McHale calls for revamp of underage rules

Clare selector and former Mayo midfielder Liam McHale has called on the GAA to ban blanket defences at underage level.

The former All Star believes too many counties are spending time developing players’ physiques and defensive patterns instead of concentrating on the basic skills of the game. By banning these tactics it would force clubs to change their attitude to player development and it is also a natural progression from the non-competitive environment of Go Games.

“The frightening thing for me is the number of teams you see playing sweepers at U14 and U16 level,” he said in the Big Interview, which appears in tomorrow’s Irish Examiner.