LAOIS’ COLM BEGLEY has admitted he’d rather hand home advantage back to Dublin than play them in next year’s Leinster football championship at Nowlan Park.
Experienced half-back Begley said he has nothing against the home of Kilkenny hurling but, if Laois do overcome Wicklow to qualify for a June 4 showdown with the Dubs, he’d rather play at Croke Park.
Begley’s first choice, of course, would have been to play the game in Laois’ own O’Moore Park but Leinster Council officials snubbed the ground at Wednesday evening’s fixtures meeting.
Former AFL player Begley, speaking from Ireland’s Eirgrid International Rules camp at Carton House, said they wasted a ‘massive opportunity’ to promote the game in Laois.
He also questioned why Dublin and either Laois or Wicklow were being taken to a neutral venue for the quarter-final tie and described the entire situation as ‘disappointing’.
Begley said that if he’d known Portlaoise was off the table, he’d have happily handed home advantage back to Dublin and played them at Croke Park.
“I suppose I would, to be honest with you,” said Begley. “We don’t get as many chances to play in Croker any more. It’s the place you want to play in. People talk about Dublin and the crowd but I’d rather play in front of a big crowd than play down in Nowlan Park, if it’s not going to be our home ground.”
Begley said the missed opportunity to promote the game in Laois was particularly galling.
“First of all, it’s a massive opportunity lost, promotion wise,” he continued. “It would have been a big event, the All-Ireland champions coming down to wherever it is, Wicklow or Laois. It’s huge and should be huge.
“Kids see Dublin players, even the kids from Laois, they see Dublin players like Bernard Brogan and they’re role models for them. So to see them coming down and playing against our boys would be massive and it’s gone to Kilkenny now.
“Nothing against Kilkenny’s ground or anything like that, it’s fantastic, but two teams now have to travel for no reason and we’re supposed to have a home game, or Wicklow, are supposed to have a home game.
“I don’t see the benefit of it.”
Meanwhile, Australia’s preparations for the International Rules test have been disrupted by confirmation that their scheduled warm up game against a New York selection has been cancelled.
The star studded Aussie panel are training in the Big Apple and Ireland manager Joe Kernan said he’d planned to have their practice game watched by scouts for vital information.
Fair comment the Gaa are still chasing the money
its because if Wicklow win itll be too small, wicklow could beat Laois, Laois are not a great side
Well done to the player for speaking honestly but I’m becoming weary of this subject. Each time Dublin are scheduled to play in Croke Park we hear about the unfair advantage that Dublin get playing in Croke Park. Then when Dublin play outside of Croke Park, we hear most players saying that they’d rather play in HQ. You’ll nearly feel sorry for the guys that write the fixture list!
That’s not what he said though, he said he wanted to play in Portlaoise, and I doubt you will find any county player who would rather play Dublin outside their home venue.
Dublin playing outside croke Park in championship has not happened since 2006.. This is first article I’ve seen from a potential opponent and your claiming most players say they want to play dublin in croker.. The reason dublin are going outside croke Park is due to other teams feeling it provides an unfair advantage
I hope Wicklow beat Laois.
Plays into Wickla’s hands.
Muaaaashaaaahaaaaaa!!!!!
162-WW-SAM
“I don’t see the benefit of it” you won’t unless you peer into GAA coffers.
They are stocking up on the Dutch gold already in kilkenny Dublin Scobies will wreck the place
You’re a poet Rusty Nuts. A true poet.
You obviously havnt a clue about gaa , dub fans are way more well behaved than some of the animals I’ve seen in croker. And there is more of us what county you from ?
Try the hill Chris.. look on YouTube for videos of dublin fans throwing bottles of urine, abusing other fans and throwing objects..
Funny that ! I was on the hill for the final this year and yes there was bottles thrown and a few fights etc ! All kerry fans btw ! Check YouTube if you don’t believe me !
Wasn’t it Louth fans and a Mayo fan who recently tried to ” have a word with the ref” on the pitch……
Croke park is not Dublin home ground. Parnell park is Dublin ground. Croke Park is GAA HQ. Dublin therefore play all their games away from home.
Really fair comment from Begley, if you have home advantage you should be allowed to have it. Otherwise as he said if he can’t play at home they may as well go to Croker. It would’ve been great to have the Dubs go to either laois or Aughrim. So what about the capacity issues
KK don’t want the Dubs down either!
country people are so welcoming
They sure won’t be turning down all the € that the Dublin fans will be spending in Kilkenny.
Speak for yourself I’d like them to come down
Its the June Bank holiday,will be full of dubs at Cat Laughs anyway
He’s dead right. If fifa allow ireland to play internationals in small capacity grounds like last night, why can’t the gaa let dublin do the same. Dubs are quite happy to play anywhere.
It’s all about €€€€€€€ isn’t it. ..
Because there is a difference between getting in the car and driving for an hour and travelling hundreds of kilometers by airplane. There is no expectation of large away side travel for last night, there would be for this game
They could play it on the moon and Dublin would still hammer them !!
I wouldn’t be hopping the ball though !
The match will be played in Kilkenny so what is the point of moaning about it?
Yea good lad begley. put playing in croker ahead of giving laois the best chance of winning. they’ll probably still get hammered if they beat wicklow but surely it wud be better to play dublin outside croke park for once even if it is in kilkenny for some reason.
How would playing in Kilkenny be an advantage to Laois or Wicklow . He’s dead right saying either play it in portlaoise or leave it in croker.
It just doesn’t add up.of all the grounds in leinster to play the dublin football team in they pick a county that doesn’t put a football team in the championship.its not going to promote football in kilkenny it’s just madness.when laois redeveloped o’moore park they were promised loads of games that haven’t materialised and instead O’connor park in offaly has gotten the bigger hurling games outside of croke park.
All very well however can we see the Connaught champions out of Mayo and the Munster champions out of Kerry and the Ulster champions out of Monaghan?
Mayo start in London? Happy?
Just to clarify Croke Park is not Dublin’s home ground, Parnell Park is.
Laois forgetting they have to beat Wicklow first before they actually have to in Kilkenny!
He is right come on wicklow