I don't think many people here have any great problem with the coverage the womens rugby team has recently got, the problem is that it is so disproportionate compared to the coverage the bigger female sports get. From my view I dont want less coverage of womens rugby, I want a lot greater coverage of ladies football and camogie. In terms of numbers who play the game, watch the games (the limited amount of times they are shown) and attend the games ladies football and camogie dwarf womens rugby. Our national station should be reflecting this fact, but somebody not familiar with the games could only conclude that rugby is the biggest female sport in the country judging by the media exposure. It is sad that people think the way to address this is to lobby RTE Sport or have GAA representatives cosy up to them. It is this type of 'stroke politics' that has caused real damage to the country and meant many of our young sportspeople have had to leave the country. RTE Sport, as the national broadcaster, should be basing their coverage not on what they are lobbied on as some on here suggest they do, but what the country is most interested in.

Soma (UK) - Posts: 2630 - 16/08/2014 12:22:59    1637552

I have read your response Ormond and it is pathetic. You have completely ignored the volume of coverage given to ladies rugby in this country ( which I don't begrudge ) in comparison to the lack of coverage given to other equally talented, dedicated lady sportspeople in this country. I outlined the coverage given to the ladies rugby team and you didn't even highlight it. There is a distinction being made between the efforts of the lady rugby players and the rest of our lady sports people and that is wrong. The volume of coverage given to lady rugby people is wholly disproportionate to that given to any other lady sports people involved in team sports in Ireland You would have us all believe that this is down to a super doper PRO working for The IRFU. That is rubbish. It is down to bias pure and simple. I am not anti rugby. I played rugby for 6 years. I attended rugby internationals for years. I am outside the loop now and can't get tickets. My brothers are avid rugby fans. To say 2/3 years is not some time is nonsense by the way.
You say that ladies involved in team sports should work to improve the amount of coverage they get. Suggest some ways please. Gaelic sports for ladies have infinitely superior competition structures leading to national finals in Croke Park that attract more supporters in one day than attend an entire season of ladies international rugby. There were over 20,000 in Croke Park for the camogie finals last year. That is not being disparaging to the ladies rugby. It is illustrating clearly that the package offered by ladies gaelic sports in particular is excellent and it is still not afforded coverage commensurate with that afforded to the ladies rugby team. RTE never broadcast a single ladies matc in full on the radio. Every single Irish ladies rugby 6 Nations 2014 match was broadcast live and in full on RTE Radio this year. When was a ladies soccer game ever broadcast ? It is down to bias and nothing else. Your reflex action is at all times to defend rugby. That is admirable but right now you're at the stick your head in the and stage of your arguments. The distinction made by our national media in relation to the efforts of our lady rugby players and the rest of our ladies involved in team sports is unjustifiable . There has to be a better balance and if resources are scarce and time is limited then yes there has to be a reduction in the amount of coverage afforded to our lady rugby players which is huge by comparison to our ladies soccer team in particular.

Greengrass (Louth) - Posts: 6182 - 16/08/2014 13:33:47    1637577

usual typical response from ormo..there is a clear bias which you consistently choose to ignore...not everybody is anti rugby people just want fair and balanced coverage for all sports and not just one sport getting the majority of coverage especially when its a minority sport in the case of womens rugby...this nonsense that people aren't doing enough to get it covered...the same paper having journalists cover it also put major coverage into the leinster schools rugby cup which shows even further bias towards rugby on the part of that paper..can you even acknowledge that ormo?

fabio8 (USA) - Posts: 2182 - 16/08/2014 15:29:53    1637623

tinrylandman that is ridiculous just because the Gaa is not a international sport does not mean it should not get coverage, it is our national sport. If that is the case every sport that Ireland has a competitor in should be shown no matter if there is only 3 people in the country interested in and the All irelands should not be shown, rugby is not a worldwide sport it is only played in decent numbers in about 13 or 14 countries. I have no problem with women's rugby or mens rugby been shown now or when the six nations is one, but what i and i think most people have a problem with the massive extra coverage Rte and other media outlets give it compared to other sports, for example Ireland beat France 9-0 in women's hockey a far bigger worldwide sport then Rugby yet got no coverage despite been on across the road from Rte. Its the same with many other sports you mentioned athletics but RTE don't even bother covering the worlds championship in that. Ormond there are plenty of ladies clubs in North tipp, Horse racing and soccer and possibly Gaa have more people employed then Rugby and no basketball at all is shown for a number of years no which is a pity as it is a good sport to watch.

ros1 (Roscommon) - Posts: 1211 - 16/08/2014 19:25:15    1637711

16/08/2014 11:32:29 tinrylandman
I am not a rugby man but I have to defend the coverage of the ladies rugby team , they were playing in a world cup semi final of a sport that is played all over the world and this game was televised all over the world , over half a million watched the game in Ireland which is a lot more than watched most GAA games this year on TV.
The GAA is a local sport and most of its coverage is local where as the rugby , soccer and athletics teams are on a world and european stage and deserve any coverage they get ,a lot of guys on here just believe there should be no other sport covered other than GAA, Very good post. Viewing figures back up the showing of the game.
16/08/2014 12:22:59 Soma
I don't think many people here have any great problem with the coverage the womens rugby team has recently got, the problem is that it is so disproportionate compared to the coverage the bigger female sports get. From my view I dont want less coverage of womens rugby, I want a lot greater coverage of ladies football and camogie. In terms of numbers who play the game, watch the games (the limited amount of times they are shown) and attend the games ladies football and camogie dwarf womens rugby. Our national station should be reflecting this fact, but somebody not familiar with the games could only conclude that rugby is the biggest female sport in the country judging by the media exposure. It is sad that people think the way to address this is to lobby RTE Sport or have GAA representatives cosy up to them. It is this type of 'stroke politics' that has caused real damage to the country and meant many of our young sportspeople have had to leave the country. RTE Sport, as the national broadcaster, should be basing their coverage not on what they are lobbied on as some on here suggest they do, but what the country is most interested in.But judging by attitudes of some people there very much is a problem with the coverage women's rugby gets. When would you show the women's games? Are majority not played same times as men's games and men's games will always be picked over women's. I know rugby is not largest female sport. Its clear and obvious to everyone that camogie/ladies football have more playing.
Whinging here wont do anything. The only way there will be change is if you complain to RTE/GAA.

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 16/08/2014 19:48:11    1637719

any evidence to back up these figures or just hearsay?..look at the audience for the ladies all ireland final last year for instance very huge number suggesting greater coverage required..how many people attend womens rugby games or watch them?...the very definition of a minority sport for the most part yet has received more coverage than any female sport i can remember outside of katie taylor in recent years..seems they failed to back up their big win judging by the semi final result

fabio8 (USA) - Posts: 2182 - 16/08/2014 20:44:45    1637730

its a forum ormo..its what its for..people are entitled to offer their opinion and a different one to you..just because you dont agree with it..you feel the need to call them anti-rugby or whatever else..complaining to rte will do very little

fabio8 (USA) - Posts: 2182 - 16/08/2014 20:53:24    1637735

16/08/2014 13:33:47 Greengrass
I have read your response Ormond and it is pathetic. You have completely ignored the volume of coverage given to ladies rugby in this country ( which I don't begrudge ) in comparison to the lack of coverage given to other equally talented, dedicated lady sportspeople in this country. I outlined the coverage given to the ladies rugby team and you didn't even highlight it. There is a distinction being made between the efforts of the lady rugby players and the rest of our lady sports people and that is wrong. The volume of coverage given to lady rugby people is wholly disproportionate to that given to any other lady sports people involved in team sports in Ireland You would have us all believe that this is down to a super doper PRO working for The IRFU. That is rubbish. It is down to bias pure and simple. I am not anti rugby. I played rugby for 6 years. I attended rugby internationals for years. I am outside the loop now and can't get tickets. My brothers are avid rugby fans. To say 2/3 years is not some time is nonsense by the way.Whats pathetic about it?
The women's rugby side has had very little coverage and only in the past 2-3 years. A few 6 nations games and a few world cup games. What coverage do you want of Ladies football/camogie/soccer?
The public relations staff like Justin Deegan in IRFU are foing a lot of work. The level given to women's rugby is fine and what coverage the other sports get doesn't mean the womens rugby gets too much.
Why are you outside loop? Do you not have 1 connection if you played for years who you could use to get tickets etc?

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 16/08/2014 21:04:18    1637743

16/08/2014 13:33:47 Greengrass
You say that ladies involved in team sports should work to improve the amount of coverage they get. Suggest some ways please. Gaelic sports for ladies have infinitely superior competition structures leading to national finals in Croke Park that attract more supporters in one day than attend an entire season of ladies international rugby. There were over 20,000 in Croke Park for the camogie finals last year. That is not being disparaging to the ladies rugby. It is illustrating clearly that the package offered by ladies gaelic sports in particular is excellent and it is still not afforded coverage commensurate with that afforded to the ladies rugby team. RTE never broadcast a single ladies matc in full on the radio. Every single Irish ladies rugby 6 Nations 2014 match was broadcast live and in full on RTE Radio this year. The ladies organisations and GAA media should be doing more. Are any of the main GAA writers ever covering camogie/ladies football? That's a way the ladies involved can improve coverage of their sports. By balloting/communicating with them.
16/08/2014 13:33:47 Greengrass
When was a ladies soccer game ever broadcast ? It is down to bias and nothing else. Your reflex action is at all times to defend rugby. That is admirable but right now you're at the stick your head in the and stage of your arguments. The distinction made by our national media in relation to the efforts of our lady rugby players and the rest of our ladies involved in team sports is unjustifiable . There has to be a better balance and if resources are scarce and time is limited then yes there has to be a reduction in the amount of coverage afforded to our lady rugby players which is huge by comparison to our ladies soccer team in particular. Well don't be ignorant of all the people through the years who's reflex action is to knock rugby at any cost and every chance they get. ffgg, ochonlir are just two posters who've been like that
No there shouldn't be a reduction in coverage of women's rugby to cover women's soccer. When do you hear the FAI or any media in general call on much more women's soccer to be covered?

16/08/2014 15:29:53 fabio8
usual typical response from ormo..there is a clear bias which you consistently choose to ignore...not everybody is anti rugby people just want fair and balanced coverage for all sports and not just one sport getting the majority of coverage especially when its a minority sport in the case of womens rugby...this nonsense that people aren't doing enough to get it covered...the same paper having journalists cover it also put major coverage into the leinster schools rugby cup which shows even further bias towards rugby on the part of that paper..can you even acknowledge that ormo?fab There isn't clear bias. Of course not everybody is anti rugby but there is plenty.
Rugby doesn't get the majority of coverage and this season will see no live provincial rugby on RTE. RTE are not showing the pro12 nor are they showing the new European competition and neither highlights nor live. TG4 have provincial coverage.
Why cant you acknowledge my name is Ormond fab?
Leinster schools cups do get way too much coverage. All schools rugby gets too much coverage but the papers cover it as it makes loads of sense wrt sales with abc1 people in Dublin.

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 16/08/2014 21:06:02    1637744

16/08/2014 19:25:15 ROS1
tinrylandman that is ridiculous just because the Gaa is not a international sport does not mean it should not get coverage, it is our national sport. If that is the case every sport that Ireland has a competitor in should be shown no matter if there is only 3 people in the country interested in and the All irelands should not be shown, rugby is not a worldwide sport it is only played in decent numbers in about 13 or 14 countries. I have no problem with women's rugby or mens rugby been shown now or when the six nations is one, but what i and i think most people have a problem with the massive extra coverage Rte and other media outlets give it compared to other sports, for example Ireland beat France 9-0 in women's hockey a far bigger worldwide sport then Rugby yet got no coverage despite been on across the road from Rte. Its the same with many other sports you mentioned athletics but RTE don't even bother covering the worlds championship in that. Ormond there are plenty of ladies clubs in North tipp, Horse racing and soccer and possibly Gaa have more people employed then Rugby and no basketball at all is shown for a number of years no which is a pity as it is a good sport to watch. Rugby is a worldwide sport. Of course GAA should get more coverage.
World athletics championships normally are covered by RTE. Europeans are being covered as we speak.
There isn't a huge amount of ladies football clubs in north tipp. Isnt a lot at all.

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 16/08/2014 21:06:33    1637745

16/08/2014 20:44:45 fabio8
any evidence to back up these figures or just hearsay?..look at the audience for the ladies all ireland final last year for instance very huge number suggesting greater coverage required..how many people attend womens rugby games or watch them?...the very definition of a minority sport for the most part yet has received more coverage than any female sport i can remember outside of katie taylor in recent years..seems they failed to back up their big win judging by the semi final result Don't know how many attend women's national games. Theyre played out in Ashbourne so don't know. When they've played in the Aviva they've got decent crowds.
They didn't do themselves justice in the semi final but to reach a semi final is huge considering the best theyd done previous in a world cup was 7th or 8th iirc
16/08/2014 20:53:24 fabio8
its a forum ormo..its what its for..people are entitled to offer their opinion and a different one to you..just because you dont agree with it..you feel the need to call them anti-rugby or whatever else..complaining to rte will do very little Well when some people don't see anything or little to nothing right in rugby or its coverage well im perfectly entitled to say what I did.
Complaining to RTE will do much more than bitching anonymously on an internet forum which will do nothing.

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 16/08/2014 21:12:56    1637751

16/08/2014 20:44:45 fabio8
any evidence to back up these figures or just hearsay?..look at the audience for the ladies all ireland final last year for instance very huge number suggesting greater coverage required..how many people attend womens rugby games or watch them?...the very definition of a minority sport for the most part yet has received more coverage than any female sport i can remember outside of katie taylor in recent years..seems they failed to back up their big win judging by the semi final result Well get on to your county board to ballot for more coverage. Ballot and contact RTE with like minded people querying why there isn't more coverage of ladies football or camogie
Don't know numbers attending women's rugby games. TV figures have been strong on rte. They were playing a top top team in England in semi final and lost out as so much taken out of them in 2 group games. England have stronger squad as well
16/08/2014 20:53:24 fabio8
its a forum ormo..its what its for..people are entitled to offer their opinion and a different one to you..just because you dont agree with it..you feel the need to call them anti-rugby or whatever else..complaining to rte will do very little And people are entitled to be called by their correct name.
Well when some people(cough fabio8 cough) only see the bad in rugby and knock rugby well im entitled to say what ive said
Complaining to RTE will do much more than whinging anonymously on an internet forum

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 16/08/2014 21:35:10    1637762

i have a different opinion to you on the coverage the sport receives..doesnt mean im anti rugby which you insist on calling me...have you any figures to back up these strong audiences?...its a minority sport in fairness like...why is the leinster schools cup given the coverage it gets ormo..explain it to me?..bias towards a particular sport and private upper class schools perhaps?...well if they were able to beat new zealand ormo they should be more than capable of being competitive with england especially considering they won the grand slam the year before last?..instead of telling people what they should do maybe you should consider the other side of the argument for once instead of behaving like 'rugby police' on every single forum on here..you have seen what has happened with the rugby threads..posting to yourself

fabio8 (USA) - Posts: 2182 - 16/08/2014 21:52:35    1637765

16/08/2014 21:52:35 fabio8
i have a different opinion to you on the coverage the sport receives..doesnt mean im anti rugby which you insist on calling me...have you any figures to back up these strong audiences?...its a minority sport in fairness like...why is the leinster schools cup given the coverage it gets ormo..explain it to me?..bias towards a particular sport and private upper class schools perhaps?...well if they were able to beat new zealand ormo they should be more than capable of being competitive with england especially considering they won the grand slam the year before last?..instead of telling people what they should do maybe you should consider the other side of the argument for once instead of behaving like 'rugby police' on every single forum on here..you have seen what has happened with the rugby threads..posting to yourself Well its not first time you've been talking s.... and totally dismissing rugby.
Leinster Schools Cup gets coverage it gets as its such a money maker for the papers and tv companies that cover the competition. That isn't a bias its a business decision.
They lost to England in this years 6 nations and their pool was tougher than Englands. England also have stronger squad.

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 17/08/2014 14:29:30    1637849

just having a different opinion to you and saying it how i see it..doesnt mean im anti-rugby and why does it matter to you anyway?...maybe people would listen to what you have to say more if you didnt try to ruin so many threads and act like 'rugby police' all the time...its complete bias giving upper class people over the top coverage for a very small competition which is what the leinster schools cup is..do its gaa or soccer equivalent receive near the same coverage despite being much larger sports?

fabio8 (USA) - Posts: 2182 - 17/08/2014 15:58:37    1637888

Always liked rugby, particularly the respect given to refs, and it has advantages over both GAA and soccer. While it is international. unlike GAA, it isn't really very international, unlike soccer. It's only played seriously a few countries (mainly post-empire) so willy-nilly Ireland are one of the strongest teams.

befair (Down) - Posts: 238 - 17/08/2014 16:27:36    1637907

17/08/2014 15:58:37 fabio8
just having a different opinion to you and saying it how i see it..doesnt mean im anti-rugby and why does it matter to you anyway?...maybe people would listen to what you have to say more if you didnt try to ruin so many threads and act like 'rugby police' all the time...its complete bias giving upper class people over the top coverage for a very small competition which is what the leinster schools cup is..do its gaa or soccer equivalent receive near the same coverage despite being much larger sports? If you looked back at a good few of your posts relating to rugby you would see where im coming from.
It isn't bias and the Leinster schools cups are not very small competitions though coverage is over the top.
Its gaa/soccer equivalents don't get all the attention but the harty cup etc get plenty of attention as do the minor inter county competitions which get bigger attention than any underage rugby games bar the under 20 national side.
What soccer competitions would you want covered and where are all the calls for such competitions to get better coverage? Where are the people looking for more coverage?
17/08/2014 16:27:36 befair
Always liked rugby, particularly the respect given to refs, and it has advantages over both GAA and soccer. While it is international. unlike GAA, it isn't really very international, unlike soccer. It's only played seriously a few countries (mainly post-empire) so willy-nilly Ireland are one of the strongest teams. Virtually all sports are not international compared to soccer.
Rugby is very international. Its played seriously by a considerable number of countries. Many are not great at playing at it, but they play it very seriously and crowds big etc at the same time. Madagascar is an example of that

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 17/08/2014 17:40:09    1637948

madagascar?the leinster schools cup is a small competition relatively speaking..its a competition for upper class private schools in leinster which consist of a very small minority when compared to a competition such as the hogan cup which is a huge nationwide competition..the coverage the leinster schools gets dwarfs this..well if you took my opinions into account and considered them instead of just lazily labelling me and others anti-rugby just cause our opinions are different than you..you may understand..yes they get decent coverage underage competitions in ireland why wouldnt they?...its the largest underage competition in the country with the highest attendences.what rugby competition compares at any level?.what should be covered instead of it?..unless you are at least competitive at international level than you cant be regarded as playing it seriously...its just hearsay if not

fabio8 (USA) - Posts: 2182 - 17/08/2014 20:43:16    1638082

17/08/2014 20:43:16 fabio8
madagascar?the leinster schools cup is a small competition relatively speaking..its a competition for upper class private schools in leinster which consist of a very small minority when compared to a competition such as the hogan cup which is a huge nationwide competition..the coverage the leinster schools gets dwarfs this..well if you took my opinions into account and considered them instead of just lazily labelling me and others anti-rugby just cause our opinions are different than you..you may understand..yes they get decent coverage underage competitions in ireland why wouldnt they?...its the largest underage competition in the country with the highest attendences.what rugby competition compares at any level?.what should be covered instead of it?..unless you are at least competitive at international level than you cant be regarded as playing it seriously...its just hearsay if not How is the Leinster schools cup a small competition relatively speaking? Its the top grade of a competition with several grades. It contains section c schools(the best) with the rest mainly section b schools with the odd section a school qualifying. There is then loads of schools the grade below section a who play in development cups. All schools who enter any of the cups can qualify for the main competition if they are good enough and win enough matches.

ormondbannerman (Clare) - Posts: 13473 - 17/08/2014 20:52:13    1638092

because private upper class schools are a very small minority in this country..the hogan cup covers a far wider base for instance as its an all ireland competition and has smaller competitions within it which are huge such as the macrory cup

fabio8 (USA) - Posts: 2182 - 17/08/2014 21:03:00    1638104