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This is getting more farcical by the week!

I see in todays Indo that The DRA are planning to right into their directive that if teams are found guilty of fighting and the likes, they are planning to make them play games behind closed doors.

Crazy stuff!

I see Donegal had a couple of players fitted with heart monitors before the game yesterday.  I am nearly sure that this practice is illegal in Soccer and Rugby.  Is there any rules in the GAA?  Nothing wrong with monitoring your players progress and it is a good way of looking at their work rate, peaks and resting periods and that sort of thing.  Just looked it up there and nothing mentioning safety risks.  Is there any other counties doing this?

EDIT:

Would there be a chance that anyone would have ano presale code for Florence & The Machine and  Snow Patrol in The Phoenix Park on 8th July. Someones birthday tomorrow and was looking for a present!. PM me if you have one.. Thanks!

Few quick questions for anyone in the know?:

What is CJ McGourty doing in UUJ?
How many more players have to go into that team that faced Queens last night?
Is the C Donnelly Ciaran Donnelly from Tyrone?

Would anyone have the stats of the games he has refereed this year?

Reason I'm asking.  I have noted the last four games,  where he has sent off at least one player (yesterday sent off three and had to be escorted from the pitch) Most egotisitcal referee that is about I would say and it always has to be about him

See this on the BBC website. 

Rory Gallagher becomes Donegal selector 

Rory Gallagher has taken on the role of county selector with Donegal
Fermanagh player Rory Gallagher's intercounty playing career looks to be over as he has joined the Donegal senior management team for 2011.

He will be Jim McGuinness's number two and it is understood he met with the players on Monday night.

Gallagher, who also played for Cavan, is currently living in Killybegs.

He played for Fermanagh in last year's championship but this appointment as Donegal selector appears to end his county playing career once and for all.

Gallagher won an All-Ireland club medal with St Gall's of Antrim in 2009.

Donegal will play their opening match in the Dr McKenna Cup against Tyrone on Sunday.

From BBC NI:

Armagh are to sell the naming rights for their new 19,500-capacity stadium which is due to be opened in February.

The county's Athletic Grounds venue has been redeveloped and includes a new 5,600-seat stand and a covered terrace accommodating 2,500 spectators.

"We are offering a great opportunity for a brand to be associated with what will be one of the top sporting venues in Ireland," said official Paul Kelly.

Armagh's first match at the new venue will be against Dublin on 5 February.

Other features in the £4.5m scheme are dressing rooms, medical facilities, 36 turnstiles and improved access for disabled spectators.

Kelly, chairman of the My Armagh development body, added: "The stadium will be the home of major National League, Ulster and All-Ireland qualifiers matches for football and hurling.

"It will also host, through time, hundreds of club championship games at all levels for football, hurling and camogie."

Wondering if anyone can help me?

I'm heading away for near 2 weeks to the States on the morning of the 28th.  My flights are early enough and it is probablyy easiest to go up the night before and stay in one of the airport hotels or hotel close by.  Can anyone reccomend the best hotel (value) to go to.  Will be taking the car with me so will be leaving it at the hotel.

[From BBC NI:]

From BBC NI:
Ulster Unionist Party leader Tom Elliott has said he has not ruled out attending a GAA game following a meeting with the Secretary of the GAA Ulster Council Danny Murphy.

The MLA had previously said he had no interest in attending gaelic games.

Mr Elliot said they discussed a range of issues including stadia funding and outreach work at Wednesday's meeting.

But the MLA said whilst he respected the sport he would not be drawn into going to a GAA match for "tokenism".

UUP general election candidate Trevor Ringland left the party in September due to Mr Elliott's position on the issue.

Speaking to the BBC on Thursday Mr Elliott appeared to do a u-turn.

"Maybe I would (go to a match), maybe I wouldn't - that has been my stance all the way through," he said.

Conflict

"I've always said I would assess every invitation as it came in.

"What I've always said is it's about respect for each other, which doesn't mean I will automatically be a supporter of the GAA.

"But what I do have is a respect for the organisation and what it does and I ask for the same respect back to me."

Mr Elliott maintained that he had never ruled out going to a match but said the issue of him attending one was not raised at Wednesday's meeting.

"Mr Murphy said that was a personal choice of mine and that he would not at any stage attempt to force me to go to a match and that we would work and cooperate in any way possible.

"What we want to do is build good relationships here but that doesn't mean I will just go to a GAA match for tokenism.

"Northern Ireland is much too small to continue a conflict with each other, I think it is time we worked together."

New findings indicate that GAA players and inter-county clashes add €192m per annum to the Irish economy.


These figures come from a report commissioned by the Gaelic Players Association. On the back of the report, GPA spokesperson Sean Potts has asked the Department of Finance to consider the economic value of Gaelic games in the run up to the budget.

The Sunday Independent quotes Potts as saying: 'After just year one, the grants were hit by 70% and players were left with little or nothing.

'All of our members and players are very happy to be amateurs, everyone agrees on that, but we simply won't stand for discrimination just because of that status. The Government has to be seen to help us now.

'Our commissioned report shows what the players and the GAA are doing for the Irish economy.


'The fact that €192m per annum is generated by the GAA and its players surely cannot be ignored. If all sports are cut their allowances, then I don't know if we can do anything but if only certain sports are targeted, people need to realise that we've already taken our medicine and we shouldn't have to take any more.

'Two years ago, an All-Ireland medal winner would receive €2,400 through this grant. That's now down to €800. Those at the lower end of the scale only get €400. We've already suffered.


'If people think they are going to slash and burn their way through this allocation without us protecting the players, they are wrong.'

I had heard something about this but I was not sure how serious it was.  Speaks for itself.  Something is going to have to be done about this.  It is happening all too often.


From Hoganstand:

A young footballer in Donegal was hospitalised after he was allegedly kicked in the face while tying his bootlaces.

The incident took place in the closing stages last weekend's Donegal Northern Regional under 15 final between St. Eunan's of Letterkenny and Urris from Inishowen. The youngster was taken to Letterkenny General Hospital where he is being treated for a serious facial injury, a suspected broken jaw and missing teeth.

GAA officials in the county have launched an investigation into the matter.

From Hoganstand:

Casement Park could be transformed into an all-seater stadium if ambitious plans to redevelop the Belfast venue are given the green light.

Northern Ireland Sports Minister Nelson McCausland is expected to provide a paper to the Stormont Executive recommending the multi-million euro redevelopment of Casement Park along with Belfast's other main sporting grounds, Windsor Park and Ravenhill, in the coming days.

The GAA, IFA and IRFU will all make a financial contribution to their respective projects. Under the proposed plan, Casement Park would be razed to the ground and developed into a 40,000 all-seater stadium which could become the future home for the Ulster football final.

"We have gone through a rigorous process, a very detailed process by an independent consultant, and it has now been accepted so it does stack up," Ulster Council president Aogan Farrell told The Irish Daily Star.

"We wouldn't be in this game only we felt it's a development that's needed."

__________________________

Believe it when I see it.  Would be great to see and great for the GAA,  but wouldn't trust McCausland as far as I could throw him regarding this.  He'll throw a spanner in the works yet.

From Hoganstand:

2011 championship draw on Thursday night
05 October 2010


The draw for the 2011 championship takes place in Croke Park on Thursday night.

The draw for all four provinces in football and hurling gets underway at 8pm and will be broadcast live on RTÉ2.



There is only one slight change to the existing schedule which sees the Leinster hurling championship expanded by one county to include Westmeath, who have been guaranteed three years in the Liam McCarthy Cup following their Christy Ring Cup triumph last July.

It means the Leinster hurling championship now comprises nine counties, and the McCarthy Cup consists of 14 counties. The format for the 2011 Leinster hurling championship was announced yesterday with four counties (Laois, Carlow, Antrim and Westmeath) going into an open draw and will contest a preliminary round.

The two winners join four more counties in three quarter-finals (Galway, Dublin, Offaly and Wexford), also made on an open draw. The three winners from there join Kilkenny in the semi-finals, those pairings also made on an open draw. Kilkenny, as Leinster champions, get a bye into the semi-final.

Westmeath's involvement in the Liam McCarthy Cup will also necessitate an additional game in the All-Ireland hurling qualifiers, with the preliminary round now comprising the five Leinster teams that fail to make their provincial semi-final, and the loser of the Munster preliminary game/quarter-final.

In football, the 2011 Leinster championship has the four 2010 semi-finalists seeded (Meath, Dublin, Westmeath and Louth) who thus get byes into the quarter-finals.

Was walking down from Meaghers today and I seen an unmerciful row.  Got talking to a boy who was a friend of the two Cork boys involvede and found out that the two Cork boys involved were swapping over tickets with each other and these two touts came over and snatched all their tickets and ran.  So the two boys give chase  caught them and give them an awful kicking for their troubles.

Proper order!

Rang up today to the company that I'm dealing with at the minute (Bank of Scotland).  Still paying off the car but was checking few different things out and that if I got a new car etc.

They then went on to tell me they have stopped doing Car Finance.  Anyone know any banks which are decent when it comes to Car Finance/HP?

Heard it there on Today FM sport that there is a strong link?

Anyone hear anything?

This is back again this year.  Looks to be decent prizes on offer from email.

Anyone want to take a stab at the 9 of them?

Anyone use them?

Does anywhere know the best place you could go to?  The NHS is fooking me about!

Is there any way of buying videos of the championship games from the Ulster Council?

From Hoganstand.com

Things have gone from bad to worse for Down after they were hit with fines totalling EUR5,500 for breaches of match-day regulations arising out of last Sunday week's Ulster SFC defeat to Fermanagh.

The Mourne County was fined EUR1,400 for including Benny Coulter and Peter Fitzpatrick in their starting XV after they weren't included in the 30-man squad for the game. They were also hit in the pocket for not starting the 15 players named in the programme, meaning they were effectively fined twice for similar offences.

Down were fined another EUR700 for being late out of the dressing room before the game and for the start of the second half. On top of this, they were fined a further EUR1,000 for incursions onto the pitch by water carriers at times which were deemed not to be breaks in play.