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Can't you just be happy to see Ireland being genuine competitors in an international competition? Rugby Union is great. It might take decades from now for the smaller countries to get better but that was Us until recently. I'm enjoying it. Bring on the next match
Suas Sios (None) - Posts: 1558 - 09/09/2023 16:40:49 2503600 Link 1 |
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Well yes of course if Ireland are "genuine competitors" I'll be happy. We haven't been at any previous WC but hopefully it is different this year. The scorelines for a World Cup are embarassing, complete mismatches.
sam1884 (UK) - Posts: 999 - 09/09/2023 21:40:14 2503620 Link 1 |
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Romania being at a "world cup" is the equivalent of a Dublin Junior F hurling team being in the Munster senior championship. Surely they might insist on qualification? BarneyGrant (Dublin) - Posts: 2990 - 10/09/2023 07:36:43 2503634 Link 3 |
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Most of the people who watch the rugby world cup are the same people who complain about band wagoners watching GAA county teams. I don't think they even realise their double standards. PattyONeill (Derry) - Posts: 245 - 10/09/2023 10:12:58 2503636 Link 1 |
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Yes the big guns will demolish lots of the smaller nations but there will still be good competitive games between those said smaller teams when they get to test themselves against each other.
Suas Sios (None) - Posts: 1558 - 10/09/2023 11:57:50 2503645 Link 1 |
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The highest ever score in a game was NZ scoring 145 v Japan in 1995 - I guess Japan should have just given up because it was embarrassing? Romina play in the second tier of Rugby in Europe - its a bit like the Joe Mc winners playing in the QF except instead of playing the third place team they play the provincial winners? And finally embarrassing for whom? Romina - playing the No 1 team in the world when they are ranked 19? I don't believe they were embarrassed about it - for them playing in that game was a dream come true and they did themselves proud. zinny (Wexford) - Posts: 1880 - 10/09/2023 14:41:28 2503653 Link 1 |
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How was it a dream come true? All they had to do was turn up. Every country in the world that has a rugby team is in the "world cup." :-)
BarneyGrant (Dublin) - Posts: 2990 - 10/09/2023 23:26:53 2503692 Link 4 |
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How many teams can actually win the soccer world cup. I get the sneering to a certain extent because I follow multiple sports and try and call a spade a spade but apart from the number of teams that take part the soccer world cup is pretty much on par with the rugby. Most people predicted France and Argentina before Qatar started and dress it up whatever way you want they were the 2 teams that made the final. You could have 99 teams of you want. Only 4 or 5 can win it.
TheFlaker (Mayo) - Posts: 8077 - 11/09/2023 00:11:55 2503696 Link 2 |
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Maloney was some ******** on commentary last night, going on about his 'expectations' about 'crowd reaction' towards Kenny at the FT whistle, and waffling about our 'high hopes' entering the campaign. Stick to commentating on the match Dara, like a good lad! Ronnie Whelan more or less told him to zip it, to be fair to him.......we're ****, and we know we are etc. Pope_Benedict (Galway) - Posts: 3840 - 11/09/2023 08:40:26 2503708 Link 0 |
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Romania had to qualify. The USA failed to qualify. Chile beat them. Spain and Belgium also came close but missed out. Russia, who made it in 2019, aren't in it. Just because you aren't aware that these nations don't have teams doesn't mean that they don't. I'd advise you to know what you're talking about before posting invalid drivel. cavanman47 (Cavan) - Posts: 5123 - 11/09/2023 10:49:57 2503737 Link 6 |
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it really isnt and there is extensive qualification and Romania only qualified because Spain played ineligible players and were thrown out.
KillingFields (Limerick) - Posts: 3644 - 11/09/2023 11:37:31 2503756 Link 0 |
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Anyone who follows Irish football with any degree of interest had no expectations of qualifying out of this group. It's like some in the media and more generally haven't been paying attention for the last 20 years! International football is a competitive place. We are currently reaping what we have sown over the past 30 years. A lot more pain to come unfortunately. FAI incompetence, media and fan ignoring of that incompetence, combined with lack of money being invested by Irish football fans in Irish football has lead us here. MesAmis (Dublin) - Posts: 13778 - 11/09/2023 12:14:02 2503767 Link 4 |
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There are 109 national sides listed in the World Rugby Rankings - https://www.world.rugby/tournaments/rankings/mru link Just 20 of them at the World Cup. Not exactly "every country in the world that has a rugby team". Was even at a Poland v Lithuania international once myself, that just happened to be on while I was visiting Poland. I've a a habit of going to "quare" things (to use a Wexford word) while on holiday....e.g. Lanzarote FC in the fifth division of Spanish soccer, AA Minor League Baseball in the States, and even a junior hurling match in Sligo! :) Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 2502 - 11/09/2023 12:22:33 2503773 Link 0 |
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To be fair you make some points I'd agree with. Japan did improve, mainly because they wanted to host a major international event so millions was pushed into the sport so their team could be competitive. Not every team can host the event so that isn't an option to improve every nation. Joe McDonagh counties appear to accept they can have a better championship if they don't send the two finalists into a pre QF in the same year where evidence clearly suggests results won't be good. The RWC will be great from the QF's and like the Wales Fiji game we will have a few interesting pool games. My overall point is 20 teams are too many for a RWC. 14 - 16 would make for a better tournament with a better qualifying system/competition for teams to compete and improve in the years leading up to the tournament. sam1884 (UK) - Posts: 999 - 11/09/2023 12:37:27 2503779 Link 0 |
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Yes to go alongside the rugby debate on this thread soccer has significantly more depth especially within UEFA nations. Irish soccer has a long road back and whilst results have been poor at least the current manager and FAI appear to accept that. I think we need to make the Nations League a priority going forward as that is our best route to at least play off rounds. When Italy don't qualify for WC's and are struggling as current champions to qualify for the Euro's it shows how competitive it is. sam1884 (UK) - Posts: 999 - 11/09/2023 12:57:15 2503787 Link 0 |
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20 isnt too much for a world cup. 16 isnt enough and they hopefully will expand to 24 in a few tournaments time. What would be better qualification if you removed 4 teams? Which teams do you remove? KillingFields (Limerick) - Posts: 3644 - 11/09/2023 13:21:36 2503795 Link 0 |
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Just for the record, i greatly enjoyed watching Wales and Fiji last night, so i do not actively dislike the sport. BarneyGrant (Dublin) - Posts: 2990 - 11/09/2023 13:26:20 2503797 Link 3 |
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I will watch any sport where an Irish team are involved.that was until last night where I watched Fiji/wales instead of the Irish soccer team..I just don't enjoy watching them anymore..I might be in the smallest minority here but I feel sorry for Stephen Kenny.. CTGAA10 (Limerick) - Posts: 2338 - 11/09/2023 14:00:18 2503808 Link 1 |
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I was working in aviva last night. So many just fed up and nearly all criticism is of fai and the failings of their structures and systems, or more like lack of any systems/structures as to why Kenny has struggled. Yeah you can only feel sorry for Kenny as he's trying his best with such a very limited group of players. KillingFields (Limerick) - Posts: 3644 - 11/09/2023 14:17:08 2503819 Link 0 |
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If you took the 4 bottom seeds out of each group (Romania, Chile, Namibia, Portugal) out of it, it wouldn't have a material effect on the outcome of each group. There'd be less dead rubber games (which, let's face it, Ireland's was on Saturday) and it'd be 1 less game for each team to play so a positive from a player welfare perspective. Of course, it was great to see the passion and competitiveness of the Chilean team, for example, in their first ever world cup game. Perhaps that leaves the 20 team tournament a viable one. But expanding to 24 doesn't currently make sense. The format is then the issue. Do you go 4 groups of 6 and add another dead-rubber formality for each of the top teams to play? Or worse, do you go 6 groups of 4 and use the old Heineken Cup best-2-runner-up qualifies? That was a mess and was only alleviated by the fact the tournament was annual. You can't do it for a once-every-4-years tournament. cavanman47 (Cavan) - Posts: 5123 - 11/09/2023 14:47:52 2503828 Link 3 |