Search icon

GAA

26th Feb 2022

GAA makes decision on motion to introduce u19 grade at inter-county level

Lee Costello

The motion needed a 60% vote to be approved.

The age brackets of underage teams has been a widely debated topic in recent times, not least because the GAA changed the traditional u18 minor group to u17.

When this ruling was initially passed it felt as though it went under the radar,  but when it was put into practise many came forward with issues they had with it.

The man problem was the huge gap between u17 and senior level, because it effectively meant that some teenagers could still be in school, but not have their own age group to play for.

This then meant that they would have to play senior football, a step which can be physically too big for some players at that age dependent on their development, which means there would be a drop off rate of players.

At county level, there was a push to bring the minor age bracket to u19, and this was brought to congress who came to a decision today.

A motion to introduce an Under-19 grade at inter-county level for a three-year trial period was defeated. It received 55.6% of the vote, falling short of the 60% that was needed to carry the motion.

The other motion that was discussed and voted on at the congress meeting was a revamp of the current championship structure.

The Green proposal was voted through with an overwhelming 94.7% of the votes, and the changes will be introduced next season, which you can read about here: Congress approves new championship restructure for 2023 with 94.7% approval

The FootballJOE quiz: Were you paying attention? – episode 10