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According to the Dublingaa website it was the minor team. Where did you get u17 from?

A young lad who went to the game thought it was the U17 team as they physically did not look as strong or polished as one would expect from a Dublin minor hurling team. As mentioned above, the Dublin hurling forum have called it the B team. I think it's important to point out that we are not strong at minor hurling this year in case anyone is building their hopes up. In fact, it is the weakest team in at least 5 years. Nevertheless there are a couple of nice hurlers on the team.

Laois minor hurlers beat Dublin in Leinster minor hurling league today, 2-13 to 1-13. Big change from the Laois schools game back in January!

Dublin u17 team from what I hear,Nevertheless I believe it was a decent performance. Backs played well.   

Jack Nolan made some interesting points on Midlands Radio 3. He says that our county players are generally a reflection of the club game in Laois - lacking physicality, intensity and no consequence for a bad season with so many senior teams off the mark.

We need a strong underage structure once again and a dog eat dog championship like in the hurling. Until then, we are going nowhere only backwards.

Even if we do improve, when we see survival in Div 3 as a success, it shows you how far we have fallen. We are now a top 20 county at best.

The good news for me is that many in Tipp credit Creedon with building the structures in the county and taking on the vested interests. I wish him luck in Laois. The recent resistance to reforming the senior championship illustrates the challenges he faces.

Mightn't always agree with Jack but he has a point here. The lack of intensity and real preparation is evident in the Laois SFC and it's logical that this can have a knock on effect at county level. Until we dispense with the attitude that clubs are too big to be relegated we are doomed. In defence of Laois, the football landscape has changed dramatically in the last 2 decades. Laois are in a group of 16/20 counties below the top level where there is scarcely a kick in the ball between them.

I reckon meeting tonight will sort out byelaws. As regards home club, players can always go back to it. Don't think Kyle can stop that.

On the Leinster GAA website, I see James Hilliard (Mountmellick) is going to St Marcas. 

Tipperary have as of this year split their 29 senior hurling teams in two

The top 16 teams play for the county championship,the next 13 can only enter into this competition if they win their divisional championship,2 up 2 down in these divisions.

Kerry,Kilkenny now Tipperary obviously these counties know less than the success story that is Laois.

The Laois Senior hurling championship in 2016 will long live in the memory for the number of tight games crowned by a superb drawn final.  The local Senior Football championship badly needs a competition with a real edge where teams have no choice but prepare. Both Clonaslee  (poor effort at training) and Ballyfin (pulling out of the league) deserved to go down last year. Only the class of a couple of their young players in the case of Ballyfin saved them.  Mind you they are taking no chances this year as they are even taking part in the Kelly cup.   

Kerry have 8 club teams taking part in their SFC proper. Laois has 16. Kilkenny have a shocking competitive 12 team senior hurling championship. Even their Intermediate is dog eat dog.  From speaking to players, officers and supporters over the years, some think they have a divine right to remain senior. I don't think this attitude is going to change for a while yet.

When do transfers stop? is there a closing date?

Thanks

End of January i think, and any time for inter county club as far as I know, but im not sure if the rule is as loose as that for inter county club transfers

Inter county club transfers can happen anytime during year. I don't think a player can play championship for two clubs (excluding colleges and area teams) in the same year.

Totally agree with Hesh's comment 5 fold improvement any whoever is involved in this well done.

Have to agree well done to those working on the system. Great to see Co board notes up on the system as well.

See on new Laois today online media the gaels for 2017:
Hurling:
Ballinakill and Slieve Margy (Senior) No Slieve bloom so.

Good. Does anyone know why?

Clonaslee and Annanough (Senior)

Shocking. Wonder was there much debate on this?
I personally hope it fails miserably.

From what I hear on the grapevine Slieve bloom club  were not in favour of the Ballinakill amalgamation.   

[*All the above have been recommended by the County Executive.]

Ballinakill Gaels - Senior Hurling Championship – Ballinakill with players from Slieve Bloom and Slieve Margy

Ballyfin Gaels –Senior Hurling "A" Championship –Ballyfin with players from Mountmellick
Ballyfin Gaels - Senior Football Championship –Ballyfin  with players from Slieve Bloom  and Camross

Clonaslee St Manmans Gaels – Senior Football Championship – Clonaslee St Manmans with players from Annanough

Crettyard Gaels – Senior Football Championship – Crettyard with players from Spink

Colt Gaels – Senior Hurling "A" Championship –Colt with players from Clonad

Mountmellick Gaels – Senior Football Championship - Mountmellick with players from Kilcavan and Castletown

Shanahoe Gaels - Senior Hurling "A" Championship – Shanahoe with players from Ballypickas

*All the above have been recommended by the County Executive.

Will be discussed and voted-on next Monday.

Did they reject any?

Clonaslee and Annanough is almost like a social experiment of sorts.

There is no rule in the book to stop amalgamations such as Clonaslee/ Annanough. It can be stopped at the discretion of the County Committee which includes the club delegates. Here's a unusual one from Kilkenny. The only amalgamated set up in Kilkenny that I can think of is Galmoy/Windgap (underage) who are at least 30 miles apart. Don't know whether it is still going. 

Was wondering if camross would be picked up alright, they seem to have a few at minor level well capable of playing at a higher level and although camross are now a junior a team the likelyhood of them training or putting much of an effort into the football is minimal

Never thought i would see the day, fair play to camross opening the door for their younger members to have access to higher level football, what level will this gaels team be playing?

Senior with Ballyfin

Has anyone else heard the rule change at Under 12 level that 13 a side championships are to be allowed run in football and hurling thus doing away with the Go Games format at U12 level, which has been pared back to U11 level?

I think the background to this is that underage is going to u13,15,17 in some if not all counties.It's is a good idea where there will be a clear divide between underage and adult so that both can run without interference with each other as happens at the moment. We all know the problem with minors playing too many games. 

The reality is that we haven't got the numbers to remotely compete at the top level. This years's Laois minor hurling team at this age group was always weak on the way up so it shouldn't be a surprise. The ones coming after are no better. Even our so called "good" teams of last number of years were just very average by national standards. On the club front, we would be better off without the likes of Kyle, Ratheniska, Trumera, Ballypickas, Mountmellick,Slieve Margy, Slieve Bloom and a host of other senior B and intermediate clubs who are a joke in a proper functioning hurling county. If there are decent hurlers in these clubs, they should play with a proper set up. The local community nonsense is exactly that: it's nonsense which is why things are the way they are. For anyone into music, John Lennon's Working Class Hero sums up how GAA at Croke Park level probably think of us. We have clubs who have a better chance of winning the award for the best club for organising funeral guard of honours than winning something of consequence on the field. We are totally deluded down to be calling our second tier SHC (A) as we haven't the courage or the cop on to call it what it is.  If the county had 12 decent hurling units, we would have a better chance of improving standards that what we have at the moment. It's quite simple that if a club cannot operate on its own as juvenile level, then it should not be on its own at adult level.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is what we call a keyboard warrior. This person also seems to think the club game doesn't matter. He believes the GAA is all about the county set up and senior clubs. He doesn't realise what clubs such as Rosenallis, Annanough, Barrowhouse, Ratheniska, Kyle, Trumera, Slieve Bloom etc, have to give to the organisation. They are the focal point of their communities. Winning a junior or intermediate title with these clubs will be held above all else, and will be celebrated greater than a 9th title in a 9 in a row.

If we are to wind up the likes of the clubs mentioned above, then we may as well just hand over the organisation to the likes of DOWNTHEROAD and let him at it. I presume he is a wind up though. Or an idiot.

I take issue with your "Keyboard Warrior" jibe  as it's the type of cheap shot that's often uttered when a contrarian view is put forward. Obviously you don't agree with what I'm saying and that's fair enough but I'm perfectly entitled to hold an opinion that we have too many micky mouse clubs. I was referring to hurling but it is probably the same in football. Let's face it the way we are currently constituted, the Kilkenny junior B champions would probably beat most of our Senior B hurling teams. Our Intermediate hurling champions in 2016 (not a bad team or club by Laois standards) failed to the Meath intermediate hurling champions.   

The question is what do we want from the GAA?  Is it an organisation where community participation takes primacy over standards no matter how poor that standard is. If this is what we want that's fine but if it's about improving sporting standards and competing against other codes, then something different needs to be done. 

The link should dispel the annual JoL rumours for at least another year.

http://www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=264985