All anyone wants is regular fixtures at a good time of year.
The only addition to that demand is that those same people can have their best players when they need them.
Teams can find themselves in relegation danger because they’ve had to make do without their county players for most of the season – that’s if they get to even play, with a lot of club players having fixtures delayed and postponed all year.
In Derry, the CCC have vowed to make county players available for every single league game and are undergoing a three-year plan to restructure their club competitions format.
In Monaghan, they’re proposing that clubs play a minimum of nine games with members of the county panel but what they’re going to offer is that these games count for more than the games without the county players.
It means clubs can be awarded more points for when they’re at full strength and the new proposals for the Monaghan leagues will provide much more football for the club player in general.
Some of the highlights of the document are as follows:
- Clubs will play a minimum of nine games with members of the county senior panel (A).
- Clubs will play a maximum of nine games from which 24 members (see no. viii) of the county panel will be excluded (B).
That offers the main restructure.
More points will be awarded for a win or a draw for games in A than for the games in B.
A is with the county players and B is without the county players.
In A, each club will play every other team once.
- Five points will be allocated for a win.
- Two points for a draw.
In B, each club will play every other team once and two points will be allocated for a win and one point for a draw.
This means that 71.5 % of win points are available for the nine A games – with the county players. 28.5% for the nine B games.
The proposal will also keep county managers happy.
- A minimum of four games and a maximum of five rounds in A must be completed by Sunday 29th April.
And ensures balance.
- If Monaghan is eliminated from the All-Ireland championship before the nine B games have been played, county players can play in the remaining B games but points will be awarded based on B i.e. two points for a win and one point for a draw. This ensures that all clubs will play every other club for a total of seven points over their two matches.
- Before the B games commence, the senior Team Manager will provide the County Secretary with a list of the 24 players in the county senior panel who are excluded from club league games. The list will include no more than five players from any one club. The list may be changed on the day following each of Monaghan’s championship games and clubs will be notified immediately.
If these proposals are accepted, they will ensure regular, meaningful football for club players from April right through to September and means the league can be all but done before the championship.
