Central Council to ease training ban restrictions

THE majority of inter-county teams will be permitted to return to collective training in November as part of Central Council’s proposed phased closed season.

The allowance forms part of an amendment adopted in Croke Park yesterday, which will be put forward as a motion at Congress in April with a view to being introduced at the end of 2013.

The adjustment proposes teams whose championships finish in June be allowed return to training on November 1, with those exiting the SFC and SHCs returning on November 15.

Those counties knocked out in August will be granted permission to recommence collective sessions onDecember 1 while All-Ireland finalists in both codes (those whose seasons end in September) can come back on December 29.

As part of the phased closed season, there will be a mandatory eight-day shutdown on collective inter-county activity between December 21 and 28. The current rule dictates inter-county teams are not allowed to train in the months of November and December.

However, following numerous breaches of the closed season, the GAA have been compelled to rethink the parameters of their inter-county down-time period.

Croke Park officials will be hoping the motion has more success than the previous attempt to amend the rule at Congress this year.

Portlaoise’s motion 43, which called for the inter-county closed season to be cut to the month of Novemberonly, was beaten by 46% to 54%.

Meanwhile, a decision on the amendment to the return of replays for all championship matches has been postponed until the December 10 Central Council meeting.

Delegates were told discussions will be held with the provincial councils before the motion is proposed.

As Leinster chairman Martin Skelly told the Irish Examiner on Saturday, they are hoping the provision of replays will be kept for the provincial championships.

Meanwhile, the Interprovincial (Railway) Cup competitions will return in February with the footballfinal being held on the same weekend as the Sigerson Cup and the hurling decider to coincide with the Fitzgibbon Cup.

However, there was some consternation expressed about thetiming of the revived competitions with a number of delegateshighlighting the lack of appeal in it in February. The future of the All-Ireland intermediate and junior footballchampionships will be discussed at next month’s Central Council meeting. A meeting was also held in Croke Park on Saturday on the matter of Páirc an Chrócaigh Teoranta coming under the auspices of the GAA.

While retaining his current role, Croke Park director Peter McKenna recently took over the commercial brief vacated by Dermot Power.

Meanwhile, Dublin-based Des Newton is set to become the new Roscommon manager. The school principal, a selector under Paddy Carr in Kilmacud Crokes, is set to take over from Fergie O’Donnell this week.