Darcy wants end to derby finals

Outgoing Tyrone chairman Pat Darcy has urged the GAA to end derby meetings in All-Ireland deciders.

Three All-Ireland Senior football finals this decade have produced pairings from the same province with Cork and Kerry meeting twice (2007 and 2009) and the all-Ulster pairing of Armagh and Tyrone in 2003.

In Darcy's final address to the Tyrone Co Convention last night, he called on the GAA to pair rivals against each other in semi-finals, should two counties from the same province reach the last four.

"Once in a decade this can be a novelty. However, if it becomes a frequent occurrence, it will devalue the credibility of the Sam Maguire Cup and the All-Ireland championship," he said.

"Two out of the last three finals have been a local provincial affair. There is an argument that should two counties from the same province reach the All-Ireland semi-finals, they should be drawn against each other."

Darcy also believes that changes are necessary to the qualifier system, which has been in place since 2001.

"Are there issues with the qualifiers? Yes. Provincial winners are the only teams who do not get a second chance. This anomaly is eroding the status of the provincial championship and penalising provincial winners. It also throws up some poor quality All-Ireland finals, as witnessed in 2004, 2006 and 2007.

"The second issue is the qualifiers can result in two teams from the same province reaching the All-Ireland final. These minor, but pragmatic changes to the qualifiers are essential to maintain the credibility and sustainability of both the provincial championship and the All-Ireland final."

Darcy's involvement as Tyrone chairman came to an end due to the five-year rule - and he was succeeded by Strabane Sigerson's clubman Ciaran McLaughlin.

However he will maintain an involvement with the Tyrone Co Board as an Ulster Council delegate.