Replying To TheUsername:  "I really do sympathise mate that's not condescending in anyway, Kerrys problem today will be another counties soon enough. I remember following Kilkenny through underage and gutted when he went over, thankfully that worked out for us. But their will be other players in other counties when a successfull minor or u21 team comes through. If a county like Kerry with the history and possibility of success can't keep hold of some of its best youth youth, it spells big problems for the game in general.

With the demands and sacrifices of GAA ever increasing and these lads trying to forge a life through education, work, relationships and growing up in the public eye for themselves in the midst of these sacrifices the lure of compensation is an obvious one. The solution for me lies in a co-ordinated response beyond county board level, it needs to be Central council and the GPA. Sports grants to assist these fellas get their lives on their feet through education, some kind of partnership in industry that these fellas can have a protected opportunity for work or at least pathway to develop a career in tandem with their GAA careers. Surely that could be negotiated and co-ordinated between the GPA and GAA and administered locally through the county board, it would also assist in keeping hold of lads who emigrate, or basicalLy have to put food on the table for family.

This is an attack on the game as a whole for me, it needs a national response and strategy to be developed, Kerrys problem today will be another counties soon enough."

Replying To TheHermit:  "Your absolutely right, and it gets worse for counties like Kerry. We have a Club Forum being held this weekend and one of the main topics is the carnage being wrought by rural depoulation. In south Kerry only 4 teams were able to enter the minor championship all either amulgmarions or divisonal teams. That's crazy. Our Munster delegate is on record as saying within a decade Kerry will be facing a serious shortage of players.

Dublin, Cork maybe Galway cities are seeing the recovery, the rest of Ireland is still suffering hugely and we have successive Governments that don't give a damn.

And I don't want to seem to be attacking Dublins success username but when you consider the socio-economic advantages you enjoy compared to us, my fear now is how Kerry will cope in the long term. When you have a former Dublin Chairman saying Bertie allocated money to the GAA solely to be used to benefit Dublin, when your still receiving huge funding while also enjoying those socio-economic advantages how can anyone compete in the long run???"

Replying To TheUsername:  "It's unfortante to hear mate, strangely I was the plane home from NY last night and was struck by how many emigrated Irish were "coming home" because things were "picking up". Your right of course, but the GAA doesn't exist in isolation its subject to all social forces and will have impact. I don't think its a new thing that players from rural areas will gravitate towards the city's and I can think of a fair few ex kerry who lived elsewhere in Ireland who represented their club and county, praticularly in Cork. I can imagine it's an issue that effects every county but obviously the bigger cites less due to opportunity. I often find it a weird one, when people talk about Dublin as an independent entity full of Dubs, there is a huge ex pat population from all over the country in Dublin. Fans from Kerry and Mayo are often home quicker then me from games in Croke Park. I think that is often a forgotten arguement in the funding debate, we try to develop our indigenous players, but their is a huge ex pat population in the Dublin club, college scene that benifit as much as anyone from coaching, conditioning and facilites.

I'm not sure what the answer is for Kerrys rural population demise, built factories, apartments or heartless industrial estates in South Kerry. Society is constantly changing some move forward and get left behind, that not meant to be "we are alright" statement just sociological principal that govern society that the GAA is a whim too.

I'm not going to get into another funding debate, when it comes to Dublin, obviously I'm biased as are you. I would say the game in Dublin is thriving from grassroots up and for the first time ever clubs on both sides of the City are strong, the development in clubs on the south side really is something special and something I see going from strength to strength. I've said it here a few times, there can be 3000 kids down at one south side Dublin club every Saturday that trually phenomanal. My own position on the funding is that Dublin should get marginally less then than they are at present, you will argue for more and we can get into the microcosm of it and spin it anyway we wish but We won't agree, we won't find a conclusion. I havnt seen the Bertie stuff and doesn't seem to be in any major news outlets yet, so I won't comment but would be interested if you posted the link?

Broadly mate I lament, with what's happening in South Kerry, it's never nice to see and their will be other rural areas likely in a similar situation, I'm not sure what the solution is as the issue is broader then finance or just throwing money at it."

Replying To TheUsername:  "It's unfortante to hear mate, strangely I was the plane home from NY last night and was struck by how many emigrated Irish were "coming home" because things were "picking up". Your right of course, but the GAA doesn't exist in isolation its subject to all social forces and will have impact. I don't think its a new thing that players from rural areas will gravitate towards the city's and I can think of a fair few ex kerry who lived elsewhere in Ireland who represented their club and county, praticularly in Cork. I can imagine it's an issue that effects every county but obviously the bigger cites less due to opportunity. I often find it a weird one, when people talk about Dublin as an independent entity full of Dubs, there is a huge ex pat population from all over the country in Dublin. Fans from Kerry and Mayo are often home quicker then me from games in Croke Park. I think that is often a forgotten arguement in the funding debate, we try to develop our indigenous players, but their is a huge ex pat population in the Dublin club, college scene that benifit as much as anyone from coaching, conditioning and facilites.

I'm not sure what the answer is for Kerrys rural population demise, built factories, apartments or heartless industrial estates in South Kerry. Society is constantly changing some move forward and get left behind, that not meant to be "we are alright" statement just sociological principal that govern society that the GAA is a whim too.

I'm not going to get into another funding debate, when it comes to Dublin, obviously I'm biased as are you. I would say the game in Dublin is thriving from grassroots up and for the first time ever clubs on both sides of the City are strong, the development in clubs on the south side really is something special and something I see going from strength to strength. I've said it here a few times, there can be 3000 kids down at one south side Dublin club every Saturday that trually phenomanal. My own position on the funding is that Dublin should get marginally less then than they are at present, you will argue for more and we can get into the microcosm of it and spin it anyway we wish but We won't agree, we won't find a conclusion. I havnt seen the Bertie stuff and doesn't seem to be in any major news outlets yet, so I won't comment but would be interested if you posted the link?

Broadly mate I lament, with what's happening in South Kerry, it's never nice to see and their will be other rural areas likely in a similar situation, I'm not sure what the solution is as the issue is broader then finance or just throwing money at it."