McHale Park ...The new Stand

[Clarin Pearl]

It's been a while since i've been on here and look what i've missed.
So they've spent the guts of 800,000 to ruin the best stadium in connacht.
its a mackey stand for a new decade.


Apart from the driving afterwards, evening games are the way to go.

[muppet]

Councillor 'whatyemaycallhim' should consider what the local economy gains from matches. Stuff that towns like Ballina, Crossmolina and Charlestown would like a bit of still. Funny, its not like McHale Park is the first venue in Castlebar to be flood lit. Celtic Park, Tennis club, Mile Bush have floodlighting for years. Obvious for a distance and frequently used. Dont remember much fuss about them.  I smell a shakedown which is not helped by the lack of savvy in our illustrious officers. I suspect our McHale road residents have caught Jones Road fever. They should nurture the goose instead of strangling the poor beast.

Good post, I'd agree with that. And to be honest, I think the Cllr(s) in question might be steering the resident's association along a route that they wouldn't be particulalrly bothered about taking if left to their own devices. That's only my opinion, can't say I know for sure.
But the CB have handled the whole redevelopment shockingly bad in most aspects - design, planning permission, PR....

Not what I'm hearing.

[criostlinn]

Anyone know what going on with this. Is the match on the Saturday or Sunday.

[From the Bunker]

Have been saying this for yonks. McHale Park has be over done. This is NOT Man United, Coventry, Millwall in Soccer. This is not Munster, Leceister in Rugby. This is Mayo in Gaelic football.
Broken down Mayo football begins in February and finishes in October. Unlike other sports Gaelic football can be haphazard venue wise. Depending on Success or competition draws venues can be busy or completely unused. In Soccer Millwall are guaranteed 23 home fixtures not counting the add on of possible Cup fixtures. Their average crowd is 10,000.

Could McHale Park guarantee 10,000 people once a year

December to February

FBD League......nuff said

February to April offers Max 4 games at home in the League.
The pocket fillers are;

The Dubs
Galway
Kerry
And who ever are AI Champions

Will any of those attract a crowd of more than 8,000?

May to September - Championship Games

Galway will draw a crowd (every second year)
Roscmmon/Sligo/Leitrim (every second year) will draw a decent crowd

Back door

Chances unlikely as only Galway can send Mayo realistically into back door.

Chances of Northern team meeting western seaboard team. ie Donegal meeting Galway a few years back.

Mayo Club games


Not worth mentioning crowd wise

A Closer Look

So we will look at a dream year.

We Play Dublin, Galway, Kerry in League.
We meet Galway in an early Connacht round
We meet Sligo in a final
Galway play Derry in Back door in Castlebar

Now we look at our Nightmare year

Play Cork, Laois, Kildare in League
Leitrim/Ros/Sligo/Galway away in Championship
No Back door games.

Conclusion

McHale Park is a White Elephant. Money should have been spent more wisely on a more compact model. The rest should have been spent on a development complex for underage football and for County teams. Club members who are already double jobbing are getting more burnt out with fund raising.

[ballinaman]

Lights out for the Galway league match, moved to the Sunday. Some joke.

[GaillimhIarthair]

Lights out for the Galway league match, moved to the Sunday. Some joke.

Ah bollix.  Was looking forward to goin up on the Sat evening followed by a trip to Westport for a scatter of pints.   

There seems to be a right mess made of the whole revamp to McHale Park e.g. the stand has pillars, seats are blue (why blue?), TV tower and press area does not conform to planning and now the lights are a problem.  I'm sure a shed load of money has been spent but the county board down there should be answering a lot of tough questions.  They have made a right balls of the whole effort and as usual it the ordinary fan that will suffer in the long run. 

[muppet]

Have been saying this for yonks. McHale Park has be over done. This is NOT Man United, Coventry, Millwall in Soccer. This is not Munster, Leceister in Rugby. This is Mayo in Gaelic football.
Broken down Mayo football begins in February and finishes in October. Unlike other sports Gaelic football can be haphazard venue wise. Depending on Success or competition draws venues can be busy or completely unused. In Soccer Millwall are guaranteed 23 home fixtures not counting the add on of possible Cup fixtures. Their average crowd is 10,000.

Could McHale Park guarantee 10,000 people once a year

December to February

FBD League......nuff said

February to April offers Max 4 games at home in the League.
The pocket fillers are;

The Dubs
Galway
Kerry
And who ever are AI Champions

Will any of those attract a crowd of more than 8,000?

May to September - Championship Games

Galway will draw a crowd (every second year)
Roscmmon/Sligo/Leitrim (every second year) will draw a decent crowd

Back door

Chances unlikely as only Galway can send Mayo realistically into back door.

Chances of Northern team meeting western seaboard team. ie Donegal meeting Galway a few years back.

Mayo Club games


Not worth mentioning crowd wise

A Closer Look

So we will look at a dream year.

We Play Dublin, Galway, Kerry in League.
We meet Galway in an early Connacht round
We meet Sligo in a final
Galway play Derry in Back door in Castlebar

Now we look at our Nightmare year

Play Cork, Laois, Kildare in League
Leitrim/Ros/Sligo/Galway away in Championship
No Back door games.

Conclusion

McHale Park is a White Elephant. Money should have been spent more wisely on a more compact model. The rest should have been spent on a development complex for underage football and for County teams. Club members who are already double jobbing are getting more burnt out with fund raising.

Sometimes I wish we were invaded by many different countries so we would have some buildings. The only buildings are they few built by the British.

There is no hope of the Irish ever building anything because we always talk ourselves into making it smaller or we talk ourselves out of it completely, with the exception of the Gaa. There were lots against the development of Croker too.

I for one want to be in McHale Park with 35,000 people at a Connacht Final, not 6,500 comfortable people.

[Hardy]

Don't want to drag the debate into architecture, but you're right, Muppet. We've built feck all of any worth since the Brits left and nothing at all lasting, that I can think of.

Though we're not alone in the latter. I think it's hugely Ironic that this generation's fetish for disposable buildings will mean the most remarkable memorial the information age will leave for a millennium hence will not not be great architecture, but a mountain of unbiodegradable plastic litter.

[muppet]

Don't want to drag the debate into architecture, but you're right, Muppet. We've built feck all of any worth since the Brits left and nothing at all lasting, that I can think of.

Though we're not alone in the latter. I think it's hugely Ironic that this generation's fetish for disposable buildings will mean the most remarkable memorial the information age will leave for a millennium hence will not not be great architecture, but a mountain of unbiodegradable plastic litter.

And a leaky tunnel. Maybe we should use it to supply the city with water?

[rosnarun]

lads did you not know the end of every great era is marked by the building of grandiose public monuments to the kings emporers , a sogn they have nothing left to acheive except to try and ensure future praise for themselves

[furboot]

"Flash Forward" to Saturday night 6th Feb - no floodlights on and with darkness all around will the blue seats still be visibly blue and will the pillars interfere with your line of vision ? just wondering ??

[moysider]

f**k it anyway. A Saturday night match under lights would have been an occasion to look forward to and would have spiced things up a bit. A few scoops after as well. To be honest Sunday afternoon league games in a dreary 80% empty McHale Park have become more about duty than enjoyment. Clubs are stretched trying to sell tickets for this development and then it cant be used.
A load of bollix. These problems should have been identified in the feasibility study - I m sure there was one done - and the development should have moved to a green site with the old site sold.

Anybody know what the conditions are that would allow the lights to be used - ever? That they can only be used during daylight hours? I mean what can be changed with the lights that would make them less intrusive or whatever? They cant be lowered or dimmed or disguised. Underground lighting does nt work either.

[Barney]

What a pile of dung.

€15m wasted on this charade.

Floodlight presumably paid for and now interest being paid off on that and they will be idle for at least another 12 months.

A new stand with blue seats (FG) and poles facing into the sun, and with the wind blowing into it, that will lie empty except on one day every two years.

Has anybody bought one of the five year tickets? Surely this is going to have massive repurcussions for the future finances of Mayo GAA. And yet nobody is asking any questions at County Board meetings.

[From the Bunker]

What a pile of dung.

€15m wasted on this charade.

Floodlight presumably paid for and now interest being paid off on that and they will be idle for at least another 12 months.

A new stand with blue seats (FG) and poles facing into the sun, and with the wind blowing into it, that will lie empty except on one day every two years.

Has anybody bought one of the five year tickets? Surely this is going to have massive repurcussions for the future finances of Mayo GAA. And yet nobody is asking any questions at County Board meetings.

A bit of sanity on the Board! Did anyone do a Cost Benefit Analysis on this Fiasco.

Not only is this White Elephant going to cost the Good hard working GAA Clubs years to play off. It will also have to be maintained. All for one big game against Galway every two year. Ha Ha Ha 

[Peter Solan the Great]

Well in fairness, The consultant Engineers have a lot to answer for. I used to work for them about 6 years back, they weren't up to much then, they dont seem to be up to much now. McHale park needed to be renovated though. Better then nothing! A forum HS reader and occasional user here but got fed up of all the WUMS, this place seems to have all the intelligent debate!