Walsh: Seeded draw would be incredible blow

Munster chairman Robert Frost has been criticised by his predecessor and fellow Clareman Noel Walsh for proposing the 2014 provincial draw be seeded.

Walsh, a long-time proponent of the open draw, described the initial vote by the Munster Council in favour of Cork and Kerry being handed byes to separate semi-finals as “a night of infamy”.

With the 2014 provincial championship draws around the corner, the council met again last evening to vote again on the structure after the Limerick and Waterford executives separately discussed the matter.

Waterford, who abstained from the previous vote, will now reject the seeded draw in favour of an open one.

Following pressure from players, the Limerick football board reversed their support of the seeded option and their vote was forwarded to the county executive for approval.

Although it was still unclear whether it will require a two-thirds majority vote to overturn the initial vote, Walsh is optimistic the open draw will return providing Clare, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford stick together.

However, he is at a loss to explain why current chairman Frost is so keen to see the competition structure altered.

“The current chairman has some bee in his bonnet about it and ironically he’s a Clare man elected by the Clare vote. I can’t understand how he’s acting in such a way. The players from the four counties took action when they heard about what was happening. They met in Tipperary last week and now this meeting of the Munster Council is being called.

“Waterford had abstained and Limerick had voted against it but the indications are they are going to change their vote.

“If all four counties vote against it (the seeded draw) and the Munster PRO who is a Tipperary man (Ed Donnelly) does as well it might have a chance.”

Walsh is adamant the open draw has been a success, pointing out the argument that more of the money-spinning Cork-Kerry finals mean larger grants for counties doesn’t wash.

“Cork and Kerry finals do draw bigger Munster final attendances but I can’t remember many times when overall attendances haven’t been good because they both haven’t been in the final.

“I think that’s (the financial argument) just a spurious argument being put out by the chairman. What is more important anyway — a reduction in grants or a fair chance in the Championship? We’re not a banking organisation.”

Last year, Frost’s immediate predecessor Sean Walsh said there was “only some appetite” to seed the competition.

That came after the council executive had asked counties at board level about the possibility of keeping Cork and Kerry on different sides of the draw.

“It’s not in the best interests of Cork and Kerry either,” insisted Clare’s Walsh. “They gain nothing from it. Both are strong enough to advance in the All-Ireland stages even if they don’t reach the Munster final.

“It’s unfair on Ulster and Connacht too. Donegal and Tyrone met in the first round this year, two teams who you would think should have been kept apart if it was seeded. Mayo and Galway faced each other as well in the quarter-finals (in Connacht).

“People talk about the weaknesses in Munster but both Waterford and Tipperary very nearly beat Galway in the qualifiers.

“If this draw was to go ahead it would be an incredible blow in all the four counties where a lot of work has been done to promote and strengthen football. High-profile managers have come in because they know there’s an incentive for them and the players to succeed.”

Walsh remembers only too well when it wasn’t just the senior championship in Munster was seeded but all the other grades as well.

“Cork and Kerry didn’t want to concede and we were seen as croppies that should be lying down and not getting above ourselves.”

Walsh is adamant no county in Munster should be denied at least the dream of winning a provincial title. “Rarely you beat both Cork and Kerry but on a given day there is the possibility of beating one of them. Dublin and Mayo would find it difficult to beat Cork and Kerry in consecutive Championship matches.”

Excluding 2007 and ‘08 when the draw was seeded, Cork and Kerry have met in eight of 21 finals.

“It wasn’t meant to preclude them from facing each other in Munster finals,” said Walsh. “It was done in the sake of fairness.

“When this decision was taken not to support the open draw the players obviously weren’t consulted.

“There are people in the hurling counties who wouldn’t lose sleep if their football teams suffered. Some see the football as a bit of an obstruction.

“It took a long fight to get the open draw and the fight will continue. I hope justice and common sense will prevail.”