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Man Utd V Leeds Utd - Croke Park

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Replying To Viking66:  "Agree, but it is more central. Next urban area after Killarney is New York."
Depends what direction you're coming from. If you were heading into Killarney from Killorglin, the next major urban area would just be Cork :D

Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 3965 - 30/08/2026 22:25:57    2692033

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Replying To Pikeman96:  "But to counter all the accusations that "the GAA is only interested in making money from concerts and soccer matches in August" - a reminder that it was actually a committee from HQ in Croke Park who were behind the proposal at Congress this year to move the All-Ireland Finals back into August.

But that proposal didn't even make it to the floor, because it was so obvious that the county delegates - representing the clubs and counties who are happy with the current split season - would overwhelmingly vote it down.

GAA/Croke Park itself was willing to move the All-Ireland Finals to later in the year and suffer the loss of revenue from concerts and other events. Counties and clubs said "no"."
Reverse gear is often very difficult to find once something is allowed creep in and that is what happened. Where was Croke park and its committee when the finals were moved from the 3rd Sunday in Sept to the the end of July over a period of about 4 years?? I cant see why something that which may seem so obvious is a reason for it not to go to a vote? I cannot see how this split season benefits clubs apart from having county pkayers back (the majority would have them back anyway as their county would be out of AI race befor club championship starts) as the county final have not moved forward in one county with majority in Oct and some in Nov. That makes a mockery of club champions provincial campaign with some playing a county final on a Saturday and the first round of the provincial the next day. Player welfare how are you.

Dothesimplethingswell (Sligo) - Posts: 121 - 30/08/2026 23:04:00    2692039

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Replying To Square_B:  "My understanding is that the GAA own the hotel buildings and rent them to the two operators (Doyle Collection & Dalata)."
Cheers Square B.

GreenandRed (Mayo) - Posts: 8744 - 30/08/2026 23:05:49    2692040

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Replying To brayballer:  "I am well aware of profits and turnovers but Im just saying that the gaa are very comfortable money wise and can get along fine without premier teams playing in croke park .

The Gaa have big assets and savings also.
On top of all that counties get sponsorship also to help.I know Wicklow get over 300,000 euro per year in sponsorship and Dublin get around 1.5 million euro.

The gaa put back in most of their money but there is plenty of"
Putting back even more can only make it stronger. If club and intercounty games are scheduled properly where's the problem from them making more money from vacant assets such as club astro pitches from other sports and intercounty grounds for gigs and other events? Clubs renting out facilities, as long as they're not clashing with club activities, can bring in some extra money and create goodwill. Might encourage parents to bring their kids to give hurling and football a go.

GreenandRed (Mayo) - Posts: 8744 - 30/08/2026 23:13:00    2692041

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Replying To Dothesimplethingswell:  "Reverse gear is often very difficult to find once something is allowed creep in and that is what happened. Where was Croke park and its committee when the finals were moved from the 3rd Sunday in Sept to the the end of July over a period of about 4 years?? I cant see why something that which may seem so obvious is a reason for it not to go to a vote? I cannot see how this split season benefits clubs apart from having county pkayers back (the majority would have them back anyway as their county would be out of AI race befor club championship starts) as the county final have not moved forward in one county with majority in Oct and some in Nov. That makes a mockery of club champions provincial campaign with some playing a county final on a Saturday and the first round of the provincial the next day. Player welfare how are you."
To answer your questions:

Where was Croke park and its committee when the finals were moved from the 3rd Sunday in Sept to the the end of July over a period of about 4 years??
It was overseeing that move, in accordance with the wishes of the CPA (representing over 90% of all GAA players, and the sole reason it was founded) and the GPA (where some 90% of players still support the split season and want an inter-county season of no more than seven months, i.e. January to July).

Then when Croke Park felt the possibility of moving All-Ireland Finals back to August was at least worth exploring, they did so, and prepared motions for Congress to that effect. The county delegates at Congress, instructed by the clubs and County Boards of their counties, said "no".

I cant see why something that which may seem so obvious is a reason for it not to go to a vote?
Am guessing you mightn't ever have been to even a County Convention? It's not an usual practice for something that's obviously going to fail to be withdrawn before even going to the floor.

I cannot see how this split season benefits clubs apart from having county pkayers back
But is that not THE major benefit, that overrides everything else?

the county final have not moved forward in one county with majority in Oct and some in Nov.
The split season was never about having county finals played earlier. It was about providing certainty as to when they could start and otherwise operate.

Provincial club championships still don't start until at least late October, or November in some cases, because at least some counties (i.e. All-Ireland finalists and probably semi-finalists) need until then to run their own club championships. Other counties then generally schedule their championships, particularly in their preferred code, such that their county finals are played two weeks, or in some cases one week, before the winners are due into provincial action. Waterford hurling and how they continue to finish it early is probably really the only exception to this.

some playing a county final on a Saturday and the first round of the provincial the next day
Well, that'd be down to the counties themselves and how they run their championships. They'd have known from before the beginning of their own county championship when the winners would be due into provincial action, and it's up to them to plan accordingly.

Anyway, am unaware of any instances of this happening in recent years. Do you have examples of it? And if so, have you looked to see if there were extenuating circumstances behind those examples? Could have been a weekend or two lost due to "uncontrollables" such as bereavements or bad weather, rather than simply being a case of bad planning by the County CCCC.

Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 3965 - 31/08/2026 10:37:39    2692072

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Replying To Pikeman96:  "Depends what direction you're coming from. If you were heading into Killarney from Killorglin, the next major urban area would just be Cork :D"
:-)

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 20617 - 31/08/2026 10:40:56    2692075

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@Dothesimplethingswell - typo in my longer reply to you above. It should say not an unusual practice for motions to be withdrawn before they go to the floor if it's obvious they'd only be heavily defeated anyway.

Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 3965 - 31/08/2026 11:46:18    2692098

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Replying To Dothesimplethingswell:  "Reverse gear is often very difficult to find once something is allowed creep in and that is what happened. Where was Croke park and its committee when the finals were moved from the 3rd Sunday in Sept to the the end of July over a period of about 4 years?? I cant see why something that which may seem so obvious is a reason for it not to go to a vote? I cannot see how this split season benefits clubs apart from having county pkayers back (the majority would have them back anyway as their county would be out of AI race befor club championship starts) as the county final have not moved forward in one county with majority in Oct and some in Nov. That makes a mockery of club champions provincial campaign with some playing a county final on a Saturday and the first round of the provincial the next day. Player welfare how are you."
Ballygunner now have some their own split season now before Munster begins!

Gilroy hit nail on head about finals being moved and allowing that borefest across the channel to dominate even what schoolchildren are talking about at a time when our finals used to be the centre of the sporting and indeed cultural year.

BarneyGrant (Dublin) - Posts: 4548 - 31/08/2026 12:23:52    2692106

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Replying To Dothesimplethingswell:  "Reverse gear is often very difficult to find once something is allowed creep in and that is what happened. Where was Croke park and its committee when the finals were moved from the 3rd Sunday in Sept to the the end of July over a period of about 4 years?? I cant see why something that which may seem so obvious is a reason for it not to go to a vote? I cannot see how this split season benefits clubs apart from having county pkayers back (the majority would have them back anyway as their county would be out of AI race befor club championship starts) as the county final have not moved forward in one county with majority in Oct and some in Nov. That makes a mockery of club champions provincial campaign with some playing a county final on a Saturday and the first round of the provincial the next day. Player welfare how are you."
The split season has made a massive difference to clubs in Galway and I can confirm that first hand. We've had 3 rounds of the football championship and all senior and intermediate groups finished by the end of August. Games played on brilliant pitches in very good weather for the most part. Never mind when a county final is played, they're often extended so there isn't too much of a gap to the provincial campaign.
What matters is that the majority of club championship matches and the majority of players of our Gaelic games have certainty on when they're playing and are playing most of their matches in good weather and good surfaces at the end of the summer.
If the All-Ireland football final was still the 3rd Sunday in September, we'd be into October before we could even start. The players don't want that, yet some people still can't understand it.
Galway were in the All-Ireland hurling final this year, yet we have 2 rounds played already and the final round of group matches is next weekend.

WanPintWin (Galway) - Posts: 3033 - 31/08/2026 12:26:26    2692108

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Replying To Pikeman96:  "@Dothesimplethingswell - typo in my longer reply to you above. It should say not an unusual practice for motions to be withdrawn before they go to the floor if it's obvious they'd only be heavily defeated anyway."
If a motion is defeated it can't be brought back for 3 years!
If withdrawn can be brought back next year.
That scenario of Clubs playing a Provincial game a day or 2 after a County Final happened a number of times in the PRE SPLIT SEASON times.

Seanfan (Roscommon) - Posts: 906 - 31/08/2026 12:46:28    2692117

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Replying To WanPintWin:  "The split season has made a massive difference to clubs in Galway and I can confirm that first hand. We've had 3 rounds of the football championship and all senior and intermediate groups finished by the end of August. Games played on brilliant pitches in very good weather for the most part. Never mind when a county final is played, they're often extended so there isn't too much of a gap to the provincial campaign.
What matters is that the majority of club championship matches and the majority of players of our Gaelic games have certainty on when they're playing and are playing most of their matches in good weather and good surfaces at the end of the summer.
If the All-Ireland football final was still the 3rd Sunday in September, we'd be into October before we could even start. The players don't want that, yet some people still can't understand it.
Galway were in the All-Ireland hurling final this year, yet we have 2 rounds played already and the final round of group matches is next weekend."
Excellent post, nail hit on head.

Seanfan (Roscommon) - Posts: 906 - 31/08/2026 14:00:24    2692133

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Replying To Seanfan:  "
Replying To Pikeman96:  "@Dothesimplethingswell - typo in my longer reply to you above. It should say not an <u><b>unusual</b></u> practice for motions to be withdrawn before they go to the floor if it's obvious they'd only be heavily defeated anyway."</div>If a motion is defeated it can't be brought back for 3 years! If withdrawn can be brought back next year. That scenario of Clubs playing a Provincial game a day or 2 after a County Final happened a number of times in the PRE SPLIT SEASON times."
It was a common occurrence here in Wexford that time.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 20617 - 31/08/2026 16:52:05    2692184

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@Viking66 - it actually wasn't a common thing in Wexford.

In Senior Hurling, you have to go all the way back to 1982 to find the last time it happened. In Senior Football, I'm not sure it ever happened at all.

We did have some occasions up to and including the 1990s where our Senior Football Championship wasn't finished in time for Leinster, and so we had to nominate a representative instead. And then after the rules changed, there were two occasions (2008 & 2014) where the county championship wasn't finished either, and we had no team in Leinster at all. But I can't find a single example of a team winning a Senior Football Final one day and having to play in Leinster the next day.

Nor have I found any examples in Intermediate or Junior, in either hurling or football.

As always, I stand to be corrected, so if you know of an example that I'm overlooking, I'd be genuinely interested to learn.

Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 3965 - 31/08/2026 19:43:53    2692206

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Replying To Pikeman96:  "@Viking66 - it actually wasn't a common thing in Wexford.

In Senior Hurling, you have to go all the way back to 1982 to find the last time it happened. In Senior Football, I'm not sure it ever happened at all.

We did have some occasions up to and including the 1990s where our Senior Football Championship wasn't finished in time for Leinster, and so we had to nominate a representative instead. And then after the rules changed, there were two occasions (2008 & 2014) where the county championship wasn't finished either, and we had no team in Leinster at all. But I can't find a single example of a team winning a Senior Football Final one day and having to play in Leinster the next day.

Nor have I found any examples in Intermediate or Junior, in either hurling or football.

As always, I stand to be corrected, so if you know of an example that I'm overlooking, I'd be genuinely interested to learn."
2014 was the one I was thinking of, our Final was scheduled for 1st November and our Champions were due to play in Leinster on the 2nd. But as you say in the end we didnt enter a team at all.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 20617 - 31/08/2026 21:41:06    2692225

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Replying To Viking66:  "
Replying To Seanfan:  "[quote=Pikeman96:  "@Dothesimplethingswell - typo in my longer reply to you above. It should say not an <u><b>unusual</b></u> practice for motions to be withdrawn before they go to the floor if it's obvious they'd only be heavily defeated anyway."</div>If a motion is defeated it can't be brought back for 3 years! If withdrawn can be brought back next year. That scenario of Clubs playing a Provincial game a day or 2 after a County Final happened a number of times in the PRE SPLIT SEASON times."
It was a common occurrence here in Wexford that time."]Happened a few times in Wicklow also

Freethinker (Wicklow) - Posts: 2335 - 31/08/2026 22:51:29    2692235

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Replying To BarneyGrant:  "Ballygunner now have some their own split season now before Munster begins!

Gilroy hit nail on head about finals being moved and allowing that borefest across the channel to dominate even what schoolchildren are talking about at a time when our finals used to be the centre of the sporting and indeed cultural year."
Agree Barney and borefest is the proper word.

brayballer (Wicklow) - Posts: 776 - 01/09/2026 09:32:58    2692254

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Lads and Ladies, Tom Parsons is right, we cannot stand idly bye any longer, club players need to start paying increase membership rates for Inter County team holidays.

WunderBar (Galway) - Posts: 293 - 01/09/2026 10:27:10    2692260

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Replying To BarneyGrant:  "Ballygunner now have some their own split season now before Munster begins!

Gilroy hit nail on head about finals being moved and allowing that borefest across the channel to dominate even what schoolchildren are talking about at a time when our finals used to be the centre of the sporting and indeed cultural year."
I didn't hear anyone talking about it out our way, kids or adults. Hardly knew it was on. It was a random Wednesday night in Croke Park. What else would be on that evening instead of it?
I'll say it again, but we had hundreds of games and thousands of players playing club championships in both codes across the country for the month of August. Great weather, brilliant pitches and some cracking matches. That's what I bring my kids to, and they have plenty of their own games too.
A far cry from my own playing days, when you hadn't a clue when some of your championship matches would be played and you got the short end of the stick weather wise.

WanPintWin (Galway) - Posts: 3033 - 01/09/2026 10:38:27    2692261

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@Viking66 - 2014 is actually a perfect example of how the current split season prevents that sort of thing from happening now.

Main reason our club championships ran a little late that year was due to our U21 hurlers reaching the All-Ireland Final in the middle of September. With so many of them playing in the adult club championships and so many of them being dual players, both our club hurling and football championships had to work around them.

The football wasn't helped either by how the Senior Hurling Final (Shelmaliers v St. Anne's) ended in a draw and how the same two teams were due to meet in a Senior Football semi-final the following week. If the football had proceeded as planned, it would have meant football semi-final then, football final the following Saturday, winners playing in Leinster the next day, and hurling replay not taking place in time for Leinster at all.

Fixtures committee of the time decided that the lesser of two evils was to have the hurling replay when the football semi-finals should have been played. Basically, we were going to be without a representative in Leinster in either hurling or football, and they decided it was in our better interests to have somebody in hurling.

But again, main reason for it was we lost a number of weekends in August & September for club championship action due to a county team still going strong. The split season means that couldn't happen now.

Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 3965 - 01/09/2026 10:39:31    2692262

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Replying To WanPintWin:  "I didn't hear anyone talking about it out our way, kids or adults. Hardly knew it was on. It was a random Wednesday night in Croke Park. What else would be on that evening instead of it?
I'll say it again, but we had hundreds of games and thousands of players playing club championships in both codes across the country for the month of August. Great weather, brilliant pitches and some cracking matches. That's what I bring my kids to, and they have plenty of their own games too.
A far cry from my own playing days, when you hadn't a clue when some of your championship matches would be played and you got the short end of the stick weather wise."
In fairness, I think Barney may have been referring to the start of the Premier League in general, rather than specifically the Man United v Leeds match.

But I'll ask him:

If Limerick had been playing Galway in the Hurling Final on the first Sunday of September this year, how many kids outside of those counties would have been jabbering about that rather than Arsenal v Chelsea or Everton v Man United on the same day?

Or if the Football Final had been the following Sunday, how many outside of Kerry and Mayo would have been talking about it more than the Manchester derby that day, or the Liverpool or Arsenal matches that weekend?

Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 3965 - 01/09/2026 12:48:16    2692286

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