“It’s absolute madness.”
It is easy to agree with Alan Brogan’s statement.
As for the solution, well, that’s a different matter.
Brogan’s St Oliver Plunkett’s knocked 2016 All-Ireland club champions Ballyboden St Enda’s out of the Dublin championship last night, with a little help from younger brother Bernard and former Kerry captain Paul Galvin.
While Plunkett’s progressed to the second round, that’s it for Ballyboden. Their next championship game won’t be for another year. Brogan joined Colm Parkinson on the GAA Hour Football Show [from 36:00 below] and offered a solution that will please some… but not all.
Brogan missed out on the yearly fall-outs on the club football scene when he was busy chasing Sam Maguire with Dublin. Since retiring from the inter-county scene, however, he has seen the fixtures pandemonium at closer quarters.
“It’s absolute madness for someone’s season to finish,” he said.
“For us, it’s about the championship. Of course we have the league but for the last number of years, like many clubs, the championship has been the focus. And splitting the competition up – having the first round or two before the summer and the rest after – does nothing for it.”
Brogan is keen on the league being played out during the summer and, with the All-Ireland moving back to August next year, crack on with the championship from then. He said:
“All the big competitions are going to group stages in the early rounds. I’d be in favour of the 32 teams in the Dublin championship [doing that] and 32 is probably too much. I don’t want to name any teams as I don’t want to be disrespectful but there’s teams in that championship that have hardly won a match in years.
He added, “I’d be in favour of group stages initially, so everyone gets two or three games and you can find your level.”
Group stages mean more club games and that may not sit well with the GAA power-brokers looking to streamline club and inter-county championships to please as many people as possible.
Brogan’s solution appears to be a good one but, like most things in GAA, you will get another 789 solutions to match that solution and we’ll all argue ourselves hoarse.
