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Carlow GAA thread

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Replying To jobber:  "Congratulations from your old Westmeath friends.Carlow are magnificent an example to all of us trying to reach the promised land."
Thanks for that Jobber. Westmeath and Carlow are never that far apart and look forward to playing your lads in the final league game.

carlovia (None) - Posts: 1527 - 03/02/2025 17:44:19    2589270

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Replying To ForeverBlue2:  "Well done to Carlow hurlers on their great start to the league…. I remember the day many years ago when you played Cavan in Bailieborough an a NHL Division 3… Carlow won on a score line of 3-14 to 5-6 if I remember properly… Only knows what you'd wallop us now by but we are trying manfully to improve all the time… Keep up the great work Carlow..!"
Was that 1984? Cavan were a good team then. They might have beaten Derry that year, I think.

CARPS (Carlow) - Posts: 760 - 03/02/2025 18:06:20    2589274

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Replying To CARPS:  "Was that 1984? Cavan were a good team then. They might have beaten Derry that year, I think."
God bless your memory CARPS… I think you're near enough right with that

ForeverBlue2 (Cavan) - Posts: 3423 - 03/02/2025 18:15:54    2589276

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Replying To CARPS:  "Sixty years ago, I was a small child. I am posting about memories from my own time playing with and following Carlow. We have come so far.

You are right, we had a very good team in the early 1960s. We also reached Division 1b in 1978 - played Tipperary and Cork - but the team was nowhere as good as now.

How have we been shafted by being "excluded" from Leinster? If we win the Joe McDonagh we will be back in it next year. Will Offaly or Wexford be "shafted" if they get relegated this year and we leapfrog them?"
Yeah but just because you weren't aware of it doesn't mean it didn't happen.Good advice to bear that in mind .We were shafted . Let's see what happens this year if wexford or offaly are involved.

Overthebar53 (Carlow) - Posts: 302 - 03/02/2025 19:27:40    2589286

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Replying To Overthebar53:  "Yeah but just because you weren't aware of it doesn't mean it didn't happen.Good advice to bear that in mind .We were shafted . Let's see what happens this year if wexford or offaly are involved."
You really think I didn't know it happened? Bless you, my child. Anyone with a passing interest in Carlow hurling knows we once beat Cork.

We were not shafted. The rules were clear at the start. We had to finish fifth or higher to stay up. That's competitive sport. Laois went down in 2022 and Westmeath in 2023, under the exact same system.

CARPS (Carlow) - Posts: 760 - 03/02/2025 21:10:00    2589298

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Replying To Overthebar53:  "Yeah but just because you weren't aware of it doesn't mean it didn't happen.Good advice to bear that in mind .We were shafted . Let's see what happens this year if wexford or offaly are involved."
Offaly were relegated before. They went down to Ring. We nearly got relegated year before last.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 14538 - 03/02/2025 21:12:58    2589300

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Replying To ForeverBlue2:  "God bless your memory CARPS… I think you're near enough right with that"
Carlow had a bit of a run in football that time. We had two promotions in three years, 1983 and 1985. 1984 we played in Division Three and all the dual players concentrated on the big ball. The hurling didn't really pick up again until the late 1980s. The football dipped significantly after Vinny Harvey moved on, and then the pendulum swung the other way for a while.

CARPS (Carlow) - Posts: 760 - 03/02/2025 21:17:12    2589301

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Replying To Viking66:  "Offaly were relegated before. They went down to Ring. We nearly got relegated year before last."
I think he might be referring to when Antrim came in?

Westies were initial victims. Seem also to recall them not being promoted from league one time too when Congress voted for some idiotic proposal during middle of leagues!

BarneyGrant (Dublin) - Posts: 3355 - 03/02/2025 22:03:46    2589304

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Very good performance against Waterford yesterday. A very special win.

All the players really chased and harried every Waterford player.
The advantage of playing a game against Offaly was a factor.
Lorcan Doyle played well for a player from a junior hurling team. It just shows how.much all players are given a chance if they show interest and stay ability.
It's 2 important points but more importantly the team showed a determination amd lack of fear and were fiercely focused.
The big challenge for the team is to be consistent with their performances and then more points will be gained.
Some victory yesterday but we are now a marked team and nobody will take us for granted in any way.

carlowman (Carlow) - Posts: 1853 - 03/02/2025 22:36:10    2589307

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Replying To CARPS:  "You really think I didn't know it happened? Bless you, my child. Anyone with a passing interest in Carlow hurling knows we once beat Cork.

We were not shafted. The rules were clear at the start. We had to finish fifth or higher to stay up. That's competitive sport. Laois went down in 2022 and Westmeath in 2023, under the exact same system."
Why didn't you mention it then. It didn't suit your narrative? And things are not all rosy here at the moment. Have you noticed how poor we have been at underage for the last 5-10 years? Beating a depleted Waterford ream in February is grand but please don't paint it as some panacea to all our ills.PS.Spare me the patronisation.

Overthebar53 (Carlow) - Posts: 302 - 03/02/2025 23:10:48    2589315

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Replying To Overthebar53:  "Why didn't you mention it then. It didn't suit your narrative? And things are not all rosy here at the moment. Have you noticed how poor we have been at underage for the last 5-10 years? Beating a depleted Waterford ream in February is grand but please don't paint it as some panacea to all our ills.PS.Spare me the patronisation."
Your tone is incredibly aggressive. Never said all is rosy. Agree underage is a concern.

CARPS (Carlow) - Posts: 760 - 03/02/2025 23:48:40    2589319

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Replying To BarneyGrant:  "I think he might be referring to when Antrim came in?

Westies were initial victims. Seem also to recall them not being promoted from league one time too when Congress voted for some idiotic proposal during middle of leagues!"
Ah ok. He can leave out the reference to ourselves though.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 14538 - 04/02/2025 06:42:28    2589331

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Replying To CARPS:  "Your tone is incredibly aggressive. Never said all is rosy. Agree underage is a concern."
Once you are getting 3 or 4 very good lads through every year. They wouldn't neccessarily make a 1 year age group team win, minor for example, but would be an addition at Senior, which is made up of over 10 age groups.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 14538 - 04/02/2025 08:04:22    2589335

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Well done Carlow hurlers on the big win at the weekend. A county that really brightens up hurling and I hope that they can stay at this level and even drive on. There's a chance now of 1a hurlign next year which would be a great achievement. Should have beaten us in 2019 in the league as well when we held on for a draw after Marty Kavanagh equalised. At the moment I think the championship system is doing great work for division 1b and 2 teams. The Joe McDonagh is super competitive and also allows these teams to be competitive when they get a shot at leinster. The day will hoepfully coem where this needs to be looked at again and the Liam Mccarthy is extended to 15 teams but I don't think we're there yet?

Overdahill (Galway) - Posts: 7 - 04/02/2025 09:41:47    2589354

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Replying To Viking66:  "Once you are getting 3 or 4 very good lads through every year. They wouldn't neccessarily make a 1 year age group team win, minor for example, but would be an addition at Senior, which is made up of over 10 age groups."
That's the big question. Are we? Time will tell. A concern is that St Mullins and Bagenalstown both seem to have dropped off at underage level. Carlow Town have improved, but their players tend to prioritize football as adults. Largely due to pressure from their big ball clubs. Naomh Brid do well until under 16, then fall off. Which is a shame because it's a large area with a good hurling tradition. Myshall are sort of plodding along and Ballinkillen struggle for numbers.

Sadly there is no juvenile hurling at all in a vast swathe of the north of the county - which covers the area of the Palatine, Tinryland, Rathvilly, Clonmore, Grange and Tullow clubs. Some lads play with Carlow Town or Burren, but it's astonishing that nothing has been done to try to push hurling in this zone. You would think at the very least there would be a juvenile club in Tullow.

The bright spot is Burren Rangers, who are lucky in that the three football clubs they pick from are fairly weak. So hurling may well become established there. Also Kildavin have started back at juvenile. Let's see how that goes.

I haven't mentioned Mount Leinster Rangers because it's hard to know what's happened there. They are less dominant than before. That could be a cyclical thing or it could be something more structural. It's hard to know.

CARPS (Carlow) - Posts: 760 - 04/02/2025 09:48:07    2589355

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Replying To CARPS:  "That's the big question. Are we? Time will tell. A concern is that St Mullins and Bagenalstown both seem to have dropped off at underage level. Carlow Town have improved, but their players tend to prioritize football as adults. Largely due to pressure from their big ball clubs. Naomh Brid do well until under 16, then fall off. Which is a shame because it's a large area with a good hurling tradition. Myshall are sort of plodding along and Ballinkillen struggle for numbers.

Sadly there is no juvenile hurling at all in a vast swathe of the north of the county - which covers the area of the Palatine, Tinryland, Rathvilly, Clonmore, Grange and Tullow clubs. Some lads play with Carlow Town or Burren, but it's astonishing that nothing has been done to try to push hurling in this zone. You would think at the very least there would be a juvenile club in Tullow.

The bright spot is Burren Rangers, who are lucky in that the three football clubs they pick from are fairly weak. So hurling may well become established there. Also Kildavin have started back at juvenile. Let's see how that goes.

I haven't mentioned Mount Leinster Rangers because it's hard to know what's happened there. They are less dominant than before. That could be a cyclical thing or it could be something more structural. It's hard to know."
If you had pal and tinryland joined up at hurling carlow town would struggle to field as they make up a fair number of their players. The cthc u20 team was backboned by palatine I think they had 11 or 12 on the panel. 3 from tinryland on it too I think. With eire og asca and the blues making up the rest. It would be hard to try change that as cthc relies heavily on palatine. I would like to see tullow clonmore grange and rathvilly try get an area hurling team going though, surely that would be possible.

Barrowsider (Carlow) - Posts: 1679 - 04/02/2025 10:09:56    2589365

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Replying To CARPS:  "That's the big question. Are we? Time will tell. A concern is that St Mullins and Bagenalstown both seem to have dropped off at underage level. Carlow Town have improved, but their players tend to prioritize football as adults. Largely due to pressure from their big ball clubs. Naomh Brid do well until under 16, then fall off. Which is a shame because it's a large area with a good hurling tradition. Myshall are sort of plodding along and Ballinkillen struggle for numbers.

Sadly there is no juvenile hurling at all in a vast swathe of the north of the county - which covers the area of the Palatine, Tinryland, Rathvilly, Clonmore, Grange and Tullow clubs. Some lads play with Carlow Town or Burren, but it's astonishing that nothing has been done to try to push hurling in this zone. You would think at the very least there would be a juvenile club in Tullow.

The bright spot is Burren Rangers, who are lucky in that the three football clubs they pick from are fairly weak. So hurling may well become established there. Also Kildavin have started back at juvenile. Let's see how that goes.

I haven't mentioned Mount Leinster Rangers because it's hard to know what's happened there. They are less dominant than before. That could be a cyclical thing or it could be something more structural. It's hard to know."
MLR and St Mullins both had lads starting in the Leinster PP A schools semifinal between Good Counsel and St Kierans. That's the absolute top level of schools hurling in Leinster.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 14538 - 04/02/2025 11:01:00    2589379

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Replying To CARPS:  "That's the big question. Are we? Time will tell. A concern is that St Mullins and Bagenalstown both seem to have dropped off at underage level. Carlow Town have improved, but their players tend to prioritize football as adults. Largely due to pressure from their big ball clubs. Naomh Brid do well until under 16, then fall off. Which is a shame because it's a large area with a good hurling tradition. Myshall are sort of plodding along and Ballinkillen struggle for numbers.

Sadly there is no juvenile hurling at all in a vast swathe of the north of the county - which covers the area of the Palatine, Tinryland, Rathvilly, Clonmore, Grange and Tullow clubs. Some lads play with Carlow Town or Burren, but it's astonishing that nothing has been done to try to push hurling in this zone. You would think at the very least there would be a juvenile club in Tullow.

The bright spot is Burren Rangers, who are lucky in that the three football clubs they pick from are fairly weak. So hurling may well become established there. Also Kildavin have started back at juvenile. Let's see how that goes.

I haven't mentioned Mount Leinster Rangers because it's hard to know what's happened there. They are less dominant than before. That could be a cyclical thing or it could be something more structural. It's hard to know."
Mt Leinster Rangers won the minor & u20 last year so I wouldn't think they have dropped off, they were in the u14 A final also.
St Mullins have always managed to get a few through even if they are not winning at juvenile level. Bagenalstown are a real concern going by there performances in 2024, they are in B in many grades and are not winning them either.

Dualclub1 (Carlow) - Posts: 283 - 04/02/2025 11:12:16    2589384

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Replying To Dualclub1:  "Mt Leinster Rangers won the minor & u20 last year so I wouldn't think they have dropped off, they were in the u14 A final also.
St Mullins have always managed to get a few through even if they are not winning at juvenile level. Bagenalstown are a real concern going by there performances in 2024, they are in B in many grades and are not winning them either."
I agree, bagenalstown are a major concern. There's a great hurling tradition in the town but have been struggling at juvenile level lately. Was talking to a man involved with underage teams in bagenalstown and he was very concerned. As regards tullow, rathvilly, clonmore etc it needs to be introduced in schools and have hurling people promote it in those areas if they are there. Going back to Sundays game I wasn't surprised by the result and I'm not sure carlow hurling people were either. Our team are an unbelievable bunch of players who fear no one. If I'm honest I was disappointed again with the poor turnout to support this team. There were way more away support which unfortunately is the norm. I really wish the carlow public would come out and support this great team as they deserve it.

Unusedsub (Carlow) - Posts: 99 - 04/02/2025 13:55:42    2589439

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Replying To Dualclub1:  "Mt Leinster Rangers won the minor & u20 last year so I wouldn't think they have dropped off, they were in the u14 A final also.
St Mullins have always managed to get a few through even if they are not winning at juvenile level. Bagenalstown are a real concern going by there performances in 2024, they are in B in many grades and are not winning them either."
They have an excellent Senior manager for this year. Hopefully if he can get them competing at adult it will encourage their younger lads.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 14538 - 04/02/2025 14:38:06    2589452

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