Kerry Support a Disgrace

[kerrygold]

seamus said:

Spot on about the support buck02.
The majority of the supporters from 96-02 have grown up and moved on. The novelty factor is gone and we have a couple of AI's in the bank. Hopefully last week will be the kick start we need as the upcoming games are fascinating IF we keep progressing:

Longford - what time will Jack pick and how will they bounce back?
Armagh - This game will bring everyone out of the bushes and could unite the county
Cork (maybe)- Payback in spades!
Final v Dubs - Round off the year with a cut off the enemy

In some ways it would be the ideal AI to win if you could have picked it.
Kick up the arse vs Cork
Kick up the arse again - replay
Rehab and fine tune the team - Longford
Armagh - break the hoodoo
etc

I guarantee a big kerry crowd and a great buzz if we get to play Armagh. We will be underdogs with a point to prove as well.

on the money seamus,armagh kerry would be huge,would be nice going in as under dogs,cork kerry semi,no need to say anything,imagine trying to get tickets for a kerry dublin final,scary thought but savage atmosphere.

Ps,i find it hard to comprehend the opinion that kerry fans grow out of supporting the team,i cant get my head around that one,i'm on the road following them 31 years this year and i cant still get enough of it.
i strongly believe in county boards being loyal to the die hards with a loyalty scheme,it would only take about 2 thousand tickes and combined with the club scheme and supporters scheme would ensure all die hard get in for the big day and take the stress out of the last week before all-ireland final day.

[Paulie Walnuts]

bigal said:

:oI couldnt believe my eyes when I saw how little support there was! On the radio this morning there was the suggestion that Kerry fans were voting with their absence on various policies of the management, such as a media ban etc - could this be true? Seems very sudden if it is

Not at all. Downright laziness. Don't worry though, if things take a turn for the better and we get to the quarters and semis, the "waiting for the final" excuse will be back out. I hate that one the most

[seamus]

I agree Kerrygold but i pick up that vibe around the county. People want to be entertained rather than going to drive on their team to victory. Remember the q-final vs roscommon a couple of years ago? You could count the green and gold jersies in the crowd.

[nedeenbnn]

A few things to comment on in relation to the Kerry supporters - please take alot of these as questions rather than bona fide comments.

The standard of Gaelic Football this season (not only by Kerry) is so poor that it is difficult to go to any inter-county matches - going to watch 13/15 men behind the ball is to all intent and puposes rugby league / union (and at least they have a proper tackle). I've said it before if I want to watch competitive games I can watch a Junior match on a Friday night and possibly get more enjoyment. I go to inter-county games expecting to see something different, a bit of class - something that gives me excitement.

I think that presently Kerry football is betraying its old ways of playing an caid. We seem intent on passing the ball from sideline to sideline - the good old fashioned punt kick seems to have been lost somewhere. One of the biggest culprits (and I may be laced for suggesting this) is Seamus a kerry legend - but he (he's not alone mind!) slows up the game so much by handpassing rather than kicking the ball - count the amount of times the man kicks the ball in a game! Under the Bogdog (P.O'Shea) we played what in soccer terms amounted to "wingers" whose key role was to deliver quick ball into the full forward line - now we have what are known as workers - I'm sorry but anyone who puts on a Kerry jersey (or any inter-*y jersey for that matter) should be at the very least a worker! Can we put a bit of skill and speed into our half forward line rather than relying on defensive-minded half-forwards (maybe I'm living in an ideal world).

We should go back to our attacking style of football - it drew crowds, plaudits and lest we forget All-Irelands! People mention Armagh and Tyrone - but amazing how even in sport - that the history books are written by the winners. We kicked four awful wides at the start of the second half that let Armagh back into the game - we should have stuffed them at that stage playing some great football but we lost and ... all of a sudden we can't handle the Northern teams. Against Tyrone again at the start of the second half we brought it back to six then Declan blazed over the bar when it was perhaps easier to score a goal which would have bought it back to three - all to play for with 25 minutes left and ... now definitely we can't handle the Northern teams. Last year we were just downright poor and this malaise has continued.

Please let's start paying the Kerry game, the Kerry style that we all know and love, the style that the country expect and that we here in Kerry demand - just like any product if the quality of the product on offer is not what we want then we stop buying the product!

Do we simply follow Kerry blindly? Do we follow Kerry for what it stands for? Has Kerry's values changed? If they have does this mean as a supporter that I have to change my values too?

And the last thing, do we honestly think that there will be more than ten thousand Kerry people at the match against Armagh in Croke Park on the Saturday of the Bank Holiday. I don't even want to contemplate defeat in Killarney

[kerryman]

Some good points above lads, but don't lose the run of ourselves just yet. No point in even thinking about Armagh and Cork in the latter stages. We are an out of sorts team with poor support. The best we can do is try to pressurise every Kerry person we know into showing up at the Longford match. The team and management needs a very large and vocal support on that day to make headway. That includes not cheering when a player is subbed.

[eastciarrai]

I think there should be a system to reward the loyal fan for his support, a ticket or card you swipe when you get to a game (not just some guy buying a ticket and not then not going). I met two girls up at the tyrone game last year who had never been to a kerry game and have no family members who even play. I would'nt like to discourage them from going to big games because you got to start somewhere and we need all the support we can gather but just to give the more loyal supporter first preference. Incidently I know you'r all great kerry football supporters but this is our county gaa site and we have a hurling team aswell that does'nt get any big crowds. I wonder if anyone has seen all there league and championship games for the last ten years not that theres many but they really are tough to watch.

[mattie500]

It is refreshing to see some of the comments here. Nedeenbnn.... you make some very good points that could be applied to the game of football in general. It is the circumstances teams find themselves in that dictates the way the game is played. If a team puts 13 men behind the ball then the opposition will try and do the same. How do you play against a team that 3rd man tackles all the time and blocks the runner.... you do the same. The problem is with the GAA and their implementation of rules as they stand. They brought in that stupid tick/black book rule which if applied correctly means that after 3 fouls and you are off. Do not see that being implemented too much and it slows down the game anyway. Niall Barrett.... the referee from Cork implemented the rules as they should have been a few years ago and got hung out to dry. If he was supported.... we would have a better spectacle to watch now and the crowds would be entertained. Passion is entertaining but skill is what we all want to see. Colm Cooper gathering a ball and throwing 2 dummies before planting the ball over the bar or James Masters taking an accurate pass from 30 yards before landing a point from 35 yards.....all without someone hanging off their backs. Football is deteriorating into a rugby league type game and every year the rules are becoming a grey area.

[Hoffster]

I'm after reading the thread from start to finish and have a few things to add.

1.) The support the last day was abysmal.So county board need to step up to the mark and reward the fans that make all the sacrifices.I travelled from Dublin to Kerry on the sat. then kerry to cork and back to dublin. total 380 miles.I'm obviously not the only one.The amount of lads from home that used to go to every game home and away and now don't bother is unbelievable. So why are they not travelling??

-Ticket prices are a factor.€20 euro into the terrace on sunday with no provisions for students.This is surely a factor, every other sporting event in this country allows discounts for students.
-The diversity of events in this country.Every 2nd week there is a concert in the country.
Weekend of drawn game was Oxygen(tickets €60 a day)
This weekend is Killarney summerfest and Billy Joel.
Next month sees the Marley park gigs
In the 96-2002 period where everyone is saying crowds were up, you had Slane and maybe witness.

-Standard of football has definitely decreased over the years i feel. In 96-2002 how many points would Kerry kick from beyond 30-35 yards,especially the half forwards?? Liam Hasset, Noel Kennelly, Sean O Sullivan, Aodhan macGearailt are a few to name that were well able to score from distance.Obviously due to our northern brethern and the evolving of half forward to be less of a scorer and more of a ball carrier,the ability to kick from long range is now secondary.

Finally..the fans on this site need to stop having a go at each other, whether they travelled or not to cork whether they cheered or not.The fans on this site are obviously dedicated and care enough for them to spend time posting daily.

[nicoshea]

i think the lack of support is going to go against us if we continue the way we are. we should not just be supporting the team wheb the are playing weel, but also when they are playing not so well,. if anything they need the support more when they are playing badly. im not going to claim to have been at every championship and league match, coz i havent due to weddings, communions, christenings etc....

but have always supported my team in every way i popssibly can...

and finally hoffster i agree with you re fans on site not having a go at eachother, i just dont like been told, that my team could do without support like mine etc.etc.etc

[RashersTierney]

>:(Sometimes a good crisis is just what an older team needs to focus the minds, draw everybody together as "us against the world" and re-ignite the hunger & the fire ;D

[Admin]

Moved post...


lack of support for Kerry Teams
Post by arsenalbabe on Today at 3:28

It is not only the Kerry Senior Team who are lacking our support.
What about our Minors, U-21's, Juniors etc;

However fools like me are die hard supporters, who work from year to year for the pride we have in Kerry Football, yet we are the ones who will be begging for tickets come All-Ireland day.

I believe Kerry will be there, and am sick to death of listening to unfounded rumours of the Team not pulling together etc;

Why not let the County board, and the appointed trainers get on with it,and instead of whinging get behind them & support thrm.

Chiarrai Abu.