First Division Reform

The structure of the League of Ireland has come in for severe scrutiny from fans and clubs. The Premier League clubs are competing for miniscule prize money, with the shoe string budgets available reflecting that.

Dundalk picked up  E100,000 for winning the league this year, luckily for the club this will be supplemented by playing in the Champions League qualifiers.  This combined money means Dundalk will be able to meet their financial obligations next year, no small achievement in the current LOI environment. Despite this, the ability to improve Oriel Park, youth structures and training facilities will be limited. It is clear that European football can provide much needed finances for clubs, but qualification from a league as closely fought as the League of Ireland is a lottery, so all clubs must avoid factoring it into their budgets.

Clubs competing in the LOI Premier Division do not do it for the prize money as the majority of income comes from match day revenue, sponsorship and fundraising. There is little financial difference for a club in finishing from 5th to 10th place, they don't get into Europe and more importantly, they don’t get relegated. In most leagues relegation is a fear for every club, but it is a particularly harsh punishment in the LOI.

Longford town win the first division 2014

 

Any money and interest that is in domestic soccer, is in the premier division. The first division is truly a graveyard league. If it is true that any league is only as strong as its weakest part, then the LOI is on its death bed. The first division is completely defunct, yet the FAI continues to drag it through season after season without any reform or reinvention. I whole heartedly believe any domestic league must have at least one lower division and hence relegation and promotion. It ensures there is competitiveness and excitement at both ends of the table.

The counter argument of a one league, extended premier division is nonsense. An 18-19 team league would be uncompetitive and unsustainable for a country our size. The most sensible route at this juncture is a regionalized first division. This league would encompass the current first division clubs as well as the cream of current non-league clubs. It would truly create a League of Ireland.

It is an anomaly in Irish soccer that some of the best clubs in the country do not compete in the national league structure. Junior clubs such as Crumlin United, with a distinguished history of nurturing international players are not involved at any level of the league structure. Crumlin United along with Avondale United, Tralee Dynamos, Castlebar Celtic, Tullamore Town and so on, could  be making an even bigger contribution to soccer in Ireland. Their participation would help promote the game in places it has traditionally been second to other sports.

Take for example, Castlebar Celtic, this writer is very familiar with the town having worked there for a number of years. The town is simply sport mad. Anyone with even the most basic knowledge of GAA, Soccer or Rugby is an instant friend. Admittedly, Gaelic football is dominant, but the town is large enough to produce a competitive soccer team. Castlebar Celtic has fantastic facilities with multiple all weather training pitches and youth teams from under 12 upwards. This club and clubs like it should be embraced into the League of Ireland and used as a hub to coach young soccer players. Perhaps someday, a Rep of Ireland captain could be a Mayo man.

A potential problem posed by such a first division is a disparity in facilities and ambition. To counteract this, each teams facilities could be evaluated at the beginning of the season; this would mean if a club without the required Premier League facilities won the First Division, they would know well in advance that they were not eligible for promotion. In such cases, no promotion would occur and the winning team would simply claim the trophy and prize money. Competitiveness could be maintained by offering competing clubs in each regional group a place in the following seasons FAI cup, based on their league standing, similar to the system used to determine European participants in the current premier division. A system of relegation would involve the bottom team relegated back to their county/provincial league. This is an important element as it would link the League of Ireland and non-league football into a combined unit forcing all stake holders to pull in the one direction.

A feeling of local rivalry would be nurtured as all teams would be within close proximity, meaning most games would be a derby of some kind.  The teams may only need to play each other 2-3 times in a season, making such games more marketable compared to the current structure where teams can play each other up to six times in a season with league and cup encounters. Also, the idea of a club the size of Tullamore Town beating a club like Shelbourne would be a David verses Goliath event and should be marketed as such.

On a side note, the league could also incorporate a Defence Forces and/or Garda football team. This has worked successfully for the PSNI in Northern Ireland, whom have a team in the second tier of the Irish league.  Both these organisations require physically fit employees and would surely be intrigued by the idea, currently, both groups are heavily involved in local leagues. The capacity for player development may be limited but the novelty value would be worth its weight in gold in terms of promoting the league.

It is painfully clear to even the most casual League of Ireland fan that the league is in drastic need of reform; it mirrors Irish soccer as a whole in this regard. The First Division has been labouring on for the last number of years and provides no real competition or excitement, particularly in its current incarnation as an 8 team league. The writer accepts that some of the ideas discussed may not be feasible for a variety of reasons but they at least deserve exploration. The time is now to reinvigorate the First Division and make it a worthwhile competition as sooner or later, proud League of Ireland outposts such as Waterford United, Finn Harps and Cobh Ramblers will decide it’s not worth the effort. Have no doubts, a League of Ireland without its foundation in the First Division would crumble.

The Current State of the International Side

 

As international football ends for 2014, this article evaluates the current prospects of the Republic of Ireland international football team.

 Martin O`Neil and Roy Keane were announced as Rep of Ireland`s Management team over a year ago to almost universal fanfare but it seemed an eternity until their first competitive game in charge. An away trip against the Georgians gave Irish fans their first glimpse of the pairing in competitive action. In a shaky performance Ireland managed to pull off a late victory through a fine performance by Aiden Mcgeady. Despite the nature of the performance, we were comforted in the knowledge that this was a good three points from a place Spain and France have recently struggled.

 Next up was a home game against Gibraltar, their firemen and policemen could not come to the rescue and they were duly dispatched 7-0 in the Avivia stadium. 

 The first big test came against a Germany side still celebrating its World Cup win in Brazil. The match itself went the way most expected; Germany had lots of possession with the Irish heroically holding on hoping for a miracle. When Toni Kross struck it seemed as if this was not to be Ireland`s night but the luck of the Irish was in and a strike from John O`shea sealed a famous draw.

 Then came the visit to Scotland in Celtic Park.  A highly anticipated game involving two evenly matched sides, on paper at least. A much more adventurous Scottish side came up against a robust Ireland side playing a long ball game. The Scots were rewarded for their approach and won 1-0.

 A superficial look at these results will show a return of 7 points from 12 that keeps our hopes of a second placed finish alive. Add in the fact that 3 out of 4 games were away from home and things look quiet rosy.

 A more critical dissection of the games gone by paints a much bleaker picture. Ireland were extremely lucky to win in Georgia, helped by Aiden McGeady putting in arguably his best performance in a green jersey. Gibraltar were always going to be a foregone conclusion, the result in Germany was laudable but the performance was not and the game in Scotland showed up the true failings in the Irish game plan.

 As good as the result in Germany was, it papered over the cracks and there are many. Germany did not have their full complement of player available and when this changes the complexion of the group will dramatically change.  Scotland are extremely close to Ireland on paper with an almost identical split of Premier league to Championship players in their starting 11. It is clear they are using their resources much better then Ireland at this current moment. 

If we rank the teams competing for second spot in the group, Scotland, Poland and Ireland in terms of their performances so far, Ireland comes a distant third even taking into account the German result. Poland have beaten the Germans and Scotland in turn have travelled to Poland and got a draw. The possibility of Ireland beating Poland, Scotland or the Germans is remote. The simple reason is we don’t use the ball well enough to do it.

Ireland do not need to add a Spanish tika taka style to their play, they simply need to use it like Scotland. The players are available to do so. We have players adept at holding on to the ball and utilizing in it in a productive manner. Players like James McCarthy, Darron Gibson, Anthony Pilkington, Wes Houlahan and David Mcgoldrick are capable of being adventurous. The reality of this group is we will need to beat at least one if not two of the top teams in Dublin. This will not be achieved by the type of back to front football seen in Ireland’s matches so far. If a change of direction is not seen then the consolation of a play-off may not even be available.

A Poland team with the talents of Lewandowski, Piszczek and the promising Ajax star Milik will cause Martin O’Neil many sleepless nights in the New Year. Poland are very capable of taking 4-6 points from Ireland, a scenario which would all but end our qualification hopes completely.

The accepted prediction for our group was that Germany would run away with it and leave Ireland, Poland and Scotland to scrap it out for second place. Second in the group appeared a realistic aspiration for Ireland; fighting two sides they appeared evenly matched against. In this scenario Germany would top the group as run-away leaders and Ireland achieving second spot by a point or two or perhaps even on goal difference. In a three team mini-group scenario such as this, losing in Glasgow is not the end of the world as this can be made up by achieving a decent result against a team in the mini-group. There remains a strong likelihood Germany will top the group by a healthy margin but their slow start has thrown open the door to the chasing pack particularly Poland.  A two horse top spot race in this group would be bad news for the Irish as it would close the door on a second place finish and leave us to fight with the Scots; a scenario in which the loss in Glasgow becomes extremely important. However, after just four games in the group permutations such as these are mildly interesting at best and not at all useful.

This writers prediction for the group is Germany to win it, Poland a close second, Ireland third and the Scots a close fourth. It promises to be an extremely intriguing group and a real test of Martin O`Neil`s management skills and Roy Keane`s temper.

                                               Roll on 2015!

All Ireland League

                                                    All-Ireland League

                              'Difficult child of the Organisation' – FAI CEO John Delaney

The appetite for soccer in Ireland is enormous and it remains our most popular sport, despite this, domestic football is the “difficult child” of the FAI. The league seems destined to fall into oblivion; some would argue it is there already. It is beset by problems such as paltry crowds, poor finances, inadequate facilities and struggles to find enough teams to operate a two tier league. But is there hope for salvation?

The fabled all Ireland league bears its head once more. This idea has been doing the rounds in many shapes and forms since national leagues were established either side of the border. Despite this it remains a compelling idea. The most concrete proposal to date was brought by Platinum One, a sports company interested in founding an AIL, in the mid to late `00`s. While clubs showed tentative interest, the firm found little interest from both associations and the proposal was binned.

The reasons to support an All-Ireland League are numerous. "League" "of" "Ireland" are almost dirty words among the general soccer community, an arena where only its list of problems catches the headlines. As my friend Keith put it recently “why would I support a club that may not exist next week?” It is hard to argue with a statement that is painfully based in fact. Keith also echoes the sentiment of the larger Irish soccer community. League of Ireland isn’t associated with success and enjoyment, it`s a by word for points deduction, floodlight failure, poor facilities among other unflattering descriptions.

An All-Ireland League could help rebrand domestic soccer. A twelve team league with the likes of Glentoran, Linfield, Clivtonville, Shamrock Rovers, St.Pats and Cork City competing for honours and worthwhile prize money would hopefully capture the public’s imagination. A place for teams deemed surplus to requirements in the premier division could be found in a vibrant regionalised first division where premier division status could be a worthwhile goal and not a poisoned chalice as it currently is. Underneath this a league pyramid could be developed incorporating local junior sides and college teams.

The successes of other sports encapsulating the whole island of Ireland, clearly shows what can be achieved. GAA, Rugby, Cricket and a whole host of sports have achieved enormous national and international success. In fact Soccer, the islands most played sport, is the only major sport not to incorporate an all Ireland approach.

An All-Ireland League sounds extremely enticing with its promises of riches and increased exposure; but there are many obstacles to a merger. They are likely to be all found on these shores as UEFA would welcome such a move with open arms. A well presented proposal to UEFA involving buzz words such as reconciliation and co-operation through football should win favour.

A leap into the unknown is a big stumbling block. Joining two national leagues has rarely been done, so the template would be entirely new and unproven. The cost of failure would be certain oblivion if the investment and faith of the clubs was not repaid. The possibility of attendances not improving and perhaps increased crowd trouble would spell disaster for the league brand only now on a larger scale. Crowd trouble is an issue for many of the best leagues around the world. The best way to deal with it is improved infrastructure with designated away ends which would be one of the aims of an AIL anyway.

Loss of European places would be a sensitive issue for both leagues. Currently the LOI and Irish league each sends one team into the Champion’s League and three into the Europa League. In an AIL this would be the combined total for the north and south, effectively halving the European participation of clubs from the island. Teams that have become accustomed to European football and its benefits would see their chances of getting there greatly reduced. One possible solution would be a team from each nation being guaranteed a Europa league slot, similar to the system operated in the Rugby Celtic league. The most teams from either side of the border that could compete in European competition in any given season would be three, the remaining place would go to the highest placed team from the less fortunate side of the border. The overall goal would be to send teams equipped to compete with other European clubs, which despite generally positive results is not happening currently.

The possibility of an imbalance in the league may also cause problems. The ideal scenario would be three to four top teams ,with at least one team from northern Ireland, in  an overall competitive league. The nightmare scenario is a pair of teams from either side of the border dominating the league and reducing interest on one side of the border and/or areas of the country.

The most obvious obstacle to an AIL is that it has been trailed and failed. This trial came in the shape of the Setanta Sports Cup. A cross border competition which has not caught the public imagination in a way that was envisaged and has subsequently lost significance. The competition has been beset by the same problems which afflict the participating leagues. It has been re-formatted on numerous occasion and the current format bears very little resemblance to the original completion in 2005. The prize money has been gradually reduced. In 2007, the prize of £100,000 was on offer to the eventual competition winner, with the runner-up receiving £55,000. A substantial prize fund for either a LOI or IL side, however the prize fund has steadily decreased and the current total prize fund divided between the 8 teams competing is £55,000. Unsurprisingly sides are losing interest in the competition as shown by Linfield and Cliftonville`s refusal to compete in the 2014 edition. These problems reflect the flaws of both leagues rather then the flaws in an AIL. This competition was doomed from the very beginning as neither teams had anything to win other then prize money. It was seen as a distraction by IL sides competing for European places in their domestic league who believed its format favoured LOI sides. By the time these issue were addressed the prize money available had dropped and with it the chance of a competitive tournament.

Despite these factors, The biggest obstacle may come from the football associations north and south. A successful All-Ireland league would create a tide of public opinion in favour of a combined international side. This would be bad news for both associations. An all-Ireland international side would require only one association which would result in job losses within both organisations. This would pose a clear case of turkeys voting for Christmas.

Many Irish clubs , both sides of the border, support an AIL and believe it will happen. It is one of the stated reasons behind Drogheda Uniteds drive to build a new stadium. It more than likely will occur, sadly it may require both leagues to further decline and have nothing to lose before it does.