Michael O'Neill & Shamrock

[TowerHibs]

Some result for shamrock getting into the group stages!!!

[WarringtonHibee]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOfNq6JY_BE&feature=player_embedded#!

Some goal as well!

[Gee7062]

Fantastic Result :thumbsup:

Mikey O'Neil was my of my favourite players back in the day. Petrie get him back at Easter Road :wink:

[RickyS]

congratulations to them, great achievement. hopefully a future Hibs manager:thumbsup:

[erin go bragh]

Some result for shamrock getting into the group stages!!!
Some result for them , well done the rovers !
ggtth

[Saorsa]

Fantastic Result :thumbsup:

Mikey O'Neil was my of my favourite players back in the day. Petrie get him back at Easter Road :wink::agree:


Good luck tae him :agree:


what a cracking goal :agree:

[500miles]

Cheap option.:rolleyes:

[Aubenas]

Can't be right - lots on here told us O'Neil was never Hibs class, Shamrock were crap and the LoI was a pub league.:rolleyes:

Maith thu Shamrock!:not worth

[HibbingtonHibs]

I fear that the best teams in the LOI would give us a lesson.

[SteveHFC]

Absoutley Brilliant they got through to the Group Stages. Good Luck to Shamrock and Michael O'Neil in the next round!
:not worth

[frazeHFC]

Class! Well done them. :thumbsup: What a goal too! :not worth

[lucky]

No Scottish teams but an Irish team and Cyprus has a team in the champions league and europa league. Scottish football has fallen so far its really embarrassing

[SteveHFC]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpoGE9TNwNQ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpoGE9TNwNQ)

[Part/Time Supporter]

No Scottish teams but an Irish team and Cyprus has a team in the champions league and europa league. Scottish football has fallen so far its really embarrassing

Said Irish team has a Scottish centre half (Sives) and centre forward (Twigg).

:dunno:

[Bohemian_Hibee]

Not so long ago here, I got pelters from many (you know who you are:agree:) when I suggested that Irish football was improving and Scottish football was in decline.

Now, as much as it kills me to see Rovers become the first Irish team to progress to the group stages of the Europa League, maybe some people will finally wake up and smell the coffee when it comes to the current state of Scottish football and give our "pub league" a little bit of credit. There's is lots wrong with our league, we know that, but admitting that there's problems with Scottish football seems to be beyond some here.

[Part/Time Supporter]

Not so long ago here, I got pelters from many (you know who you are:agree:) when I suggested that Irish football was improving and Scottish football was in decline.

Now, as much as it kills me to see Rovers become the first Irish team to progress to the group stages of the Europa League, maybe some people will finally wake up and smell the coffee when it comes to the current state of Scottish football and give our "pub league" a little bit of credit. There's is lots wrong with our league, we know that, but admitting that there's problems with Scottish football seems to be beyond some here.

Such as?

:dunno:

I think there's big problems in the club football - the economic model of the SPL has failed and it needs to be totally rethought - but the national team is stronger than it has been in at least 10 years.

[heretoday]

We don't want Rovers to do too well.

O'Neill might not want to come to ER in that event.

He'll head for Ipswich or Burnley or somewhere.

[basehibby]

Some result for shamrock getting into the group stages!!!

That's incredible - really puts Scotland's football failures into perspective - their much WORSE than we give them credit for :rolleyes:

[Hibernia Na Eir]

No great surprise. Rep of Ireland Premier League is not as bad as some make out. This result has been coming.

Well done SRFC :thumbsup:

[Prawn Sandwich]

Shamrock Rovers income is €2.5 million. Hibs and Hearts income is over three times the size. It's not just down to money that is the problem with Scottish football.

[Cabbage East]

I fear that the best teams in the LOI would give us a lesson.

You're way off the mark there pal :faf:

[Bohemian_Hibee]

You're way off the mark there pal :faf:

And THIS is the exact type of comment that backs up what I said. Wake up and smell the coffee. I'm a Hibs fan, I saw with my own eyes the football on view in the SPL last Saturday. It's in a bad way and last nights results confirm that. Dismissing and laughing at 'pub leagues' from countries like Ireland, Slovakia and Cyrus is akin to sticking your head in the sand.

[Prawn Sandwich]

And THIS is the exact type of comment that backs up what I said. Wake up and smell the coffee. I'm a Hibs fan, I saw with my own eyes the football on view in the SPL last Saturday. It's in a bad way and last nights results confirm that. Dismissing and laughing at 'pub leagues' from countries like Ireland, Slovakia and Cyrus is akin to sticking your head in the sand.

You are right. Scottish Football needs route and branch change. Everything from summer football to a bigger SPL. Unfortunately misguided self interest will ensure the status quo by the football club owners and association administrators.

[Part/Time Supporter]

You are right. Scottish Football needs route and branch change. Everything from summer football to a bigger SPL. Unfortunately misguided self interest will ensure the status quo by the football club owners and association administrators.

That's a bit of a lazy cliche.

Taking the specifics of what you say, I agree with summer football. It's probably the best thing Irish league football ever did. I think it would also help the economics because you would be fully using the window in which the Premier League does not dominate the British sports media. Sky and ESPN don't have the rights to the big summer sporting events (ie Wimbledon, Open golf, any of the major football tournaments) and would presumably be at least as happy to televise the SPL in summer as winter.

The only open opposition I have seen to summer football came from Peter Lawell (Celtic CEO), on the grounds of "credibility". Frankly I am not sure what he meant by that. I suppose a clue may be in the attitude the OF took towards the earlier start to this season, with them insisting on having this joke(r) rule allowing them to play friendlies.

I don't see how a bigger SPL would help though. All you would do is dilute the already stretched economics of the league (ie taking a few hundred grand off the existing teams and giving it to clubs presently in SFL1). I think it would hurt attendance (more "meaningless games"), which is one of the remaining strengths of Scottish football.

[KingFranck]

And Shamrock get ...................... Spurs!

[Prawn Sandwich]

That's a bit of a lazy cliche.

I don't see how a bigger SPL would help though. All you would do is dilute the already stretched economics of the league (ie taking a few hundred grand off the existing teams and giving it to clubs presently in SFL1). I think it would hurt attendance (more "meaningless games"), which is one of the remaining strengths of Scottish football.

The Clubs and fragmented associations are dysfunctional. They need to be radically reorganised and integrated.

More teams mean a wider variety of teams rather watching the same old, same old. This would share the money further.

I would also Scrap any live TV deals and return all matches Saturday to 3pm KO. That would bring the crowds back. TV highlights only. Live TV would only be viable if we went to summer football that would differentiate the SPL from the EPL.

I have loads of other ideas, but I must go out now and get soaked in this typical Edinburgh weather.

[MWHIBBIES]

And Shamrock get ...................... Spurs!Bet they don't lose 5-0 at home :greengrin

[basehibby]

Shamrock Rovers income is €2.5 million. Hibs and Hearts income is over three times the size. It's not just down to money that is the problem with Scottish football.

:agree: And they play in a stadium that makes Meadowbank look like a world class arena. It's probable that players at just about any SPL club are earning more on average than the players at Shamrock Rovers - or the Cypriot outfit that also qualified for that matter.

So what the hell is going wrong? Why are Scottish teams so unremittingly pish these days :confused::confused::confused:

[Elephant Stone]

And THIS is the exact type of comment that backs up what I said. Wake up and smell the coffee. I'm a Hibs fan, I saw with my own eyes the football on view in the SPL last Saturday. It's in a bad way and last nights results confirm that. Dismissing and laughing at 'pub leagues' from countries like Ireland, Slovakia and Cyrus is akin to sticking your head in the sand.

The arrogance of the media is to blame as well, they made out it would be walks in the park for the OF after their draws and keep on talking teams from these leagues down. Truth is the SPL is in the same category at the moment.

[--------]

And THIS is the exact type of comment that backs up what I said. Wake up and smell the coffee. I'm a Hibs fan, I saw with my own eyes the football on view in the SPL last Saturday. It's in a bad way and last nights results confirm that. Dismissing and laughing at 'pub leagues' from countries like Ireland, Slovakia and Cyrus is akin to sticking your head in the sand.


You'll get no argument from me, H_D. That first goal was exactly the sort of goal Mike O'Neill used to score at ER - perfect first touch from well outside the box leaving the goalkeeper no chance.

If by some very strange chance Hibs were to be drawn against Rovers in the qualifying rounds of the Europa next year, I would expect Rovers to beat us comfortably. We've been reduced to signing other teams' reserves on short-term loan deals just to plug the holes in a team that's been in constant flux for the past 5 years. O'Neill seems to have been able to build progressively and deliberately towards a much higher standard than we can dream of right now.

Arrogance? How many on this forum last year were dismissing the guy as not good enough to be Hibs' manager when Hughes left because he was operating at an allegedly much lower level than we were and couldn't adapt to the allegedly higher standards of the SPL?

Now THAT's arrogance.

[Part/Time Supporter]

If you want arrogance, read this

http://www.heraldscotland.com/mobile/sport/spl/celtic/lawwell-scottish-football-has-a-big-repair-job-to-do-1.1114601


[Peter] Lawwell said Celtic had committed to the Dublin event before learning that the SPL would start on earlier than usual. That had been a decision he opposed.

Ironically, he used the Republic of Ireland – Celtic’s hosts this weekend – as an example of how a country’s football can be marginalised when it switches to a summer season. “The danger [of summer football] is that if you move away from the significant mainstream European leagues then you become a niche, quirky, like the League of Ireland.

“You’re out of kilter with the transfer windows and with fitness and preparation. We have to keep standards high and that means playing within the same routine as the major European leagues.

“Our fans buy season tickets for the competition against Rangers and the European dream. If you lose that European dream I think you’ve lost the game here. Look at the League of Ireland: it’s a competitive game and it plays in the summer, but it’s nowhere.”

I wonder if that quote will be thrown back at Peter anytime soon?

:dunno:

[ronaldo7]

And THIS is the exact type of comment that backs up what I said. Wake up and smell the coffee. I'm a Hibs fan, I saw with my own eyes the football on view in the SPL last Saturday. It's in a bad way and last nights results confirm that. Dismissing and laughing at 'pub leagues' from countries like Ireland, Slovakia and Cyrus is akin to sticking your head in the sand.

Spot on bud.

Shamrock more than gave us a game a couple of pre-seasons ago, and looked like a decent team then. Michael was building for the future, as well as the stadium being improved, they deserve their day. They've worked hard for it.

Good Luck Shamrock

[Torres]

What a quote :greengrin


The money Rovers will get from this campaign will change the league and probably allow them to win the league for the foreseeable future. Shows what teams can achieve when they have no fear.

[--------]

If you want arrogance, read this

http://www.heraldscotland.com/mobile/sport/spl/celtic/lawwell-scottish-football-has-a-big-repair-job-to-do-1.1114601

Lawwell said Celtic had committed to the Dublin event before learning that the SPL would start on earlier than usual. That had been a decision he opposed.

Ironically, he used the Republic of Ireland – Celtic’s hosts this weekend – as an example of how a country’s football can be marginalised when it switches to a summer season. “The danger [of summer football] is that if you move away from the significant mainstream European leagues then you become a niche, quirky, like the League of Ireland.

“You’re out of kilter with the transfer windows and with fitness and preparation. We have to keep standards high and that means playing within the same routine as the major European leagues.

“Our fans buy season tickets for the competition against Rangers and the European dream. If you lose that European dream I think you’ve lost the game here. Look at the League of Ireland: it’s a competitive game and it plays in the summer, but it’s nowhere.”

I wonder if that quote will be thrown back at Peter anytime soon?

:dunno:


"The competition against Rangers and the European dream" - so THAT's what Celtic are about.

This is why Scottish football's in the mire - the two top teams only care about themselves and their "competitiveness" with one another and in Europe. They'd happily see the SPL and the rest of the game in Scotland ruined - which is where we nearly are - just so long as they can continue to make their dirty money out of their nasty symbiotic sectarian rivalry.

How I wish we could be rid of the whole stinking boiling of them, their arrogance, their cynicism, the hatred they ferment in Scottish society.