Long Kesh Park takes another step forward

[Main Street]

10m? That´s just the hello money.
What´s in the IFA coffers?
Who is going to help them design a new plan?
The samaritans?

[thejuice]

well as I said I have not read an official statement quoting that figure so I wouldnt put too much weight behind it yet but we all know how expensive "consultancy" can be. I dont know who's pocket that £10m came from.

[Solomon Kane]

This is the reason I don't want to share a national stadium with the GAA-

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sliabh/388905221/


People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable. Now scurry away off with your conspiracy theories.

[his holiness nb]

People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable. Now scurry away off with your conspiracy theories.

Any poxy excuse they can think of bar admit the real reason

[Solomon Kane]

People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable. Now scurry away off with your conspiracy theories.

Any poxy excuse they can think of bar admit the real reason

I am surmising you have never been at a sporting event then?

[SammyG]

People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable. Now scurry away off with your conspiracy theories.

Any poxy excuse they can think of bar admit the real reason

So what is the 'real reason', as you seem to think the dozens of reasons that you've ben given aren't 'real'?

[his holiness nb]

People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable. Now scurry away off with your conspiracy theories.

Any poxy excuse they can think of bar admit the real reason

I am surmising you have never been at a sporting event then?

You surmise wrong.

[his holiness nb]

People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable. Now scurry away off with your conspiracy theories.

Any poxy excuse they can think of bar admit the real reason

So what is the 'real reason', as you seem to think the dozens of reasons that you've ben given aren't 'real'?

Do try to keep up Sammy, I've already given the real reason, in agreement with Mr Feeneys article.

[SammyG]

People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable. Now scurry away off with your conspiracy theories.

Any poxy excuse they can think of bar admit the real reason

So what is the 'real reason', as you seem to think the dozens of reasons that you've ben given aren't 'real'?

Do try to keep up Sammy, I've already given the real reason, in agreement with Mr Feeneys article.

Sorry I had to do some work, this afternoon (or at least pretend to) and I can't be arsed going back through the thread, so humour me and tell me again.

[Jim_Murphy_74]

It is the GAA's choice to rent Croke out to the IRFU and FAI. They are perfectly entitled to withhold use of the stadium should soccer or rugby matches conflict with their own needs (indeed they have, come to think of it, since ROI are playing a "home" match vs Colombia in London in May). Or are you seriously saying the GAA couldn't find a date for an Ulster Final between Armagh and Tyrone at Croke because of a soccer or rugby match taking priority? 

EG,

As an aside (I'm sure at 45 pages in length this thread has seen the odd digression), many within the GAA do feel that soccer and rugby needs have been prioritised over those in the GAA.   Central Council have banned club teams playing on March 17th from having a familiarising/training session prior to the finals.   This courtesy was afforded to all rugby teams playing this year.  Similarily, no league finals or schools finals are allowed this year as the pitch has to recover from the rugby matches.

I would not dare suggest that Central Council would move a flagship game from Croker but there is no doubt that ordinary GAA-folk are losing out on access to our primary venue.  I was at our County Convention late last year and this was a huge issue (due to a number of teams losing out on the dream of playing in Croke)r.  2 years ago these people were shouted down as backwoods men and naysayers but not anymore.  The "good neighbours" and "national interest" arguments are losing ground as Central Council do exactly as you suggest they'd never do!

If the Rule 42 vote was to be held again tomorrow I suspect it wouldn't be as clear-cut a result at all.

/Jim.

[Main Street]

This is the reason I don't want to share a national stadium with the GAA-

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sliabh/388905221/

People at either end - Kop stands if you like will have a shite view. A GAA pitch is way too long to play football on, making the whole idea unfeasable.

It's the biggest reason and the biggest fear.

There is a difference between a 40k stadium and an 80k stadium
I have noted that the soccer fans don't complain so much when the atmosphere and the game is good (that one time).



I don't think the IFA have any financial clout, I think they would be bankrupted if they even had to commission a study, a design. This time you might have to listen to Howard Wells, when he says the IFA don't have any money.

[thejuice]

This is the reason I don't want to share a national stadium with the GAA-

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sliabh/388905221/

isnt there alot of soccer/football pitches with running tracks around them, surely it has the same effect. i remember old wembley's stands are far from the pitch. especially at the goal ends. would temporary extended seating work. A fair few stadia in USA have removable stands as they cater for both baseball and gridiron. Sure didnt the Arizona pitch roll in and out of the stadium on wheels. i know thats not useful here due to space constraints but just goes to show that almost anything is possible theses days,

[SammyG]

This is the reason I don't want to share a national stadium with the GAA-

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sliabh/388905221/

isnt there alot of soccer/football pitches with running tracks around them, surely it has the same effect. i remember old wembley's stands are far from the pitch. especially at the goal ends. would temporary extended seating work. A fair few stadia in USA have removable stands as they cater for both baseball and gridiron. Sure didnt the Arizona pitch roll in and out of the stadium on wheels. i know thats not useful here due to space constraints but just goes to show that almost anything is possible theses days,

Absolutely fantastic stadium,73000 seats, retractable roof, retractable pitch, even air-conditioning!!! and all built for about the same as the estimates for the Maze.

[snatter]

Match 1 was at Croker.
Match 2 (the repplay) was a capacity crowd at Clones.
The combined attendance of both matches was 93000.
Two 42k capacities would give a combined 84000 attendances, which isn't that far from what we got.

In combining the first two match attendances, you are employing bizarre, almost laughable "logic". For Match 1 (Armagh v Tyrone), nearly 20k spectators would be locked out of the Maze. This would be in return for allowing a maximum of an extra 10k specatators at Match 2 (the replay) by playing that at the Maze instead of Clones. Note that it is not certain that Match 2 would have attracted this extra 11k, that the GAA would have had to pay two sets of rent, plus VAT, for the use of the Maze, plus the fact that the 42k fans accommodated in the Maze for Match 1. might have preferred to travel to Croke for a day out.

Evil,

I've just checked my figures - the second match was actually at Croker, on a Saturday.
The low attendance was explained by the fact that it was a Saturday and that people didn't have enough time/lacked the inclination  to organise a second trip to Dublin within six days.

I'd say that a fair proportion of those who stayed at home for the replay might have been inclined to take the much shorter trip up the M1 to the Maze.

[thejuice]

Absolutely fantastic stadium,73000 seats, retractable roof, retractable pitch, even air-conditioning!!! and all built for about the same as the estimates for the Maze.

were ever you there?

it cost $455 million (£224m) ( €292m )

63,400 permanent seats (can be expanded to 73,719)

Of course the snag being, in our case, extended seats would be used for IFA & IRFU games, and removed for GAA games when its likely that the larger capacity would be required for GAA games.

So close.....yet so far, Ted