Orange arches

[T O Hare]

I was in Rathfriland earlier and took a close look at the arch in the square.. it was erected by the pride of the hill band and i was entriqued by the emblems on it... along a pic of her majesty ther was a DUP and UUP emblem, emblems of the B specials, UDR, RIR (i think), and Rangers football club and our wee country logo(football for all  )...
Is this the norm all over the six counties? Would the POTH band have to get permission to use such emblems???

[Mid Down Gael]

What a shit hole. Dont know how the good catholics who live there do so with trash like that up.

[T O Hare]

What a shit hole. Dont know how the good catholics who live there do so with trash like that up.

They would feel the exact same way as the good protestants that live in Kilcoo

[T Fearon]

It is the fact that the North of Ireland soccer side is perceived to be a loyalist icon that continues to be a source of shame and the core reason why the IFA continues to fail to engage with the nationalist community of the 6 counties. You cannot really blame the numbskulls who erect arches for this, but you can blame the IFA.

I find the situation in the 6 counties paradoxical currently. In and around Portadown and other areas I have never saw such a plethora of flags yet apparently membership of the OO is declining? Is all this flag waving merely a symptom of huge insecurity given the fact that the union is weakening on a dialy basis?

[T O Hare]

http://www.poth.co.uk/history.php

if you go down this page you will see a pic of the arch in 1997, the rangers and OWC is on the back of the arch

[Evil Genius]

It is the fact that the North of Ireland soccer side is perceived to be a loyalist icon that continues to be a source of shame and the core reason why the IFA continues to fail to engage with the nationalist community of the 6 counties. You cannot really blame the numbskulls who erect arches for this, but you can blame the IFA.

What utter tosh! The fact is, whoever designed this Arch will neither have sought, nor needed, permission from any of the organisations depicted, for having their logos included on this, ahem, erection.

Therefore, the IFA can no more be held responsible for this, than your beloved Celtic or your beloved GAA can for the tool who was famously pictured protesting in February 2007 amongst a crowd of RSF rabble outside your beloved Croke Park:


As for your allegation of the IFA failing "to engage with the nationalist community of the 6 counties", if you go to their website, you will see the lead story (from Monday) is about the Carnegie Schools Cup for Girls which was recently contested in Derry:
http://www.irishfa.com/the-ifa/news/4986/carnegie-schools-cup/
As you will see, the dozens of participating schools comprised every section of education in NI from State, Catholic and Integrated.
Meanwhile, the Schoolboys equivalent attracts more schools to its competition than the equivalents for rugby and GAA combined, including this year that Irish Language school on the Falls (name escapes me), as part of a record entry.
At Primary School level, the IFA is sending coaches into over 250 PS's throughout NI:
http://www.irishfa.com/grassroots/primary-schools-coaching-programme/
And at Youth (i.e non-school underage), there is a similarly widespread integration of teams and players:
http://www.irishfa.com/domestic-football/harry-cavan-youth-cup/

And all that's before you get to the work done in and outside of schools by the IFA's awardwinning Football For All team:
http://www.irishfa.com/grassroots/football-for-all/main-activities/

I look forward to hearing from you what the GAA is doing to cross the divide in NI - or was it enough merely to get Darren Graham back into the fold with a promise of a cushy Coaching job in America?

[red hander]

Can you have a crowd of rabble?  Surely a rabble is a crowd?  Bad misuse of your beloved English language there...

[ziggysego]

Well the numbers in the Orange Order are dropping. The younger Protestant community are not joining up, so that's a good sign for the future.

[Evil Genius]

Can you have a crowd of rabble?  Surely a rabble is a crowd?  Bad misuse of your beloved English language there...

Good question. Probably best just to substitute the term "shower"...

[red hander]

As regards the IFA engaging the nationalist community of the six counties, it would be churlish to deny there's not a fair bit going on ... but it's too little way too late.  The vast majority of nationalists have absolutely no interest in supporting owc, how could they when the very essence of Irish nationalism is the non-recognition of the statelet or anything that gives the statelet legitimacy, such as an 'international' football team ... there's also the fact the team's support still includes a significant section of loyalist bigots (as our Polish and Romanian visitors have found to their cost recently)...

[fred the red]

'Lovely' man city/owc mix flag being advertised above this thread with no surrender under neath 

[Rav67]

I was in Rathfriland earlier and took a close look at the arch in the square.. it was erected by the pride of the hill band and i was enriqued by the emblems on it

Just out of interest is this really a word and what does it mean?

[TORGAEL]

Maybe something spanish... being "enriqued"...

[ziggysego]

Maybe something spanish... being "enriqued"...

[Rav67]

Maybe something spanish... being "enriqued"...

Monsieur Iglesias has probably enriqued a few in his time