Antrim Hurling

[theskull1]

No HS, there are some games that you will try your best to win but you will be up against it, A bit like Antrim playing Tipp in hurling, you put a team out to win but hey, it doesn't take a brain surgeon to work out what the result will be.

Tipp and Antrim arent in the same division for the reasons you imply (but didnt explicitly say  ) . I'm not doubting the difficulties st galls might have fielding consistently and competing with integrity throughout the league...just don't expect everyone to accept thats its OK when you land down the road with a team not capable of competing properly. If thats whats going to happen then youse should opt out of entry to Div1 and enjoy Div2 knowing that full strength youse can give manys a team a good rattle. 

[Milltown Row2]

No HS, there are some games that you will try your best to win but you will be up against it, A bit like Antrim playing Tipp in hurling, you put a team out to win but hey, it doesn't take a brain surgeon to work out what the result will be.

Tipp and Antrim arent in the same division for the reasons you imply (but didnt explicitly say  ) . I'm not doubting the difficulties st galls might have fielding consistently and competing with integrity throughout the league...just don't expect everyone to accept thats its OK when you land down the road with a team not capable of competing properly. If thats whats going to happen then youse should opt out of entry to Div1 and enjoy Div2 knowing that full strength youse can give manys a team a good rattle.

I have already stated that plenty times!!! We won't be able to yet, but again not down to me and if it were I'd say hold out for a year and try and win the thing with committed hurlers. Our footballers (as a clubman) hopefully will have an extended run at the Ulster Championship. New football manager in place now at County (another Galls man) will no doubt be looking at players like Burkey Healy Aidso and CJ to join the panel, another bloody strain on the hurling team, as these games are played weekend of hurling games and based on what training they put in place (one year Baker had training on Wednesdays during hurling league games)

So based on that alone we won't be able, hopefully the committie look at the extending circumstances and come up with a logical approach!!!

Yeah but teams from other divisions can sometimes beat bigger teams Skull, sure you know that

[btdtgtt]

Again I have consistently said that we would prefer to go up as champions, nowhere in my posts have I said any different, we don't have a big panel and need time, if ever, to be able to compete in div. Wanting to bed players in div 1 requires staying div 1, those lads need to have that experience and they won't get it being a yo-yo team. So If we target games to win and gain enough points to stay up then I don't see the problem. When I have taken teams I have always tried to have the strongest team available, harder than you think and when you get to take a senior team in the future you will see the complexities of trying to get all your players out. Not like back in the day where everyone was mad keen to play every game and not have half arsed excuses.

Rossa may not have this problem as they have good minor teams and under 16 teams coming through the next couple of years, but if they manage to come straight back down then the standard will drop for them and they will be in the dog fight of getting out of div 2 again.

Good championship performances are based on playing big teams week in week out. We hit Dunloy and shocked them and nearly shocked Cushendall but that was a flash in the pan and while it was good it really has went back a lot since then. Regularly playing div1 will improve us a lot better, so staying there is important. After a while we will be able to go to Cushendall and Loughiel and give a good account of ourselves and nick the odd win

How about every game - or just drop this - every poster has basically blown this argument out of the water.

Do you live in the real world, will Rossa expect to head to Loughgiel or Cushendall to win the match? They will certainly try their level best as will any team but due to the fact that Rossa aren't up to the standard of beating Loughgiel yet then it's about learning from it and improving the next time youse meet.

You can't be that naive, surely

Its doesnt matter how you try to twist and turn on this one - your talk of "targetting" home/away games is just nonsense.
Every team puts their strongest available team out and "targets" a win in every game.
Leave the rest in Milltown - its not on any other club / posters radar.

You twisted your own words earlier by saying we'd get a tanking and then said you didn't!
If the other posters don't think I'm right in my thinking then that's fair enough. I'm a realist by nature, with a hint of optimism

The difference I make is bewteen being competitive if Galls field full team (which I would be delighted to see)
OR
Getting tanked because Galls didnt "target" a game

Now like the rest of the posters - its really simple, everyone gets the picture - and I'm getting bored of it.
So that'll do from me on the topic - I'm away to change my Man City top to a Rossa jersey.

[theskull1]

Yeah but teams from other divisions can sometimes beat bigger teams Skull, sure you know that

Fed up hearing it ....sure we've slayed a few Div1 fball teams in days gone by ourselves. Even the mighty Galls (before they got really really good) fell on our Div2 sword 

[Milltown Row2]

Yeah but teams from other divisions can sometimes beat bigger teams Skull, sure you know that

Fed up hearing it ....sure we've slayed a few Div1 fball teams in days gone by ourselves. Even the mighty Galls (before they got really really good) fell on our Div2 sword 

Ok for now I'm going to talk about other things, I'm slightly biased no doubt, I've a view internally of how I'd like to see the club go hurling wise, it may not be popular but I'm not out to make friends.

Collectively all clubs need to take it up to the required standard. Loughgiel are the benchmark in hurling and Cross are the benchmark in football, these clubs have something that's working. Style, workrate, and belief. A steady enough conveyor belt of talent coming through which keeps the hunger up. All good ingredients of champions.

Untill we and the rest have that, then Antrim won't be producing teams that will compete at County level

[DearyMe]

Yeah but teams from other divisions can sometimes beat bigger teams Skull, sure you know that

Fed up hearing it ....sure we've slayed a few Div1 fball teams in days gone by ourselves. Even the mighty Galls (before they got really really good) fell on our Div2 sword 

Ok for now I'm going to talk about other things, I'm slightly biased no doubt, I've a view internally of how I'd like to see the club go hurling wise, it may not be popular but I'm not out to make friends.

Collectively all clubs need to take it up to the required standard. Loughgiel are the benchmark in hurling and Cross are the benchmark in football, these clubs have something that's working. Style, workrate, and belief. A steady enough conveyor belt of talent coming through which keeps the hunger up. All good ingredients of champions.

Untill we and the rest have that, then Antrim won't be producing teams that will compete at County level

and so say all of us Milltown, and so say all of us...for hes a...

[theskull1]

Collectively all clubs need to take it up to the required standard. Loughgiel are the benchmark in hurling and Cross are the benchmark in football, these clubs have something that's working. Style, workrate, and belief. A steady enough conveyor belt of talent coming through which keeps the hunger up. All good ingredients of champions.

Untill we and the rest have that, then Antrim won't be producing teams that will compete at County level

My belief is that because we are minnows at IC level, the top hurlers from the top clubs feel that they will get more recognition representing their clubs as a county championship and a run in the all ireland series is always a possibiliy. In the top counties you could be a great club hurler but never get any decent recognition of your craft if your from one of the countless teams in that county who will never win a county title. Its seen as a huge honour to be selected out of a massive playing population and seems to be they all grab their opertunity with both hands. In Antrim theres a could take it or leave it attitude to a call up as theres an almost certain pointlessness to it. That attitude exists in the supporters as well (myself included  )

The way the IC championship is set up and the popularity of the AI club series, I reckon Antrim wont break much delft in the years ahead.

[aontroim]

Yeah but teams from other divisions can sometimes beat bigger teams Skull, sure you know that

Fed up hearing it ....sure we've slayed a few Div1 fball teams in days gone by ourselves. Even the mighty Galls (before they got really really good) fell on our Div2 sword 

Ok for now I'm going to talk about other things, I'm slightly biased no doubt, I've a view internally of how I'd like to see the club go hurling wise, it may not be popular but I'm not out to make friends.

Collectively all clubs need to take it up to the required standard. Loughgiel are the benchmark in hurling and Cross are the benchmark in football, these clubs have something that's working. Style, workrate, and belief. A steady enough conveyor belt of talent coming through which keeps the hunger up. All good ingredients of champions.

Untill we and the rest have that, then Antrim won't be producing teams that will compete at County level

One other thing that works for these clubs is they are free to concentrate on a single code.

[CitySlicker11]

Best of luck to Kevin Ryan and the initial names that he has released. I just hope he realises what he has got himself in for.

[theskull1]

I dont think we're unique

[Milltown Row2]

Yeah but teams from other divisions can sometimes beat bigger teams Skull, sure you know that

Fed up hearing it ....sure we've slayed a few Div1 fball teams in days gone by ourselves. Even the mighty Galls (before they got really really good) fell on our Div2 sword 

Ok for now I'm going to talk about other things, I'm slightly biased no doubt, I've a view internally of how I'd like to see the club go hurling wise, it may not be popular but I'm not out to make friends.

Collectively all clubs need to take it up to the required standard. Loughgiel are the benchmark in hurling and Cross are the benchmark in football, these clubs have something that's working. Style, workrate, and belief. A steady enough conveyor belt of talent coming through which keeps the hunger up. All good ingredients of champions.

Untill we and the rest have that, then Antrim won't be producing teams that will compete at County level

One other thing that works for these clubs is they are free to concentrate on a single code.

Yeah and for Antrim to compete we also need single code clubs, there I said it, I'll be hung drawn and quartered when I go back the the club.

How many of the big tradional clubs down south are dual clubs? I can think of St Joes from Clare

[btdtgtt]

Oh I do hate in when we agree MR2!

Dungiven may claim success but are they a true dual club.
The like of Kilmacud crokes operate as a dual club but without dual players.
Even big counties like cork & Galway have hurling areas and football area.

I might record the date because on this point I totally agree with MR2.

By the way - that's not to say dual club shouldn't be proud to be so - even more the case.

[Fairhead]

Yeah and for Antrim to compete we also need single code clubs, there I said it, I'll be hung drawn and quartered when I go back the the club.

How many of the big tradional clubs down south are dual clubs? I can think of St Joes from Clare

Ever heard of St Finbarrs MR2? But anyway to be honest MR2 you have sidetracked the whole debate on here for the last day or two. The simple question was will restructured all county leagues develop hurling in Antrim? Thats basically what is coming out of this hurling committee proposal and for me the answer is no.

[Last Man]

Word from NA is that the proposals will not get off the ground so not much point in discussing further lads. Div 1 is alright, all is well with the world. . Next topic...............

[theskull1]

There's only 4 senior Div1 NA clubs and by my reckoning 14 non Div 1 NA clubs. I don't believe that NA collectively would be able to agree what to do. Each club will have their own position.


And why have these proposals been thrown out without a bit more detail explaining the motivations for change? Clubs may not be in possession of all the relevant points and will simply take a self interest decision. The county board should know that and communicate what they feel clubs should also be considering when weighing up as well as take on board clubs concerns (e.g.reduced gates). They are important factors