Quote from: AnDĂșnAbĂș94 on April 30, 2024, 05:34:30 PMAnyone here been to a game in Ruislip before? Thinking of making the trip if I can keep the costs down as it's unlikely we'll have too many games against them in the futureBest way would be fly to Heathrow. I was thinking about doing it , as you say when will Down ever be back in Ruislip.
QuoteActive life
Martin also had a very eventful life. He was a colonel of the County Galway Volunteers.[29] He survived two shipwrecks.[30] He fought over a hundred duels with sword and pistol and earned the nickname "Hairtrigger Dick".[31] He travelled extensively in Europe and the Americas during the 1770s and was in New England when the American Revolutionary War began.[32] He initiated Galway's first theatre in 1783.[33]
Martin was on a first-name basis with many of the famous names of his age, including King George IV (who gave him the nickname "Humanity Dick"), Henry Flood, Henry Grattan, William Pitt, Queen Caroline, and Daniel O'Connell.[34] Despite his nickname he was considered a very harsh landlord in Ireland.[35]
On his death in 1834 his son Thomas became his heir.[36] A workhouse was built on his estate during the Irish famine. Although the workhouse was an apparent pledge to help the poor suffering from starvation, it is agreed that Thomas and his family did little to help and approximately 150,000 people died on their land during this period from starvation and fever.[36] Most of Martin's estate (approx. 200,000 acres (809 km2)) was in the west of Ireland and this area had one of the highest death tolls during the Famine.
Quote from: From the Bunker on April 30, 2024, 11:01:48 PMI see that Amy Broadhurst has chosen to compete for Great Britain in Olympic qualifiers in Bangkok
The Dundalk boxer had been looking to change allegiance after Irish Athletic Boxing Association said they would not be putting her name forward.
I suppose Boxing in the Olympics is a major ambition for any Boxer. No doubt it was a tough decision. Best of luck to her.
Quote from: Sportacus on April 30, 2024, 06:53:17 PMI'd imagine the draw is made in advance for logistical reasons, it allows teams to prepare by knowing when they are first out etc, couldn't leave it until the provincials are over as some teams will be out 6 days later.Quote from: maldini on April 30, 2024, 04:40:14 PMWhy do they do the draw for this before the provincial finals?It's a good question. Some teams might now be thinking a loss wouldn't be the end of the world, so it takes the edge off things.
Quote from: armaghniac on April 30, 2024, 12:31:04 AMIt did cross my mind, maybe we could just give 2 home games to the highest league finishers?Quote from: onefineday on April 30, 2024, 12:22:28 AMQuote from: yellowcard on April 29, 2024, 03:57:08 PMIt's a whole load of games to whittle the number of teams down from 16 to 12. And when the draw is made you will be able to predict the 4 teams who will be eliminated with a fair degree of certainty. The main interest will centre around which teams top their groups.That's true, because after last year, we all now realise what an advantage finishing top appears to be.
I said last year, if additional jeopardy is needed, we could have the four group winners and the best 2nd place team all progress directly to the quarters. The third place team with the worst record would be eliminated - that should mean little or no dead rubbers.
I'd also tweak it by giving the provincial winners and the 4 top league places (who weren't provincial winners) two home games and get rid of the neutral ground game - this would provide better incentives for provincial winners and league placings. It would also boost attendances as the neutral games last year were very poorly attended iirc.
But this scheme basically advantages Dublin and Kerry, if they didn't have enough advantages.
Quote from: Rossfan on April 30, 2024, 08:06:01 PMQuote from: Blowitupref on April 30, 2024, 03:11:02 PMTailteann cup draw
Group 1 Kildare Leitrim Longford Waterford
Group 2 Sligo Antrim Wexford Tipperary
Group 3 Fermanagh Laois Wicklow Carlow
Group 4 Down Offaly Limerick London
10 All Irelands in Group 4!!