Let's face it, Ireland, we're poor at sports

[imtommygunn]

We have a small population but in addition to that we have a large number of sports getting peoples attentions which probably doesn't help.

Hurling, football, soccer, hockey and rugby seem to be ones that would get the crux of people with hockey being in the minority of that group. Look at some of the great GAA teams - you could have got world stars in some of those sports from some of them boys. Also for ladies football / camogie seem to be predominant.

Athletics is a poor second best in the country. You get clubs here and there but , for example, in a lot of rural areas there is nothing for miles. The investment in athletics in comparison to the UK is very small. Soccer -likewise - has no clubs in a lot of rural areas so again a lot of untapped resource.

Basically ask yourself this - in the area where you are from did you have the opportunity to try your hand and develop at many sports? I'd bet not. Most areas are specific to rugby / GAA / soccer. Most of us are pigeon holed.

Don't get me wrong I grew up playing football and I wouldn't have it any other way but there was no scope for anyone in any other sports.

[ExiledGael]

Scots seem to be doing something right at the minute, suppose with us smaller countries these things will work in cycles. Bit of a lull here at the minute no doubt

[Turlough O Carolan]

I think the Irish are a naturally awkward race. This is especially evident in international rugby and soccer. In rugby, when the Irish throw the ball, it's just as likely to hit a players arse, go over the endline or be fumbled. In soccer too, the Irish don't have the same silken skills as the Latins. It's no surprise that our most successful period in soccer occured when Jack Charlton devised a style of play that involved hoofing the ball up into the air. You'll still get the odd one saying he did a dis-service to skillful players by not allowing them to play the ball on the ground, when the reality was that in the penalty shootout against Romania in the 1990 World Cup, you had players like Cascarino kicking a big lump of dirt along with the football. By some miracle we scored all five. Even those of Irish descent have this awkwardness. Who can forget Carsley falling on top of ball and giving away that penalty in the Euro playoff against Turkey. Look also at the celebrations when an Irishman scores a goal - as rare as that may be. Contrast a Robbie Keane cartwheel with that of the great Hugo Sanchez. Sanchez was the pure acrobat whereas Robbie Keane almost breaks his back everytime. When he started doing that in the early days, we all thought it was great that an Irishman could do a cartwheel, but we eventually realised there was something very wrong with the way Keane was executing the move. I think there's a stiffness in the joints of the average Irishman. Thankfully most have the cop on not to go out on the floor disco dancing. On the continent or South America, the Latins are amazing dancers. We'll never be good at sports until we get rid of the stiff farmer arthritis walk out looking at his cows. Add a bit of salsa into our movements and we might just be contenders someday.

[Fishbat]

very true - poor to mediocre is the quality at other sports, with the odd fluke thrown in to keep us happy.

as regards the olympics - we won a few golds at the shooting, not bad.. Track and field - pure dung, anyone remember the irish lad wrecking the fence around the hammer throw area? flung her into the side of it and brought it down round himself, end of discussion.

But theres just no opportunity for young folk to be the best at other sports -  if its not GAA i think theres a lot of pressure at a young age to conform, a clique culture and it'll be like that for quite a while.

very few want to be the only guy at school who plays tennis etc...

[heganboy]

^
See that post two above this one? Its bollocks.
If you can show me any soccer player with more grace or flair than Maurice Fitzgerald I'll eat my hat.
The grace of a solo on the run vs a step over? A high catch vs a defensive header. And that's just football

Hurling Flick of either wrist vs over head kick -I'll see your Hugo Sanchez and raise you a DJ, a Shefflin and a Ring
while we're at it I'd take a good heavy jig or a hornpipe over a salsa any day of the week.
Bollocks to you sir, have a nice life

posts like that puts me in a bad mood

[rosnarun]

Tradition: Many places have little or no tradition in international sports such as Tennis, Hammer throwing, Volleyball.

no thats just plain wrong. Ireland  as a nation wer eonce famous for its throwers and jumpers Pat o callaghan won 2 gold for the hammer as and mayos martin sheridan won severl throwing medals in the olympics. John pius boland also won the firt gold in olympic tennis .  in the early days the Irish were known (even by flan o brien as the jumping Irish man ) due to the fact that nearly all Jumping medals wer won by the irish repsenting the us admittedly but Emmigration was a fact of life. there are 2 main reason for Ireland lack of sucess at the olympics and the first is the olympics became a political tool by many countries trying to make their mark on the world . the russia/usa/china arms race is still being played out ont he athletic fields of the world and they are joined by many other smaller nations wwho will do anything to win gold . this has led to the Drugs reace which only now with cian oconnr michelle smith frankie sheehan ect Ireland seems to be joining in on.
the other morecheerfeul reason is the emergence of the african in some of Ireland stonger events. no longer will being the best miler ,5000m runner in europe even make sure of a place in a major final thanks to the kenyans ethopians and north africans.
at best Ireland can hope for cyclical international sucess like the late 80's with roche kelly Mcguigan the snooker guys even the soccer crowd were better back then.
But as long as foot ball is stong who give a Sh1t

[stephenite]

Forgive my ignorance, but when was Frankie Sheehan caught taking performance enhancing drugs? Must have missed that one

[Hardy]

Ah come oh Heganboy, I thought that was the funniest post here in a good while. And I assume it was meant to be.

Bravo Turlough. Things have been too po-faced around here for a while - people throwing out the humour baby with the bad taste bathwater.

[Kentucky Blue]

all joking aside, didnt ireland or maybe it was northern ireland win a medal at a recent olympics in rifle shooting?!

P O'Neill was the captain perhaps! 

[ziggysego]

all joking aside, didnt ireland or maybe it was northern ireland win a medal at a recent olympics in rifle shooting?!

P O'Neill was the captain perhaps! 

Us nordies Kentucky

[Gnevin]

Who really cares we have 2 Major sports of our own and 2 other international sports which are very popular the rest we really dont care about and dont really want tax payers money spent on sending an Irish bob sledge team across the world . Rugby is the national sport of the Wales , Soccer in England and they are both crap at them

[rosnarun]

Forgive my ignorance, but when was Frankie Sheehan caught taking performance enhancing drugs? Must have missed that one

that would have been just before he served his drug ban probably,

[heganboy]

Jaysus Hardy i would have thought the jig vs salsa would have hinted at some tongue in cheek, maybe not...

[Hardy]

Sorry Heganboy - I shouldn't have doubted you.

[SuperMac]

As I orginally posted " the usual excuse is thrown out, Gaelic games are so populiar here and absorbs people who would be good at other sports, ". I would have thought that by highlighting a nordic country's 4 times better record than us in the summer olympics while possibly half of the sports played by people there are winter sports would make a difference - but no. And at least when Denmark qualify or even win a tournament ( European Champ 1992) they can do it without claiming a lot of UK players under the granny rule.

Typically Irish  -'ah sure it's no good, but sure it will have to do'. Wonderful.