Cunningham lauds U21 championship

THE last few years have seen many calls for a reduction in the GAA calendar at the top level, but former Cork goalkeeping great Ger Cunningham, nowadays with Bord Gáis, sponsors of the All-Ireland U21 hurling championship, has come out strongly in favour of retaining that particular grade.

“It’s still a hugely important grade. A few years ago they were trying to amalgamate it with minor, have a single U19 grade. I think that would have been a mistake. You need U21, it’s a fantastic bridge between minor and senior. It’s the last knockout championship left in the country, no backdoor, and that adds to the whole excitement of the U21s.

“It’s off the cuff also, less time to prepare so less tactical — end-to-end stuff, far more direct. We’ve seen some great games in the championship already this year, Limerick coming through to the Munster final, Wexford doing so well in Leinster, that has added to it, new teams coming in, all adds to the excitement.”