Where next for the Eircom League?

Hello, I’m Paddy and I will be helping Wayne here on the Ireland blog. I blog over at the Deportivo la Coruna blog too, so drop us a line if you like what you read.

The Eircom League is just around the corner but it seems to be in more financial difficulty than ever, Drogheda are lucky still to be alive, Sligo Rovers lost their top-class manager Paul Cook due to lack of money for signings and Bohemians players have accepted reduced contracts. As well as this it is easy to remember the downfall of Shelbourne, Cork City’s problems of a few years ago, and Limerick FC having to declare bankruptcy and rebrand themselves as Limerick 37.

Turn the clock back a few years ago and things were looking bright, Shelbourne pushed Spanish giantsDeportivo La Coruna all the way in their Champions League qualifier a few years back, and Cork City knocked Djurgarden out of the UEFA Cup. The clubs were able to sign relatively star signings such as Cameroon international Joseph Ndo and Dave Rogers. Those days are long over however.

Shelbourne’s fall from grace has been spectacular, they seemed to do a Leeds United on it, spending way out of their means and when they didnt get the success they craved they were forced to get rid of their players and slid back through the divisions. However it seemed as if no lessons were learned and Drogheda Utd embarked on a similiar devil may care journey that ended with league success but with massive debts and even had to prove to the high court in the past few weeks that they are still financially viable and have restructured their debts.

How was all this allowed to happen, you may ask. Well it is my opinion that The Celtic Tiger, that is the name given to the economic growth in Ireland over the last 15 years to the unitiated, is to blame. Loans were given out by the banks willy nilly, that had no real chance of getting repaid and when the banks called for their money back, the clubs couldnt pay up leaving many of them in a mess. Soccer clubs are far from the only sector hit by this problem either as many builders will testify.

One must wonder to is Ireland able to host a professional sports league too. The largest sports organisation in the country is completely voluntary and amateur, but it is far from amateur in its running, and I believe the FAI should follow this model rather than the Rosenborg model that they have so often championed. That is not to say the players shouldnt be rewarded for their efforts, they should have all their expenses paid, given a holiday at the end of the season and maybe a small appearence fee, but I for one do not believe that Ireland is capable of holding a professional soccer league, particularly when it is far from the most popular sport on the isle.

Finally I often thought would a Celtic League style competition be beneficial, that is to say a league comprised of 4 provinical teams from Ireland and Wales and the same number of teams from the SPL, possibly leaving Celtic and Rangers out. It has worked wonders for rugby and I daresay it would work a treat in the soccer arena too.