General GAA - AOB

Surely Tipp must have some pitch capable of hosting the footballers if the weather is deemed ok for a hurling match in Thurles? They should forfeit the game or at least home advantage. How is this different from us having to move a home qualifier to Portlaoise v Limerick?

Sums up their attitude to the football again after the debacle of sending us and Tipp to play in that dump Clonmel last year's in similar weather.

Asked some people, their excuses are "all other pitches in the county are closed," and "have you not seen the rain". Well it's March in Ireland, the fixtures there for months, if you can't hack it and treat football as second rate (as we do hurling but we have pitches) that's not Longford's problem. Should be in Pearse Park next Sunday!

Should have been moved to a neutral ground and gone ahead tomorrow in view.

Just reading a piece by Mick Moynihan where he listed a recurring theme on how GAA players are not allowed give interviews even at sponsored launches and the likes.
On one hand you say fair enough but the GPA have rates for lads to get a few quid. The extra cash in the player scheme should have come with stipulations on this in my mind.
All the talk of the GAA competing with other sports and the main assets are stowed away and dont say anything ibteresting until they are retired.

What's lads opinions on Dublin players opening pitches and businesses in Kildare. Seen Brogan down doing some sod turning ceremony in Grange at the weekend. He turns up in a Dublin top. It's not the first time I've seen Dublin players in Kildare at businesses​ or handing out medals. Could Grange not find a current Kildare player to do it for them.

Personally I don't like it, but if they want to don't have them rock up in Dublin gear.

Saw that too on Twitter REX. Interestingly a former player of Ellistown fame voiced his opinion of opposition. He was dead right. It's wrong on so many levels. It says to me that OUR local lads are undervalued and undermined. For the youth of this county it is wrong - they have no Kildare heroes from stunts like this. It might sound like an overreaction on my behalf but small things like this speak volumes about confidence in this county, and it's future. At every opportunity playing for Kildare should be promoted, and introducing the young to county players helps to create bonds between the people and the players. You didn't see JD or Glen Ryan going up to a dublin club to cut the ribbons! It's a disgrace to say the least, regardless if he has business or work within the county.

Totally agree. not in a million years would a club in meath invite a dublin footballer down to open a pitch. disappointed with grange gfc.

Kildare gaa awards night is on in Celbridge manor hotel owned by brogans. Plus brogans are opening  hotel in grange area. What clubs getting people outside county to present medals at their dinner dance

Misplaced here saying what Brogan should do. He was asked amd agreed. IMO the club should not have got him down in the first place.
But how available are our lads outside of the basics? Genuine question here? It works both ways and these lads have to be allowed do things.
The GAA press nights with a 5 min chat is the most people get to hear from players around ghe country these days.

Rex wrote:

What's lads opinions on Dublin players opening pitches and businesses in Kildare. Seen Brogan down doing some sod turning ceremony in Grange at the weekend. He turns up in a Dublin top. It's not the first time I've seen Dublin players in Kildare at businesses​ or handing out medals. Could Grange not find a current Kildare player to do it for them.

Personally I don't like it, but if they want to don't have them rock up in Dublin gear.

Absolutely disgusting - as one poster on twitter asked, why not being Cormac Reilly along to cut the ribbon when it's finished.

Rex wrote:

What's lads opinions on Dublin players opening pitches and businesses in Kildare. Seen Brogan down doing some sod turning ceremony in Grange at the weekend. He turns up in a Dublin top. It's not the first time I've seen Dublin players in Kildare at businesses​ or handing out medals. Could Grange not find a current Kildare player to do it for them.

Personally I don't like it, but if they want to don't have them rock up in Dublin gear.

Maybe the fact that he could bring SAM and his AI medals with him was an obvious reason.

fone wrote:

Kildare gaa awards night is on in Celbridge manor hotel owned by brogans. Plus brogans are opening  hotel in grange area. What clubs getting people outside county to present medals at their dinner dance

Lucky I wasn't drinking anything when I saw that, because would have spit it all over computer screen. Somehow managed not to vomit.

Put it to you this way lads, how many Dublin clubs would get Niall Kelly to present something? It's mental.

Nothing to do with having Sam, Seamus. Go back to 2005 or so and Castledermot and a few other clubs were bringing in Laois players for medal presentations. How much did Grange pay him?

Get annoyed about other counties players being put on a pedestal above our own. Read a profile or q&a with any of the minors in the last few years and how often is Diarmuid Connolly cited as their favourite player. How can you expect them to tear into him when they are wondering if they can get his jersey after the game. You don't see that in Meath.

Shergar wrote:

Nothing to do with having Sam, Seamus. Go back to 2005 or so and Castledermot and a few other clubs were bringing in Laois players for medal presentations. How much did Grange pay him?

Get annoyed about other counties players being put on a pedestal above our own. Read a profile or q&a with any of the minors in the last few years and how often is Diarmuid Connolly cited as their favourite player. How can you expect them to tear into him when they are wondering if they can get his jersey after the game. You don't see that in Meath.

Totally agree. Attitudes in this county need to change if we are ever to win anything. i hate saying it but we need a meath like attitude when it comes to our opponents. they have zero respect for kildare adn beleive you me they expect 100% to beat us this year if we meet. we need to develop that arrogance

Glad I was not the only one who was not happy with it. It was actually  pretty galling to see a Dublin player (especially him) stand there in his Dublin top at a Kildare GAA pitch performing some ceremonial duty, when we have our own to look up to.
I don't care if he has anything to do with Kilkee Castle, if he was there because of that then it's more Brogan self promotion.

Such a strange poorly thought decision and sad sign of the times.

SeamusMurphy wrote:

Rex wrote:

What's lads opinions on Dublin players opening pitches and businesses in Kildare. Seen Brogan down doing some sod turning ceremony in Grange at the weekend. He turns up in a Dublin top. It's not the first time I've seen Dublin players in Kildare at businesses​ or handing out medals. Could Grange not find a current Kildare player to do it for them.

Personally I don't like it, but if they want to don't have them rock up in Dublin gear.

Maybe the fact that he could bring SAM and his AI medals with him was an obvious reason.

a reason yeah, not an excuse

No excuse for it, couldn't believe it when I saw it on twitter at the weekend. Sends out a terrible message to kids about the state of Kildare football and the mindset of those in charge.

Agree with ye all lads. Re minors and their profiles and their favourite players - that bit is frightening. As one who works in a school in Naas, the alarming element is the complete lack of kildare support amongst the student body. There is in many groups of student's I've encountered a majority of dublin fans. Stunts like this one in Grange wouldnt do anything to change this! As our county continues to grow into the future, in terms of population, this is surely going to get worse, so it should be a priority area for the powers that be to make Kildare GAA attractive for the new families that come into kildare. I fear that the only solution is for our team to be winning leinsters regularly and being All Ireland semi finalists if not more each year, to entice people to get behind the county. Easier said than done, and many might think I am talking through my behind, but Kildare seniors going well appears to be the main solution as to prevent our county from becoming a dublin fanbase.

I will finish by saying, in 2012 when I did my leaving cert, the principal of the school brought in Sam the monday after Kildare won the div 2 title. He is an uncle of the brogans, and had access to the cup. In fairness he meant to rile us up as a joke considering the division 2 success the night before, but he came in with kildare ribbons on it. Whether the white ribbons was another dig at us or not, I remember chatting to him and he said under NO circumstances would he invite the Brogans into our school, because he felt it would undermine our local county players. He proved this belief once again when a year later had a major presentation when Tommy Moolick brought in the Leinster U21 cup. Now there's somebody using their head!!

A whole page in our local paper, The Nationalist, dedicated to a Dub turning the sod on a pitch in south Kildare. Our beloved CB chairman was also in attendance, standing beside Golden Boy in his Dublin top. The local kids looked delighted to have their picture taken their hero.

No doubt Bernard got his fee, hopped into his car and was away up the M7 laughing at the thick culchie gobshites down the road.

Sickening.

and to have donnelly standing beside him and he wearin the dublin top. absolutely disgusting.

Sickening. The lot of it. And oddly Brogan is the only one I cannot blame in this scenario. All on our lack of awareness, self-respect, and lack of pride of place.

the most surprising aspect of it for me being from the north of the county is that it was grangenovlin. for us looking down we see that as being kildare gaa heartland

Agree with everything said here. Thought it was bad form. I remember arguments in my own club about medal presentations a few years ago. There are lots of people from other counties involved in our clubs now and some wanted Kerry players to be paid to come and do it. Couldn't believe people were even considering it.

The kids in our clubs should be aspiring to play for Kildare and nobody else. If the Kildare players are unavailable (doubtful as they were happy to come to ours) its a different story but every effort should be made to get one of them to come or even a past player, not someone from another county.

Hate to harp it all back but unless players from other counties are allowed more exposure then the Brogans, Aidan O'Shea's and the likes will be a better option if you want to get some publicity for an event.
I know it's a Kildare forum, so I am not digging at our boys, but overall players are not being let do enough promo stuff. The GPA got extra cash and yet their members don't play ball in terms of promotion a lot of the time.
That's why the afforementioned superstars with their success get all the tasty ones. There are plenty of lads who are articulate and interesting. Our team alone is littered ex-AFL stories plus an ex-pro soccer player.
Of course, success in some form would help but as I said nationwide only a few players seem allowed to press the flesh.
That is all an aside to Brogan in Grange, but like it or lump Kildare don't capture the imagination of the kids and they are not promoted to be bigged up enough.

Ok I can see the arguments for and against but ultimately young players aspire to be the best. You never hear a young lad saying he aspires to be a Joe Bloggs who plays for Newbridge Town.... No he wants to be a Rooney or Suarez or Gerrard. Yes and before you start shouting it's a different sport, I'm sure you ask any young lads growing anywhere in Kildare today Brogan or Gooch or Aidan O'Shea are top of the list and if it means in five or ten yrs time a top player comes through in Grange well maybe Brogan has inspired him to reach the heights. I'm all for Kildare players being used but to be honest until Kildare are back in All Ireland quarter finals the players will never have the same appeal the likes of the team of the 90's or 2000's. Only Read Johnny Doyle's Profile recently and he was asked his Fav Players and they were Larry Tompkins and Colm O'Rourke. I'm sure when we read the Pen Pics for any Kildare Player past, present or future you will always get a mix of players from across the country.