|
Just for discussion now the All Irelands are done with from a County point of view and the much more enjoyable (although less discussed) Club takes hold i thought it might be interesting to have a discussion about how people see the next 30 years..
Within 30 years will we see a split in the GAA, there will be a professional and an amateur game as such. We will still have the GAA as it is as an amateur organisation.
However what we will see is the birth of a competition between commercially viable super clubs backed financially, they will primarily be based out of Dublin but various commercial superclubs throughout the land along with commercially backed super clubs in the states and the UK, London primarily with others popping up offering Gaels the opportunity to play and live abroad.
Club and County loyalty wont exist and the best of players throughout the country will be snapped up at an early stage by the superclubs and the remainder of players playing the amateur game for Club and County. The advantage of the new competition is there will no longer be archaic obedience to how things always were, no need for provincial games and influence, the argument over funding ect will be nullified as each Club will be funded as per their owners respectively, players will transfer between clubs but more along the lines of how rugby works now rather than soccer.
Is it possible, probable or we will still be here in 30 years as we are for the most part? Will Counties be split and amalgamated? Etc Etc
tearintom (Wexford) - Posts: 1327 - 16/09/2019 16:04:04
2236182
Link
0
|
|
In the next 30 years the GAA will have tried five different tier 2 football competitions and none will have worked.
Antrim GAA will still be seeking clarity on the future of casement park from the top brass who don't care.
Halfdinnerandraspberrycheesecake (Leitrim) - Posts: 48 - 16/09/2019 16:30:21
2236198
Link
1
|
|
One of the biggest problems in determining a viable, vibrant future for the GAA in Ireland is that decision making lies in the hands of people living in the past and unable or unwilling to come to terms with the needs of the Association today, much less its future direction. A scenic might even say that too many people have a vested interest in resisting change.
Looking at the development of the game overseas it is easy to see the value of uninhibited thinking, experimentation and development.
neverright (Roscommon) - Posts: 1648 - 16/09/2019 17:03:32
2236222
Link
0
|
|
the future of the gaa is as it is now,up to about 5 realistic all ireland contenders.not even 5 possibly.
a disillusioned club player.
in my view,gaa is goosed in well over half of the country and the like of rugby are making hay!
perfect10 (Wexford) - Posts: 3929 - 17/09/2019 15:47:40
2236672
Link
1
|
|
Replying To Halfdinnerandraspberrycheesecake: "In the next 30 years the GAA will have tried five different tier 2 football competitions and none will have worked.
Antrim GAA will still be seeking clarity on the future of casement park from the top brass who don't care." We won't have made as much progress as that with Casement Park in only 30 years.
I'm not expecting to see - or, indeed, hear of - a game being played there in my lifetime.
lionofludesch (Down) - Posts: 475 - 17/09/2019 16:27:47
2236696
Link
0
|
|
Maybe a proven outsider needs to come in and run the GAA. Someone with no county or political ties. Examples would be someone in the NFL or NASCAR or UFC hierarchies. Someone that ran an upward facing league or entity that has GROWN over the years. Compare the NFL, NASCAR, UFC, etc from 30 years ago until now and you'll see big growth. Just a thought.
Trump2020 (Galway) - Posts: 2113 - 17/09/2019 17:15:03
2236716
Link
0
|
|
Replying To Trump2020: "Maybe a proven outsider needs to come in and run the GAA. Someone with no county or political ties. Examples would be someone in the NFL or NASCAR or UFC hierarchies. Someone that ran an upward facing league or entity that has GROWN over the years. Compare the NFL, NASCAR, UFC, etc from 30 years ago until now and you'll see big growth. Just a thought." My big concern there would be someone coming in that has no concept of the community etc in which the GAA has been built. I dont want the association to become just another plastic franchise that has lost all touch with the grass roots that helped to build it. I do, however, have to admit that we cant keep pretending that we are this 'part time/amateur game'. This era has well and truly quashed that notion.
SaffronDon (Antrim) - Posts: 2385 - 17/09/2019 17:34:39
2236723
Link
0
|
|
Unless something radical happens soon, I can't see much of a future for football at least. Kids need to be inspired by their own countymen/heroes lifting the biggest prize but I can only see Dublin kids being inspired for the foreseeable future.
I'm not sure about the hurling, it depends on how much Dublin actually want it. Ironically, the footballers success could hurt the numbers of kids wanting to play hurling in Dublin.
The big winners will probably be rugby and soccer too perhaps but I don't know how the interest in football will do anything but diminish drastically as things stand. It's a foregone conclusion.
LimerickKid84 (Limerick) - Posts: 28 - 17/09/2019 18:10:38
2236743
Link
0
|
|
Replying To tearintom: "Just for discussion now the All Irelands are done with from a County point of view and the much more enjoyable (although less discussed) Club takes hold i thought it might be interesting to have a discussion about how people see the next 30 years..
Within 30 years will we see a split in the GAA, there will be a professional and an amateur game as such. We will still have the GAA as it is as an amateur organisation.
However what we will see is the birth of a competition between commercially viable super clubs backed financially, they will primarily be based out of Dublin but various commercial superclubs throughout the land along with commercially backed super clubs in the states and the UK, London primarily with others popping up offering Gaels the opportunity to play and live abroad.
Club and County loyalty wont exist and the best of players throughout the country will be snapped up at an early stage by the superclubs and the remainder of players playing the amateur game for Club and County. The advantage of the new competition is there will no longer be archaic obedience to how things always were, no need for provincial games and influence, the argument over funding ect will be nullified as each Club will be funded as per their owners respectively, players will transfer between clubs but more along the lines of how rugby works now rather than soccer.
Is it possible, probable or we will still be here in 30 years as we are for the most part? Will Counties be split and amalgamated? Etc Etc" To be honest I don't think having separate club players and county players is that far away as it stands. Most club teams only get their county players for a handful of games a year anyway. It will be a shame when this happens.
Bon (Kildare) - Posts: 1898 - 17/09/2019 18:31:31
2236754
Link
0
|
|
Replying To perfect10: "the future of the gaa is as it is now,up to about 5 realistic all ireland contenders.not even 5 possibly.
a disillusioned club player.
in my view,gaa is goosed in well over half of the country and the like of rugby are making hay!" Was there ever anymore than 5 counties being realistic contenders? the problem for most GAA fans (and it is a problem for the GAA period) there unfortunately can only be one winner, which is a bummer really.
arock (Dublin) - Posts: 4895 - 18/09/2019 00:55:58
2236939
Link
0
|
|
In 30 years hurling will be more popular then football. Dublin will win at least 25 of them. Their advantages, particularly population will be even stronger. Their women will dominate even more so.
The camogie team won't dominate but they'll have won a few and the male hurlers too but their dominance won't be as bad as the big ballers.
Jack_Goff (Meath) - Posts: 2920 - 19/09/2019 00:19:21
2237405
Link
10
|
|
Replying To SaffronDon: "My big concern there would be someone coming in that has no concept of the community etc in which the GAA has been built. I dont want the association to become just another plastic franchise that has lost all touch with the grass roots that helped to build it. I do, however, have to admit that we cant keep pretending that we are this 'part time/amateur game'. This era has well and truly quashed that notion." I know what you mean. The GAA would become very business like if my suggestion was followed.
Trump2020 (Galway) - Posts: 2113 - 19/09/2019 06:17:53
2237418
Link
0
|
|
I think the first thing to give will be the county & club games divorcing from each other. With demands being placed on Senior inter county players to perform as high performance athletes, I think club scene will become optional. The structure will be similar to Irish provincial rugby. Sky will gain exclusive rights to the top flight county scene and we will have a tiered structure in both codes.
For counties outside of tier 1 hurling & football, the battle will be between club & county. Will a player want to be a leading club player or a county player in a lower tier? 'Counties' from outside of Ireland will be able to participate in top tier GAA. Counties in England and the USA in particular will compete and this trend could see the 2040 All Ireland hurling final be between Dublin and Seoul.
If/when this split happens the club game could become a very attractive proposition for things like free to air TV. I foresee club championship games in tier 1 counties being aired midweek, giving exposure to players who want to make the county scene. The club scene will remain for clubs in Ireland only.
The GAA as an organisation will also divide in two. The professional game will have money is its guiding light with the club extension retaining the original ethos of the GAA. Major companies like Facebook, Google & Apple will have wearable glasses where you can pay to spend a 'day in the life of' a GAA star. You will wear glasses that allow you to see what they do all the time'. This will lead to lapses in concentration by the players who forget they are being monitored and their slips will make headline news.
Investors will look at 'projects' in so called weaker counties. They will build 'centres of excellence' and will build state of the art 30000 seater stadia in green field sites, along the lines of English football.
Sponsorship will change. Social norms will see all references to alcohol and betting phased out.
Camogie and Ladies football football will grow and grow and will compete directly with the men's sports. Due to social changes we will see players move between men's & women's games, causing a lot of debate.
There will be a 'Croke Park II' built in the West of Ireland. This will be created to ensure the professional element of the GAA has a strong presence along the West.
The shape of the hurley will continue to evolve so that it becomes aerodynamically perfect and will encounter zero wind resistance. The professional game will see unbreakable hurleys being produced at astronomical prices while club players will still use the current offerings.
The President of the Professional GAA will double up as a government minister.
All I can think of right now.
slayer (Limerick) - Posts: 6480 - 19/09/2019 13:28:21
2237542
Link
2
|
|
Replying To perfect10: "the future of the gaa is as it is now,up to about 5 realistic all ireland contenders.not even 5 possibly.
a disillusioned club player.
in my view,gaa is goosed in well over half of the country and the like of rugby are making hay!" You're right, the list of contenders is small and likely to be smaller.
Jarlath Burns was on an item on the home pages yesterday about the spend on preparing county teams. Niall Moyna has also talked about the craziness of the spend for the last couple of years too.
The amounts being spent now are more than a lot of weaker counties can dream of, and for the middle tier counties are probably still enough to bankrupt county boards.
I think county boards are going to have to take a look at this and in a lot of cases decide to just go back to concentrating on their club scene.
Probably right too.
Greenfield (Meath) - Posts: 522 - 19/09/2019 14:33:02
2237568
Link
0
|
|
Replying To Greenfield: "You're right, the list of contenders is small and likely to be smaller.
Jarlath Burns was on an item on the home pages yesterday about the spend on preparing county teams. Niall Moyna has also talked about the craziness of the spend for the last couple of years too.
The amounts being spent now are more than a lot of weaker counties can dream of, and for the middle tier counties are probably still enough to bankrupt county boards.
I think county boards are going to have to take a look at this and in a lot of cases decide to just go back to concentrating on their club scene.
Probably right too." I think it should be easy enough to cap this backroom activity which is borderline madness. Even saw a match with a drone filming!!!
arock (Dublin) - Posts: 4895 - 19/09/2019 16:23:15
2237612
Link
0
|
|
The next 30 years...Jesus Christ I hope we will have won Sam by then?
yew_tree (Mayo) - Posts: 11227 - 19/09/2019 21:46:47
2237690
Link
9
|
|
We'll still be here, 35 in a row.
realdub (Dublin) - Posts: 8585 - 20/09/2019 02:48:07
2237731
Link
10
|
|
Professionalism outside of Dublin can only come through an inter-provincial structure:
Dublin
North Leinster
South Leinster
Cork
Munster
Galway
Connaught
West Ulster
East Ulster
London
9 home games and 9 away games each. Top 4 into semi-finals.
legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 7822 - 21/09/2019 12:50:31
2238042
Link
1
|
|
Replying To realdub: "We'll still be here, 35 in a row." With the population growing every year in Dublin, faster then the rest it could actually happen especially if the funding stays the same. You could reach a point where you're winning the semi and final yearly by 10+ points. Other counties will continue to lose their best players to rugby and the AFL. They'll struggle to get their best 30 in the county to commit to the cause. We're in the midst of a dark age for the sport.
Jack_Goff (Meath) - Posts: 2920 - 21/09/2019 12:54:37
2238044
Link
7
|
|
Replying To Jack_Goff: "With the population growing every year in Dublin, faster then the rest it could actually happen especially if the funding stays the same. You could reach a point where you're winning the semi and final yearly by 10+ points. Other counties will continue to lose their best players to rugby and the AFL. They'll struggle to get their best 30 in the county to commit to the cause. We're in the midst of a dark age for the sport." Kerry lost Kennelly in '99 and Walsh in '09. A strong possibility of All-Ireland success could not prevent the lure of Australian dollars. Just how do Dublin fend off the lure of Australian dollars?
legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 7822 - 21/09/2019 14:56:13
2238063
Link
2
|