Walsh makes provincial plea

HIGH-RANKING GAA officials last night pleaded for no knee jerk reaction to last weekend’s All-Ireland quarter-final results after defeats for this year’s four provincial champions have increased the clamour for the abolition of the provincial championships.

Tyrone boss Mickey Harte and Meath manager Eamonn O’Brien slammed the current system after both their sides joined Roscommon and Kerry on the sidelines after a weekend of stunning results in Croke Park.

For the first time since the introduction of the backdoor in 2001, there will be no senior provincial champion competing in this month’s All-Ireland semi-finals but Munster Council chairman Sean Walsh insists that eradicating the provincial structures will not solve the problem.