Meath Forum

Intermediate Championship

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You thinking is correct. Its a similar situation in hurling. Westmeath county tram much stronger even though they only have a fraction of the hurling clubs.

Foley91 (Meath) - Posts: 418 - 11/09/2023 11:38:45    2503757

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Replying To Meathooooo:  "19 come from senior clubs. Mostly South of county.
2 from NM.

Once again my point is better players playing with better players, make for better teams. Too many clubs in NM is diluting the standard. That panel above demonstrates that."
One of the few correct statements you have made- they do come from south of the county, but little county success has followed!, maybe a few extra players from other parts of the county may have helped. Anyone can pick a few stats and make a point but there are many components in making success. Joining and making bigger clubs is a short term benefit / solution, however it reduces the number of players in the county. You improve teams not by joining a number of clubs but by improving the standard of coaching in underage and building from the bottom up. All clubs go thru poor patches. Following from your analysis of events who do you now propose Dunboyne should join up with?

browncows (Meath) - Posts: 2342 - 11/09/2023 12:26:33    2503775

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Replying To browncows:  "One of the few correct statements you have made- they do come from south of the county, but little county success has followed!, maybe a few extra players from other parts of the county may have helped. Anyone can pick a few stats and make a point but there are many components in making success. Joining and making bigger clubs is a short term benefit / solution, however it reduces the number of players in the county. You improve teams not by joining a number of clubs but by improving the standard of coaching in underage and building from the bottom up. All clubs go thru poor patches. Following from your analysis of events who do you now propose Dunboyne should join up with?"
@browncows It seems you might not have a clear stance on this issue. Breakdown the benefits of an amalgamations

1. Small Clubs
- Dwindling player numbers often lead to a further reduction in player numbers. Vicious cycle.
- Clubs with limited success may struggle to attract players. (Sucess breeds Sucess argument)
- Over reliance on small number of volunteers to mange club, coach teams, etc

2. Amalgamated Clubs
- Tiered competitions can accommodate teams of varying abilities, including 3rd, 4th, and 5th teams.
- Amalgamations can benefit dual players who participate in both hurling and football.
- In terms of coaching and player progression, small squads can be limiting as they heavily depend on a few players, leading to issues when players miss training i.e playing players who dont train because you have to field 15! Amalgamations allow clubs to pool resources, including coaches and funding for full-time coaching staff (GPOs). It is certainly not a short term solution, that statement is very much incorrect.

Summarising my points on amalgamations and their potential benefis. There's two perspectives on this.
Amalgamations lead to bigger, stronger panels with more resources and better players, while others like yourself have concerns about preserving the heritage and identity of smaller clubs. Sound familiar? Harking back to famous 198/90s Meath teams at cost of todays teams.

With regard to Dunboyne, they are senior, littered with county players, and taking your point "all clubs go through poor patches" By the way using statistical data to back an argument has worked in my favor. Numbers don't lie, they don't have opinions, just because you don't understand something doesn't mean it's wrong. 90% of Meath Senior panelists in 2023 cane from outside North Meath.

Meathooooo (Meath) - Posts: 94 - 11/09/2023 18:56:50    2503886

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Replying To Meathooooo:  "@browncows It seems you might not have a clear stance on this issue. Breakdown the benefits of an amalgamations

1. Small Clubs
- Dwindling player numbers often lead to a further reduction in player numbers. Vicious cycle.
- Clubs with limited success may struggle to attract players. (Sucess breeds Sucess argument)
- Over reliance on small number of volunteers to mange club, coach teams, etc

2. Amalgamated Clubs
- Tiered competitions can accommodate teams of varying abilities, including 3rd, 4th, and 5th teams.
- Amalgamations can benefit dual players who participate in both hurling and football.
- In terms of coaching and player progression, small squads can be limiting as they heavily depend on a few players, leading to issues when players miss training i.e playing players who dont train because you have to field 15! Amalgamations allow clubs to pool resources, including coaches and funding for full-time coaching staff (GPOs). It is certainly not a short term solution, that statement is very much incorrect.

Summarising my points on amalgamations and their potential benefis. There's two perspectives on this.
Amalgamations lead to bigger, stronger panels with more resources and better players, while others like yourself have concerns about preserving the heritage and identity of smaller clubs. Sound familiar? Harking back to famous 198/90s Meath teams at cost of todays teams.

With regard to Dunboyne, they are senior, littered with county players, and taking your point "all clubs go through poor patches" By the way using statistical data to back an argument has worked in my favor. Numbers don't lie, they don't have opinions, just because you don't understand something doesn't mean it's wrong. 90% of Meath Senior panelists in 2023 cane from outside North Meath."
TBH this discussion started off with idea of Amalgamate the smaller clubs in north Meath which will improve the standard overall across the county as better players playing together does help them progress. So dont turn it into a North Vs south tripe that we have to go through on here each and every year.

Anyone who has played any sort of sports will recognize this. Play at a better standard consistently and you will improve also. But i don't think amalgamation is a quick solution to all our problems.

I do think some clubs should amalgamate purely because of populations which have fallen in areas over the years but there are too many die hards, and to be fair if someone asked me to amalgamate with any of the 4 other clubs around my own, id laugh at the idea as they are often your fieriest rivals and that's the best days as a small club when you get to play lads you know well.

Take Kilmessan in the hurling, They turn out the same men year on year with little to no new players at senior over the past 10 years and yet they would never think of amalgamation.

I don't think amalgamation would help, in terms of the county team however in the short term ,as was proven this year in the regionals. Every man and his dog was asked in(tell me someone from north meath that wasnt) and was tried over a series of games. As mentioned above, hardly any made the cut.

I do think the Kerry model should be employed in this county overall though as without fail the turn out new high quality players on a yearly basis and its all because they have the opportunity if they are good enough to be exposed to sustained high level club football.

Irish_downunder (Meath) - Posts: 642 - 12/09/2023 09:58:42    2503930

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Replying To Irish_downunder:  "TBH this discussion started off with idea of Amalgamate the smaller clubs in north Meath which will improve the standard overall across the county as better players playing together does help them progress. So dont turn it into a North Vs south tripe that we have to go through on here each and every year.

Anyone who has played any sort of sports will recognize this. Play at a better standard consistently and you will improve also. But i don't think amalgamation is a quick solution to all our problems.

I do think some clubs should amalgamate purely because of populations which have fallen in areas over the years but there are too many die hards, and to be fair if someone asked me to amalgamate with any of the 4 other clubs around my own, id laugh at the idea as they are often your fieriest rivals and that's the best days as a small club when you get to play lads you know well.

Take Kilmessan in the hurling, They turn out the same men year on year with little to no new players at senior over the past 10 years and yet they would never think of amalgamation.

I don't think amalgamation would help, in terms of the county team however in the short term ,as was proven this year in the regionals. Every man and his dog was asked in(tell me someone from north meath that wasnt) and was tried over a series of games. As mentioned above, hardly any made the cut.

I do think the Kerry model should be employed in this county overall though as without fail the turn out new high quality players on a yearly basis and its all because they have the opportunity if they are good enough to be exposed to sustained high level club football."
Certainly wasn't trying to turn discussion in North v South. Simply countering the last response. 90% of senior panelists are outside of NM. Its a fact. Another fact is well over 50% of junior clubs are in NM. And yes population is the key factor along with proliferation of clubs. To try blame it on coaching as @broncows did, is not facing up to facts.

Kerry model would probably be best and easiest given the backward thinking of some clubs when comes to amalgamations. But it is still an amalgamation and the same argument applies, better standards better players irrespective of amalgamation model.

I think I've covered it every which way. Amalgamations, in a proper model will help Meath Gaa immensely. If you see something that works,copy it and make it better i.e the Kerry model. It's not revolutionary thinking, well maybe in Meath Gaa it is.

Meathooooo (Meath) - Posts: 94 - 12/09/2023 18:47:36    2504045

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Replying To Meathooooo:  "@browncows It seems you might not have a clear stance on this issue. Breakdown the benefits of an amalgamations

1. Small Clubs
- Dwindling player numbers often lead to a further reduction in player numbers. Vicious cycle.
- Clubs with limited success may struggle to attract players. (Sucess breeds Sucess argument)
- Over reliance on small number of volunteers to mange club, coach teams, etc

2. Amalgamated Clubs
- Tiered competitions can accommodate teams of varying abilities, including 3rd, 4th, and 5th teams.
- Amalgamations can benefit dual players who participate in both hurling and football.
- In terms of coaching and player progression, small squads can be limiting as they heavily depend on a few players, leading to issues when players miss training i.e playing players who dont train because you have to field 15! Amalgamations allow clubs to pool resources, including coaches and funding for full-time coaching staff (GPOs). It is certainly not a short term solution, that statement is very much incorrect.

Summarising my points on amalgamations and their potential benefis. There's two perspectives on this.
Amalgamations lead to bigger, stronger panels with more resources and better players, while others like yourself have concerns about preserving the heritage and identity of smaller clubs. Sound familiar? Harking back to famous 198/90s Meath teams at cost of todays teams.

With regard to Dunboyne, they are senior, littered with county players, and taking your point "all clubs go through poor patches" By the way using statistical data to back an argument has worked in my favor. Numbers don't lie, they don't have opinions, just because you don't understand something doesn't mean it's wrong. 90% of Meath Senior panelists in 2023 cane from outside North Meath."
It not difficult to understand what you are saying as most of it makes little sense. If as you say Dunboyne is littered with county players then why are they in relegation zone?. With stats you can take a little bit of information and present it as representing the complete picture. You obviously believe that your remedy will benefit all small clubs- a bit like buying the whole team size 9 shoes and expecting them to fit everyone.

browncows (Meath) - Posts: 2342 - 12/09/2023 20:55:07    2504054

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Replying To browncows:  "It not difficult to understand what you are saying as most of it makes little sense. If as you say Dunboyne is littered with county players then why are they in relegation zone?. With stats you can take a little bit of information and present it as representing the complete picture. You obviously believe that your remedy will benefit all small clubs- a bit like buying the whole team size 9 shoes and expecting them to fit everyone."
You've either not read the thread fully or are just incapable of understanding a very basic concept. I've already answered your point on why Dunboyne are in relegation by using YOUR words "every club goes through a bad patch" Will Dunboyne go down highly unlikely. With regards stats, what I've posted are facts. They tell whole picture, on the 2023 squad. They tell the picture on the condition of NM football.
Enjoy watching the Dubs waltz leinster for the next 10plus years. While you be content with Meath mediocrity, of your own making. The backwardness is baffling.

Meathooooo (Meath) - Posts: 94 - 13/09/2023 08:36:36    2504071

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Semi Final predictions?

Meath10 (Meath) - Posts: 190 - 13/09/2023 10:01:13    2504085

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Replying To Meathooooo:  "Certainly wasn't trying to turn discussion in North v South. Simply countering the last response. 90% of senior panelists are outside of NM. Its a fact. Another fact is well over 50% of junior clubs are in NM. And yes population is the key factor along with proliferation of clubs. To try blame it on coaching as @broncows did, is not facing up to facts.

Kerry model would probably be best and easiest given the backward thinking of some clubs when comes to amalgamations. But it is still an amalgamation and the same argument applies, better standards better players irrespective of amalgamation model.

I think I've covered it every which way. Amalgamations, in a proper model will help Meath Gaa immensely. If you see something that works,copy it and make it better i.e the Kerry model. It's not revolutionary thinking, well maybe in Meath Gaa it is."
I suppose the crux here is do clubs see their existence linked to feeding the Meath senior team or is it self serving on a more parochial level. I would say the majority see it as the latter because ultimately you serve your members and you're lucky if you feed 1 or 2 players to the county set up over a decade.

If the club championships aren't competitive then it's up to the County Board to tackle it and to be fair they've been proactive in this regard. It's universally agreed that the structures of our championships in the last 10+ years have been poor and can be linked to the malaise in our fortunes in the Leinster championship. There simply have been too many dead rubber affairs and not enough at stake with multiple opportunities to qualify for knockout stages and little prospect of relegation, until recent years.

You reference the 'Kerry model' but the amalgamations co-exist in a separate competition. David Clifford is known country wide as a Fossa man not an East Kerry club man so he retains his 'small' club identity. He's proof that exceptional players can flourish in lower grades and carry their team through the ranks, albeit he is a very extreme example. Wolfe Tones blazed a trail in Meath in the noughties but should they have amalgamated whilst they were knocking around the Junior championship for many years contributing nobody to the county team?

Some of your arguments carry some weight which is why I think the Regional competition ran last year is a good idea but it does need better integration into the calendar. It did allow the cream of the crop to come together and pit their talents against others in the county of that standard, so I see no downside to it other than burnout if not integrated correctly. Not to be critical as it was the first year but it was fired in at the end of the season when some clubs were long since finished and it was glorified county trials for Colm and co. A little bit of a re-jig and I do think we'd some benefits.

I do think some of your comments are over the top though such as "Too many clubs in NM is diluting the standard." The demographics don't lie and you're never going to get a Ratoath style population explosion in any North Meath village but mass amalgamation seems a very nuclear solution just to try and bridge the gap with Dublin. Amalgamations dilute club's parish identities, their traditions, their family lineage, their club characters, their crest, their colours etc just to satisfy your need to raise standards.

The JFC as we speak have 6 teams left, 4 of which are from North Meath. There are some very appealing fixtures there in the coming weeks with real pride at stake. What you could be left with is a JFC with fixtures such as Loughcrew B versus An Tuascairt B etc. To me that doesn't set the pulse racing and do the winners really get the same feeling they would winning it with their own club? Back to the Kerry example and I know they have two Senior championships but the East Kerry boys looked very sombre looking when winning the regional one last year. The Cliffords surely took more pleasure in their successes with their own club Fossa.

"Cortown Ultans looking over a field at each other! "
Strange comment - since when was a field acting as a parish boundary a valid reason to amalgamate?
Are there no fields in South Meath and whilst on topic what would you do with the South Meath clubs struggling in their respective championship this year and previous years? The likes of Longwood, Blackhall Gaels (already amalgamated), St Vincents, Dunsany, Clonard are all in the lower ends of their respective championships. Are they not also diluting the standards and should also amalgamate?

The_Ripper (Meath) - Posts: 183 - 13/09/2023 11:37:51    2504113

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Replying To Meath10:  "Semi Final predictions?"
I think Rathkenny to beat O'Mahoneys by 2
St Pats to beat Duleek by 3

Duleek to me looked poor all year unless they can get it going for the semi final. Pats were slow to get going against Castletown but showed well once got into gear also Emmanuel is a massive lose but should be back for semi. Duleek I thought were very poor against Meath Hill…

redracoon (Meath) - Posts: 57 - 13/09/2023 12:33:54    2504131

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Will the county board ever look at reinstating clubs second teams back into the Intermediate, Junior A & B championships? Nobody seems to think the Premier Championships are working yet still they remain. Their are not enough good enough first teams to make a good standard Junior A and particularly Junior B championships on their own. The standard of the Junior B championship, even for Junior B level, is woefully bad at the moment. The Junior A is not much better. It would actually help the 1st team Junior A and B clubs raise their standards if Senior clubs second teams were in the same competition as them. The same clubs who wanted the Second team's thrown out of the Junior and Intermediate competitions would kick up again, but they should they ask themselves, are they better or worse off since the change was made? I would say they are worse off.

BigJoe14 (Meath) - Posts: 998 - 13/09/2023 14:12:41    2504154

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Replying To The_Ripper:  "I suppose the crux here is do clubs see their existence linked to feeding the Meath senior team or is it self serving on a more parochial level. I would say the majority see it as the latter because ultimately you serve your members and you're lucky if you feed 1 or 2 players to the county set up over a decade.

If the club championships aren't competitive then it's up to the County Board to tackle it and to be fair they've been proactive in this regard. It's universally agreed that the structures of our championships in the last 10+ years have been poor and can be linked to the malaise in our fortunes in the Leinster championship. There simply have been too many dead rubber affairs and not enough at stake with multiple opportunities to qualify for knockout stages and little prospect of relegation, until recent years.

You reference the 'Kerry model' but the amalgamations co-exist in a separate competition. David Clifford is known country wide as a Fossa man not an East Kerry club man so he retains his 'small' club identity. He's proof that exceptional players can flourish in lower grades and carry their team through the ranks, albeit he is a very extreme example. Wolfe Tones blazed a trail in Meath in the noughties but should they have amalgamated whilst they were knocking around the Junior championship for many years contributing nobody to the county team?

Some of your arguments carry some weight which is why I think the Regional competition ran last year is a good idea but it does need better integration into the calendar. It did allow the cream of the crop to come together and pit their talents against others in the county of that standard, so I see no downside to it other than burnout if not integrated correctly. Not to be critical as it was the first year but it was fired in at the end of the season when some clubs were long since finished and it was glorified county trials for Colm and co. A little bit of a re-jig and I do think we'd some benefits.

I do think some of your comments are over the top though such as "Too many clubs in NM is diluting the standard." The demographics don't lie and you're never going to get a Ratoath style population explosion in any North Meath village but mass amalgamation seems a very nuclear solution just to try and bridge the gap with Dublin. Amalgamations dilute club's parish identities, their traditions, their family lineage, their club characters, their crest, their colours etc just to satisfy your need to raise standards.

The JFC as we speak have 6 teams left, 4 of which are from North Meath. There are some very appealing fixtures there in the coming weeks with real pride at stake. What you could be left with is a JFC with fixtures such as Loughcrew B versus An Tuascairt B etc. To me that doesn't set the pulse racing and do the winners really get the same feeling they would winning it with their own club? Back to the Kerry example and I know they have two Senior championships but the East Kerry boys looked very sombre looking when winning the regional one last year. The Cliffords surely took more pleasure in their successes with their own club Fossa.

"Cortown Ultans looking over a field at each other! "
Strange comment - since when was a field acting as a parish boundary a valid reason to amalgamate?
Are there no fields in South Meath and whilst on topic what would you do with the South Meath clubs struggling in their respective championship this year and previous years? The likes of Longwood, Blackhall Gaels (already amalgamated), St Vincents, Dunsany, Clonard are all in the lower ends of their respective championships. Are they not also diluting the standards and should also amalgamate?"
Well Said and completely agree

de_man (Meath) - Posts: 192 - 13/09/2023 16:24:10    2504181

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Replying To The_Ripper:  "I suppose the crux here is do clubs see their existence linked to feeding the Meath senior team or is it self serving on a more parochial level. I would say the majority see it as the latter because ultimately you serve your members and you're lucky if you feed 1 or 2 players to the county set up over a decade.

If the club championships aren't competitive then it's up to the County Board to tackle it and to be fair they've been proactive in this regard. It's universally agreed that the structures of our championships in the last 10+ years have been poor and can be linked to the malaise in our fortunes in the Leinster championship. There simply have been too many dead rubber affairs and not enough at stake with multiple opportunities to qualify for knockout stages and little prospect of relegation, until recent years.

You reference the 'Kerry model' but the amalgamations co-exist in a separate competition. David Clifford is known country wide as a Fossa man not an East Kerry club man so he retains his 'small' club identity. He's proof that exceptional players can flourish in lower grades and carry their team through the ranks, albeit he is a very extreme example. Wolfe Tones blazed a trail in Meath in the noughties but should they have amalgamated whilst they were knocking around the Junior championship for many years contributing nobody to the county team?

Some of your arguments carry some weight which is why I think the Regional competition ran last year is a good idea but it does need better integration into the calendar. It did allow the cream of the crop to come together and pit their talents against others in the county of that standard, so I see no downside to it other than burnout if not integrated correctly. Not to be critical as it was the first year but it was fired in at the end of the season when some clubs were long since finished and it was glorified county trials for Colm and co. A little bit of a re-jig and I do think we'd some benefits.

I do think some of your comments are over the top though such as "Too many clubs in NM is diluting the standard." The demographics don't lie and you're never going to get a Ratoath style population explosion in any North Meath village but mass amalgamation seems a very nuclear solution just to try and bridge the gap with Dublin. Amalgamations dilute club's parish identities, their traditions, their family lineage, their club characters, their crest, their colours etc just to satisfy your need to raise standards.

The JFC as we speak have 6 teams left, 4 of which are from North Meath. There are some very appealing fixtures there in the coming weeks with real pride at stake. What you could be left with is a JFC with fixtures such as Loughcrew B versus An Tuascairt B etc. To me that doesn't set the pulse racing and do the winners really get the same feeling they would winning it with their own club? Back to the Kerry example and I know they have two Senior championships but the East Kerry boys looked very sombre looking when winning the regional one last year. The Cliffords surely took more pleasure in their successes with their own club Fossa.

"Cortown Ultans looking over a field at each other! "
Strange comment - since when was a field acting as a parish boundary a valid reason to amalgamate?
Are there no fields in South Meath and whilst on topic what would you do with the South Meath clubs struggling in their respective championship this year and previous years? The likes of Longwood, Blackhall Gaels (already amalgamated), St Vincents, Dunsany, Clonard are all in the lower ends of their respective championships. Are they not also diluting the standards and should also amalgamate?"
A really excellent post and agree with nearly all of it.
Are clubs just feeders for the county team or the lifeblood of their communities. Definitely the latter.
When I played football none of Ratoath, Dunboyne, St Colmcilles, Donaghmore (as they were then) or Dunshaughlin were senior clubs. The commuter explosion had yet to happen, the idea of a developer landing at your doorstep and building you a new purpose built facility in exchange for your old pitch was never heard of. Imagine if those clubs had been amalgamated back then for the sake of it.
As it stands now the county development plan involves looking at building groups of houses in rural areas village areas as a ribbon development rather than one off homes. There could be some big estates somewhere like Bohermeen, and clubs there could end up being the new commuter clubs.
I think the best example is Curraha. Such a small part of the parish and always cleaned out by Skryne. They could have amalgamated but they worked their socks off, and are now a recognised senior club. Indeed it is no coincidence that Skryne are in trouble since they stopped being able to take their pick of Curraha's best players.

Roger (Meath) - Posts: 479 - 13/09/2023 17:16:33    2504188

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Replying To Roger:  "A really excellent post and agree with nearly all of it.
Are clubs just feeders for the county team or the lifeblood of their communities. Definitely the latter.
When I played football none of Ratoath, Dunboyne, St Colmcilles, Donaghmore (as they were then) or Dunshaughlin were senior clubs. The commuter explosion had yet to happen, the idea of a developer landing at your doorstep and building you a new purpose built facility in exchange for your old pitch was never heard of. Imagine if those clubs had been amalgamated back then for the sake of it.
As it stands now the county development plan involves looking at building groups of houses in rural areas village areas as a ribbon development rather than one off homes. There could be some big estates somewhere like Bohermeen, and clubs there could end up being the new commuter clubs.
I think the best example is Curraha. Such a small part of the parish and always cleaned out by Skryne. They could have amalgamated but they worked their socks off, and are now a recognised senior club. Indeed it is no coincidence that Skryne are in trouble since they stopped being able to take their pick of Curraha's best players."
Curraha in populated area. And have three to four exceptional forwards. And have worked very very hard, fair point.

Back to my point NM is way way off rest of county. So sort of proactive approach is required.

Up to clubs to amalgamate. But something needs to change. Or Meath mediocrity will continue on.

Meathooooo (Meath) - Posts: 94 - 16/09/2023 08:28:05    2504408

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St Pat's vs Duleek - St Pat's look a really good team, they beat a promising Castletown team without Sean Emmanuel and got out of trouble after a very poor start. But when they got going, they looked ultra impressive. Duleek fell over the line and were lucky enough in the end against Meath Hill. I think St Pat's have the quality to hurt them and will advance to the final - St Pat's by 5

Rathkenny v NOM - Very hard to call, the winner will probably be favs in the final. Neither have looked world beaters so far but I think Rathkenny will get their revenge here and edge it. They have a lot of talent when they can put it all together - Rathkenny by 2

hyperache (Meath) - Posts: 254 - 18/09/2023 15:38:15    2504639

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Replying To Meathooooo:  "Curraha in populated area. And have three to four exceptional forwards. And have worked very very hard, fair point.

Back to my point NM is way way off rest of county. So sort of proactive approach is required.

Up to clubs to amalgamate. But something needs to change. Or Meath mediocrity will continue on."
It is true that North Meath is going through a difficult cycle at the minute but all things change. If you were predicting 30 years ago which clubs would be growth areas, you could easily have picked St Paul's. Doing well at the time, Paul's winning a JFC and holding their own at Intermediate. But then the motorway came and the development in Clonee came on the Dublin side of the county border. It's like a sliding door moment comparing themselves and Donaghmore.
Drumree were Leinster JFC winners in the 90's but then came to an agreement where they became a hurling only club and Dunshaughlin took all the footballers. I still talk to Drumree people who fume over that decision.

Roger (Meath) - Posts: 479 - 19/09/2023 10:38:48    2504761

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Replying To Roger:  "It is true that North Meath is going through a difficult cycle at the minute but all things change. If you were predicting 30 years ago which clubs would be growth areas, you could easily have picked St Paul's. Doing well at the time, Paul's winning a JFC and holding their own at Intermediate. But then the motorway came and the development in Clonee came on the Dublin side of the county border. It's like a sliding door moment comparing themselves and Donaghmore.
Drumree were Leinster JFC winners in the 90's but then came to an agreement where they became a hurling only club and Dunshaughlin took all the footballers. I still talk to Drumree people who fume over that decision."
As you said, it's very difficult to predict where a population spurt is going to happen, and even still - it doesn't guarantee anything. Navan while always a big town - has had a big population growth over the last 10/20 years, and it's not exactly translating to success is it? The Navan clubs aren't really up to much. Simonstown are being blown out at Minor level, Navan O'Mahony's have lost all of their minor Championship games so far - so population doesn't equal anything.

North Meath clubs aren't producing players any worse than the bigger clubs in South Meath, some of the best young players in the county are coming through at NM clubs. It's all about developing those players and bringing them through. We seem to get lost somewhere doing that. I've seen Meath U16/U17 teams brush Dublin aside at that level, and a few years later the same Meath team are blown away by the same Dublin player.

Regional championships do work to a certain extent, and are good at getting players playing at a higher level. But mass amalgamation like some people have suggested is never ever going to happen. It goes against the entire ethos of what the GAA is about

hyperache (Meath) - Posts: 254 - 19/09/2023 13:23:28    2504809

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Whats going on in Dunderry? One game away from Junior football and they didnt exactly set the world a light in Senior B Hurling either. Only stayed up on goal difference.

PatrickTopping (Meath) - Posts: 119 - 24/09/2023 11:15:31    2505413

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Replying To PatrickTopping:  "Whats going on in Dunderry? One game away from Junior football and they didnt exactly set the world a light in Senior B Hurling either. Only stayed up on goal difference."
In fairness in the hurling they only came up last year so their main aim was to survive. I'd see that as a successful Senior B campaign.
In football it's hard to fathom what's gone wrong, they seem to have a very capable squad are they just not getting any breaks?

bountyboy22 (USA) - Posts: 38 - 24/09/2023 16:14:52    2505441

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Replying To bountyboy22:  "In fairness in the hurling they only came up last year so their main aim was to survive. I'd see that as a successful Senior B campaign.
In football it's hard to fathom what's gone wrong, they seem to have a very capable squad are they just not getting any breaks?"
They came bottom of their group in CnaB, bottom of division 1B of the league, and have lost 5 championship games in a row to be 1 loss away from relegation to junior. Hard to put it down to just the breaks not going their way.

CastleBravo (Meath) - Posts: 1668 - 24/09/2023 16:39:09    2505443

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