Down Club Hurling & Football

[6th sam]

https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/gaelic-games/se%C3%A1n-moran-summer-s-mosaic-slips-away-one-small-tile-at-a-time-1.4268981

"It was cold beyond belief when I got to Ballykinlar back on an April evening in 1990. My car had been making an ailing noise for the latter part of the journey but a complete lack of any mechanical understanding helped to persuade me that I'd be home before the matter needed any drastic attention.

Down footballers had, in manager Peter McGrath's first year, made the upcoming league semi-final. I had formed an enthusiast's view that were worth keeping an eye on after a league match against Cavan in Breffni Park. If Linden and McCartan weren't quite yet Lennon and McCartney, I was still impressed by the attacking style.

In Ballykinlar when the training session in the shadow of the large military installation had finished, a couple of kindly souls, including selector John Murphy, offered to lead me out to the Dublin road.

My car wheezed and struggled and eventually ground to a halt in Castlewellan where the clutch was deemed "away". In a very GAA deliverance the treacherous vehicle was pushed off the road into the driveway of the county minor manager, Gerry Dougherty, who then organised somewhere for me to stay.
The next day another selector Barney Treanor, a busy farmer, towed me to Newry to get the clutch replaced.

Down would run Meath very close in the league final and of course 16 months later beat them in the All-Ireland final to become the first county in 23 years from outside Munster or Leinster to win the Sam Maguire.

At the Down press night before that 1991 All-Ireland, Newry was packed on a sunny September evening. I met both John Murphy and Barney Treanor on the field and said that the traffic around Páirc Esler had been so crazy that I had been forced to park the car miles away.

John looked at me sceptically and replied: "We don't want to hear anything about your car."

Both of them died this year, Barney in February and John the week before last. Although I hadn't bumped into either in aeons, I will always remember their kindness 30 years ago and the exhilarating adventure of the football team they helped to assemble.

We'll miss them, especially whenever the games return and the great drama resumes."

Two good men.

Great men, what a contribution they both made to Down GAA

[6th sam]

Load of Balls Podcast had PJ Magee on this week, brilliant listen if anyone has a spare couple of hours.. Best manager/coach I've ever had, good to hear him talk about his career and what he thinks of modern players compared to past players. Great interview

PJ is a Seriously knowledgeable football man, with outstanding values which he never dilutes. John Fegan really gets the best out of his subjects by making them feel comfortable , leading in with relevant questions and then letting them do the talking. Great interview with Marty Clarke last week as well

[SamFever]

A lot of discussion on the main Board about our possible new Down Club in East Belfast.Quite heated for all the wrong reasons.

[DuffGael]

Agree Sam,  it's a great thing for Down GAA,  we need clubs forming in places we don't have clubs.

[SamFever]

Name the club then if you are already prepared to spread idle gossip on the matter

If I had wanted to name the Clubs I would have done so 3 or 4 posts ago.Paid help justifying their outrageous weekly wages.

It's common knowledge that the clubs in question were caught training at Milltown and Derryleckagh.

I would find it extraordinary and very hard to believe that clubs had full training sessions at council venues during lockdown.

That's because it didn't happen.

One place you're not going to train is on a field that is just far enough away from a public road to not be able to stop someone taking photos, but just close enough to a public road for any modern camera to identify faces.


Anyway other wobller the problem here isn't that the GAABoard is mighty, or important or even influential. But there's someone in every club in our county has read this thread now, and has subsequently circulated the question around their own club. And people will stress and promote paranoia as a result.

So it's a Chinese whisper.

Maybe that's what you wanted, to entertain yourself.

But it's shitty behaviour imho.

Lotto has the answers

Even worse that one of them was apparently pretending to be their local soccer team when asked what they were at.

East Down now at it.Local Club are back training disguised as soccer players at the Rosconnor council pitches.

[6th sam]

Agree Sam,  it's a great thing for Down GAA,  we need clubs forming in places we don't have clubs.

As long as it meets approval of surrounding clubs, ( and I imagine they would look on it positively in terms of extra local competition) , it should be an exciting development .

[imagine]

Agree Sam,  it's a great thing for Down GAA,  we need clubs forming in places we don't have clubs.

As long as it meets approval of surrounding clubs, ( and I imagine they would look on it positively in terms of extra local competition) , it should be an exciting development .

So my own Club would have to agree to East Belfast being setting up a Club?I don't think that is the case.
We wish them all the best but it'll be tough.

[6th sam]

Agree Sam,  it's a great thing for Down GAA,  we need clubs forming in places we don't have clubs.

As long as it meets approval of surrounding clubs, ( and I imagine they would look on it positively in terms of extra local competition) , it should be an exciting development .

So my own Club would have to agree to East Belfast being setting up a Club?I don't think that is the case.
We wish them all the best but it'll be tough.

My understanding is that there are certain regulations and procedures around new starts , and exploring potential detrimental impact on surrounding clubs would be part of that. Catchment area etc has to be decided upon. Wouldn't see it as a problem as when demographics are supportive, a new club is probably more likely to help surrounding clubs, in fact carryduff/bredagh/st pauls are likely to provide good info and advice

[Maiden1]

Agree Sam,  it's a great thing for Down GAA,  we need clubs forming in places we don't have clubs.

As long as it meets approval of surrounding clubs, ( and I imagine they would look on it positively in terms of extra local competition) , it should be an exciting development .

So my own Club would have to agree to East Belfast being setting up a Club?I don't think that is the case.
We wish them all the best but it'll be tough.

My understanding is that there are certain regulations and procedures around new starts , and exploring potential detrimental impact on surrounding clubs would be part of that. Catchment area etc has to be decided upon. Wouldn't see it as a problem as when demographics are supportive, a new club is probably more likely to help surrounding clubs, in fact carryduff/bredagh/st pauls are likely to provide good info and advice

If any club would be impacted it would be Bredagh, the rest of the clubs are far enough away that it wouldn't encroach there catchment area.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Malone+Rugby+Football+Club,+Gibson+Park+Avenue,+Cregagh+Road,+Belfast,+UK/Cherryvale+Playing+Fields,+Ravenhill+Road,+Belfast,+UK/@54.5864897,-5.8997223,15z/data=!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x4861091110cba439:0xa3e743e4353c4c80!2m2!1d-5.89616!2d54.582887!1m5!1m1!1s0x4861091c594a4efb:0xd22ccbe770a08bcf!2m2!1d-5.911152!2d54.5748953

[Lotto]

Name the club then if you are already prepared to spread idle gossip on the matter

If I had wanted to name the Clubs I would have done so 3 or 4 posts ago.Paid help justifying their outrageous weekly wages.

It's common knowledge that the clubs in question were caught training at Milltown and Derryleckagh.

I would find it extraordinary and very hard to believe that clubs had full training sessions at council venues during lockdown.

That's because it didn't happen.

One place you're not going to train is on a field that is just far enough away from a public road to not be able to stop someone taking photos, but just close enough to a public road for any modern camera to identify faces.


Anyway other wobller the problem here isn't that the GAABoard is mighty, or important or even influential. But there's someone in every club in our county has read this thread now, and has subsequently circulated the question around their own club. And people will stress and promote paranoia as a result.

So it's a Chinese whisper.

Maybe that's what you wanted, to entertain yourself.

But it's shitty behaviour imho.

Craic at work today is that another local club are at as well - any truth Wobbler or is it another Chinese whisper?

[Last Caress]

Name the club then if you are already prepared to spread idle gossip on the matter

If I had wanted to name the Clubs I would have done so 3 or 4 posts ago.Paid help justifying their outrageous weekly wages.

It's common knowledge that the clubs in question were caught training at Milltown and Derryleckagh.

I would find it extraordinary and very hard to believe that clubs had full training sessions at council venues during lockdown.

That's because it didn't happen.

One place you're not going to train is on a field that is just far enough away from a public road to not be able to stop someone taking photos, but just close enough to a public road for any modern camera to identify faces.


Anyway other wobller the problem here isn't that the GAABoard is mighty, or important or even influential. But there's someone in every club in our county has read this thread now, and has subsequently circulated the question around their own club. And people will stress and promote paranoia as a result.

So it's a Chinese whisper.

Maybe that's what you wanted, to entertain yourself.

But it's shitty behaviour imho.

Craic at work today is that another local club are at as well - any truth Wobbler or is it another Chinese whisper?

Poor Chinese. Getting the blame for everything lately...

[SamFever]

Loughinisland by all accounts.

[Lotto]

I have specifically asked Wobbler as he might personally know which club I am talking about 

[Mourne Red]

Club Championship starting in August by the looks of things - My own team been told to get the runners on and clock in the miles, small groups training seems to be going to happen by end of the month

[wobbller]

I have specifically asked Wobbler as he might personally know which club I am talking about 

Would that be myself,wobbller or thewobbler?