sporting fingal finished.

Listen to Sport At 7 tonight on RTÉ Radio One where Tony O'Donoghue will have the latest on the future of Sporting Fingal.

The players of League of Ireland premier division side Sporting Fingal have been told by the club that their contracts have been terminated.

The 2009 FAI Ford Cup holders, who have only been in existence since 2007, were due to play Lisburn Distillery on Monday in the Setanta Sports Cup but they have now withdrawn from the competition.

Thirteen players are currently under contract with the north Dublin club and future participation in the Airtricity League of Ireland is now seriously in doubt.

A statement from the PFAI expressed its disappointment that contracts, some of which have been signed very recently, are not being honoured.

The organising committee of the Setanta Sports Cup have confirmed that Sporting Fingal have withdrawn from the competition and will be replaced by UCD.

The Students will now face Lisburn Distillery in the First Round First Leg fixture that had initially been scheduled to take place between Sporting Fingal and the Irish League club on Monday, 14 February.

Sporting Fingal are reported to be releasing a statement on the matter later this evening.



How can they go bust so quickly

One word. NAMA

The next thing we'l hear is that Rovers are in bother and their trasurer is after doing in the few quid they had betting without at the races and Shelbourne of a Saturday night.Seriously though ,any business no matter what it is that produces a poor product is always going to struggle.This is only the start of it propably,there will be more to follow

Yeah but their treasurer will get it back this Saturday [;)]

Pats fans happy. Should replace them in Europe. The least they deserved after the season they had.
Hopefully Monaghan will replace them. Also fully deserved.

SatelliteFlight Joined: 06 May 10
Replies: 7407 09 Feb 11 19:16   
Yeah but their treasurer will get it back this Saturday

actually probably got it back last night

I wish wr was their treasurer sf.

robo thats why the gaa will never go pro ...nobody would pay to watch ....every gaa club in ireland would be broke in about 2 years son....stick to what you know  ...kerry the start and finish of poor robos world....

Workrider.......It's not free into GAA matches....it's the same price into a junior B match as a loi match......stick to what you know......even your mate rocketfingers wouldn't come out with that statement.

robo thats why the gaa will never go pro ...nobody would pay to watch


[smiley:crazy]

Very sad news indeed. They played some good stuff and they achieved a huge amount in a short space of time.

Ya wonky,80 euro to get into the All Ireland at Croke Park with a capacity of 80,000 +.Couldn't get a ticket for love nor money,yet the FAI left the bowsies that follow soccer in this country ,into the Aviva for a tenner just to create an atmosphere at their showcase final.Even at a tenner they couldn't fill it,a tenner for gods sake.They were giving that for a program on All Ireland day,maybe next year if they leave people in for nothing then they may fill it,but propably not

gantoo, bjg . the point i'm making is if the gaa  CLUBS    had to pay their players TO PLAY FOR THEM ON A WEEKLY BASIS ...i dont think the AVERAGE gaa club would survive ... simple as.. its easy to come on here and knock soccer in ireland ...its a totally differant set of values ...soccer is a WORLD GAME PLAYED BY MOSTLY PROFESSIONAL TEAMS .the gaa on the other hand is a amateur game..like any businness its the expences that count ..most of a soccer clubs money goes on players wages ..were as the gaa have the luxury of not having to pay players .. plus for a nation of such a small population its amazing that soccer it still right up there with most other sports on this island...the amount of young kids playing soccer is a testimony to that....

Look Sporting Fingal were not establised club i thought they would last 5 years and then bang, so they have gone quicker than i thought. All they had was a big backer they had no fan base as such as they were only a new club. It's not a surprise, they were all full time professionals and this would have been their 4th year i think?

Galway Utd might make it into Europe this year so

Shame to see them depart workrider, they were a good side.

thats  true rocket in a nutshell .. their backer is in big trouble ...sadly they will disappear but what a wonderful and vibrant life they had .. we never beat them either...

ye we will have a better chance of beating monaghan next year[;)],are you heading out to leopardstown on saturday workrider?im heading out hope to see you there

Fingal were a disaster waiting to happen.

Whole thing was built on sand.

I seen B356 still have game against Shels priced up for tomorrow evening. Thought we might have a bet to get on, but match cancelled.

All they did was keep decent well run clubs out of the Premier League imo for a few years

workrider
Date Joined: 29 Jun 02 Add contact | Send message When: 09 Feb 11 22:46 thats  true rocket in a nutshell .. their backer is in big trouble ...sadly they will disappear but what a wonderful and vibrant life they had .. we never beat them either...
"wonderful & vibrant".......built on a load of Bo11ox...all have a gr8 time for a few years and then fall in a heap for a zillion......sounds a bit like the wonderful and vibrant (ex) Irish economy

sorry if the truth upset you 100,000.while they were in the loi they did what no other team did in such a short space of time ....

You're missing the point WR - their achievements were due to the artifical level of funding
they receievd vis-á-vis other LOI teams; easy to be a success when you have most of the league's
experienced "generals" gathered on Gerry Gannon's lawn...

... i have to agree with you steering on that one...the point is you have to do the business no matter who you have backing or for that matter playing for you ,look at rooney ,or man city ...buckley at very short notice put together a very good team who came from no were ...they played good football and showed what is possible with the right backing and right management ...of course it was going to end in tears but thats not the point.. the point is that while they were in loi they did themselves proud imo...

I will agree with you that they played a very tidy brand of ball; as a neutral, I thought their late defeat of S/R made the closing stages of the last season very exciting.

Why would Monaghan replace them? The rule states the next highest league placing gets the place. Thats Waterford. The play-off has no relevance..

Well that would make a joke of the play offs tbh.
I couldn`t argue with your rule reference.

The Blues will go bust if they replace them; WUFC's LT interests are better-served by another season in Div. 1;
getting the off-the-field finances is THE critical factor; in particular, if they were to ironically replace a S/F side who
have regrettably gone to the wall.

bad day for me steering i can assure you ..great one for giant though...you cant blame the team on the financial meltdown ...monaghan will go up i think ericthered...

"Well that would make a joke of the play offs tbh." True but that dosn't mean it couldn't happen Giant. Galway got promoted once after a play-off they weren't even in!

That`s the LOI in a nutshell!
Monaghan and Waterford will get in if we don`t get our act together. We were expecting rent from SF that is another blow we could have done without.
wr what are you on about? A great day for me!?

wr not having a go, just think loi keeps shooting itself in the foot with cases like this........what happened to the great financial clean up model john delaney espoused a few years ago......think hes a spoofer tbh......loi clubs need to build properly and slowly a la wexford youths

onehundredk..fair enough ...re the fai and clubs cleaning up their act .. i honestly think that most clubs have in fact cleaned up their act ...unfortunately some others are still trying to bluff their way through ..as we all know money talks as those clubs who
are prudent will survive and sadly those who dont will die.
giant ..your shouts of joy as we stood shell shocked at the final whistle of that game ...woke the ghosts of milltown ...

You`re some clown wr.
I can accept petty jibes/criticism from any clubs fans, except from those of a club who was saved from extinction by the skin of your #ocks and a lenient judge. Cop on.

boy oh boy we are angry ...you my lad would want to keeping hoping the judge is still in good humour then....

Aaron Greene signed for Sligo today. Hopefully he`ll come back to haunt you again.

wonky's posts do contain a large percentage of comedy value. i treat them with disdain. wouldn't take them seriously. think the guy belongs on the stage!!

ken o man signed for us today i'd be more worried he'd haunt us ...

Dundalk just signed Greg Bolger,decent signing imo.

who did he play for punkha 1.

Sporting Fingal cease operations

Thursday, 10 February 2011 18:46
The Directors of Sporting Fingal FC have confirmed that the club has withdrawn its application for a licence from the FAI to participate in the upcoming 2011 Airtricity League season.

This decision was taken after funding targets integral to
the club's continued existence were not reached during the off-season.

Efforts to secure vital funding have been ongoing since the departure of Benefactor Gerry Gannon at the end of last season and, while this process yielded investors and backers, the failure to secure a particular key sponsor at an advanced stage of negotiations last week necessitated a revision of the club's business plan.

The closeness of this set-back to the club's opening game of the
season, next Monday in the Setanta Sports Cup, hastened the
requirement to source an alternative revenue stream.

Unfortunately, this objective was not achieved within the requisite timeframe.

It is therefore with much disappointment that the club is left with no option but to cease trading after three seasons in the League of Ireland.

Accordingly, the club's signed players are automatically
released from their contracts and can sign for other clubs as free
agents.

Liam Buckley, Director of Football with Sporting Fingal, said: 'I am
devastated for all involved with Sporting Fingal, players, staff,
fans, volunteers, directors etc, that we have been forced to bring the Sporting Fingal project to a premature end.

'Finding a replacement for our supportive backer was always going to be a major challenge but we were pleased with the progress made.

'Sadly, the suddenness and timing of last week's sponsorship set-back sent us back to the drawing board, a predicament we were simply unable to overcome so close to the season kick-off.

'The core aim from the outset of Sporting Fingal's creation in 2007
was to develop a club with a particular emphasis on using sport as a vehicle for community gain within the Fingal area.

'That commitment to community development was demonstrated through the various initiatives associated with the club such as the Community Trust, partnership with the North Dublin SL, third-level scholarship agreements with DCU and ITB as well as the establishment of the Sporting Fingal Special Olympics team, the Sporting Fingal Power Wheelchair team and the bestowal by the FAI of a Football for All status on the club.

'Our success on the pitch, especially winning the 2009 FAI Ford Cup and participating in last year's UEFA Europa League, was testament to the dedication and resilience of the players.'

John O'Brien, Secretary of Sporting Fingal, said: 'It is a very sad
day, but we simply ran out of time. We are especially disappointed for everyone who has backed the project and those who have put so much into the club - the players, management, coaching and office staff, volunteers, our supporters, our partners in the North Dublin Schoolboy League, our sponsors, the FAI who have been most helpful to us from the outset and everyone who has contributed to the initiative.

'We set out to be a different kind of football club in our approach to the development of the Sporting Fingal, and I believe that we achieved that.'

played with fingal workrider.

now that is sad ...thanks for the memories ......

If you drive north up out of Dublin once you hit Whitehall (where Home Farm used to play) the next LoI club you meet is Drogheda Utd. Think of it, all of north Dublin, the whole north county Dublin right out to Portmarnock has basically NO LoI club to support or identify with. So all of north Dublin has to come right into Tolka or Dalyer if they wanted to support a LoI club.
Sporting Fingal had some right idea, i.e. to get some footie 'goodwill' in the north Dublin area. But going to play in that Morton Stadium that has as much atmosphere as Glasnevin Cemetery (btw: I dont think any move to Dalymount Park would have helped them either) it's a pity they couldn't have set up a base in north Dublin tho' I heard Lusk was mentioned as a base.
But in saying that you'd wonder about the LoI.... I attended a game lately, a very good junior side, big provincial town who had qualified for the FAI Cup third round. Against a senior LoI side there were as many around the pitch that were on the pitch, one time this particular town would have filled their ground once a senior LoI side was coming to visit. Is the whole senior league set-up as a spectator sport gone? How many were Pats getting in their years of winning the League at the then named "Stadium of Light"? People from what I see only want to go to see a winning team.
Back to Sporting Fingal...why did the experiment end? One reason up above, the whole idea of the senior league as a spectator sport seems to be gone. Are there too many Dublin clubs? All in the Premier Division!? Meanwhile the First Division masquerading as a senior division but most clubs barely one step up from junior football - well it's practically junior stuff (kick and run - I've seen it) they play and awfully difficult to get out of.
In ways you know, it should have worked, a good manager (LB) but dependent on gate money, a benefactor who couldnt last the pace and then sponsorship, I wonder did the move to Dalymount affect any potential sponsor's decision?
I dont know now about LoI....... We've had the big revamp some years ago and so on, summer footie - it helped the European-bound clubs-that's all.
I think we're back to the drawing board again.

thanks punkha1 , cmon the town ,thats a very good synopsis ...i think your point about there been to may dublin based clubs is a little off the mark though ...soccer struggles down the country tbh..as in your example ...the rest of your post is very realistic..

This is bad news for association football in Ireland. Fingal were a progressive operation albeit run by a man with enormous development debts.

Santry was a very good poster and somebody who attended Fingals games - wonder does he have any thoughts on the clubs demise?

Fingal were a progressive operation.....

Can you explain that statement please. Maybe I missed something the last 3 years.

Were they not trying to spread the soccer gospel on the Northside? Buckley had some good ideas, played good football etc. Don't you think?

There already 2 teams in the Northside of Dublin.

They played good football sometimes. Think that that was over emphasised in comparison with some of the rubbish being played by other teams in the league.

Fingal were the ultimate short story of boom and bust. Its a poor reflection on the FAI that this happened on their watch. The League of Ireland only came under the wing of the FAI a few years back and Fingal were formed, put in the league, promoted, won the FAI cup and went bust all in an extraordinarily short period of time when 'licensing' was the John Delaney buzzword.

Fingal join the list of clubs that have won trophies in recent years only to find themselves unable to continue paying the wages that won them the trophies.

Bohs, Shels, Longford, Drogheda, Cork, Derry and now Fingal all won major trophies in the last five years and have ended up deep in the manure or out of Premier Division football since. 

The whole setup is a false economy until the player salaries reflect each club's income.

The too many clubs in Dublin/Leinster argument doesn't wash. Where are the better teams and clubs to replace them? There is a structure for new clubs to come in to the league via the A Championship. This has resulted in 2 sides from Galway propping up the First Division. Kildare County and Kilkenny both came and went in the last few years.   

As for driving past Whitehall etc... North Dublin can go and watch Shels and Bohs, or cross the city and watch Pats UCD or Rovers. Or its really not that far to Drogheda up the M50 if you have an aversion to travelling south. Spare me the tears of the deprived auld northsiders!

Morton Stadium was a hell hole to watch football in. Fingal were always better to watch playing away from that windtunnel.

As a dedicated Fingal supporter I am in a near state of shock with speed at which everything caved in . The team played Phoenix in a pre season match last saturday morning and it looked as if the season was going ahead. The club had a meeting with the supporters about 3 weeks ago and the message was reasonably positive. We had scaled back but sponsors and funding had been secured and they felt we could field a competitive squad.
It now appears some of these commitments were not delivered upon.Probably in hindsight it would have been best if things happened a little slower for us.We were building a good solid support base but not fast enough.
I largely agree with points made above re the relationship between income and expenditure in clubs is way out of line and we need to go back to a part time or amatuer set up. The numbers coming though the gates dont support full time football.
I do believe in the future there is a market for a LOI team in North Dublin.The appeal of Fingal to me was it was a family club,we all know each other and there was no rowdiness or vile language shouted at players and the passing football we played was very appealing.

Gone but not forgotten.Some great memories and Rovers never beat us WR.

santry i said that on another thread about us never beating ye... sad imo whats happened ..hopefully the club can rise again ...i wish you and sporting fingal all the best in the future...

As a matter of interest, are you a season ticket holder and if you are, would you (or your friends)attend Bohs games if we honoured them?

Robo ....you watch your mouth...their "teasurer" as you call him happens to be my best mate. now go back to your hedge you Fianna Fail fool

GS.I had a season ticket for the last two seasons but had yet to yet to get one for this season. On the general question of Fingal fans getting involved with a different Northside club we have discussed it over the last few days and we have a meeting next week. Two problems may arise 1.What I said above re family atmosphere and 2.Would we be welcome at another club.

Very sad to hear the news Santry, you were a great side whenever I saw you play against us.

Giant makes an excellent point there.

The reason why I ask Santry is that the idea has been mooted this week.
They major argument for, being that you/your friends are exactly the type of people we should be targeting, ie. people who love the game and get off their asses to follow a team in the flesh week in week out.
You be certainly welcomed. One of the biggest Bohs fans I know started life as a Shels fan, and changed allegiance when Shels were beginning to win trophies in the 90s! As regards family atmosphere you can only judge that for yourself by sampling it. There are lots of kids involved in underage teams and many attend on matchdays.
Thanks for replying.

Thanks sof. They were certainly entertaining and we could have done with them hanging around and beating Rovers some more!

GS.As I said the idea has been mooted in general phone call type contacts among ourselves. We have a meeting next week and I will know more of the general mood then. I think we are still in the early stages of the grieving process. What might be a factor is were our players go. I know Bohs are short of quality players but unfortunately short of cash as well.

santry ..be very carefull with those 2  bohs lads...from what i'm hearing bohs could revert to their former status in the near future ... .. on a more serious note giant /sof..is it true pat has been looking at other posts recently ....?

Sorry to see your club go Santry never nice to see fans lose their football team !

Another good signing for Dundalk today in Colin Hawkins,squad really starting to take shape and we're looking decent for next season.
Whats the latest Giant do you reckon you'll be ok for a license etc?

punkha 1 i'm starting to think you're building a very strong squad indeed... have ye got a big backing from some were ?

I was going to ask the same thing punkha. Where`s the new cash coming from?
My sources tell me we`ll be ok for licensing, but the`re slightly biased! Crunch time this week.

That seems a reasonable course of action Santry.
Would be a shame for the LOI to lose real fans.

No guys our board has been pretty strict with our wage structure but our good crowds & european revenue has helped things.Season ticket sales are ahead of this time last year.
Not sure if you've heard but we have a new youth development centre which runs the length of the pitch just behind the shed which along with indoor pitches,gym etc also has bar & events facilities which is a steady revenue for the club.
Shaun Maher also signed subject to passing medical so while we held out in not paying big bucks the sudden demise of Fingal looks like it worked out well for us picking up Bolger,Hawkings & Maher for prob a lot less than the contracts they were on at SF.

Giant that is not a good signing mate he has bad knees

I didn`t say anything about good signings Rf!?
Sounds like you`re moving in the right direction so punkha. You need to make Oriel a fortress again though if you have any pretensions to winning the league. Talk soon.

where's that ape Robo now?

Fingal wont be the only team going under! Wr. You would want to be winning the league or else you wont be throwing many more contracts around like confetti!

€546,500: FAI slash League prize money
Clubs left facing huge shortfall as FAI slash League prize money

STRUGGLING Airtricity League clubs received another blow yesterday as the FAI slashed the prize money for the 2011 season.

The total prize pot available to Premier Division clubs has been reduced from €700,000 last year to €223,500, while First Division clubs will play for €91,000 -- down from €161,000. This means a combined drop between the two divisions of €546,500.

The League winners will claim €100,000 instead of the €200,000 Shamrock Rovers pocketed last year when they ended their 16- year wait for the title.

The reductions are on a sliding scale, with the teams finishing eighth, ninth and 10th claiming €5,000 each instead of between €40-42,000 last year.

The First Division top team will also have their pot halved from €50,000 to €25,000, while the FAI Cup winners will receive €50,000 -- down from €60,000. The EA Sports Cup winners will get €10,000.

In the week that saw Sporting Fingal go to the wall, it was also confirmed in a press statement that the clubs' Promotion Officer programme would no longer be part-funded by the FAI.

The statement released yesterday made no mention of the €50,000 the clubs previously received for live television coverage which was part of the prize fund.

The clubs were left with the solace that, "travel grants, match official expenses, supply of official match balls, and television exposure via the RTE 'MNS' highlights programme will all continue as in previous years".

- Ruaidhri O'Connor

Irish Independent

Sorry Giant meant punkha, Hawkins has serious knee trouble.

Shaun Maher had a lot of injuries last season. Colin Hawkins only was with us some of last season but was a big hit with the fans and good leadership qualities on the pitch. Best of luck to both lads.

Anyone know whats happening with naming a reolacement? Thought there was a meetong yesterday.

Drogheda United will play in the Airtricity league Premier division this coming season replacing Sporting Fingal

Licences awarded for 2011 Season
Press Release
Mon, Feb 14 2011
Following a meeting of the Independent Club Licensing Committee of the Football Association of Ireland, 14 Premier Division licences, 5 First Division licences and 1 conditional First Division licence were awarded.

Galway United were refused a Premier Licence for failure to fulfil the financial criteria as set down in the Club Licensing manual. The club were awarded an “A” Championship Licence.

Limerick FC were awarded a conditional First Division Licence. The committee requested the club to provide security regarding the financial commitments outlined in their budget as presented as part of the Licensing process. The club must comply with this request by close of business on Thursday 17th February in order to receive a licence.

In addition, four “A” Championship licenses were also awarded.
Clubs have five working days from the date of the decision notice to lodge an appeal.

Independent Cub Licensing Committee – 2011 Licences ;
Premier Licence
Bohemian FC, Bray Wanderers FC, Cork City FC, Derry City FC, Drogheda United FC , Dundalk FC, Monaghan United FC, Shamrock Rovers FC, Shelbourne FC, Sligo Rovers FC, St Patrick's Athletic FC, UCD AFC, Athlone Town FC, Longford Town FC

First Division Licence
Mervue United FC, Wexford Youths FC, Salthill Devon FC, Waterford United, Finn Harps FC, Limerick FC (Conditional)

A Championship Licence
Cobh Ramblers FC, Galway United FC, Fanad United FC, FC Carlow, Tralee Dynamos FC