Tyrone Club Football and Hurling

[TabClear]

Plans being put in place to split the Division 3 league into two tiers. Junior Championship will remain the same. Unclear yet the format that the league will take but probably looking top tier of 8 and bottom tier of 9 with Home and Away fixtures.

I see potential in this change. Junior has the biggest gap between top and bottom and might allow some of the teams currently struggling a chance to start building again with more competitive games against those around them rather than taking drubbings from Strabane, Aghaloo, Glenelly, Killeeshil et al. and help with bringing youngsters through and establish themselves in competitive games rather than 20+ hammerings and pushing them towards other sports.
Also creates an opportunity for more thirds teams to enter and have more teams in Junior. In time this could lead to the Junior league expanding and potentially two groups of 10 with the bottom group made up with more thirds teams and this would make this more appealing to your Omaghs, Dromores, Carrickmores, Coalislands for entering a thirds team if it was at that level against other thirds teams.

More appealing to players yes, but i cant see senior managements been too keen. Was this not an issue before whereby senior / reserve footballers were opting for the more recreational "thirds" team football and therefore hindering the senior panel?
I still insist the current 3 divisions split across 4 divisions would work better. Even introduce a 5th if needs be for more "thirds" teams if they wish to enter. There is an equal gulf in difference in division 3 teams as there is between top half division 1 and bottom half division 1/top half division 2.
The so called "bigger" clubs dont like this idea as they are afraid they may loss their senior status, but if we still maintain 16 teams at senior championship level, then all they have to do is finish within top 16 teams of 1A/1B league to ensure qualification.

But that has nothing at all to do with Management? What right do they have to dictate what level someone plays at? If a player for whatever reason wants to play at a lower level for example because they cant commit to the crazy training regimes that club players are expected to, surely it is better that a player stays participating in some way than walks away completely?

[LeoMc]

Judging by the number of development teams appearing at underage, clubs must be working on underage player retention so it make sense that will carry through to Senior. Donaghmore are a prime example with their recently introduced 3rd team coming off the back of serious underage development.
Cookstown, Carrickmore, Errigal, Omagh all with development teams at various underage levels so a less competitive environment will help those to establish at adult level.

[clarshack]

Heard Cookstown had 60 players at a senior/reserve team meeting for the start of this season so they could easily be looking at a 3rds team with those numbers and that's even before their current youth numbers start to filter through to adult level.

[Derryman forever]

Hope I'm not out of order, but is that a brother of Niall Devlin that died in a Collision on the A5 last evening?
May he rest in peace and may his family have strength to deal with this tragedy. God Bless all of them.

[W.A.G. Lover]

Heard Cookstown had 60 players at a senior/reserve team meeting for the start of this season so they could easily be looking at a 3rds team with those numbers and that's even before their current youth numbers start to filter through to adult level.

The difference in numbers between rural and town clubs at present is shocking, and will only get worse with these ever increasing youth numbers. Stricter planning regulations are now inhibiting rural clubs as they are relying on farm dwelling or replacement dwellings, with no new developments. Not that many recognise the Parish rule in its current format, but it is something that may need reviewed if rural clubs are to compete again in the future.

[trailer]

Heard Cookstown had 60 players at a senior/reserve team meeting for the start of this season so they could easily be looking at a 3rds team with those numbers and that's even before their current youth numbers start to filter through to adult level.

The difference in numbers between rural and town clubs at present is shocking, and will only get worse with these ever increasing youth numbers. Stricter planning regulations are now inhibiting rural clubs as they are relying on farm dwelling or replacement dwellings, with no new developments. Not that many recognise the Parish rule in its current format, but it is something that may need reviewed if rural clubs are to compete again in the future.

Rural clubs struggling for sure and others larger villages and towns benefiting. Loads of teams have 50 plus players at underage. Others rely on younger players just to field.

[God14]

not disagreeing with either points

but in the case of Cookstown, is it not a case they have looked at neighbouring towns such as Dungannon, Magherafelt and Omagh - and made a bigger effort as a club to replicate the successful strategies employed there?

Id be passing magherafelt pitch quite alot, its on a busy road. The work going on in that club is fantastic, the pitch is stacked with young kids all the time. Its no surprise that they are bearing the fruit of that at senior level. Every Derry underage side, and the big schools are benefitting of the work Magherafelt are doing. Cookstown rightly should be trying to emulate that

[DownFanatic]

Who would be the smallest clubs in Tyrone numbers wise?

[W.A.G. Lover]

not disagreeing with either points

but in the case of Cookstown, is it not a case they have looked at neighbouring towns such as Dungannon, Magherafelt and Omagh - and made a bigger effort as a club to replicate the successful strategies employed there?

Id be passing magherafelt pitch quite alot, its on a busy road. The work going on in that club is fantastic, the pitch is stacked with young kids all the time. Its no surprise that they are bearing the fruit of that at senior level. Every Derry underage side, and the big schools are benefitting of the work Magherafelt are doing. Cookstown rightly should be trying to emulate that

I think your post is missing the point. Magherafelt is stacked with young kids because they have a growing town population, which in turn creates a strong underage and eventually will create a strong senior team, if nurtured correctly. Yes, Cookstown will see that and try to replicate same - But this still doesn't solve the problem of decreasing rural numbers.

In North/West Tyrone, which is probably worst hit:

• Take Clan NaGael for example - They were in division 1/1A/1B for the guts of 10-15 years, with a senior championship semi-final in 2006. They are now languishing in the bottom half of division 3 and youth football amalgamated with Craigbane in Derry just to field.
• Gortin (1980s/1990s/2000s) and Greencastle (2010s) were notable senior sides, with Gortin even competing in a Senior Championship final in 1985. Rural depopulation/emigration has meant those clubs have been mostly division 2 over past number of years, with Gortin also amalgamating with Glenelly at underage level.
• Newtownstewart and Dregish merged/amalgamated at youth and senior level.
• Urney won an intermediate championship to reach senior football approx 2014, but now languish in the lower half of division 3 with no real prospects of promotion.

Do we ease the parish boundaries rule? Do we allow a transfer market of some kind allowing players to move from a club with larger numbers to a club with smaller numbers? This benefits the player getting football, and helps the player get more game time.

[LeoMc]

not disagreeing with either points

but in the case of Cookstown, is it not a case they have looked at neighbouring towns such as Dungannon, Magherafelt and Omagh - and made a bigger effort as a club to replicate the successful strategies employed there?

Id be passing magherafelt pitch quite alot, its on a busy road. The work going on in that club is fantastic, the pitch is stacked with young kids all the time. Its no surprise that they are bearing the fruit of that at senior level. Every Derry underage side, and the big schools are benefitting of the work Magherafelt are doing. Cookstown rightly should be trying to emulate that

I think your post is missing the point. Magherafelt is stacked with young kids because they have a growing town population, which in turn creates a strong underage and eventually will create a strong senior team, if nurtured correctly. Yes, Cookstown will see that and try to replicate same - But this still doesn't solve the problem of decreasing rural numbers.

In North/West Tyrone, which is probably worst hit:

• Take Clan NaGael for example - They were in division 1/1A/1B for the guts of 10-15 years, with a senior championship semi-final in 2006. They are now languishing in the bottom half of division 3 and youth football amalgamated with Craigbane in Derry just to field.
• Gortin (1980s/1990s/2000s) and Greencastle (2010s) were notable senior sides, with Gortin even competing in a Senior Championship final in 1985. Rural depopulation/emigration has meant those clubs have been mostly division 2 over past number of years, with Gortin also amalgamating with Glenelly at underage level.
• Newtownstewart and Dregish merged/amalgamated at youth and senior level.
• Urney won an intermediate championship to reach senior football approx 2014, but now languish in the lower half of division 3 with no real prospects of promotion.

Do we ease the parish boundaries rule? Do we allow a transfer market of some kind allowing players to move from a club with larger numbers to a club with smaller numbers? This benefits the player getting football, and helps the player get more game time.

It is an issue but are stricter planning rules at the heart of this? A few one off dwellings are not going to turn the fortunes of any of those clubs around. In most cases there is a village at the hub and development would be permitted IF there was demand.

[W.A.G. Lover]

not disagreeing with either points

but in the case of Cookstown, is it not a case they have looked at neighbouring towns such as Dungannon, Magherafelt and Omagh - and made a bigger effort as a club to replicate the successful strategies employed there?

Id be passing magherafelt pitch quite alot, its on a busy road. The work going on in that club is fantastic, the pitch is stacked with young kids all the time. Its no surprise that they are bearing the fruit of that at senior level. Every Derry underage side, and the big schools are benefitting of the work Magherafelt are doing. Cookstown rightly should be trying to emulate that

I think your post is missing the point. Magherafelt is stacked with young kids because they have a growing town population, which in turn creates a strong underage and eventually will create a strong senior team, if nurtured correctly. Yes, Cookstown will see that and try to replicate same - But this still doesn't solve the problem of decreasing rural numbers.

In North/West Tyrone, which is probably worst hit:

• Take Clan NaGael for example - They were in division 1/1A/1B for the guts of 10-15 years, with a senior championship semi-final in 2006. They are now languishing in the bottom half of division 3 and youth football amalgamated with Craigbane in Derry just to field.
• Gortin (1980s/1990s/2000s) and Greencastle (2010s) were notable senior sides, with Gortin even competing in a Senior Championship final in 1985. Rural depopulation/emigration has meant those clubs have been mostly division 2 over past number of years, with Gortin also amalgamating with Glenelly at underage level.
• Newtownstewart and Dregish merged/amalgamated at youth and senior level.
• Urney won an intermediate championship to reach senior football approx 2014, but now languish in the lower half of division 3 with no real prospects of promotion.

Do we ease the parish boundaries rule? Do we allow a transfer market of some kind allowing players to move from a club with larger numbers to a club with smaller numbers? This benefits the player getting football, and helps the player get more game time.

It is an issue but are stricter planning rules at the heart of this? A few one off dwellings are not going to turn the fortunes of any of those clubs around. In most cases there is a village at the hub and development would be permitted IF there was demand.

i 100% agree, one-off dwellings are not enough to sustain a club as can be seen with rural clubs now. Stricter planning policies are a major contributing factor. Planning policies were changed last year and restrict building in rural villages. They talk about the "need" for housing and "commitments" they have made to historic approvals, but where have these numbers been taken from? Who have they consulted? It certainly isnt the local people as i know many villages are crying out for new developments but restricted by planning and lack of NI Water infrastructure.

Ive said it on this forum before, we need the help of our councillors and county committee to help the plight of smaller clubs, rather than be just happy to see bigger town clubs get stronger.

[TyroneOnlooker]

Diverging slightly but I know there are very few 'natives' on the Magherafelt senior side in terms of players whose family have been involved down the years. Most are first generation where parents have moved to the town and wee Johnny has now progressed to senior level. Cookstown will likely see the same thing in a few years.

[Mikhailov]

Who is the Aidan Corr (Tyrone native) mentioned in the Irish News today who has 100+ appearances in the AFL down under. That's the same number as Conor McKenna but I never heard Corr mentioned before

Maybe he moved to Oz as a child - does anyone know?

Corr is a strong East Tyrone name

[LC]

Diverging slightly but I know there are very few 'natives' on the Magherafelt senior side in terms of players whose family have been involved down the years. Most are first generation where parents have moved to the town and wee Johnny has now progressed to senior level. Cookstown will likely see the same thing in a few years.

I think current All Star Conor McCluskey is a good example of this, Antrim Father and Tyrone Mother.

[WesternT]

Who is the Aidan Corr (Tyrone native) mentioned in the Irish News today who has 100+ appearances in the AFL down under. That's the same number as Conor McKenna but I never heard Corr mentioned before

Maybe he moved to Oz as a child - does anyone know?

Corr is a strong East Tyrone name

Born in Brockagh in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, Corr emigrated to Australia with his family at the age of three