Clubs need a new route to take

ALL-IRELAND senior hurling final on Sunday, Clare v Kilkenny, and the best of luck to both. Even as they enjoy the big stage however, we read again that in both counties, the club scene, and the club players, are suffering a serious lack of serious competition.

Reason? Club championships on hold, in both counties. Kilkenny at least did have a break. As winners in Leinster, they had a waiting period of several weeks before their next game, thus saw an opportunity to hold a round of the club championships. In Clare, all go since losing to Tipperary, so all hold. Why, even the club football championship has been affected, one quarter-final still to be played, delayed as Lissycasey player Colin Lynch is involved with the hurlers.

The problem might get worse, as the inter-county scene heads almost inevitably towards more and bigger games. That's where the revenue is, and the GAA is going to need plenty of that in the coming years.

It is just as inequitable for most club players in almost every other county. While at inter-county level we've gone away from the straight knockout championship system, it still exists in most counties. This means for most club players, the summer is wasted, their season over before the sun even gets a chance to shine.

The GAA has been built piecemeal, bits added on or taken away. In a sense, it's almost like our road system. Most of our major roads began as winding tracks. Over the years these were widened to accommodate increasing traffic. Eventually they became incapable of handling the growing needs of the population. Thus, the new motorway system, most of it through green-field pastures.

The GAA needs to adopt the same clean-slate policy. Yes, I've heard of the Strategic Review, have read much of it. I don't agree with it, believe it's too tame by far, doesn't go far enough. What's needed is a top-to-bottom re-design.

Club and county should be able to co-exist, and without problem. There is no international outlet for hurling or Gaelic football, so the inter-county scene could be likened to the international scene for soccer-players, with players doing their bread-and-butter stuff with their clubs. If soccer can make it happen the GAA should also manage.

We have too many meaningless competitions in the GAA, at every level, while our major competitions are confined to the elite. I favour a league system, promotion and relegation, with divisional champions and All-Ireland champion decided on a top-four playoff basis. The playoff is a new twist on an old idea, a bit manufactured, but there is no denying it adds further interest. And I would favour this system across the board, club and county, every county. Some counties are stronger than others, have more clubs they would simply have more divisions, that's all, and possibly more grades.

With every county now having the same internal competitive structure, it would be simple to set out your season at the beginning of every year. Oh yes, hurling and football? Separate them, administratively and structurally. Football could begin earlier, end later, because there are more teams, more players, and the game isn't as weather-dependant as hurling.

Postponements? I would not grant postponements where such a postponement is going to have a domino affect, without exceptional reason. Dual players would just have to work their own way around this, but that's the way I would operate. I think it's daft that the football championship in Clare is held up because of one guy, even an individual as talented as Colin Lynch.

The above suggestion however, can never be taken on board. Too simple, too easy, not enough committees involved in its design.

More's the pity.