OTB (Off The Ball)

caulifloweredneanderthal · July 10, 2019, 11:48am

We border every hurling county with exception of Wexford. My dad was going to matches in 50s/60s and said that as a bunch of supporters, we got somewhat arrogant at the time. That’s long gone. We love hurling. We love drinking. And we love riding (not our cousins)

balbec · July 10, 2019, 11:48am

A cricket bat in Tipp town. You expect us to believe that?

myboyblue · July 10, 2019, 11:50am

A Kilkenny fella left it behind him.

balbec · July 10, 2019, 11:51am

Or a chap from Adare

blackjack · July 10, 2019, 11:55am

Sidney:

Cicero_Dandi:

Mayo and Roscommon fans are by far the most partisan and deranged fans you encounter. They rarely get into altercations or words with other fans as they are too focused on berating the referee for 70 minutes even when he’s giving them everything.

After the 2016 All-Ireland replay I was in Jury’s hotel opposite Croke Park. The Ryder Cup was on the big screen and a few lads I was with were watching it. The Yanks were getting on top so I went out to the little wooden terrace above the canal to have a smoke. Almost immediately after I got there a group of Mayo supporters, I’d guess late 20s, arrived and stood a couple of yards from me. I decided I’d try and engage them in conversation for a few minutes. The “leader” of their group replies to me “fuck off”, in the sort of tone you’d expect from a mildly intellectual, manipulative potential serial killer. I said something like “woah, mate steady on, there” and he squares up to me and calmly and slowly says “seriously, if you know what’s good for ya, you’ll get the fuck out of here now”.

I decided to walk away to another part of the smoking area.

Sounds like they knew you.

Ashman · July 10, 2019, 12:00pm

It is a garrison town .

dodgy_keeper · July 10, 2019, 12:05pm

My best GAA trips have all been to up North. The natives up there face daily pitfalls in keeping their culture alive, something those of us down south don’t think twice about.

Always a genuine warmth and friendliness when I’ve been up there to see the footballers play in Omagh or the hurlers up in The Glens. I think they appreciate people travelling up.

I was up in Belfast for a match a while back and ended up on the piss in the Casement Park social club. We were going to check into some B&B or hotel or something when a couple of the locals said “don’t bother, we’ve room in our place going.” Now, looking back we could have easily been buried in their back garden but they couldn’t have been sounder, full fry the next morning throw in before we headed off. Wouldn’t accept a penny either. A couple of them came down for a Munster Hurling championship match the following year as a returned favour.

In all honesty there’s fuck all rivalry at intercounty level anymore. Of course when you see a lad in a Clare or Cork shirt you privately think “cunt” but you’d want to be a bit of a gowl to get into a row with anyone in a pub pre match or in the ground.

Winding a few gimps up on here is the height of intercounty rivalry for most these days, myself included.

anon61878697 · July 10, 2019, 12:06pm

+1

fuck tipp.

mickee321 · July 10, 2019, 12:08pm

Bandage:

Sidney:

One of the best experiences I had going to an away match was in Crossmaglen in 2008. My oul’ fella and meself drove up for an Armagh v Dublin league match only for the game to be postponed 30 minutes before it was due to start with people already inside the ground.

Given that we’d made the journey up, we decided to head into Paddy Short’s pub for a bit and we could not buy a drink for all the Armagh people demanding to buy a round for us.

A few lads from Ballyhegan were particularly sound and kept ordering more pints without even asking did I want one.

We went up for the re-fixture a couple of weeks later and Armagh beat the shit out of Dublin.

I love auld anecdotes like this. I’ve been up north with family, maybe wearing a Wexford top or whatever, and been the recipient of mighty sound gestures. A tendency to make sure you build in time for delays on long journeys usually results in an early arrival. And so locals often invited / ordered us into the clubhouse for tae and sandwiches and so on.

Was in Casement for a league hurling game when Antrim bate us during Colm Bonnar era and Gerry Adams popped over for a chat. Last time in Belfast for a Wexford football game and man who turned out to be Frank Fitzsimons Snr did likewise. His son Frank Jnr and Gearóid Adams were joint managers at the time. Telling us about Antrim team he played on in 1970s which got to Ulster Final (didn’t build on it due to many of them ending up in Long Kesh) and giving us potted history of the football scene in Belfast. A really sound, interesting and friendly guy.

Have experienced genuine friendliness, affection and pure love in the likes of Derry, Armagh, Fermanagh too.

Fermanagh is a terrible place as covered in my sunday drives thread
edit : Enniskillen actually - a horrible dark protestant underbelly exists there and for catholics in gah jersies with a big inferiority complex it is not a place to venture into

Bandage · July 10, 2019, 12:10pm

I know an actuary from Derrygonnelly and she told us where to go, and not to go.

Mac · July 10, 2019, 12:45pm

Tipp is a grand place with the exception of Clonmel, Cashel, Carrick On Suir, Roscrea, Tipp Town, Thurles and Templemore.

Tank · July 10, 2019, 1:48pm

Fermanagh is fantastic and Fermanagh people are the nicest in Ireland.

Tank · July 10, 2019, 1:49pm

The scummy Tipperary cricket crowd.

balbec · July 10, 2019, 2:02pm

So Nenagh is ok?

Big_Dan_Campbell · July 10, 2019, 2:03pm

Nenagh is a grand spot. Good town for porter

Mac · July 10, 2019, 2:11pm

I’ve fond memories of Nenagh from time spent competing in Indoor Athletics. We used to get upto some awful divilment with some frisky girls from all around Leinster.

Cicero_Dandi · July 10, 2019, 2:18pm

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Mac · July 10, 2019, 2:20pm

Blake · July 10, 2019, 2:27pm

There’s still a good bit of poison in Mayo/Galway. The beatings Mayo doled out in 2013 and 2014 did a lot to stir up the badness, so the delight and gloating of Galway in winning between 2016-18 really put the seethe in Mayo.

The most bite I’ve ever seen leaving a match was Kildare v Dublin 2011, when Brogan was gifted the handy free to win it after Kildare had come back to level. There were multiple incidents of handbags coming out of the Cusack, I’ve never seen anything like it at a GAA match.

balbec · July 10, 2019, 2:44pm

You must have been a hard man to beat in a dive for the finishing line.