771940 Talk is cheap , why didnt Galway pull out if they wernt happy with the venue??..The GAA knew Thurles was a crowd puller especially after Tipp winning the Senior last Sunday so they were never going to switch it...THEY WOULD HAVE LOST MONEY IF THEY CHANGED VENUE..only way to hit the GAA IS IN THE POCKET. REFUSE TO PLAY .THEN AND ONLY THEN WILL THEY TAKE NOTICE..
Nail on the head richiej. Why would the GAA have moved it out of Thurles when they were guaranteed a huge Tipp crowd? Personally I wouldn't have minded going to Limerick for the game but would the GAA have made as much cash? And anyway Limerick probably aren't flavour of the month in the corridors of Croke Park after their antics in the past year. The GAA have got really tight in recent times.
On the match, Tipp were a class apart but before we start jumping up and down with joy I think it's important to remember that this Galway team is nowhere near the top in terms of U21 sides. They only had to win one championship game and that was against a depleted Dublin side who'd probably have beaten them at full strength. You also have to consider the Thurles factor. It couldn't have been easy for the Galway players there last night. They made a mistake in terms of how they dealt with it. They either should have followed through on their threat to boycott it or just have said nothing at all.
point of note when thurlesblue was posting on the forum last night I was still inside in the stadium watching the presentation!!! Think that says it all another match he wasn't at... obiously not even from tipp!!!
Hag, I think everyone on here ignores thurlesblues at this stage so dont worry. I also noted that he was posting while the Tipp team returned to Thurles with the cup. Doubt he is even from Tipp as well.
But I cannot help but lament the lack of any sort of planning or thought within the GAA. It was not fair to expect Galway to play Tipp in Thurles. If they can meet on a Monday before a round of Qualifier matches and sort out games for the following Saturday, why couldnt they sort out that this was changed when they had more than enough time to do so?
It is seriously turning me off the GAA that they can have a plan B for a few people getting onto the pitch at Croker but when it comes to providing a fair venue for 2 teams trying to win an All-Ireland they cant seem to have one. I dont think it would have mattered on the scoreboard after all but it comes down to attiude and respect of players and supporters alike, something the GAA adminstrators are becoming far too detached from.
I think it was unfair to ask Galway to play an All-Ireland final there all right but our U21 teams of 2002 had to play Cork in Cork in 2000 & 2001, had to play Tipp there in the 2002 Munster final draw & replay and little or nothing was said about it.
I don't understand though, why, especially as Tipp had a superb under 21 team, did the GAA fix it for Thurles. Why not wait to see who qualifies for the final first?
slayer, didn't Limerick have reciprocal arrangements with those counties though?
Yes. And in 2002 the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick was being re-developed so we had to play Tipp in Thurles twice. In the draw they led 2-12 to 2-9 in injury time & an Eoin Foley 21 yard free got us the goal. In the replay, they led 2-11 to 0-13 in injury time & we scored 1-1 to force it to extra time where they then had a man sent off & we eased to a 1-20 to 2-14 win. It made it all the more sweet playing them there & winning. That U21 side from 2000-2002 simply had no fear.