Offaly plea for league restructure

Offaly secretary Tommy Byrne has urged GAA top brass to revisit the structuring of the Allianz League.

This week, his Limerick counterpart Mike O’Riordan estimated that the Shannonsiders are losing up to €150,000 per annum by failing to secure a place in the six team top flight of Division 1A. The existing structure was introduced after the 2011 campaign was over, when Central Council delegates rejected the Croke Park management committee’s own proposal to retain an eight-team top division in favour of a recommendation from the Hurling Development Workgroup for a controversial six-team groups.

With Offaly plying their trade in Division 1B, Byrne is unhappy not just with that decision, but with the manner it was decided.

He said: “I think it should be the county chairman and secretary at those Central Council meetings, they are far more familiar with what’s going on.

“It needs to be revisited. Limerick lost one league game in three years, were beaten by only one point by Dublin last Saturday, but they’re still down in the lower division, back where they were for another year. Now you have Cork or Clare to come down — what chance does that give the likes of Offaly and Wexford, even Limerick? And only five matches — even the players are complaining.

“They train, train, train, all that effort for so few games. We’re finished with the league now, it’s only the beginning of April, and we have no matches for nine weeks. We spent €10.1m on O’Connor Park that has to be paid. Surely the league can be managed better than this?”

That sentiment was echoed by Wexford secretary Margaret Doyle who admits that their finances have taken a hit by operating in Division 1B.

“From a revenue point of view you’re better off in the top division. You’re getting better games, you’ll get bigger crowds, but I’ve always believed also that if you’re playing better opposition, that’s how you improve.”