Weaker counties complicit in unfair Qualifiers system
I fired off a quick reply. It said: “The column is about the futility of it all and our total acceptance of our wretched fate.”
Derry going out of the Championship has that effect on me.
To be honest, I wasn’t overly annoyed about Derry’s defeat to Longford. Now that the Qualifiers have been up and running for a few years, they can be seen for what they are.
For the vast majority of counties, the Qualifiers are merely a stay of execution. Regardless of how many games they win, a big shiny guillotine hangs over their heads. Sooner or later, the blade will fall. It always falls.
The greater mystery is why so many people appear to be entirely satisfied with this game of cards in which the house always wins.
In other walks of life, we rail against institutions which cultivate and protect elitism. In Ireland, we look with disdain on the English public school system. The British Prime Minister, the Mayor of London and the Archbishop of Canterbury all went to Eton (minimum annual fee £32,067). David Cameron’s deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg (Westminster), and his chancellor George Osborne (St Paul’s) also attended public schools. The top jobs in England’s banks and the judiciary are all densely populated with graduates from the public school network.
It’s an unfair system, which protects the privileged, moneyed classes. However, in Britain, they are distinctly aware that they continue to have a class-ridden society and it’s something they are continually trying to change.
In the GAA, we have a Championship rigged to suit the aristocrats (Kerry and Dublin), the old money counties (Galway and Cork), and the ‘nouveau riche’ (see Jack O’Connor).
Yet what defies belief is that the paupers and the peasants are totally in favour of it.
The Qualifiers are of no real benefit to weaker counties. The back door serves Division One teams. It provides a safety valve for strong counties that have slipped up in provincial competitions. Galway, Kerry and Tyrone have all won the Sam Maguire Cup via the back door.
For everyone else, the Qualifiers are the road to nowhere.
Here is the harsh reality of the situation. On Saturday afternoon, a Longford side relegated to Division Four celebrated a brilliant victory over a Derry side that reached the National League final.
For some, Longford’s win provides a compelling argument for why the Qualifiers should be retained in their current format.
I disagree.
Ultimately, Longford’s fine win will count for nothing. They are not going to win the Sam Maguire Cup. For counties like Longford, each round of the Qualifiers is simply a stepping-stone towards a deep pool where they will eventually drown.
Is this a defeatist attitude? Yes, it is. But it also happens to be true. Since the introduction of the back door, the Sam Maguire Cup has been the preserve of the top 10 league teams. For the counties outside the top 10, the presentation area in the Hogan Stand may as well be the moon.
But this isn’t breaking news. Everyone knows the minnows have no chance. The real disgrace lies with the docile response to current structure. Why have the weaker counties not risen up and demanded a competition which they have a realistic chance of winning? In every other facet of the GAA, competitions are divided into various grades so teams can compete with opponents that match their level of ability. Leagues are tiered and Championships are divided into senior, intermediate and junior.
But in the All-Ireland Qualifiers, every county is dumped into the same bowl. Once a team is knocked out of its provincial competition, it would make much more sense for the Qualifiers to be seeded.
Using the National League to dictate rankings, any county in the top 10 could compete for the Sam Maguire Cup. Teams below that level would enter the Michael Cusack Cup.
This is just one idea. There is plenty of merit in having a third competition for the lowest ranked counties.
Strangely, the greatest resistance to these new competitions usually comes from the counties which should be competing in them.
The Tommy Murphy Cup was a good idea, but the GAA failed to promote the competition properly. The final was supposed to be played as a curtain-raiser in Croke Park. That didn’t always happen.
Many weaker counties also suffer from a severe dose of inverted snobbery. Instead of competing in a competition that actually suits their players’ ability, they’d rather rub shoulders with the bluebloods and lose.
They’re like the Irish soccer fans who travel to a major competition and sing and dance while their team is getting chinned. I find that conduct slightly bewildering. Those Irish fans are just delighted to have reached the finals. They are content to bask in the glamour and prestige attached to their opponents and the occasion.
The supporters and county officials satisfied with a ‘good run in the Qualifiers’ are guilty of the same subservient, ‘downstairs’ attitude. A big day in Croker and a good show against one of the big teams is the limit of their ambition. That’s pathetic. And proper, competitive footballers are never happy to get beaten. And some of them don’t deserve to lose. They deserve to feel like winners.
The footballers from Longford and Tipperary played like true champions at the weekend. All being fair, they would be playing in a competition that offers them a chance of success. Of course, it’s not about all winning. It’s about participation. It’s about enjoyment and fulfilment. But teams have a better chance of achieving those aims competing against opponents of a similar standard.
As it stands, Longford and Tipperary are marching towards an inevitable defeat. If they reach Croke Park, they will be cannon fodder for the ruling classes.
The really demoralising thing is that a significant number of people in the GAA think this is an entirely acceptable state of affairs.
