Two nations one team!

Oranage2

I wonder could we do like a team of islands, bring Iceland and the Faroe Islands and we could form 'The Islanders'

riffmongous

begbysback wrote: »

Only because we effectively have a Phoenix park Sunday league manager

Yeah right, that's the only reason, not like we were beating f'ing Gibraltar by 1-0 and 2-0 a few years ago :rolleyes:

Fionn1952

downcow wrote: »

I wonder with Regina Doherty find it fairly uncontentious if England set about creating a British isles team to replace the five nations teams.

The British and Irish Lions team has been a relative success in the rugby, so the idea isn't inherently as ridiculous as you suggest, at least for exhibition tour type of events. With the soccer, English standards are probably prohibitively higher than that of the other nations to have anything but token representation, so it wouldn't work.

Tis the beauty of sport.....I can absolutely despise Owen Farrell and his incredibly punchable face when he lines up for England, and support him when he's playing for the Lions against South Africa (though it doesn't do much for the punchable face factor).....I can think Johnny Sexton is a great lad when he lines up for Ireland, but hate him when he's playing for Leinster.

That being said, as someone from the North who has felt completely alienated and unable to support the NI team for my entire lifetime, I still wouldn't support the amalgamation of the two soccer teams (at least not pre-Unification). I don't believe the two together would be competitive just because we are with the rugby. I don't see any tangible benefit in it, and all I can see happening is that genuine NI fans would be left without a team; regardless of how it is presented, a significant cohort would see an all island team as just the Irish team and be about as likely to support it as I am with the NI team.

I do think your estimation of NI's, 'success' is overblown though. If I'm not mistaken, FIFA still have them ranked below ROI (45th vs 42nd, so same ballpark) One bad result for your rivals (or a string of absolutely tedious horrible football if we're being frank) doesn't make NI world beaters, no matter how many songs about Will Grigg go viral.

downcow

SEPT 23 1989 wrote: »

you would have to segregate the "home" fans

Haha. I enjoyed this. But probably not the reality. 90% of current ni fans would either stop supporting international football or transfer their allegiance to another nation they feel warm towards

ted1

realdanbreen wrote: »

We could do like the rugby. one 32 county team and of course we would select a couple of token ulster players to keep everyone happy!

Well we had another, but he now plays for London irish, so isn’t eligible.

ted1

dan1895 wrote: »

Every f*cling time. No! That's not how football works.

Guess what , Football in Ireland currently doesn’t work.
Take you’re head out of the sand
A change is needed.

Donald Trump

riffmongous wrote: »

Yeah right, that's the only reason, not like we were beating f'ing Gibraltar by 1-0 and 2-0 a few years ago :rolleyes:

Nostalgic for the glory days?

Donald Trump

ted1 wrote: »

Guess what , Football in Ireland currently doesn’t work.
Take you’re head out of the sand
A change is needed.

They could try bringing the GAA Assimilation Committee back on board

Omackeral

ted1 wrote: »

Then create 4 provincial sides maybe a 5th of just Dublin

People will turn up in their droves to watch those teams alright....

The people in this country who give a rats about supporting their own in a traditional sense already do it, although many are derided for it. The rest pretend to be Scousers and Mancs every weekend...funny how it's never really Brummies, despite our massive emigration to Birmingham

We have a very very odd football culture in this country. We nearly base our national identity on hating the English yet cling to their league as if it's our own.

Omackeral

dan1895 wrote: »

Every f*cling time. No! That's not how football works.

Imagine they made a team called Dublin City. And it played in the Dublin GAA colours and all. And they gave them a catchy nickname like ''The Vikings'' or something like that. Of course people would support them.

Sunny Disposition

Politicians should probably keep out of these discussions at the moment.. If a demand within the game comes from it, well and good. With northerners allowed play for the Republic it's probably time to let the issue lie for a little while. Ken Earley had a great article about the state of Ireland in yesterday's Irish Times, basically says that Kenny has tried to bring Ireland out of the dark ages, that there is no particularly good reason to expect Ireland to be hammering Luxembourg despite theatrical posturing since the weekend and that those who want to go back to the tactics Ireland played for maybe 30 years are seriously regressive.
On another point, why does Ireland never produce any top notch attacking players? Robbie Keane was okay, but before him Frank Stapleton was the last major dangerman. Another article last weekend said that Irish players always look shocked after they score a goal.

Omackeral

ted1 wrote: »

Guess what , Football in Ireland currently doesn’t work.
Take you’re head out of the sand
A change is needed.

You take you are head out of the sand. Who is going to support these provincial teams? You? I certainly won't. I go to games every single week (well did ) and I wouldn't just stop. Don't think Paddy Premiership will be giving up United or Liverpool either somehow.

cdeb

ted1 wrote: »

Guess what , Football in Ireland currently doesn’t work.
Take you’re head out of the sand
A change is needed.

Guess what - nothing in what you proposed would actually address the root issues, which is awful coaching at junior levels, a bankrupt FAI, and people supporting foreign teams rather than local teams.

(I've no problems with supporting foreign teams btw - but if you're concerned about the national team, then you can support a foreign team and the LoI)

cdeb

Sunny Disposition wrote: »

On another point, why does Ireland never produce any top notch attacking players? Robbie Keane was okay, but before him Frank Stapleton was the last major dangerman. Another article last weekend said that Irish players always look shocked after they score a goal.

Slightly harsh on Niall Quinn and Damien Duff I think. Ok, Duffer was a winger rather than a forward, which I think is more what you meant, but he was a super player. Quinny could play a bit too.

But yeah, we do seem to specialise in keepers (GAA influence?) and tacklers.

Omackeral

cdeb wrote: »

(I've no problems with supporting foreign teams btw - but if you're concerned about the national team, then you can support a foreign team and the LoI)

I would love if more people did that. The games seldom clash and the teams would rarely meet. If we were truly the best fans in the world like we sometimes think we are or others think we are, we'd support our own teams week in and week out. That shouldn't be controversial to say.

ted1

Omackeral wrote: »

You take you are head out of the sand. Who is going to support these provincial teams? You? I certainly won't. I go to games every single week (well did ) and I wouldn't just stop. Don't think Paddy Premiership will be giving up United or Liverpool either somehow.

Those games can continue

Omackeral

ted1 wrote: »

Those games can continue

So what is it you're suggesting? Who do Leinster, Munster, Connaught, Ulster and Dublin play against? Or what competition are they competing in?

dan1895

ted1 wrote: »

Guess what , Football in Ireland currently doesn’t work.
Take you’re head out of the sand
A change is needed.

Good man. What happens when UEFA don't allow us to have a national team because we don't have a full time league with promotion and relegation?

cdeb

Ah sure they can just play Celtic and Rangers and Ulster and Swansea and it'll be brilliant. Everyone'll come watching. Because football is exactly the same as rugby in its set up - strange but true.

cdeb

dan1895 wrote: »

Good man. What happens when UEFA don't allow us to have a national team because we don't have a full time league with promotion and relegation?

Well - be careful with that one. No promotion/relegation in Gibraltar any more. And the BeNe league is a tester too.

But the easier way to rebuff the suggestion is that it would have no hope of achieving any of the benefits often attributed to it.

dan1895

Omackeral wrote: »

Imagine they made a team called Dublin City. And it played in the Dublin GAA colours and all. And they gave them a catchy nickname like ''The Vikings'' or something like that. Of course people would support them.

Selling thousands of jersies to tourists bringing the brand global. Unstoppable.

yourdeadwright

Not possible due to the fan base, there would be trouble among fans ,

No point beating around the bush the loyalist fan base from the north will be the issue,

Omackeral

cdeb wrote: »

Well - be careful with that one. No promotion/relegation in Gibraltar any more.

Gibraltar being admitted to UEFA/FIFA as a full time nation was ridiculous. Literally every team in the league plays in the same stadium.

cdeb

Not uncommon in small countries in fairness. San Marino and Andorra share grounds too.

ted1

Omackeral wrote: »

So what is it you're suggesting? Who do Leinster, Munster, Connaught, Ulster and Dublin play against? Or what competition are they competing in?

In a league/ cup with Scottish and Welsh teams.
There would be an All Ireland league for the clubs as there is in rugby

Omackeral

dan1895 wrote: »

Selling thousands of jersies to tourists bringing the brand global. Unstoppable.

Carrolls gift shop represent!

ratracer

What would happen to Amhrán na bhFiann? It was bad enough that the other sports sold out to that Ireland’s Call sh1te......

dan1895

cdeb wrote: »

Well - be careful with that one. No promotion/relegation in Gibraltar any more. And the BeNe league is a tester too.

But the easier way to rebuff the suggestion is that it would have no hope of achieving any of the benefits often attributed to it.

I'm aware of the Gibraltar situation but that's because they have such a small population in the tens of thousands. We have nearly five million. The Belgium/Netherlands situation is the coming together from two associations who want to do it and have been working on it for years. Not people slinging **** in the hopes that it will stick.

Omackeral

ted1 wrote: »

In a league/ cup with Scottish and Welsh teams.
There would be an All Ireland league for the clubs as there is in rugby

Just so we're clear. Which Welsh teams are in this? Are Swansea, Wrexham, Cardiff in it or is it the ones from the League of Wales you've never heard of that play in front of 100's of people on average match days? What about the Scottish clubs? Are Rangers and Celtic in this one or are they in their own mini league of two? How far down the Scottish leagues do we go? Will I have to do Stenhousemuir away in November?

ted1

Omackeral wrote: »

No just so we're clear. Which Welsh teams are in this? Are Swansea, Wrexham, Cardiff in it or is it the ones from the League of Wales you've never heard of that play in front of 100's of people on average match days? What about the Scottish clubs? Are Rangers and Celtic in this one or are they in their own mini league of two? How far down the Scottish leagues do we go? Will I have to do Stenhousemuir away in November?

Let the relevant FA’s nominate teams.