McManus defends NFL structure

CIARAN McMANUS has defended the structure of the Allianz NFL despite criticism that the latter stages of the competition were impinging on teams’ preparations for the All-Ireland championship.

McManus' Offaly meet Down in the Division Two final at Croke Park on Sunday knowing that, if the game ends in a draw, they will face a replay seven days later, which is only a week before both begin their provincial championship campaigns.

Had Tyrone won their replayed semi-final against Galway last Sunday, the reigning champions would have been faced with the prospect of playing four competitive games in four weeks with the last being their Ulster opener against Derry.

Offaly's inspirational midfielder was quick to reject the notion that the structure was inherently wrong and reminded everyone of the bad olds days when the league was played off either side of Christmas.

"I find, with the games coming consecutively, the training comes much easier," the Tubber player said. "If you're training for games every Sunday then there's no problem. You want to be packing your boots and getting ready for a big game on a Sunday morning.

"When you have that sort of a situation, especially in February and March when the conditions are better before in November and December it was more of a slog now, in March/April at least you're guaranteed 70% of your games in better conditions.

"To be honest, I find the structure of the league to be fine. Unfortunately for Tyrone it was down to very sad circumstances why they had their games delayed but in a normal season I feel it's a good structure."

Two weeks after the Division Two final, Offaly will line out against Westmeath in the Leinster championship. Win, lose or draw on Sunday, McManus insists the side will be ready for Páidi Ó Sé's new troops.

"About 50,000 people in Westmeath are full sure they are going to beat us so that's a good reminder for us to keep our focus on the championship," he said. "People might talk about, Westmeath being fresher but there'll be no complaints from us on those lines."

The fact that Offaly find themselves with such a demanding fixture list at has come as something of a surprise after a difficult off-season that saw Paul O'Kelly relieved of his manager's role and a number of key, senior players retire

Crucially, new manager Gerry Fahy was quickly accepted by the players.

"Training's been easier than other years, say like the Tommy Lyons era," McManus explained. "We don't have the big mad running up mountains or any of this stuff. Gerry believes in the ball and the man in training. There's 30 balls there and that's that.

"He's got a great response from the players and the whole county board is behind him. The whole set up behind the team has been good. He takes on board the small things like ice baths, which just makes it a bit more professional.

"With that kind of approach, the players have responded well. A lot of the senior players have taken some of the weight on their shoulders, taken a lot of responsibility and been leaders. That's helped the young lads a lot."