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Reserve Defence Forces in training (File photo) Eamonn Farrell/Photocall Ireland

No decision made on future of Reserve Defence Forces

The government and Defence Forces have denied speculation that training for Army and Naval reservists has been “shut down”.

THE GOVERNMENT AND the Defence Forces have both insisted this evening that no decision has been made on the future of the Reserve Defence Forces following claims from a representative group that it was to be shutdown.

The Reserve Defence Forces Representative Association (RDFRA) has claimed on its website and Facebook page that no further training of reservists will be carried out and “that the Military Authorities have made strident moves to shut down the RDF as and from 1st September 2012.”

“Feedback from RDF Units / personnel around the country is that no further RDF training is to take place after 01/09/2012.

“Some unit accounts have already been closed down which effectively means that they can no longer operate, train or do anything,” the RDFRA’s Tom Walsh said in a statement on its website.

However, both a spokeswoman for the Department of Defence and a spokesman for the Defence Forces have denied this saying that a “value for money” review is still ongoing and no decision has been made at this point.

The spokesman for the Defence Forces told TheJournal.ie this evening: “There is no curtailment of RDF training and there are no details about any cessation of training. There has been no change in RDF training.”

The Reserve Defence Forces is made up of both the Army Reserve and the Naval Service Reserve.

According to figures from last October it has a current strength of 5,361 reservists including 5,133 Army reservists and 228 Naval Service reserve personnel.

It is a part-time force in which new recruits – who must be over 17 and under 35 – receive professional military training. The force is currently subject of the aforementioned “value for money” review.

This is separate to the permanent Defence Forces review carried out earlier this year and which saw a reduction in the number of brigades from three to two and a ceiling of 9,500 personnel that was initially imposed last December maintained by Justice and Defence Minister Alan Shatter.

The RDFRA could not be reached for comment this evening.

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82 Comments
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Barry Murphy
    Favourite Barry Murphy
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    May 31st 2025, 7:09 AM

    YES to all of this! As a parent of 3 kids playing various sports (and a coach to a few of their teams), I can relate 100% to this fed up dad. Little Davey being sick and the world needing to know the detail…thoughts and prayers!

    151
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    Mute Breda Keane
    Favourite Breda Keane
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    May 31st 2025, 7:07 AM

    So needed, let’s see if this takes off.

    68
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    Mute Larry Whack
    Favourite Larry Whack
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    May 31st 2025, 7:34 AM

    100% to this! There’s a pole. Yes or No is sufficient. “Hi all, unfortunately Lukey won’t make the match today, he has a tummy bug. Hopefully make training on Monday.” Information the other 116 people in the group didn’t need to know. The blitz doesn’t need Lukey to go ahead. “Call it off, lads, Lukey can’t make it.”

    66
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    Mute DeBaldyMullet
    Favourite DeBaldyMullet
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    May 31st 2025, 8:19 AM

    @Larry Whack: ‘Poll’

    18
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    Mute David Clarke
    Favourite David Clarke
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    May 31st 2025, 7:25 AM

    “any Dunnes vouchers”. The scourge of Whatsapp groups up and down the land.

    58
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    Mute Sea Spirit
    Favourite Sea Spirit
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    May 31st 2025, 8:00 AM

    Really enjoyed this, well put together.

    52
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    Mute Stephen West
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    May 31st 2025, 9:29 AM

    Set the group so “admin only” can send messages. If someone isn’t going to make the match/is sick they can message admin/ coach directly. Cuts out all the unnecessary stuff.

    40
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    Mute DeBaldyMullet
    Favourite DeBaldyMullet
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    Jun 1st 2025, 8:55 AM

    @Stephen West: that tends to turn into a bit of a dictatorship channel. Not a good move in the long run.

    1
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    Mute Pól Pot
    Favourite Pól Pot
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    May 31st 2025, 7:29 AM

    Something is off here. Be straight. What really went down between little Davy and yourself?

    37
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    Mute Rafa C
    Favourite Rafa C
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    May 31st 2025, 7:27 AM

    It’s the same in work emails, an email to all employees is an invitation for everyone to hit ‘reply all’ and I don’t give a rats buttocks about the replies.

    My rule – send all to trash with a rule setup in outlook.

    Now to whatsapp – all social media apps are ‘anti-social’. I’m not in any groups on WhatsApp.. I left them all, because none of it is important. Didn’t need them before and don’t need them now.

    Quit the social media anti-social life a long time ago – and everything is the exact same. FOMO is gone.

    Most parents genuinely believe their child is the exception. If little Mary is sick, that’s a national event. If Johnny’s tooth fell out that’s something they think the community needs to process together. It’s a kind of digital parenting theatre.

    There will always be a few who will ignore rules because they believe the group should care about their child more.

    In essence it’s a good idea. In reality you’re better off being out of these apps altogether. They serve no real purpose.

    38
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    Mute Dave Desmond
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    May 31st 2025, 1:04 PM

    @Rafa C: For group emails everyone should be in BCC in the first place to avoid any reply to all messages.

    8
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    Mute Rafa C
    Favourite Rafa C
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    May 31st 2025, 1:11 PM

    @Dave Desmond: if only the world worked that way. Sadly it doesn’t. You can’t stop it. Same way to stop stupid what’s app idiots is just don’t be in the groups. Simpler life. You literally don’t need to be group chats. It’s monstrous.

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    Mute Me Me
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    May 31st 2025, 2:27 PM

    @Rafa C: I would happily shoot people who use the ‘reply to all’ button!

    3
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    Mute Brian Dunne
    Favourite Brian Dunne
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    May 31st 2025, 7:58 AM

    What really boils my piss: drop a pin on said gaa club please. Literally everybody has google maps. Find the gaa pitch on your own, your big girls and boys now.

    43
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    Mute Rafa C
    Favourite Rafa C
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    May 31st 2025, 11:34 AM

    @Brian Dunne: you’re*

    9
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    Mute Vincent B
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    May 31st 2025, 1:43 PM

    @Rafa C: actually in this case your is correct.

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    Mute Vincent B
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    May 31st 2025, 2:57 PM

    @Vincent B: sorry my mistake I thought you meant the first your

    3
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    Mute Rafa C
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    Jun 1st 2025, 9:45 AM

    @Vincent B: Sorry – couldn’t resist :D

    1
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    Mute Lance Taylor
    Favourite Lance Taylor
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    May 31st 2025, 10:15 AM

    As a coach myself of 3 different teams, some of the parents stupid comments astound me. I pity some of the children I honestly do.

    33
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    Mute Peter J H
    Favourite Peter J H
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    May 31st 2025, 11:26 AM

    Same with crèche whatapp groups, I don’t give two sheets what any other little ferret ‘painted’ with their ears, how much they enjoyed a snot riddled homemade rice crispy bun, I don’t want pictures of other kids enjoying messy play. Just send me a pic of my own kids, I don’t need to get 25 notifications knowing that 1 or 2 of them are relevant to me. So tempted to block the crèche whatapp content creator.

    12
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    Mute Oh Mammy
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    May 31st 2025, 8:00 AM

    Sounds like the coach is still trying to come to terms with the fact that nobody gave a white dogs shite when he missed a practice or game.

    9
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    Mute Buster Lawless
    Favourite Buster Lawless
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    May 31st 2025, 8:23 AM

    @Oh Mammy: what’s with the dog racism?

    16
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    Mute Oh Mammy
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    May 31st 2025, 8:26 AM

    @Buster Lawless: how did you conjure that conclusion?

    6
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    Mute Thesaltyurchin
    Favourite Thesaltyurchin
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    May 31st 2025, 12:48 PM

    how ever did we manage! lol. We’re not handling information very well right now and are slowly discovering that our ‘solutions’ to problems are actually just more problems :)… we’ll get through it, maybe Ai can become useful at some point.

    3
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    Mute DeBaldyMullet
    Favourite DeBaldyMullet
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    Jun 1st 2025, 8:58 AM

    @Thesaltyurchin: if you think AI is going to sort this you are badly mistaken. The thing to sort this is called ‘Cop on’

    4
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    Mute Ivan Dickson
    Favourite Ivan Dickson
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    May 31st 2025, 2:48 PM

    Such first world problems ffs lads

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    Mute Padraig O'Brien
    Favourite Padraig O'Brien
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    May 31st 2025, 1:33 PM

    I’m proposing a WhatsApp group for drivers of SUVs. We need to know whether diesel is better than petrol or hybrids, where the best places to pull up/park, let off steam about lollipop persons and traffic wardens etc. Only those with 24s or later will be allowed to join!

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    Mute Shane Gallagher
    Favourite Shane Gallagher
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    May 31st 2025, 4:32 PM

    But I like boasting about my holidays and my new suv that is bigger and better than my last one. It’s an underlying competition. We like to flaunt our superiority.

    1
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