FAI eircom League of Ireland 2008

So with the season nearly upon us what can Eircom League fans look forward to over the next nine months or so? We already know that come November the top flight is going to be trimmed by a massive twenty five percent. That alone is going to go a long way towards making the league a more competitive animal but when you consider that many of the leagues top performers from previous seasons have returned and that all clubs are going to be adhering to stringent guidelines with regards to players wages, its hard not to feel that we are in for even more exciting and interesting times than League of Ireland diehards are used to.

Along with the titantic battle that a number of clubs shall face in ensuring they avoid the drop, it looks just as probable that the race for the title and the coveted European spots is going to be just as close. All the sides with title hopes and ambitions to finish in the top six have invested in strengthening their squads, and if chairmen and managers are to be believed, they are all ready to take the "next step". Clearly everyone is not going to take the proverbial next step but, counter–intuitively, the squads of Bohemians, Drogheda, St Pats, Cork, Rovers, Derry, Galway and Sligo all look stronger and better equipped to cope than they did twelve months ago. The likes of Jason Byrne, George OCallagan and Bobby Ryan returning contributes to the improvement but along with that a lot of clubs are recruiting players from outside the league. Pats have brought in a couple of full internationals from English sides, Drogheda have signed what must surely be the leagues first Senegalese player and of course an African Cup of Nations captain has decided to make Sligo his home. Rovers have some exciting young prospects breaking into the first team squad and have snapped up experienced players deemed surplus to requirements at what are now exclusive full time clubs. Galway have addressed the areas where they felt improvement was necessary and have real options all over the pitch, as well as real pace up front and in wide areas. Derry of course have Stephen Kenny back at the helm. The nucleus of the side that came so close for two years in succession remains, so if he can once again motivate the players that looked so disjointed and disinterested last year then there is no reason why they cant be challenging for honours.

Based on the fact that the First Division will have more teams in 2009 and that three shall be relegated from the Premier at the end of this season, its been suggested that winning promotion this season will not be as difficult as its going to be in the future. True or not, it would appear as if Dundalk, Shelbourne and Waterford don't want to take any chances, and there definitely seems to be a prevailing feeling within these clubs that winning the league and gaining promotion this year is a must. The First Divisions big three have been building very strong squads since the end of last season and among them have a huge number of players that many would consider of Premier Division class – needless to say players of that calibre arent cheap relative to the wage bills of other First Division sides. New side Sporting Fingal are another side that want to go places and fast. Season one will be about finishing as high as possible and having a base to build on for future campaigns. Finance doesn't seem to be a problem for them but ultimately a big part of their success or failure is likely to be judged on how successful they are in building up a fan base.

With the wheeling and dealing now over until the Summer it's a case of getting on with what you have got for all clubs. The last day of the transfer window brought about lots of late activity in the market - but all of it will have for some time already been budgeted for. The Salary Cost Protocol comes to life this season and it limits clubs expenditure on players wages to sixty five percent of the particular clubs qualifying or relevant income. Unlike wage caps in some American sports its not going to instantly lead to a level playing field as a club with wealthy owners, directors or investors can still bankroll the side as long as certain criterion are met in relation to the funds. The sixty five percent calculation is based on financial projections for the coming period, and as anyone who has started their own business and needed their bank managers assistance will tell you, such projections can very often turn out to be anything but accurate. Nonetheless, there is little doubt that the new measures shall prevent another Shelbourne situation occurring and will promote prudence and stability when it comes to managing growth and ambition. Money that would have otherwise ended up in players pockets and fed wage inflation will now either not be spent at all, or maybe more importantly can be invested in other areas that will serve the development of clubs in the long term.

Without doubt there has been a steady improvement in the standard of domestic football over the last three or four seasons and all going well this season will see further advances. The performance of our clubs in European competitions is always going to be pointed towards as a barometer and unfortunately they were less than inspiring last season. Without wanting to appear to be making excuses, its important to note that the Leagues Champions of the previous year didn't participate, that their replacement Derry had a nightmare of a season on all fronts, and that the step up probably came a year to soon for St Pats. It wont be easy, and favourable draws would help a great deal, but our participants this season for the moment at least have every reason to be quietly confident of building on the leagues success's of seasons past.