Antrim Hurling

[marty34]

Can the pitch in Corrigan not be moved back 15 yards at the bottim end?

That would help a bit.

[Milltown Row2]

Can the pitch in Corrigan not be moved back 15 yards at the bottim end?

That would help a bit.

Corrigan isn't measuring the minimum requirements nor is it hitting the maximum requirements.

Moving it 15 yards back would be over the max for length

[johnnycool]

Can the pitch in Corrigan not be moved back 15 yards at the bottim end?

That would help a bit.

Corrigan isn't measuring the minimum requirements nor is it hitting the maximum requirements.

Moving it 15 yards back would be over the max for length

Judging by the distance between the two 65 metre lines Corrigan isn't far off full length, maybe only a metre or two short.

The close proximity of the sidelines to the perimeter fence is probably the bigger issue and it's hard to see how you'd widen it easily.

[NorthAntrim]

Length isnt the issue imo. Maybe a little narrow for some

[Oso]

I thought we were ok, but that's a poor as I've seen Dublin for about 15 years.  Dublin didn't look sharp or fit at all and personally I don't think that was necessarily down to us making them look poor.


Corrigan pitch is poor, it's always been poor, there's always a breeze/wind, the pitch is tight, it's heavy and it does us no favours in terms of development.  Why are we looking to get results against teams on a tight pitch in the middle of winter when we get annihilated on bigger pitches when it comes to meaningful games in the summer on a dry sod and a big pitch? What's the point?  Surely we should be trying to get better at playing on pitch dimensions that we are trying to compete on in championship.

All that investment in Corrigan, but you can't polish a turd.

What sheltered, wide open, dry club pitch would you like developed instead of corrigan then??

Take your pick.  The only things Corrigan has going for it, the covered stand and the terracing have been paid for and developed recently. The toilets are hardly handy. 

The johnnies have one pitch for all their teams and it also serves as our county ground. The goal mouths are always a mess given the traffic on them.

Tbh there are loads of options should have been considered in north or southwest Antrim or somewhere more central. Take your pick. Why should Corrigan have been developed when it's a few miles down the road from Casement?  What's the point of pouring the money into 2 grounds beside each other when the fan base for all major club games comes from outside Belfast in hurling and football.

It's a turd, but imagine the state of the place if the johnnies had to pay for it like all other clubs.

[Milltown Row2]

Jesus, you talk some turd!

Where should it be played? Try and deal with the here and now btw.

[erinsboy]

It's not a turd OSO ,that's really harsh .
Everyone knows St John's run a tight ship on match days and it runs like clockwork, not every club could do that ,so credit where it is due.
I mind reading that there was a plan to develop the opposite side from the stand with a full length terrace ,a few yards could be found for pitch width if this prevailed but maybe that plan has been shelved now.
One thing I do agree with OSO is that Corrigan is to close to Casement and a more central venue would have been a better option.
Alot of people seem to have issues with Dunsilly but I think there is scope there for future development.
Large terrace/stand on the bank with a toilet block ample to hold 3k crowd is all Antrim needs for club games.
Let's face it club games will be few and far in a new Casement.

[Milltown Row2]

It's not a turd OSO ,that's really harsh .
Everyone knows St John's run a tight ship on match days and it runs like clockwork, not every club could do that ,so credit where it is due.
I mind reading that there was a plan to develop the opposite side from the stand with a full length terrace ,a few yards could be found for pitch width if this prevailed but maybe that plan has been shelved now.
One thing I do agree with OSO is that Corrigan is to close to Casement and a more central venue would have been a better option.
Alot of people seem to have issues with Dunsilly but I think there is scope there for future development.
Large terrace/stand on the bank with a toilet block ample to hold 3k crowd is all Antrim needs for club games.
Let's face it club games will be few and far in a new Casement.

There may be a view that Dunsilly could be developed but the railway tunnel doesn't help for health and safety. Toilet facilities and side pitch changing facilities would need to be in place. Covered stand and so on.

Dunsilly was purely designed for the county teams to have facilities for the county team.

Corrigan was purely a city based county ground as a stop gap for Casement.

It's done and it's a fine set up. Pitch sizing isn't a problem when we win and a problem when we lose.

As for the pitch condition, not too many out there that's better.

[Duine Inteacht Eile]

Casement was a fantastic surface and a big wide open field.
Not a blind bit of difference did it make to the quality of hurling our county team served up.

[barnish oggie]

It's not a turd OSO ,that's really harsh .
Everyone knows St John's run a tight ship on match days and it runs like clockwork, not every club could do that ,so credit where it is due.
I mind reading that there was a plan to develop the opposite side from the stand with a full length terrace ,a few yards could be found for pitch width if this prevailed but maybe that plan has been shelved now.
One thing I do agree with OSO is that Corrigan is to close to Casement and a more central venue would have been a better option.
Alot of people seem to have issues with Dunsilly but I think there is scope there for future development.
Large terrace/stand on the bank with a toilet block ample to hold 3k crowd is all Antrim needs for club games.
Let's face it club games will be few and far in a new Casement.

There may be a view that Dunsilly could be developed but the railway tunnel doesn't help for health and safety. Toilet facilities and side pitch changing facilities would need to be in place. Covered stand and so on.

Dunsilly was purely designed for the county teams to have facilities for the county team.

Corrigan was purely a city based county ground as a stop gap for Casement.

It's done and it's a fine set up. Pitch sizing isn't a problem when we win and a problem when we lose.

As for the pitch condition, not too many out there that's better.

That issue with the railway tunnel could have been overcome.

There is a dead end road where you turn into the Dunsilly Hotel that, with a bit of money changing hands with a farmer, could have allowed for an access road in from the other side of the railway.

At the bare minimum that could have been used for emergency services access, if it wasn't going to be used as a public access for vehicles.

To me the whole Dunsilly plan was under thought and wasn't aspirational enough, which leaves us with what we have now.

A set up that the pitches are closed for use for a large part of the year, when many county teams in all 4 codes could and should be using them.

A 4g pitch for the middle pitch would have been a huge help.

And as suggested above, a terrace instead of a bank for the front pitch.

Perfect all year round for county training and club matches and it would have served as a decent alternative to Corrigan if needed for some county matches.

[marty34]

Do St. Comgall's use Dunsilly or were they to get permission to use it initially?

[barnish oggie]

Do St. Comgall's use Dunsilly or were they to get permission to use it initially?

The top pitch belongs to them and that was part of the original deal.....although I believe they still use the school pitch most of the time.

[NorthAntrim]

A 4g pitch would be needed alright. Guaranteed usage all year and can be hired out as needed and would pull some revenue back in possibly.

[Lord Antrim]

I find it very interesting all the debate about Dunsilly.
I wonder what we did before we had it ' yep complain that our County teams were ill prepared etc etc etc.
Is it perfect? -No but it is a dammed sight better than nothing.
It is a long term project and will changes be made -yep.
Do we have the luxury of being able to fund in one go - no but just look back and see what progress has been made.
Hopefully once 4 codes come under one umbrella even more will be made.
Now with gym we move on to next stage - 4G  or better lights ?
It should not be considered for Adult games as not suitable. Schools and underage development games only.

As for Casement that is no longer an Antrim asset.Ulster control that and I suspect we'll not play too many games there.
Lets be honest even if we had 5k supporters at games it will feel empty.
Antrim county teams will continue to play in Corrigan - more politics but that ship has long since sailed.
Is it the right location - no ? but funding was given and that is where games will be.Expect them to receive funds to develop terrace far side any time soon.
When games were held in Ballycastle everyone complained it was yoo windy 🤣
It has larger pitch , better parking for bigger crowds but pitch would be heavy  and exposed at this time of year.
Great to debate but we are where we are and just need to crack on.

[johnnycool]

I find it very interesting all the debate about Dunsilly.
I wonder what we did before we had it ' yep complain that our County teams were ill prepared etc etc etc.
Is it perfect? -No but it is a dammed sight better than nothing.
It is a long term project and will changes be made -yep.
Do we have the luxury of being able to fund in one go - no but just look back and see what progress has been made.
Hopefully once 4 codes come under one umbrella even more will be made.
Now with gym we move on to next stage - 4G  or better lights ?
It should not be considered for Adult games as not suitable. Schools and underage development games only.

As for Casement that is no longer an Antrim asset.Ulster control that and I suspect we'll not play too many games there.
Lets be honest even if we had 5k supporters at games it will feel empty.
Antrim county teams will continue to play in Corrigan - more politics but that ship has long since sailed.
Is it the right location - no ? but funding was given and that is where games will be.Expect them to receive funds to develop terrace far side any time soon.
When games were held in Ballycastle everyone complained it was yoo windy 🤣
It has larger pitch , better parking for bigger crowds but pitch would be heavy  and exposed at this time of year.
Great to debate but we are where we are and just need to crack on.

Antrim county senior teams will have access to the new Casement for NHL/NFL and championship and possibly the two senior county finals as the optics of the Ulster Council not letting them use it would be very bad, but don't be expected the SA junior B finalists to get a run out there!