Inter-Provincial championship

[Sandy Hill]

Anyone got an update on Ciaran McKeever's injury?

[Family guy]

Hub must be playing some stuff lately,great to see it from a tyrone point of view,hope he keeps ticking over the way hes goin,class act

[drici]

No Railway Cup this year.

[The Forfeit Point]

very very disappointing. If the GAA bothered their arse they could turn this into a decent event 

[INDIANA]

very very disappointing. If the GAA bothered their arse they could turn this into a decent event 

scrap it when you see 3rd string county players playing it -its the end. Ckub fixtures are more important. Mind you I wouldn't bother my arse with the Aussie-turnip head show at the year end either.

[The Forfeit Point]

very very disappointing. If the GAA bothered their arse they could turn this into a decent event 

scrap it when you see 3rd string county players playing it -its the end. Ckub fixtures are more important. Mind you I wouldn't bother my arse with the Aussie-turnip head show at the year end either.

that makes a mockery of the competition. its a fantastic concept, look how well it works in rugby with the interest it has generated. i know it is all there really is in rugby besides the international dimension but the GAA could certainly get decent interest in this if they tried. i agree with mid-louth that a better time of year is needed. joe kernan had a great idea with st.patricks week. by right that should be done and the shite marketed out of it to tourists, and reasonable prices.

what more of an honour can a player get than to say he is one of the best footballers in their province? it baffles me, id give anything to have been able to play for my club at a decent level, let alone county or province. this story really disheartens me

[INDIANA]

very very disappointing. If the GAA bothered their arse they could turn this into a decent event 

scrap it when you see 3rd string county players playing it -its the end. Ckub fixtures are more important. Mind you I wouldn't bother my arse with the Aussie-turnip head show at the year end either.

that makes a mockery of the competition. its a fantastic concept, look how well it works in rugby with the interest it has generated. i know it is all there really is in rugby besides the international dimension but the GAA could certainly get decent interest in this if they tried. i agree with mid-louth that a better time of year is needed. joe kernan had a great idea with st.patricks week. by right that should be done and the shite marketed out of it to tourists, and reasonable prices.

what more of an honour can a player get than to say he is one of the best footballers in their province? it baffles me, id give anything to have been able to play for my club at a decent level, let alone county or province. this story really disheartens me

But the crowds don't identify with it- they just don't. A lof of the players can't play in it due to club commitments as well.

[The Forfeit Point]

very very disappointing. If the GAA bothered their arse they could turn this into a decent event 

scrap it when you see 3rd string county players playing it -its the end. Ckub fixtures are more important. Mind you I wouldn't bother my arse with the Aussie-turnip head show at the year end either.

that makes a mockery of the competition. its a fantastic concept, look how well it works in rugby with the interest it has generated. i know it is all there really is in rugby besides the international dimension but the GAA could certainly get decent interest in this if they tried. i agree with mid-louth that a better time of year is needed. joe kernan had a great idea with st.patricks week. by right that should be done and the shite marketed out of it to tourists, and reasonable prices.

what more of an honour can a player get than to say he is one of the best footballers in their province? it baffles me, id give anything to have been able to play for my club at a decent level, let alone county or province. this story really disheartens me

But the crowds don't identify with it- they just don't. A lof of the players can't play in it due to club commitments as well.

Thats where marketing and glamourising it comes in, sure thats the very reason why every clown nowadays is sporting leinster & munster jerseys when a decade ago that was more or less unheard of.

how can GAA fans not identify with it? it makes no sense, you are potentially getting the very best footballers pitted against each other

[mountainboii]

how can GAA fans not identify with it? it makes no sense, you are potentially getting the very best footballers pitted against each other

Attendances in recent years would suggest the vast majority of supporters couldn't give a shite about seeing the very best footballers pitted against each other. People follow football because they identify with their club and county, regardless of who is in the jersey. Being better than the lot down the road matters; being the best club in the county matters; being the best county in the country matters; but no one really gives a shit about being the best province.

[The Forfeit Point]

how can GAA fans not identify with it? it makes no sense, you are potentially getting the very best footballers pitted against each other

Attendances in recent years would suggest the vast majority of supporters couldn't give a shite about seeing the very best footballers pitted against each other. People follow football because they identify with their club and county, regardless of who is in the jersey. Being better than the lot down the road matters; being the best club in the county matters; being the best county in the country matters; but no one really gives a shit about being the best province.

why did the crowds go in the 50s and 60s though when travelling was much more difficult? how can the rugby faithful identify with their provinces?

as i said its down to marketing (with regards rugby, i have no idea how they managed back in the day) this could be a money maker if the GAA had the foresight to invest in making it attractive. i have been to quite a few railway cup semis & finals and they tend to be football at its purest. fast, open, attractive football

[Zulu]

Have to say I'm delighted it is gone, it was a waste of time and money.

AFS, people will go to see the best players but they weren't getting that, they were getting the lads who were available and a few token lads from weaker counties. That and the fact that nobody really cared who won it meant that people weren't willing to travel and pay in to see it. And TFB that is why promoting it wouldn't work, Munster and Leinster in the rugby are two of the best club teams in world rugby going at it with full teams so people will watch. Munster and Leinster in football or hurling is a few of the best players in the respective provinces having a kick/puc around.

We're nearly finished with our national leagues that have passed by most of the country, now that is a competition worth sorting out. The vast majority of games our IC players play are no more than glorified challenge matches, that's the problem and we shouldn't be worried about retaining another challenge match like the inter provincials.

[mountainboii]

how can GAA fans not identify with it? it makes no sense, you are potentially getting the very best footballers pitted against each other

Attendances in recent years would suggest the vast majority of supporters couldn't give a shite about seeing the very best footballers pitted against each other. People follow football because they identify with their club and county, regardless of who is in the jersey. Being better than the lot down the road matters; being the best club in the county matters; being the best county in the country matters; but no one really gives a shit about being the best province.

why did the crowds go in the 50s and 60s though when travelling was much more difficult? how can the rugby faithful identify with their provinces?

as i said its down to marketing (with regards rugby, i have no idea how they managed back in the day) this could be a money maker if the GAA had the foresight to invest in making it attractive. i have been to quite a few railway cup semis & finals and they tend to be football at its purest. fast, open, attractive football

The 50s and 60s are irrelevant. The circumstances that lead to the competition's popularity then can not be recreated. The emergence of television and the ample opportunities to see the best players in the country on a regular basis from the comfort of your sitting room is the main difference.

The situation in rugby is also irrelevant. The Irish provinces get to compete against dozens of sides across Europe over the course of a season. This has allowed them to establish a support base. This situation is utterly incomparable with four sides playing a couple of games against each other in the space of two weekends. Also, in the rugby world our provinces are small enough representative units for supporters to be able to create a unique identity. In the GAA world provinces are relatively massive units, which makes it extremely difficult to identity with them.

[The Forfeit Point]

rugby has local clubs though too, yet the people can identify with the provinces. and rugby most certainly is relevant in that it has suddenly become very popular and that is down to media exposure and marketing and glamourising of the game. the gaa need to get off their arses and do something for gaelic games as a whole not just specifically the railway cup, which in my opinion could be a big money spinner if joe kernans idea was adopted. do you not think so?

[The Forfeit Point]

Have to say I'm delighted it is gone, it was a waste of time and money.

AFS, people will go to see the best players but they weren't getting that, they were getting the lads who were available and a few token lads from weaker counties. That and the fact that nobody really cared who won it meant that people weren't willing to travel and pay in to see it. And TFB that is why promoting it wouldn't work, Munster and Leinster in the rugby are two of the best club teams in world rugby going at it with full teams so people will watch. Munster and Leinster in football or hurling is a few of the best players in the respective provinces having a kick/puc around.

We're nearly finished with our national leagues that have passed by most of the country, now that is a competition worth sorting out. The vast majority of games our IC players play are no more than glorified challenge matches, that's the problem and we shouldn't be worried about retaining another challenge match like the inter provincials.

cant understand how you can be "delighted", apathetic yes, but delighted? sure if you didnt like them how would it affect you, how could you be delighted that people who did enjoy them cant anymore?

[Zulu]

No. Rugby's popularity isn't simply down to promotion but the fact that we are strong at the moment, it is international and the games matter. The inter provincials don't matter and never will again so we are better off without them. I do agree we should promote some of other competitions better though.

cant understand how you can be "delighted", apathetic yes, but delighted? sure if you didnt like them how would it affect you, how could you be delighted that people who did enjoy them cant anymore?

A bit harsh i admit but I'm delighted because the GAA are finally making some tough decisions and getting rid of the drift wood. Don't get me wrong I always watched them and enjoyed them but they just have no place in the calender and are only challenge matches which serve no purpose.