My idea for a new &#102;ormat for the league of Ireland

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 6:23pm

Some excellent ideas Mad

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Shoco

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 6:43pm

MF, please explain how the relegation/promotion would work if you had two regionalised divisions below the premier?

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 6:49pm

Denis Irwin wrote:

No promotion/relegation in the MLS or A League

MLS doesn't DI because of the franchise structure, i.e., you buy your way to success to set up a Club as opposed to the rest of the World that is normally based on merit (albeit sometimes using a very loose interpretation of that term, i.e., see Russia, Oil, Caucasus Politics & FC Anzhi Machiavellian).

I suspect (and it's only wild speculation) that with further expansion the MLS will eventually go to a three Conference (East, West and Central) structure which may allow for a very limited promotion/relegation facility into the future*, tho the exact criteria may in large part be decided by what revenues you are producing and less about "product" on the pitch.

There is a genuine pyramid structure however below MLS, and that sub-structure (NASL & USL & PDL where many MLS sides have reserve teams) works quite well. In fact, several ex-LOI lads (six currently afaik) are making a living from it.

Apologies for going off-topic somewhat but MLS is something of an aberration and not really comparable with anywhere else. Not sure about the A-League tho Thumbs Up

* Holding Banister and arse-cheeks tightly. Stopped. Self. Using. Term. "Going-forward".

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 6:59pm

Shoco wrote:

MF, please explain how the relegation/promotion would work if you had two regionalised divisions below the premier?

How difficult would it be? Two up, two down or a playoff between the two regional winners and one down. This would obviously affect relegation from the regional leagues, with one team being unlucky due to geography

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:02pm

Large away support from Cork? Not a chance there.

'The younger generation as in 17 -25 are certainly gayer than their predecessors. I think they may cause the extinction of the human race with their activities.'- Baldrick

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:06pm

pre Madonna wrote:

Shoco wrote:

MF, please explain how the relegation/promotion would work if you had two regionalised divisions below the premier?

But explain exactly how it works? If cork finish bottom how can they be replaced from a team from the northern division?

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:07pm

From the Sun
ATHLONE TOWN have called for the League of Ireland to be restructured along MLS lines.

On the eve of the FAI’s AGM in Sligo – at which Declan Conroy’s review will be discussed, ahead of a final report next month – Athlone have called for the scrapping of the First Division.

Athlone – who made an immediate return to the division after a single season in the top flight last year - said: “Relegation from the Premier Division is more than just a realignment of teams based on their playing strength.

“The drop has become too severe a punishment in terms of club finances, local and national interest in the club, and very tellingly in the media.

“The division is simply not fit for purpose. There is no getting away from the fact there is little interest in the competition.

“In our opinion it would be better for the league to have no relegation even though many would feel it would lead to more dead rubber games with teams at the bottom of the league having little or nothing to play for.”

With the midlanders fifth in the eight-team division, Alan Mathews' side have only an outside chance of reaching the promotion play-offs.

And their statement added: “The club feels that in order to solve this problem we should look to leagues like the MLS.

“What we suggest is to have all teams at the same level, but split the league into two conferences, in a manner that is identical to the current MLS format.

“That league has become very successful in what is a tough sports market.

“Like the MLS Irish teams would play every other team in their respective conference on a home and away basis. A third round of games would be played against the teams in the same conference on a half at home half away basis.

“At the end of each regular season the top two, three or four sides could play off in knockout games for the overall league title. Last seasons winner-takes-all tie between Cork City and Dundalk really boosted the profile of the league.

“Having such a final every season would, we accept not be to the liking of all, but surely it is better than the current state of affairs.

“Relegation battles would be consigned to the past, but we believe that the scramble for survival does nothing for the clubs involved, nor does it attract more fans/media interest.

“What is important is that the powers that be need to start a process that will help long established clubs, like ours, not just survive but thrive.”

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:09pm

Just google what they do for the conference in England, it is really quite simple

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:22pm

I support the idea of a 20 team league in principal, but getting rid of relegation will leave over half the teams in it with nothing to play for from June on wards.

AI league is the only way domestic football in this country will ever move to the next level IMO

"Sometimes, sh*t happens, someone's gotta deal with it, and who ya gonna call?"

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:23pm

It Seems to suggest that if more teams get relegated to a regional league than get promoted out of it, then the team closest to the north south border switches divisions to keep the numbers right, seems unfair on them to me

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:26pm

A play off system for the championship is the only way an expanded league will work.

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:31pm

Shoco wrote:

It Seems to suggest that if more teams get relegated to a regional league than get promoted out of it, then the team closest to the north south border switches divisions to keep the numbers right, seems unfair on them to me

As I said, one team is liable to be unlucky but it is for the greater good

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:33pm

Shoco wrote:

MF, please explain how the relegation/promotion would work if you had two regionalised divisions below the premier?

Fairly straightforward really. Draw a line on the map, lets for now use the divide as the Liffey river to Galway on the west Coast for example.

Your new Premier League will be proposed as 10 teams. To establish that, you might use two "lead-in" seasons for the current 12 team Premier (no relegation for those two seasons). The top 10 sides with the best aggregate points over those two "Special" seasons would compose the first Virgin debut Irish Premier Division. That's your starting point Shoco.

Now currently we have 20 clubs (12 + 8). So 10 clubs , who won't qualify for that initial Premier Division, will need a home. But we will also need an additional 6 Clubs. Why? Well, to make up the 16 teams that are required for two sub-leagues (Northern B lets call it of 8 teams and Southern B lets call it of 8 teams).

I do accept with this theory that attracting those 6 additional Clubs that would be able to demonstrate some likelihood of sustainability into the future could be very problematic but we could say the exact same about the current system also - i.e. see Bray's woes this week, Limerick's next week etc...

However, if the idea of a new well structured, sustainable and regionalised pyramid League is convincingly sold to local football, community and business interests in sizeable poulation centres then I believe we would be able to recruit that additional 6 Clubs from the likes Tralee, Navan, Ennis, Cashillbar, etc

So each of those 16 Clubs would be then designated to either the Northern or Southern sub-league depending on that geographical line I mentioned above.

The bottom two Clubs (bear with me) in the Premier would be relegated each season, one to each sub-league depending on their geographical location. So for example if Limerick & Drogheda finished 9th & 10th they would be relegated with Limerick dropping to Southern B, Drogheda to Northern B.

But it would not be enough to simply have one side promoted from each sub-league, because imo that would lead to alot of dead-rubber games between the other non-promoted sides in the Northern & Southern sub-leagues.

So you do what is done very successfully the World over (Scots Championship would be a near example), and you take the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, & 5th placed Clubs in each of the sub-leagues and put them into a play-off process where 2nd plays 5th and 3rd meets 4th.

The winning Club that then emerges from that process would meet the side that is nearest geographically to them that has finished either 7th or 8th in the Premier Division in a two-leg play-off.

That has two desired outcomes. Firstly, it maintains, as far as is practicable, an equal number of Northern & Southern Clubs in each of the constituent divisions. You could, I do accept, have the occasional situation where two of the Clubs finishing 7th & 8th may be geographically very close to each other, i.e., Bohs and Shels, where you are practically using a compass to decide definitively what club is higher or lower latitudinally. But it would work.

The second desired outcome would be that you would maintain interest for virtually all Clubs in the country right until the final day of the season, i.e., every club would have something to play for meaning few clubs would "ride" the season out in meaningless fixtures as is the case currently at the foot of the First Division. What motivation is there for example for Waterford Utd to bother their holes at the moment apart from keeping Roddy in new suits?

I have tried to explain that best I can without getting into charts & diagrams etc. The above may not be perfect. It's top of the head stuff, but it's far damn better proposal than the current mess or any other proposal I've heard. The alternative is to do what we do best; criticise from the ditch, stand still and watch our league wither into complete irrelevance.

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:36pm

I've just seen whilst I was typing that pM has more or less managed to explain my idea in less than two sentences Embarrassed

It would be a fitting tribute before my ultimate demise if I was sympathetically removed forthwith to the "Who talks the most shíte on Ybig" thread. It is long overdue Cry

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 7:46pm

Are you suggesting a possible 3 or 4 teams promoted? Do the play off winner ears in each division meet each other in a play off or do they both get to play the 7th and 8th teams from the premier?

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 8:00pm

Shoco wrote:

Are you suggesting a possible 3 or 4 teams promoted? Do the play off winner ears in each division meet each other in a play off or do they both get to play the 7th and 8th teams from the premier?

Two teams (9th & 10th in the Premier 10 team league) would be automatically relegated (no play-off reprieve).

2nd, 3rd, 4th, & 5th in EACH sub-league (Northern & Southern) would play against each other in much the same way as the English/Scots championship and a myriad of other World Leagues. 2nd would play 5th as a reward for finishing 2nd. 3rd play 4th. 2nd and 3rd get home advantage, again to act as a performance incentive.

The winner of that 4 team process from EACH sub-league (Northern and Southern) would play in a two-leg play-off against the 7th or 8th placed Premier division side. Who exactly meets who will be determined by simple geography.

Therefore, in summary TWO teams from the 10 team Premier (9th & 10th) would automatically drop down (no relegation play-off) each season. What regional sub-league they go into is determined by simple geography.

Two other sides, i.e., the winners of each Northern & Southern play-off process would play-off against the 7th or 8th placed Premier Division side. Again, the exact pairings for the play-offs are decided by simple geography.

Thought it was a fairly straightforward process meself but then I have the advantage of a peek inside me own head occasionally.

Shoco

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Posted: 17 Jul 2015 at 8:04pm

Would you not think a potential 40% of the premier league being relegated is a bit extreme?

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