I must have been dreaming so when I saw Liam Mellows win a county title a couple of years ago.
The all time leaders of club hurling in Galway (Castlegar) are also a city club.
Castlegar are a city club now but I think would traditionally say they were not.
Certainly when Liam Mellows won the Galway title in 2017 it was widely written up as the first time a city club had won since 1970.
Castlegar have always been deemed a city club, going back decades. The parish is within the city boundaries.
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I played for Mount Sion for 2 seasons after moving to Dublin winning one championship which is my treasured sporting memory. However the travelling became a scourge and travelling for training was not possible. As a consequence I’d turn up on matchdays and wouldn’t be in on any of the banter and so on and while the lads were always very friendly I’d feel a bit distant. I was training with Clontarf footballers at the time because I was a pal of Bill Ronaynes but couldn’t join them because they had no hurling team.
So I decided to leave and join Scoil in Dublin. I’m still a member of Mount Sion and go to as many matches as I can and I’m still welcome in the club though it’s really only the older lads that know me. However I got 17 years playing for Scoil, training teams and doing the bar in the club house and the like. I made great friends and I’d still meet some of the other lads when I’m out and about and stop for a chat. Small things like that are important in a big city. The lads I play cards with all played for Scoil back in the day. They were great company driving down to Cork and Thurles for matches.
Playing for Scoil exposed me to playing against great footballers in the Dublin club scene which wouldn’t have happened in Waterford. I made great acquaintances in hurling and football in other clubs too.
It was very definitely a life enhancing experience. It consumed my weekends in Dublin and filled 3 or 4 nights of the week with training. Cc @Bisto I couldn’t get over the off the ball stuff in the football as an innocent country lad but I quickly learned to dish it out billyo.
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Cashel and Nenagh a good example of clubs in tipp which have done similar. And managed to retain lot of own players while at it
What about cashel and Nenagh. Midleton and clonakilty as well but since on way back down
get busy living or get busy dying …
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The other thing I couldn’t get over when I came to Dublin was the fucking training. The amount of running, laps sprints etc was absolutely unreal. I’d never seen anything like it and I had been on a decent County minor panel.
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I’d a look there at this out of interest
Ballynahinch are in top tier of AIL
Banbridge Naas and malahide all in 2nd tier last season
Cashel barnhall Nenagh and rainy all in 3rd tier
All of those have come up from junior ranks in last 15 or so seasons
In the bottom 2 tiers you have galwegians, corinthians, blackrock college, wanderers, Dungannon, Sundays well… All long established senior clubs that have dropped through the ranks due to the strength of clubs coming up through the ranks
Think Chris Barrett played for Clontarf while still representing Mayo but he had given years of service to his club travelling up and down by that stage.
Eanna Martin was playing for Carrickshock while sub goalkeeper for Wexford hurlers.
UCC always seemed to have lads from a variety of inter-county teams playing for them in the Cork club championship. Likes of Jamie Barron and Paul Galvin over the years. Maybe those players could still represent their home club too though.
Do UCD still play in Dublin club championship? Haven’t heard of them being senior in it for years.
Barrett only moved to Clontarf at the end of his last Mayo season. 19 I think.
Eanna Martin also played for Sars in Cork.
Those lads could play with UCC and their home clubs in the same season. Cork lads could also if their home club was not in the same grade as UCC.
I have an idea UCD pulled out of Dublin around 07/08. They struggled at the end giving walkovers as their teams were stacked with outsiders. UCC would have had plenty Cork lads. UL played in the LK football championship up to around 2000. Don’t think they ever competed in the hurling.
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In this case he’s not really that young a lad. He’s 30 next June and is in the middle of a 2 years teaching masters rather than a 4 year Uni degree.
Time is racing by on ya. Ballynahinch have been in one of the top 3 divisions in rugby for the last 25 years, and Banbridge for a similar spell. It was more that the change to structures caught them out at the formation of the leagues rather than them being junior clubs anyway.
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I’d fully agree on the church and pubs part but I think there’s currently a population boom. Most primary schools in rural villages actually have more students than 10-15 years ago. The extremely rural 2 teacher schools may be under pressure alright.
That’s an excellent post, and it’s what I was getting at really. I’m not actually overly exercised as I can see both sides of the argument, but if you move, you should be free to join whichever club you want. I think parish loyalty is great, but like the quality of mercy, it should not be strained, but droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven. It should not be coerced, and any lad moving to Dublin for work should be encouraged to play their sport there as a forward looking move (imo)
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Not one person on this thread has any issue with a lad changing club due to moving to an area for work.
The issue here is a lad in college moving to another club. This is somewhat compounded by the club in question. No one knows whether there are financial incentives involved. There is an assumption that there is. I have no issue with a player making a few quid (if that is the case).
There are loads of people at club and intercounty making a few quid, so i have no issue with a player(s) getting a few quid.
I have an issue with the damage it does to the club. Clubs are built upon volunteerism. If these moves become common, it would do irrepairable damage to goodwill/volunteerism.
Id imagine there are some in the club who wish the lad well as they see how pointless an objection is. Most, may be angered (i’m just guessing). It just creates a conflict within the club that can set it back years.
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I was talking in general terms rather than specific. If cortoon (or whoever) allow this to manufacture enough outrage to poison the club, they need to take a long hard look at themselves. It’s life. It strips all things of value from you one by one. You either get up or lie down, but you look to yourself. Pissed off, absolutely, but such is life.
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It’s not a black or white issue. It’s one of those topics that lads just don’t see a middle ground. If I was the club, I would sign the transfer and wish the lad well. There is nothing to be gained by digging your heels in.
That is not to say that I approve of the request, but as you say that’s life. If someone wants to go elsewhere, just let them.
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Like I said, I really can see both sides, but I think club loyalty runs deep in most people. If someone wants away, that Rubicon has been crossed, and things are just changed whatever the outcome.
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Is it not a hard and fast rule that you can’t transfer when in college? That seems the only issue to be honest and I think most people would agree with that.