That’s how it’s done.
The revamped GAA calendar for 2018 has caused plenty of debate.
From an inter-county perspective, the master-plan was shown up during the League as the weather made the GAA pay the price of leaving themselves with not enough room to wiggle in a susceptible calendar.
In the end, the GAA cut off their nose to spite the face as some fixtures were cancelled, never to be played again, prompting just outrage from the concerned managers.
That was to leave April vacant for clubs and as it turns out it has been left well, nearly vacant.
And it appears that the bigwig’s grand plan is encountering more bumps along the ever bumpy road with more than half of counties deciding against playing club championship games in the club only month, as was reported in detail by Eamon Donoghue in the Irish Times recently.
His examination revealed that there will be around 25 club championships with no games being played out of them in the fourth month of this year.
For example, no Ulster counties will see a ball kicked in their respective club championships, with the League instead extending into April. It’s the same story in many others far and wide, such as Westmeath and Laois.
Kerry appears to be the exception to the rule. In Ireland’s most successful football county, there are always two senior championships. In the main event, divisional and district sides composed of players from smaller clubs compete. This process sees the formation of teams like South Kerry and Feale Rangers.
The ‘club’ championship is always run in the Kingdom alongside the county senior championship.
It’s a separate competition between stand-alone clubs with the winners going forward into the Munster club if the county championship is won by a divisional outfit.
Last year, the final of this competition didn’t take place until September. This year, with the fixtures being played off at a rapid and consistent rate down south, it is on course to be complete by May, all going to plan.
Local journalist Mortimer Murphy is impressed with its smooth running to date.
Full marks @Kerry_Official for the new club championship format over 90 important club championship games will be played in Kerry during April by 1st week in May club players will have 8 games played since middle of March excitement mounting for Rd 3 -well done Peter Twiss #GAA
— Mortimer Murphy (@MortimerMurphy1) April 10, 2018
With the Kerry footballers knocked out of the National League on March 25, the club competitions were sat straight into motion. This was unlike Galway hurling championship. The Galway hurlers were knocked out on the same weekend but their championship didn’t begin until the weekend April 7/8.
In Kerry, the majority of clubs, senior, inter and junior already have two rounds of club championship games played.
There are fixtures in place to take the championship all the way through to the first weekend in May, where it is believed that over 90 club championship games will have been played in the county.
Now you can argue all you want that April isn’t the ideal time to be playing championship games and that’s probably why a whole host of these counties aren’t running their championships, but it’s sure as hell better than having club players waiting around in the summer on the county team’s progress, in limbo regarding holidays and training.
And yes, there will be a long gap between games, with May up until potentially September inter-county action only, but the majority of club players are happy to have a couple of early season championship games to aim at.
Many are claiming that it’s unfair on club players having them, effectively peaking twice during the season, but the majority of clubs didn’t begin training any earlier this year.
There are loads of problems in the GAA calendar. Pointless pre-season competitions, ignorance of college competitions, too many games, but at the moment, Kerry’s set-up seems to be the most responsive.
It seems like a good set up in the Kingdom.
