Tyrone Club Football and Hurling

[giveherlong]

How did the Omagh email work out?
Any change to next Thursday fixtures?

[keepherlit]

How did the Omagh email work out?
Any change to next Thursday fixtures?

Has prompted a County Committee meeting on Tuesday night.

[giveherlong]

Fair play to the Omagh club but Tuesday is leaving it late for a decision on Thursday fixtures

[tothetop03]

Fair play to the Omagh club but Tuesday is leaving it late for a decision on Thursday fixtures
[/quo


No harm to Tyrone senior management there where weeks and weeks to sort their preparations out instead of dropping this Weekend in at short notice they should have been told where to go they forced the CCC'S hand and they bowed to Harte yet again until Harte or any other County team manager is firmly told that they work under the County Board not the other way about the better..... Up The Club... i would love Clubs to row in behind Omagh and tell the CCC committee where to go a stand has to be made sometime or this type of thing will just keep happening time and time again.....

[teaminamillion]

Club League games should not be moved either by the county manager or individual clubs. The whole thing ends up in a free for all.

[Ty4Sam]

White smoke on the hill!

[ON THE HILL]

all games on sunday 23rd again

[tiempo]

Dont think the Omagh boys wana go back go Ardboe full stop, thats the real problem here..

That may be true about Omagh but greater problem is how Tyrone GAA break rules and walk all over the clubs. Needs to be stopped for once and for all

Can a single officer not put a stop to this? Get someone in who will front up on behalf of the clubs. There are 12 people on the CCC, is it the chair, secretary or adult fixtures co-ordinator who is breaking the rules here? Either way players need to get militant with the CB. Now there is no way clubs or supporters are going to boycott Championship, having waited all year you just want to get down to business, but players should align themselves to call a halt to unreasonable fixtures during holidays and short notice fixture setting. It is also in rule that 5 days notice must be given ahead of any game, is that being followed?

The players have the power here, they just don't know it. The playersdon't want committee type hassle when focusing on their preparation for games as you only get a short enough time to play, but they could pull together now and get this sorted.

Not necessarily true, GAA guidelines state 5 days for championship games, nothing about league games, it seems its left to County boards bye-laws for each individual county. Dublin, for example, states 5 days notice for a league game in their bye laws. Tyrone?? States that there must be a 'reasonable' notice given? I mean, what is or isn't reasonable?

Good shout - if you look at the sham club players are subject to regards scheduling and the undefineable bye law of 'reasonable' I'll reiterate my original point, the players have the power to sort this out - yes it would take some back channelling and alignment from all or most clubs across all divisions, especially the big hitters in Senior, but if the players make a stand the CB, CCC and county management will have to cede. Short-mid term pain for mid-long term gain.

Put it like this. Take any established 25yo player at any club. 7 years out of minor, 5 years til he hits his 30s. How many seasons in the last 7 has he felt entirely shafted by the CB/CCC/county management over fixtures, and how many more years of the same shite is acceptable? It is feasable that a generation of club players could play their whole career under the cloud and dissatisfaction of a fixtures sham.

Would you then expect them to play on into their mid-late 30s at senior/reserve, or turn their hand to underage development or club committee roles, or encourage any young lad coming behind them to really sell the idea of total committment for the chance of league or championship glory with the club? Or would they be pragmatic and tell them local soccer and rugby leagues are real alternatives for competitive sport when you know you are getting shafted by the fixture dons?

These are the lads from the Tyrone minor panel 2010 who are not on the senior county panel currently, do they not deserve a season of football where they can plan their sport/life balance with some sort of certainty. Are we saying that minor and senior county batches are the only people we cater for, and when anyone drops out of that top end they are second rate and therefore not worthy of a structured season. There's also the lads who didn't make the cut as county minors who would like to play club football but the scheduling makes it a drain on enthusiasm - the player retention issue.

Mark McReynolds, Shea McGarrity, Conor Clarke, Michael Donaghy, Colm Spiers, Conan Grugan, Darragh Donnelly, Mathew Carberry, Keifer Morgan, John McCullagh, Ryan Clarke, Eunan Deeney, Enda McGahan, Rory Loughran, Stefan Tierney, Ryan Devlin, Sean Quinn, Dwayne Quinn, Harry Og Conlon, Liam Girvan, Tommy Canavan

Does the current system in Tyrone club football allow for/encourage late developers like Ricey McMenamin, players crafted through an organic process of home coaching, hard knocks, learning on the fields of Tyrone club football, making mistakes, rising to the challenge again, or are we intent on manufacturing every player in the gym complex, training pitches and academy on the hill - which makes the most arrogant assumption of all, our coaching is better than yours!

There needs to be a system that allows players to play to their best during their peak years and final few years, then allows them to step into reserve mode, then play at a social level within the reserves towards the end. Obviously there will be those GAA to the core individuals and families, but for the health of Tyrone football this needs sorted.

[blewuporstuffed]

Good post Tiempo,
As someone who has recently retired after circa 18 years of senior club football in Tyrone, a lot of that rings true.

[laceer]

Great post Tiempo. It's actually pretty sad that administration of football in Tyrone has become so far detached from the vast majority of players.

[omagh_gael]

Excellent post, Tiempo.

[leenie]

The Irish News

CLUB Players' Association chairman Michéal Briody has questioned the point of the rule governing the availability of inter-county players even though clubs in Tyrone have claimed victory in a row over upcoming fixtures.

The Red Hand county and Ulster counterparts Donegal are in breach of the GAA's Official Guide due to the timing of training weekends for their county squads.

Tyrone are set to spend next weekend at Carton House in county Kildare, while Donegal are currently in New York on a seven-day training camp.

Briody asked: "Why is that rule there if it's being breached? People will blame county boards and in some cases write that they cave in too much to the county manager.

"But it has to come from the top. You have rules, and if you have rules, you need governance. If there's a breach of that rule by Tyrone or Donegal, there has to be a meaningful penalty."

The recent decision by Tyrone manager Mickey Harte to take his senior football squad toCarton House from Friday 21 until Sunday April 23 had led to a clash with scheduled club fixtures.

Tyrone's Competitions Control Committee (CCC) brought the games forward to Tuesday April 18 before moving them for a second time to Thursday April 20.

But following an email sent by Omagh St Enda's to the CCC and their fellow clubs, the county's fixture makers found themselves under pressure to change their decision.

Omagh's email objected to the games – which are not starred fixtures, so county players are due to be available – being moved to midweek.

They were due to travel to Ardboe, which is a one-hour drive from Healy Park to the loughshore venue, which they said was unfeasible for some of their players.

"We have in our senior team a Bank Official in Dublin, a GP in Strabane, and a Doctor and two other healthcare workers in Altnagelvin, all of whom will not be able to be in Ardboe for a 7.30 throw-in due to work commitments.

"We also have players (mostly students or teachers) who are away on pre-arranged holidays during Easter Week so as not to miss games at the weekend that were originally scheduled."

Their plea for support from fellow clubs was met, with the required 15 (as decreed by county bye-laws) supporting them in asking for a specially convened county committee meeting.

It had been called for early next week but the county's CCC yesterday bowed and returned the games to their original date, with later throw-in times of 6pm for senior fixtures.

That will allow the Tyrone squad to continue as planned with their training weekend and return home in time to play in the club fixtures.

The training weekend still remains in breach of the GAA's official guide, rule 6.22 (b), which states that inter-county panels are not permitted to go on training weekends between the end of the National League and outside the 13 days prior to a Championship game.

Donegal are in a similar scenario as their senior footballers are currently in New York, although they had informed clubs of their intention to do so before the county's club fixture list was published.

Clubs therefore agreed in February to play a round of starred games during the county team's break, although the under-21s' run to the All-Ireland series has also played havoc with club fixtures in the county.

However, breaching rule 6.22 doesn't carry any sanction, which CPA chairman Briody feels is at the heart of the issue.

"Why is that rule there if it's being breached? People will blame county boards and in some cases write that they cave in too much to the county manager.

"But it has to come from the top. You have rules, and if you have rules, you need governance. If there's a breach of that rule by Tyrone or Donegal, there has to be a meaningful penalty.

"A €100 fine is irrelevant, county boards will take that every day of the week. It has to be something like sacrificing home advantage in the League the following year and you have seven away games, or something like that. How would that stick?

"County managers are under a lot of pressure and the only thing they see is success for the county. The county chairperson is measured the same. I don't know why that rule is one rule that's never enforced.

"It can be policed, it's quite straightforward. All those county players should be available to play for their clubs that weekend, and to play the full 60 minutes, not come on for a token few minutes as directed by county managers, which does happen.

"I cannot criticise Mickey Harte or the Tyrone county board for that. You have to go back to the top and look at Congress and say 'Do not put in a rule unless there's a sanction'."

[teaminamillion]

Club midfield battle of the day will be in Division 2 were Augher who have Aidan Cassidy and Aidan'turnip'McElroy against the Cavanaghs of the Moy. People on here and Tyrone fans in general will be aware of the Cavanaghs and Cassidy but the man they call 'turnip' who has not played for Tyrone at any level is a very underrated player. If i was to describe turnip it would be the aerial prowess of Paul McGrane, the direct running of Kevin mcmanamon, the physicality of Bellew but most of all the work rate of Dooher. Aidan was in Australia for a year playing and duly won the NSW senior player of the year as was voted by fellow players from the 32 counties of Ireland. I'm sure lads over there would be asking the question there's a boy would do a job for us. Its players like the 'Turnip' I go to watch games!

[skeog]

Aidan Cassidy one of Tyrones finest midfielders could match the Cavanaghs when fully fit but has been very injury prone.

[bogball88]

Club midfield battle of the day will be in Division 2 were Augher who have Aidan Cassidy and Aidan'turnip'McElroy against the Cavanaghs of the Moy. People on here and Tyrone fans in general will be aware of the Cavanaghs and Cassidy but the man they call 'turnip' who has not played for Tyrone at any level is a very underrated player. If i was to describe turnip it would be the aerial prowess of Paul McGrane, the direct running of Kevin mcmanamon, the physicality of Bellew but most of all the work rate of Dooher. Aidan was in Australia for a year playing and duly won the NSW senior player of the year as was voted by fellow players from the 32 counties of Ireland. I'm sure lads over there would be asking the question there's a boy would do a job for us. Its players like the 'Turnip' I go to watch games!

Great post Turnip