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AMAZING ALL WEATHER
Not too long before Euro 88, the then FAI President Pat O’Brien (from Cobh) forecast that the rising tide would float all boats. It wasn't easy to agree as most of the local clubs were wandering from pitch to pitch and there was even one famous deal with a farmer whereby the club got the use of the pitch in return for their help in saving the hay.

I reckon the late Pat would have been a proud man last Saturday to see how far the likes of Mayfield United (they had that deal with the farmer) and Blarney United have come and to see other Cork clubs facilitated in their quest for FAI and Munster Junior Cup glory by being able to use to state of the art all weather floodlit pitches in Mayfield and in Tower.

The rain bucketed down, a different kind for rising tide but, thanks to Blarney and to Mayfield and indeed the FAI, Grattan and Ballyphehane did the business and were saved the trouble of travelling up country.

I was at Mayfield’s pitch for a Munster Cup game on Saturday afternoon and later went to O’Shea Park to see Ballyphehane shock Ballymun. Some of us may have had reservations that this type of pitch would take away from the game, that real men would always do it on grass. But, having seen the games, we may – somewhere down the line - have to have to coin a new word for grassroots.

The Munster Cup game was low key enough but there were one or two old fashioned tackles going in. Ballyphehane's encounter was much more intense and there was no holding back, no lack at all of the physical clash and no lack of good football either.

It was quite an experience as it is not every rainy day you get to see the future. All weather is the way to go. FIFA are encouraging it all over the world. All the games in the FIFA U17 World championships before last (in Peru) were played on artificial pitches and many are being established in Africa and elsewhere.

Hopefully, the leagues and clubs can get a few more up and running locally and then all can be proud of what the likes of Pat O'Brien and Blarney’s O’Shea brothers started. It is the way to go.

If you want to enquire about the facilities available at present, then contact Mayfield’s Adrian Saville at 087 2984319 and Blarney’s Eoghan Moriarty on 087-6408756 for times and rates.


- originally published ECHO 18.01.08

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