Garfield

Mint in box, so!

I received the following email at work this morning:

The question I want answered is... ...did he see his house from up there!?

A quick diagram which illustrates the current problems with the FAI and the the Irish team...

The thing is, it's not just Delaney that has to be axed... the entire FAI needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. Grassroots football in this country is badly neglected and the structures aren't there for developing youngsters into true professionals. In times past, we relied heavily on English academies to do this job but it's not good enough anymore. If the FAI invested in this end with the co-operation of the League of Ireland teams, it would go some way to solving the dearth of talent we currently have - look at the dividends such work has done for rugby over the past number of years. It would also have the added bonus of improving the domestic league - hopefully to the standard of, say, the Danish or Swedish leagues, for example. The teams in those leagues are nowhere near winning European silverware, but they can produce players who can cut the mustard at International level, as they have shown time and again. It always baffles me when I see some League of Ireland supporters smirking into their pints whenever they see Ireland losing a game, when both the international team and the LoI ultimately share a common destiny.

Don't forget to keep an eye out for original content, too.

Tick tock!

Delaney and Keane would never work together, so I think we can rule that one out. Realistically, someone like Owen Coyle is who they'll be looking at. Of course, if Denis O'Brien agrees to keep on bankrolling the manager's job then the first phone call the FAI should make is to a certain Mr Redknapp...

Thanks. I was aware of the 50/50 split of the fleet, just not sure if passenger and freight locks were divided equally. Merlin wouldn't really appeal to me as it never really strayed too far from its home patch...

Hmm... did many GNR 0-6-0s end up in CIE ownership?

Collins Barracks (and anywhere else within the National Museum umbrella) was ruled out because they don't give a f**k about transport heritage. The curator is on record (more than once) as saying transport heritage is 'adequately served' by the likes of the RPSI and the National Transport Museum. It's a disgrace that a person in that position has no problem leaving it up to voluntary groups alone to save what they can for posterity...

John Hamill, chairman of the Model Railway Society of Ireland, was one of the figureheads in that group. Perhaps Wrenn, or some other MRSI members here, may be able to provide further info?

I was going to comment sooner but I was too busy trying to pick my jaw up from the floor... amazingly good! If you squint a little, it's impossible to tell if you're looking at a model or the real thing!

Yeah, bidding seems completely normal on that one.

I regret that I have to announce the passing of another stalwart of the Irish railway heritage scene. Desmond Coakham, railway historian and author, passed away earlier today at the age of 91. May he rest in peace.

I didn't know him personally, but we had a few mutual friends and acquaintances and they all speak very highly of him. He was also the driving force behind much of the developments at the DCDR, and by all accounts he'll be a hard act to follow there. May he rest in peace.

Can you hear that? ... ... ... That's the sound of my wallet contracting.

There's a rumour that the underframe became the supports for a bridge on some golf course or other...

The well-known Irish railway photographer Joe St Leger passed away this evening. He maintained a pictorial record of Irish railways for half a century, including many firsts - and probably even more lasts - during that time, and his photos have been used in numerous publications. I met him on various occasions down through the years and he was always pleasant and quiet-spoken, always had something interesting to say, and never failed to have his camera and cine-cam at the ready... just in case! May he rest in peace. Joe St Leger photo album, posted to Flickr by Fred Dean Jr.

The IRRS is a good place to start. Also... as the RPSI have an S class of their own, they may have drawings in their possession.

They look rather fetching in the CN livery. Must... resist...

That link appears to be dead, Rich...

I think you could be right, Rich! Would love to pick one up, but there's so much else to buy at the moment...

Fascinating stuff. The closest I've seen on an RTR model up until now has been 'working' yaw dampers on the HO gauge Voith Maxima...

Here it is: http://www.irishfreightmodels.com/index.php/shop#ecwid:category=3461747&mode=product&product=14677510