there & still has to be paid off. Plus, why would they want to share their revenue streams with the GAA? The only way I could see them being party to a shared stadium, is if they got it for free and I can't see that happening any time soon.

RoyalCelt

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

Nice up close shot of the redeveloped stadium.

45,000 is the new capacity and contrary to what people are saying, both stands are being rebuilt.

Eventually, down the road I can see both terraces possibly being rebuilt or at least roofed.

Imagine two hill 16 standard terraces with roofs over them! When is the next 30M grant due? :P

RoyalCelt

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

There's plans to build a new bridge across the Lee from the Lower Glanmire Road. Will hopefully be done within the next 10 years.

I'm sure Frank isn't as much against Rugby and Soccer being played in the Pairc as he was previously. I have no doubt that the Cork County Board will allow these games to be played at the Pairc where possible and will make a nice bit of cash out of it.

I could certainly see Munster games being played there where a large stadium is warranted.

Frank will also look for an All-Ireland semi final in hurling or football. Not sure this will get the go ahead though.

The bridge needs to be buolt sooner rather than later and would be major relief if it happens.

As for Frank looking for bigger matches fair play to him and rightly so. I think the GAA are a joke the way they never let quarters or semi's out of croker.

Is 45K enough for a hurling semi final? I don't think so and in the rare occasion 2 teams meet that wouldn't exceed 45 in CP they would likely not be located close to cork.

Last year the semi's for hurling got 62k and 63k and apart from Dublin 3 teams had a long trip to make. The 2 quarters only got 33k so the likes of hurling quarter finals definitely should get played there every two years or so.

Football is where the big games should and could come from. In a 2011 double header, Mayo v Cork and Limerick v Kerry had a low crowd of 23k at it.

If that double header was played in a Munster venue it would have sold out and be a great occasion. If it wasn't for their stupid corporate deal in croke park you could of had mayo & cork tossing for home advantage and the match played in front of 35k in mayo or 30k-45k in cork.

Limerick v Kerry in either Killarney or Limerick could of been sell outs or close to sell outs. The GAA really shoot themselves in the foot here and in the corporate deal they should say only a maximum of 2 quarter finals and 1 semi has to be played in croker. And if they move to a provincial venue they get first choice on the tickets if they've got premium or box tickets.

EDIT: Just to add to that Cork v Kerry AI semi 2008 had 35k at it in croker. Why not toss for home advantage or allow their home/away agreement carry over to this. Play it in thurles or limerick either and you'll have a full house of 45k at it. Istead they drag the supporters up to croker and cost them a fortune.

And then they wouldn't even do the above for the replay the next week!

Any thoughts?

What do you think?

Prop Joe

RoyalCelt wrote: »

The bridge needs to be buolt sooner rather than later and would be major relief if it happens.

As for Frank looking for bigger matches fair play to him and rightly so. I think the GAA are a joke the way they never let quarters or semi's out of croker.

Is 45K enough for a hurling semi final? I don't think so and in the rare occasion 2 teams meet that wouldn't exceed 45 in CP they would likely not be located close to cork.

Last year the semi's for hurling got 62k and 63k and apart from Dublin 3 teams had a long trip to make. The 2 quarters only got 33k so the likes of hurling quarter finals definitely should get played there every two years or so.

Football is where the big games should and could come from. In a 2011 double header, Mayo v Cork and Limerick v Kerry had a low crowd of 23k at it.

If that double header was played in a Munster venue it would have sold out and be a great occasion. If it wasn't for their stupid corporate deal in croke park you could of had mayo & cork tossing for home advantage and the match played in front of 35k in mayo or 30k-45k in cork.

Limerick v Kerry in either Killarney or Limerick could of been sell outs or close to sell outs. The GAA really shoot themselves in the foot here and in the corporate deal they should say only a maximum of 2 quarter finals and 1 semi has to be played in croker. And if they move to a provincial venue they get first choice on the tickets if they've got premium or box tickets.

EDIT: Just to add to that Cork v Kerry AI semi 2008 had 35k at it in croker. Why not toss for home advantage or allow their home/away agreement carry over to this. Play it in thurles or limerick either and you'll have a full house of 45k at it. Istead they drag the supporters up to croker and cost them a fortune.

And then they wouldn't even do the above for the replay the next week!

Any thoughts?

What do you think?

I am always preaching this,There needs to be more movement of games out of Croker,The journey time and cost to fans should be higher priority

iDave

Prop Joe wrote: »

I am always preaching this,There needs to be more movement of games out of Croker,The journey time and cost to fans should be higher priority

I'd like to see a more aspiration nature to CP. As it is it gets games it shouldn't get. Div 3&4 finals. Leinster QFs, we even had qualifiers there last year FFS.
I'd limited CP to AI Finals, AI Semis, Leinster finals and any other game that only CP can satisfy capacity wise i.e. Dublin Leinster SF.

I'd install home & away agreements for every county in the provincial QF and SFs. That way all county grounds, not just the big Munster ones get some usage. If a county home ground isn't big enough the GAA or provincial council can step in and say were moving it elsewhere.

For AI QFs I'd keep Dublin in CP for capacity reasons, all Leinster clashes and clashes between counties from different provinces i.e. Kerry V Donegal.
An all Munster QF should be in Munster. We had a Kerry/Limerick QF in CP a few years ago. Nonsense, should of been in Munster. Last year Tyrone/Monaghan too. Clones would of made more sense or the new Casement when its complete.

Hurling QFs are in Semple, I think most hurling fans are happy with that but perhaps the new PUC can be considered in future.

munchkin_utd

Prop Joe wrote: »

I am always preaching this,There needs to be more movement of games out of Croker,The journey time and cost to fans should be higher priority

have to agree, to a point.
When there was 10s if not 100s of millions of debt on Croke Park, and there was a novelty factor in the stadium when it was new, it made sense to have games there and give massive value for the all important corporate tickets.

But now, an odd semi or quarter outside croke park when it makes sense only seems logical, but the only pairing I can think of moving in football would be Cork/ Kerry especially when the football part of Cork is the most remote end, and Kerry in general is the most remote county from Dublin aside from Donegal.

In Hurling you could talk of moving selected games, but with ALL major teams south of a line from Galway to Dublin then should you start moving games to be more convienent, then every game incl the final would just be in Thurles except maybe Limerick v Clare.

Prop Joe

Croker should be the main stadium for major GAA games but if there is an alternative venue,That would not affect attendance,Cut down on travelling time for teams and fans it should be used.

Double headers also on Saturday's do not work.Sat eve games need to be stand alone fixtures.

Take this year's league finals

Tipp v Clare
Cavan v Roscommon
Dublin v Derry
Monaghan v Donegal

3 of those match ups were neighbouring counties so a toss of a coin for home advantage would of made alot more sense

munchkin_utd

Prop Joe wrote: »

Croker should be the main stadium for major GAA games but if there is an alternative venue,That would not affect attendance,Cut down on travelling time for teams and fans it should be used.

Double headers also on Saturday's do not work.Sat eve games need to be stand alone fixtures.

Take this year's league finals

Tipp v Clare
Cavan v Roscommon
Dublin v Derry
Monaghan v Donegal

3 of those match ups were neighbouring counties so a toss of a coin for home advantage would of made alot more sense

er, indeed, the voice of someone most likely from a successful county who is sick of spins to ireland premier stadium.

I cant see one of the counties involved in those games being interested in moving out of Croke Park, except Derry, and then only to remove Dublins home advantage.
The rest would be more than happy to have their day at HQ.
And whilst it mightnt suit some supporters, for a footballer from Clare or Tipp (or Cavan or Roscommon or Derry.....), its possibly the highlight of their season if not footballing career so playing it at Croke Park is the only option.

Prop Joe

munchkin_utd wrote: »

er, indeed, the voice of someone most likely from a successful county who is sick of spins to ireland premier stadium.

I cant see one of the counties involved in those games being interested in moving out of Croke Park, except Derry, and then only to remove Dublins home advantage.
And whilst it mightnt suit some supporters, for a footballer from Clare or Tipp (or Cavan or Roscommon or Derry.....), its possibly the highlight of their season if not footballing career so playing it at Croke Park is the only option.

That point is valid but myself as a player would like if all my Junior B games were played in Croke Park.

It's also not precedent that NFL finals are played in Croker.

To be honest no player dreams of playing in Croker infront of 1,000 people,They dream of playing in front of 80,000

The question is when the GAA are setting venues what is most important?

Making it an experience for the supporter or the player?

"It's nice for the likes of Tipp and Clare to play in Croke Park once for a final sure it dont matter if no-one turns up"

"Take Dublin out of Croker? Sure we would make no money then"

AugustusMinimus

IMO, is it really necessary to drag 2 Munster teams all the way to Dublin for an All-Ireland semi-final.

Sure it was nice when the new Croke Park had a novelty factor. Now it just seems like hassle.

All-Ireland semi-finals involving 2 Munster teams should be played in Munster IMO. Once the Pairc has been rebuilt, the Munster final should be shared every second year between there and Thurles.

The Lost Sheep

Prop Joe wrote: »

That point is valid but myself as a player would like if all my Junior B games were played in Croke Park.

It's also not precedent that NFL finals are played in Croker.

To be honest no player dreams of playing in Croker infront of 1,000 people,They dream of playing in front of 80,000

The question is when the GAA are setting venues what is most important?

Making it an experience for the supporter or the player?

"It's nice for the likes of Tipp and Clare to play in Croke Park once for a final sure it dont matter if no-one turns up"

"Take Dublin out of Croker? Sure we would make no money then"

Mentioning Junior B is stupid and irrelevant... finals have not always been in CP but they should be. Players dream of playing in CP and for many if its their sole chance of playing a national final there they wont care what numbers are in the crowd. For teams in lower divisions the supporters wont get their much either so its an experience for both teams.

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

IMO, is it really necessary to drag 2 Munster teams all the way to Dublin for an All-Ireland semi-final.

Sure it was nice when the new Croke Park had a novelty factor. Now it just seems like hassle.

All-Ireland semi-finals involving 2 Munster teams should be played in Munster IMO. Once the Pairc has been rebuilt, the Munster final should be shared every second year between there and Thurles.

No they shouldn't if players/supporters(majority IMO) and GAA want them in Croke Park and as some of the premier games of the year they should be in the main stadium of the association

Prop Joe

The question is when the GAA are setting venues what is most important?

Making it an experience for the supporter or the player?

blue note

We already have alternatives to Croker in Limerick and Thurles. We don't use them for semi finals. Why would we use this one when we don't the others?

AugustusMinimus

blue note wrote: »

We already have alternatives to Croker in Limerick and Thurles. We don't use them for semi finals. Why would we use this one when we don't the others?

Because both the Gaelic Grounds and Semple Stadium are old grounds with little in the way of modern facilities.

The new main stand in the Pairc will have a number of corporate boxes and looks like it will have some sort of premium tier.

As I've said elsewhere, the Pairc redevelopment isn't actually the issue. More like why the Limerick county board redeveloped the Gaelic Grounds into a 51,000 capacity stadium, which very poor facilities, has a stand without a roof and has another stand which your lucky to be able to see the entire pitch out of.

The bigger picture here is that Cork, the 2nd city in this country needs some sort of municipal stadium with a capacity circa 40,000 to 45,000. I would imagine that the FAI are unwilling to put any funding into it.

The IRFU and Munster Branch is a separate case. Munster Branch is systematically trying to finish off Munster Rugby links with Cork. The prospect of a 45,000 municipal stadium in Cork is not a welcome one in Limerick as it means a share of the big Munster games would return to Cork. Limerick heads at the top of Munster Branch would roll.

This leaves the GAA as the only organisation truly willing to put this stadium in place. The €30 government funding IMO is excessive. I'd have hopes though that stipulations were put in place so that the Pairc will be available to both rugby and soccer in the event of Central Council allowing its use outside of just the 2023 or 2027 Rugby World Cup.

The Lost Sheep

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

Because both the Gaelic Grounds and Semple Stadium are old grounds with little in the way of modern facilities.

The new main stand in the Pairc will have a number of corporate boxes and looks like it will have some sort of premium tier.

As I've said elsewhere, the Pairc redevelopment isn't actually the issue. More like why the Limerick county board redeveloped the Gaelic Grounds into a 51,000 capacity stadium, which very poor facilities, has a stand without a roof and has another stand which your lucky to be able to see the entire pitch out of.

The bigger picture here is that Cork, the 2nd city in this country needs some sort of municipal stadium with a capacity circa 40,000 to 45,000. I would imagine that the FAI are unwilling to put any funding into it.

The IRFU and Munster Branch is a separate case. Munster Branch is systematically trying to finish off Munster Rugby links with Cork. The prospect of a 45,000 municipal stadium in Cork is not a welcome one in Limerick as it means a share of the big Munster games would return to Cork. Limerick heads at the top of Munster Branch would roll.

This leaves the GAA as the only organisation truly willing to put this stadium in place. The €30 government funding IMO is excessive. I'd have hopes though that stipulations were put in place so that the Pairc will be available to both rugby and soccer in the event of Central Council allowing its use outside of just the 2023 or 2027 Rugby World Cup.

Yes Cork probably needs a 40-50k stadium.
You are totally wrong with Munster and Cork.... a municipal stadium would be welcomed but games would not be moved from Thomond with debts etc still to be paid off.

AugustusMinimus

The Lost Sheep wrote: »

You are totally wrong with Munster and Cork.... a municipal stadium would be welcomed but games would not be moved from Thomond with debts etc still to be paid off.

True. The only game which would potentially be moved would be a Heineken Cup semi-final but Munster Limerick Rugby management would try to have it held in the Gaelic Grounds instead.

This is exactly why the IRFU / Limerick Rugby will not invest a penny into a municipal stadium in Cork. Its why the GAA are the only ones even trying to do something.

munchkin_utd

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

True. The only game which would potentially be moved would be a Heineken Cup semi-final but Munster Limerick Rugby management would try to have it held in the Gaelic Grounds instead.

This is exactly why the IRFU / Limerick Rugby will not invest a penny into a municipal stadium in Cork. Its why the GAA are the only ones even trying to do something.

even a heineken semi would be held just as quick in the Aviva, which the IRFU own themsevles, so the rent goes to paying off its debts rather than funding the GAA's vanity projects.

The Lost Sheep

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

True. The only game which would potentially be moved would be a Heineken Cup semi-final but Munster Limerick Rugby management would try to have it held in the Gaelic Grounds instead.

This is exactly why the IRFU / Limerick Rugby will not invest a penny into a municipal stadium in Cork. Its why the GAA are the only ones even trying to do something.

Will you stop with the "Limerick" rugby its Munster. Munster Heineken Cup semis will be played in Dublin in the Aviva as IRFU will have the final say so as they'll make more from it than it played elsewhere

Pete_Cavan

The Lost Sheep wrote: »

Mentioning Junior B is stupid and irrelevant... finals have not always been in CP but they should be. Players dream of playing in CP and for many if its their sole chance of playing a national final there they wont care what numbers are in the crowd. For teams in lower divisions the supporters wont get their much either so its an experience for both teams.

No they shouldn't if players/supporters(majority IMO) and GAA want them in Croke Park and as some of the premier games of the year they should be in the main stadium of the association

I really dont agree with this. Games should be fixed rationally according to estimated attendance and ease of access for supporters. The argument that players "deserve" to play in Croker is nonsense, what about all the hurlers for lower competitions who had to play their national finals in county grounds around the country, are you suggesting that they are a lower class citizen who doesnt deserve the same? The GAA should be looking to develope all grounds to a decent standard so they can host games according to their capacity and proximity to teams involved, not funneling games into Croker for them to not even cover the cost of opening the stadium.

rebel girl 15

Pete_Cavan wrote: »

I really dont agree with this. Games should be fixed rationally according to estimated attendance and ease of access for supporters. The argument that players "deserve" to play in Croker is nonsense, what about all the hurlers for lower competitions who had to play their national finals in county grounds around the country, are you suggesting that they are a lower class citizen who doesnt deserve the same? The GAA should be looking to develope all grounds to a decent standard so they can host games according to their capacity and proximity to teams involved, not funneling games into Croker for them to not even cover the cost of opening the stadium.

You ask any county player where they dream of playing and it's Croke Park. Players giving a huge commitment, no matter what league or division they are in deserve they go chance to play in the national stadium

The Lost Sheep

Pete_Cavan wrote: »

I really dont agree with this. Games should be fixed rationally according to estimated attendance and ease of access for supporters. The argument that players "deserve" to play in Croker is nonsense, what about all the hurlers for lower competitions who had to play their national finals in county grounds around the country, are you suggesting that they are a lower class citizen who doesnt deserve the same? The GAA should be looking to develope all grounds to a decent standard so they can host games according to their capacity and proximity to teams involved, not funneling games into Croker for them to not even cover the cost of opening the stadium.

Players playing in some of the premier games of the year do deserve to play in CP. Nowhere am I implying anything of the sort regarding hurlers in the lower competitions and I don't know how you got that idea from my post. Plenty of Games should be played in GAA HQ regardless of cost of opening ground as its better for sport overall.

CrabRevolution

Prop Joe wrote: »

Croker should be the main stadium for major GAA games but if there is an alternative venue,That would not affect attendance,Cut down on travelling time for teams and fans it should be used.

Double headers also on Saturday's do not work.Sat eve games need to be stand alone fixtures.

Take this year's league finals

Tipp v Clare
Cavan v Roscommon
Dublin v Derry
Monaghan v Donegal

3 of those match ups were neighbouring counties so a toss of a coin for home advantage would of made alot more sense

Admittedly I havent looked at any maps recently, but since when is there a Donegal-Monaghan or Cavan-Roscommon border?

Pete_Cavan

rebel girl 15 wrote: »

You ask any county player where they dream of playing and it's Croke Park. Players giving a huge commitment, no matter what league or division they are in deserve they go chance to play in the national stadium

Where does CP being the national stadium come from? Anyway, if the right to play in CP is proportional to commitment then by your logic every intercounty and a fair few club games should be played there. Madness.

The Lost Sheep wrote: »

Players playing in some of the premier games of the year do deserve to play in CP. Nowhere am I implying anything of the sort regarding hurlers in the lower competitions and I don't know how you got that idea from my post. Plenty of Games should be played in GAA HQ regardless of cost of opening ground as its better for sport overall.

Again every game should be put in CP regardless of any logic, that is the kind of tokenism that has devalued playing in CP. Other counties should have decent facilities too. Not too mention making supporters travel to Dublin does not always make sense and in many cases is downright unfair.

Syferus

Pete_Cavan wrote: »

I really dont agree with this. Games should be fixed rationally according to estimated attendance and ease of access for supporters. The argument that players "deserve" to play in Croker is nonsense, what about all the hurlers for lower competitions who had to play their national finals in county grounds around the country, are you suggesting that they are a lower class citizen who doesnt deserve the same? The GAA should be looking to develope all grounds to a decent standard so they can host games according to their capacity and proximity to teams involved, not funneling games into Croker for them to not even cover the cost of opening the stadium.

The finals of the Chisty Ring, Nicky Rackard and Lory Meagher cups are all played at Croke Park. But don't let a little thing like that throw a spanner in the works.

The Lost Sheep

Pete_Cavan wrote: »

Where does CP being the national stadium come from? Anyway, if the right to play in CP is proportional to commitment then by your logic every intercounty and a fair few club games should be played there. Madness.

Again every game should be put in CP regardless of any logic, that is the kind of tokenism that has devalued playing in CP. Other counties should have decent facilities too. Not too mention making supporters travel to Dublin does not always make sense and in many cases is downright unfair.

Not at all.
Other counties do have decent facilities but CP is HQ where everyone dreams of playing. It is national stadium and GAA HQ and we should thrive to play as much as possible there.

Frankie Lee

The Lost Sheep wrote: »

Not at all.
Other counties do have decent facilities but CP is HQ where everyone dreams of playing. It is national stadium and GAA HQ and we should thrive to play as much as possible there.

Plenty of inter-county footballers sick of playing in a 3/4 empty stadium with no atmosphere too especially for championship football.

klairondavis

Frankie Lee wrote: »

Plenty of inter-county footballers sick of playing in a 3/4 empty stadium with no atmosphere too especially for championship football.

So many Leinster Championship ties that are scheduled as the first match in a Croke Park double header would be far better events if they were played in smaller provincial grounds. In a few weeks time Louth and Kildare will be playing in a stadium that is at best 1/8th full before all the Dubs start filtering in for their match.

RoyalCelt

klairondavis wrote: »

So many Leinster Championship ties that are scheduled as the first match in a Croke Park double header would be far better events if they were played in smaller provincial grounds. In a few weeks time Louth and Kildare will be playing in a stadium that is at best 1/8th full before all the Dubs start filtering in for their match.

Louth v Kildare in a packed Navan would have a cracking atmosphere. I just don't get the GAA's obsession with CP. I'd imagine they make less money playing all these games there anyway and maybe it would be a nice gesture to the CP residents if they played one less weekend of games because they fixed Louth/Kildare for Navan and Dublin/Laois for Portlaoise/Tullamore/Navan.

andmc

As a 'GAA til I die' man I can't for the life of me figure this one out....There is already 4 stadiums capable of holding 40,000+ in Munster GAA alone! (Thurles, Limerick, Killarney and Cork). Okay, maybe cork could do with some modernising but this seems outrageously OTT to me. Get used maybe 2/3 times a year after all that money. Thumbs down for this i'm afraid

munchkin_utd

Frankie Lee wrote: »

Plenty of inter-county footballers sick of playing in a 3/4 empty stadium with no atmosphere too especially for championship football.

....says the Kildare man, so one of the counties which is in croke park multiple times every championship.

The likes of sligo or Leitrim though wouldn't see croke park once a decade, if even that, so it really depends on your perspective.