There is always going to be exceptions to a rule and Iām know s and c expert either but Iād have grave doubts about the benefits of such a hectic playing schedule for amateur athletes.
It was lost in the build up but John hanbury done a good article on how fucked he was in 2018.
I note in 2019 Limerick were league champions. A fairly inconsistent run in Munster despite hammering tipp in the final and then flat in the semi final when losing in Kilkenny.
Itās no surprise in 2022 limerick basically ignored the league and peaked from late to June to July.
So for counties with smaller squads and less resources they are probably going to target the league less.
So for the league to take up so much of the calendar is completely stupid.
There is no reason the two seasons canāt be run off in tandem unfortunately now the tail is wagging the dog and ramifications will be massive in the long term.
Yes Iād agree the club championship games between league and championship were always brilliant. It freshened things up for the players and kept things interesting for the supporter.
The reality is the league is a poor product and the majority of the round robins game are terrible.
Even the shoe horning in the round of fixtures with the Christy ring finalists is just silly.
Ideally you want the championship to start the day after the Champions League final with an Ulster preliminary round clash and smattering of Leinster football ties involving drive through counties.
2012 was perhaps the ideal for this. After Chelsea beat Bayern Munich on penalties there was copious heated discussion down the local about what weād just witnessed followed by a switching of discussion to the upcoming summer festival of GAA and whether Donegal could evolve their game into a style that could challenge for an All-Ireland.
The changing of the seasons from spring into summer, right there.
It wasnāt so great for the players playing one important game in April on a winter pitch before which theyād barely have had a chance to do any proper training and then not playing again for 4 months
Depends on context. In 2010 Kildare started off their run struggling against a team they should have been putting away easily (Antrim) and then built it up week by week.
In 2017 Mayo struggled a lot in the first four games of their run (Derry, Clare, Cork, Roscommon draw) and should have been put away in at least two of those games and could have been put away in the other two. Then something clicked inside them and they were a different team.
In 2013 the Dublin hurlers were dire the first day out against Wexford, a bit better in the replay, then shocked themselves by nearly beating Kilkenny and then finding out they had Kilkennyās measure, which meant they were high as a kite for Galway.
All of those teams hadnāt yet got the prize they desperately wanted whereas Galway hurlers in 2018 had got it the previous year, so mental blockage is more understandable.
Limerick winning the league in 2019 shouldnāt have affected them and I donāt think it did. The final was a doddle and was on March 31st, they werenāt out in the championship until May 19th.
That was a much different scenario to Waterford this year who went serious at the league with the final just two weeks before the championship.
Thatās why iāve said it should be club league games in this period going forward and not Championship but County players must be allowed play.
Personally i never minded the training early in the year. I had nothing better to be doing and saw it as an opportunity to try and get fit but i can see the other side too of course. Character building Iād call it.
Even one of most worst aspects is younger players having to give up summers away or holidays just to play club championships in July / august seems so wrong.
Itāll be another reason why lads give up playing. They finish their exams and head to the us in the summer and come back in September and the season is finished for six months. Players will be lost to the game.
The compacted nature of the club season also brings injuries into it a lot more. The duel club player will probably become much rarer and itās likely inter county lads wonāt play both codes for their clubs as well. Iād also wager weāll see a lot more injuries at inter county level as the season is so tough now.
We also have the importance of inter county players to rural clubs. An extreme example would be Gearoid hegarty and st pats. If he got an injury for two months heād miss their entire season. Totally changing the direction of the club.
I donāt think it makes any significant difference to anything letting county players play a few club league games in April.
The tough training is necessary but it was a bit of a farce having those important club championship games in April where unless you are lucky enough to have floodlights and a remarkably dry field youād only be having one hurling session a week probably up until the point of that first game. Much better now with teams being able to work on their hurling skills/gameplan for an extended period before it kicks off.
Thatās not true. A less skilled team would generally have to have a very good gameplan to win. That was harder to implement at that stage as they would not have had the pitch time to work on it
The likes of Ballygunnar can handle losing lads for a summer or deal with injuries. Many clubs around the country canāt afford to lose one player or else their season is finished.
The split season will really suit the super clubs dotted around the country.
Thatās tremenjus. Cathal Malone adopted a sort of big brother type persona as that went on, aware that the Shoe Bomber was nervous on camera and gently coaxing a conversation out of him. Heāll get a media gig out of it yet.
You think the intercounty season is too long.
You think the club season and intercounty season should be run off at the same time.
Do you want to a) have the club championships also finished in August/September or b) make club championships much longer with way more games in order for them to run into October/November having started at the same time as the intercounty championships?
I think it hugely improves the calendar by ensuring County players are with their clubs in that April/May period.
The April month became a joke because everything was shoehorned into the first week of it just after the clocks had gone back. Theres a big difference between the beginning and end of April.
Anyway i think the calendar i designed above is much superior to whatās currently there. I think everyone agrees the Inter County season is just awful and most are completely indifferent to it.
I think the club season could be so much better too. Ive made the point a thousand times but July and early August is holiday period and should be free from Club activity. The club game thrives on the earthiness of the nights drawing in and people getting back into routine of School, College, etc.
Lads on here on here about needing astro turfs for training in September. I mean ffs, September is the driest month of the year and the most likely month for a well to run dry. You might need to train at 6.30 instead of 7.30 but most prefer that anyway as its an excuse to leave work early and youāll be home in time for the 8pm Champions League kick off.
Is the days of small rural dual clubs coming to an end? Read Newcestown in Corkās manager stating that they will be forced to make a choice soon as players are burned out. Douglas for example have barely any dual players
Ive always been impressed with the number of kids out walking around with hurleys in Cork. Our own estate would usually have a lot of kids out pucking aroundā¦ Itās all soccer now the last few weeks tho i see. There was a ferocious game of soccer last night on the front green. That will carry over into school now.
Dual clubs are still extremely common in Wexford. You even have the likes of Crossabeg-Ballymurn climbing from the depths of the 4th tier to Senior in both codes. Ferns will no doubt be looking to ride the crest of a wave after winning the senior hurling and supplement it with an intermediate football success. Thereās a huge crossover of players across the board. Even Rathnure have a football team entered this year.
The college part was always a challenge tbh. Lads having to sacrifice nights out on a Thursday of Freshers Week when a big club match was coming up on the Friday or Saturday. A young team would be down considerable numbers for training from September onwards.