Gaelic Football RIP

[From the Bunker]

I'm not old enough to remember Kerry winning 7 out of 9 all Ireland's but for those who are, was there as much talk about the game being dead?

I was there for it. It was a procession. Only difference is Kerry won very few League titles during that period. There was also light at the end of the tunnel as the group was getting older each year and little or no youth were being blooded. This is not the case with Dublin. There is a transition happening each year.  Dublin don't shut down for the League either. In other words it's  more relentless than that Kerry era!

[High Fielder]

Dublin had lean periods too, so good luck to them. It's not their fault that things have broken down so badly. My biggest gripe with the GAA is the prescriptive nature of the sport. If you're from any one of the smaller counties, you can literally never play at the highest level, simply because of where you come from. That's bordering on anti competitive

[imtommygunn]

The system is geared to the big teams now too. Dublin are unlikely to be beat in leinster but say in the super 8s some year kerry, tyrone or mayo/ gaway or someone sneak a win they're still in it.kerry could have, and occassionally did, slipup.

System is geared to the best teams now. More than that even - the best squads.

[sid waddell]

To those who think this dominance will one day end or its just the same as a kerry/Kilkenny type era, my question to you guys is very simple , at what point does it become a problem , five in a row, six , seven eight 18 out of 20? You tell me .

They created a monster and it will eventually destroy the county game as we know it . The big fookin ejits.

Crossmaglen won 19 Armagh championships out of 20.

Was there talk about splitting them into separate "Cross" and "Maglen" teams?

[Rossfan]

I'm not old enough to remember Kerry winning 7 out of 9 all Ireland's but for those who are, was there as much talk about the game being dead?

17k and 19k at All Ireland Semi Finals.
The monster has been created and isn't going away.
39,000 registered players. 1.4m population, most games at home, multi national sponsorship, HQ joining forces with them,  free cars etc etc
54k yesterday - the downward slope has begun at National level.
It's been ongoing in Leinster for 5 or 6 years now.
Sin é.

[sid waddell]

54k used to be considered a massive crowd at an All-Ireland semi-final.

53k attended the 1979 All-Ireland hurling final.

8k attended the Cork v Galway 1985 All-Ireland hurling semi-final.

8k attended the 1980 Leinster hurling final.

"The golden era".

[larryin89]

If you want to have a silly debate that's fine and dandy but it's all totally out of context . People are living in cuckoland if they genuinely believe this Dublin era is comparable to any other at county level , this is brand new . It's not Dublins fault per se , this was created and what we have now is the realisation by Dublin GAA they have the resources , logistics, finance and population advantages to keep this going for as long as they want .

My point is , how do you keep interest in the rest going , surely there comes a time when we as GAA people start to worry about the direction of the county , say for example in three years time and Dublin still haven't been knocked off their run and 3k Mayo/Kerry/Galway or whoever they are playing supporters turn up for a semi final because of the inevitability of the result. I'm hand on heart asking you where does it stop .

[High Fielder]

It's not about "stopping" what's going on. It should be about improving the situation for everyone. The best players in each county deserve the chance to play at the highest level. At the very least, Provincial Champions should have to play the rest of the Province to progress further. If we continue to ignore smaller counties, the game will die from the bottom up. There has to be a realistic pathway for every kid to play at the highest level. Otherwise it's not worth the bother

[sid waddell]

If you want to have a silly debate that's fine and dandy but it's all totally out of context . People are living in cuckoland if they genuinely believe this Dublin era is comparable to any other at county level , this is brand new .

Kilkenny won 11 out of 16 hurling All-Irelands between 2000 and 2015 and competed in 16 out of 19 All-Ireland finals between 1998 and 2016.

That is more than comparable.

[Hardy]

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/media-and-marketing/aig-renews-sponsorship-with-dublin-gaa-in-4m-deal-1.3487922

http://www.leitrimgaa.ie/sponsors/

Discuss/defend.

[High Fielder]

Good luck to Dublin. They can only keep doing what they're doing, and it's working for them. But it's like comparing Man City with Fleetwood Town. All they have in common is the same number of players on the pitch and that's not enough

[BarryBreensBandage]

It's not about "stopping" what's going on. It should be about improving the situation for everyone. The best players in each county deserve the chance to play at the highest level. At the very least, Provincial Champions should have to play the rest of the Province to progress further. If we continue to ignore smaller counties, the game will die from the bottom up. There has to be a realistic pathway for every kid to play at the highest level. Otherwise it's not worth the bother

I agree HF. I think this has to come from clubs, schools, county boards and their ability to plan and provide a platform for anyone who wants to play Gaelic Football.
If I look at the 100 or so lads that I would have played football with over my career, three of the old hands played in Down division 1, 1 played in an Ulster Final for Down at minor level. Plenty gave/received a load of hard knocks and bad injuries for not much really - my point being that the majority of GAA players will never reach the county standard or get to play at the highest level.

But being involved in a GAA club has to be one of the best and most important decisions any Irish family can make.
It will only be when the GAA focus on the clubs and build a base for the continuing strength of clubs in the community, will each county realise it's full potential.

[didlyi]

It seems a contradiction that the one team that neutrals tune in to see is being blamed for the death of Gaelic Football. Its not Dublins fault that for instance Galway v Mayo was a terrible game, and several other games that did not include Dublin. When Kilkenny were winning allirelands one of the greatest rivalrys in the Gaa was at its peak in Cork v Waterford. Classic after Classic when they met throughout the naughties. When Dublin are brought down, and they will, we might all be scratching our heads wondering where did it all go wrong.

[irish345]

its not all about intercounty football maybe there should be more dont to promote the club game and live games on rte

[Jinxy]

Thank god for hurling.
What a grim summer it would have been otherwise.