Tailteann Cup 2025

[Rossfan]

3 in 90 years isn't exactly any day of the week.
That's about 1 per 10,000 days..

[Captain Scarlet]

I don't think they are given either...or maybe we just haven't been asking nicely enough...
Lookit, any team is down here for a reason. Fans can switch off for a year, work away if people don't fancy it.
 

[mup]

3 in 90 years isn't exactly any day of the week.
That's about 1 per 10,000 days..

Ehh what?

[imtommygunn]

What about fans who are down there every year   

I think it's a good competition. I probably come from a different place though as my county has won maybe half a dozen provincial championship matches in my life and that's getting closer to half a century than I would care for it to be 

FWIW I don't think Fermanagh were particularly up for it this last few years but were this year. I do think it will get them better as where they are at the minute(particularly in ulster) then they are likely to be beat in the first game unless they get antrim (Cavan and Down maybe they would fancy themselves against but I wouldn't be so sure). Maybe if it were more open in the next round or two then they might take a few scalps but the way it is they can blood players, get a run of confidence etc and I don't think that would happen in an A championship only.

[mup]

I don't think they are given either...or maybe we just haven't been asking nicely enough...
Lookit, any team is down here for a reason. Fans can switch off for a year, work away if people don't fancy it.
 

Oh they are there because they deserve to be. Just doesnt interest me.

[Duine Inteacht Eile]

I don't think anyone is under the illusion that teams aren't where they deserve to be.
There seems to be an assumption that these counties believe that they are better than what they are or they there is some snobbery at play. That's not correct. The truth is that Antrim haven't a mission of winning the TC let alone anything above it.
Regardless of all that, it's not a competition that I have much interest in. And I'm not obliged to. There are other things to be interested in and I get to pick.

It was highlighted from the very beginning that the GAA would struggle to get people interested in it, as we saw the same idea (Tommy Murphy Cup) end up in the bin after a few years. I don't know what they do to breathe a bit of life into this one but it's heading the same way IMO.

[tintin25]

I don't think anyone is under the illusion that teams aren't where they deserve to be.
There seems to be an assumption that these counties believe that they are better than what they are or they there is some snobbery at play. That's not correct. The truth is that Antrim haven't a mission of winning the TC let alone anything above it.
Regardless of all that, it's not a competition that I have much interest in. And I'm not obliged to. There are other things to be interested in and I get to pick.

It was highlighted from the very beginning that the GAA would struggle to get people interested in it, as we saw the same idea (Tommy Murphy Cup) end up in the bin after a few years. I don't know what they do to breathe a bit of life into this one but it's heading the same way IMO.

Exactly - there just isn't the interest in it and there's too many flaws in the current system which determines who makes Sam Maguire and who enters the Tailteann

Down are really unfortunate - relegated from Division 2, yes, but they won 3 games and weren't miles away in some of the others.  Then they were competitive in this years championship yet they likely back in the Tailteann next year - what's the point?  Maybe the main AI competition should be extended to top 4 in Division 3.

[The Boy Wonder]

The qualifier/backdoor system was introduced for both football and hurling just 25 years ago approx.
One regularly hears commentators bemoaning the lack of games (particularly hurling) for counties in the Summer months
- up to the start of this century that it was always straight knockout in All-Ireland Football and Hurling.

In the early days the qualifier/backdoor system was not universally liked but in time it proved itself and you had counties winning All-Irelands through the backdoor. You also had lower division teams upsetting the odds and having runs to All-Ireland Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals.

Now we have the Sam Maguire and Tailteann Cups as separate competitions. The interest in the Tailteann Cup is very obviously waning. The group of 16 matches in both Sam Maguire Cup and Tailteann Cup are soon forgotten. But what these two separate championships do achieve is to deny lower division teams a chance to compete against teams in the top divisions - this can only widen the gap in standards between Sam Maguire and Tailteann Cup teams.

[Milltown Row2]

Am I missing something here?

All teams in football play provincial championships, this earning them the right to play in the all Ireland series.

Who is being denied?

Either you go through as finalist or div2 team or better.

Counties have options, go through the leagues or be a provincial finalist

The the TC cup ain't for you then stick your reserve teams in or don't enter.

I'm not sure why an Antrim or a Waterford or London team would feel 'left out' if they have put the work in, then that's what ya get. I'd go back to the original set up in a heartbeat.

[Blowitupref]

I don't think anyone is under the illusion that teams aren't where they deserve to be.
There seems to be an assumption that these counties believe that they are better than what they are or they there is some snobbery at play. That's not correct. The truth is that Antrim haven't a mission of winning the TC let alone anything above it.
Regardless of all that, it's not a competition that I have much interest in. And I'm not obliged to. There are other things to be interested in and I get to pick.

It was highlighted from the very beginning that the GAA would struggle to get people interested in it, as we saw the same idea (Tommy Murphy Cup) end up in the bin after a few years. I don't know what they do to breathe a bit of life into this one but it's heading the same way IMO.

Tommy Murphy cup lasted 5 years. The final 2 seasons only 9 teams took part and by all accounts lots of players opted out to focus on club action. In truth it lasted longer than it should and the Tailteann Cup has been a bigger interest for teams and players involved.

[The Boy Wonder]

Am I missing something here?

Yes indeed, you are missing a lot but I'm not sure that you will take it onboard.

I'll start with my reply to you back on Page 16
Ridiculous - you would deny a Division 3 counties like Kildare & Offaly a shot at Division 2 counties like Louth and Westmeath ? Kildare and Offaly had far more pedigree in Leinster Football than Louth & Westmeath.


There are 10-12 counties are in a middle ground - some years they can be Division 3, other years Division 2.

Most fair-minded posters on here would agree that the Provincial competitions provide an inequitable qualification route to the Sam Maguire Cup competition.

[Milltown Row2]

Am I missing something here?

Yes indeed, you are missing a lot but I'm not sure that you will take it onboard.

I'll start with my reply to you back on Page 16
Ridiculous - you would deny a Division 3 counties like Kildare & Offaly a shot at Division 2 counties like Louth and Westmeath ? Kildare and Offaly had far more pedigree in Leinster Football than Louth & Westmeath.


There are 10-12 counties are in a middle ground - some years they can be Division 3, other years Division 2.

Most fair-minded posters on here would agree that the Provincial competitions provide an inequitable qualification route to the Sam Maguire Cup competition.

But they are still in it, like everyone else.

If you can't muster enough effort to either reach div2 or reach a final of your province then you ain't good enough, end off.

The only other thing I'd be happy with is provincial championships stay as is.. winners get straight to quarter finals and the rest play a knockout competition

[Rossfan]

We had that system and we spent 4 or 5 years trying to find a system to replace it.
We voted in a new system but started giving out about it half way through the 2nd year and voted in another system for next year.

Wonder will we have yet another system in 2027.....?

[trileacman]

We had that system and we spent 4 or 5 years trying to find a system to replace it.
We voted in a new system but started giving out about it half way through the 2nd year and voted in another system for next year.

Wonder will we have yet another system in 2027.....?

This is what happens when you open the Pandora's box of format changes and rules changes. People love to convince themselves that what is wrong with the rules/format now can easily be rectified by changing to A,B and C. Nothing is perfect and then when A, B and C turns out to create as many problems as it solves we change to format D, E and F and so on. Administrators, rather than making small changes than can be observed and evaluated easily prefer broad, sweeping changes in search of a perfection that doesn't exist.

We got rid of the back door system which had it's flaws yet we're now onto our 3rd format incarnation, soon to be 4th next year because everything we try is as flawed as the previous.

My big worry is the GAA, encouraged by the media who make their money off box-office clashes are going down the road of shit-canning the small counties so as to keep them out of the public eye. The GAA seem to be happier to let football die in small counties than to let anyone seem them take a trimming. As a Tyrone man I shouldn't even care, we're now firmly ensconced in the footballing elite, our football infrastructure advantage is such that it's extremely unlikely we'll ever be threatened by the mid-level counties for a long, long time.

But the elitism that now pervades is not the Gaelic football I fell in love with. Louth taking the reigning AI champs to replay in 06, Laois dumping out the AI champs the same year, Meath beating us in 07, Westmeath pushing us to the pin of our collars in 08 before we won the AI, Kildare beating Mayo in the driving rain, Fermanagh beating Armagh in '04 when they were heavily tipped to win the AI, Fermanagh beating Derry in Omagh to make it to an Ulster semi-final with Barry Owens at FF, Sligo nearly knocking out Kerry in '09, Antrim doing the same that year, Sligo winning Connacht with Eammon O'Hara's goal, Tipp beating Cork in a Munster final, Down reaching the 2010 AI final. Wexford beating Armagh in 08. This was the chaos, unpredictability and equality of which I fell in love with. Each of those days encapsulated colour, passion and community, often without any medals given out or any trophies hoisted to sky. But to those present that victory was special and it meant something.

To discard all that so that the top 7-8 can play each other and the accountants can sell more GAAgo tickets strikes me a betrayal of the GAA ethos.

[Rossfan]

Hurling - graded Championships and Leagues- Club and County
LGFA - graded Championships and Leagues - Club and County
Camogie - graded Championships and Leagues - Club and County
Men's football - Graded Championships and Leagues- Club and *County.

*The last to come to the table.
A bit like the clock/hooter.
Just catching up.