GAA crowds

[clonadmad]

Cusack Park in Ennis after getting the go ahead to increase capacity from 18.8k to over 20k to accommodate Clare v Limerick

[yellowcard]

Sixty thousand empty seats in Croke Park for a Dublin Meath championship match.  What a sad state of affairs.

Sad indeed

A number of obvious reasons for it , but one thing I have to say  from watching  a numbers of games this weekend, is that  the quality of football right now is  absolutely dire

As a spectacle it really has become a poor game to watch. Ruined by over coaching and stats, the level of crowd engagement at a match has never been lower.

Your money at the turnstile is effectively funding a host of professional coaches and over inflated backroom teams.

[onefineday]

Sixty thousand empty seats in Croke Park for a Dublin Meath championship match.  What a sad state of affairs.

Sad indeed

A number of obvious reasons for it , but one thing I have to say  from watching  a numbers of games this weekend, is that  the quality of football right now is  absolutely dire

As a spectacle it really has become a poor game to watch. Ruined by over coaching and stats, the level of crowd engagement at a match has never been lower.

Your money at the turnstile is effectively funding a host of professional coaches and over inflated backroom teams.

Whatever about tactics etc, when games aren't competitive and the competition is largely meaningless anyway, with little or no jeopardy, why would people turn up?
By the way, I hope you've all completed your survey for the football review committee?

[Jell 0 Biafra]

Sixty thousand empty seats in Croke Park for a Dublin Meath championship match.  What a sad state of affairs.

Sad indeed

A number of obvious reasons for it , but one thing I have to say  from watching  a numbers of games this weekend, is that  the quality of football right now is  absolutely dire

As a spectacle it really has become a poor game to watch. Ruined by over coaching and stats, the level of crowd engagement at a match has never been lower.

Yes and no.  The league final was a fantastic game. The latter stages of the AI last year were pretty compelling.  Lots of mismatches in the early stages, like every year, but that's not uncommon in sport. Look at the top 5 or 6 European soccer leagues this year, and the top teams are pretty much scunnering everyone else.

[Eire90]

should be hard rule anyway that only semi finals and final of any competition is in croke park

[yellowcard]

Sixty thousand empty seats in Croke Park for a Dublin Meath championship match.  What a sad state of affairs.

Sad indeed

A number of obvious reasons for it , but one thing I have to say  from watching  a numbers of games this weekend, is that  the quality of football right now is  absolutely dire

As a spectacle it really has become a poor game to watch. Ruined by over coaching and stats, the level of crowd engagement at a match has never been lower.

Yes and no.  The league final was a fantastic game. The latter stages of the AI last year were pretty compelling.  Lots of mismatches in the early stages, like every year, but that's not uncommon in sport. Look at the top 5 or 6 European soccer leagues this year, and the top teams are pretty much scunnering everyone else.

The League final was great but it was a rarity. I don't think we should be measuring it against soccer but it's almost become possession orientated in the way that soccer is. The difference is that the level of technical skill required in soccer is much higher to retain possession.

Gaelic football was not designed to be a possession sport. It should be a game of duels, collisions and end to end action played at fast pace. It has become anything but that due mostly to data analytics and professional coaches exploiting the rules.

[general_lee]

Sixty thousand empty seats in Croke Park for a Dublin Meath championship match.  What a sad state of affairs.

Sad indeed

A number of obvious reasons for it , but one thing I have to say  from watching  a numbers of games this weekend, is that  the quality of football right now is  absolutely dire

As a spectacle it really has become a poor game to watch. Ruined by over coaching and stats, the level of crowd engagement at a match has never been lower.

Yes and no.  The league final was a fantastic game. The latter stages of the AI last year were pretty compelling.  Lots of mismatches in the early stages, like every year, but that's not uncommon in sport. Look at the top 5 or 6 European soccer leagues this year, and the top teams are pretty much scunnering everyone else.

The League final was great but it was a rarity. I don't think we should be measuring it against soccer but it's almost become possession orientated in the way that soccer is. The difference is that the level of technical skill required in soccer is much higher to retain possession.

Gaelic football was not designed to be a possession sport. It should be a game of duels, collisions and end to end action played at fast pace. It has become anything but that due mostly to data analytics and professional coaches exploiting the rules.

I was thinking about this over the weekend and how the game has changed so much and not necessarily for the better. When I first started playing senior football 20 years ago it was all about your ability as a footballer - fitness was always important but was always secondary. I think nowadays you can't make it as a footballer (including club level) unless you have the fitness and athleticism to constantly bomb up and down the pitch. Positions mean less and less nowadays and stupid rules like the mark have not enhanced the game one bit. The je ne sais quoi is gone.

[thewobbler]

In the early noughties there was a media/pundit backlash against Gaelic Football. Puke football and all that. Yet despite being told every week that football was crap, we knew better ourselves... and crowds were never higher.

What we've arrived at 20 years later is different. We now face an utterly dismal viewing experience.

There is only a limited amount of people on this earth who will travel and pay >£20 to solemnly sit bored out of their wits for an hour and a half. And that number is dwindling rapidly.

The occasional classic has saved the sport's bacon for the past decade.

But that's no longer enough.

Wake me up when the rules have changed for i'm not tuning into another game this year.

[Rossfan]

It went from a propelling game to a possession game.
The rules didn't evolve to deal with this and refs letting "possessors" do what they like when they have the ball doesn't help either.

However I doubt teams are going to revert to kicking the ball as far as you can and hope your team mate up the field can win it.

Do we need to put more *restrictions on possession or bring in a tackle on the man who has to release the ball when tackled?

* limit the amount of playing it to yourself like the 2 handling rule in hurling?
Restrict handpassing?

[snoopdog]

Will 22k turn up to Clones this year for Down v Armagh ?. I'd be surprised if it gets 15k. Standing on thr hill last year surrounded by the buckfast brigade is not something to experience. Let alone the pissing rain in a kip of a ground and getting a hiding.   

[johnnycool]

the interprovincial football championships have been rendered meaningless for most counties either because of the round robin AI or the Tailteann Cup.

The GAA do what they do best and this halfway house is the outcome of trying to keep everyone happy.

The provinces still get to lift a bit of gate money, some counties still have little delusions of grandeur that they can "shock" some of the bigger counties on a given day and the really competitive counties can tick along until the serious stuff begins.

[armaghniac]

Will 22k turn up to Clones this year for Down v Armagh ?. I'd be surprised if it gets 15k. Standing on thr hill last year surrounded by the buckfast brigade is not something to experience. Let alone the pissing rain in a kip of a ground and getting a hiding.   

I'd say that if both Down and Armagh were motoring well there would be a good crowd, but as you say Down people do not anticipate victory. Perhaps they should let people designate their county and guarantee an Ulster final ticket if that county wins.

[clonian]

Will 22k turn up to Clones this year for Down v Armagh ?. I'd be surprised if it gets 15k. Standing on thr hill last year surrounded by the buckfast brigade is not something to experience. Let alone the pissing rain in a kip of a ground and getting a hiding.   

Same. I was sat behind the goals and the 2 lads have no interest in going to sit in the rain again. The forecast is dry and dull at the minute though. Still in for a hiding though

[ardtole]

Last year in Clones was probably my worst experience following Down, and I've seen both Wicklow and Sligo putting us out in the backdoor.

The weather, the hammering the lack of facilities in Clones, its a ground no longer fit for purpose, anyone saying otherwise is wearing rose tinted glasses and thinking of the good oul days.

A few weeks later I was in Thurles for the Tailtain cup, Tipp v Limerick in the hurling was on after as part of a double header. The contrast in atmosphere, facilities, organisation etc was stark.

Having said that il more than likely be in Clones on Saturday week.

[Truthsayer]

Last year in Clones was probably my worst experience following Down, and I've seen both Wicklow and Sligo putting us out in the backdoor.

The weather, the hammering the lack of facilities in Clones, its a ground no longer fit for purpose, anyone saying otherwise is wearing rose tinted glasses and thinking of the good oul days.

A few weeks later I was in Thurles for the Tailtain cup, Tipp v Limerick in the hurling was on after as part of a double header. The contrast in atmosphere, facilities, organisation etc was stark.

Having said that il more than likely be in Clones on Saturday week.

I'd prefer Clones to Casement but you're not wrong has been totally let go to wreck and ruin. Must have been the plan along to get the games out of there. Some great memories of it and about the town before and after games.