GAA Reforms: Nothing here for the lesser lights

You wouldn’t want to be paranoid. Or you might think Tipperary were being punished for reaching an All-Ireland semi-final.

The GAA’s championship plan, released yesterday, disappointed me. There’s nothing in it for the lesser lights. And it also lessens the chances of a bolter like Tipp getting to an All-Ireland semi-final again. Overall, it seems a rather lopsided championship being proposed, one that turns normal competitive logic on its head.

I’d much prefer to see more games - a group stage with an open draw - earlier in the year, rather than at the last-eight stage. Give the likes of Clare and Tipp and Carlow and Leitrim - as well as your Kerrys and Dublins - three or four guaranteed games early in the season and whittle things down from there via knockout rounds.