Friday matches are worth exploring

GAA President Liam O'Neill has said that the decision to play the All-Ireland SFC first round qualifier between Carlow and Laois on a Friday night is something that was worth exploring.

The GAA's Central Competitions Control Committee decided on Monday to fix the tie for Friday week at Dr. Cullen Park (throw-in 7.45pm), ensuring that it is the first ever All-Ireland Football Championship tie to take place on a Friday evening.

"Friday night should be tried out. I think the CCCC sat down on Monday and saw that Laois-Carlow was a possibility," O'Neill said at today's launch of a new joint venture between the GAA and Celtic FC - an upcoming Youth Leadership Programme which will be piloted in Ballymote, Co. Sligo, Lurgan, Co. Armagh and in Dublin.

"It's probably not that well known by people outside of Laois and Carlow, but the Laois football hinterland would be surrounding Carlow town anyway, so for a lot of people Carlow town would be the town in which they do business. I think it provided them with an opportunity. They have taken the opportunity now.

"We have discussed it with the GPA and the game, despite the fact that there was some disquiet initially, is going ahead and now it provides us with an opportunity to see how something new might work.

"We have to realise that this is a fixture that lent itself to this type of thing. It wouldn't suit had two counties from further away been involved.

"There will be a certain amount of allowances that will have to be made, because of the fact that it is on a Friday evening, by people getting ready for the game and by people travelling to the games. It will provide us at least with some answers to our questions about the possibility of using Friday night."

There had been some disquiet from players on both sides over the timing of the game, including Laois forward MJ Tierney who took to Twitter to vent their anger.

O'Neill is keen to turn the negatives into positives and is happy that it has brought the game itself into the limelight, while recognising that there are also lessons to be learned.

"Everybody has a vantage point on this and has a different opinion. What this has brought is that the Laois-Carlow tie, which would not be seen by everybody as the most glamorous tie of this particular round, is now the subject of conversation and that has to be interesting at least," he said.

"Yes we are going to learn and some of the points he makes are valid there, if as they have been reported. We would certainly take them into account.

"We discussed them with the GPA and they are broadly in favour of trying it out and somebody had to make a move.

"In fairness to the CCCC I would have to commend them for at least having the bravery to do something which they didn't expect to get 100% support for. Sometimes you have to step outside the box and take a chance.

As a person who appointed a good deal of people on that committee I would commend them for that. We are doing something different, we are trying something innovative.

"Yes, there would be lessons learned from it and we'll see how this pans out. If there are lessons to be learned from it we will take them on board."

O'Neill does not believe that the lack of floodlights at Dr. Cullen Park will be an issue for the late evening fixture. Should extra-time be required it would be close to 9.45pm before the game would be completed.

"If it was moved to a venue which had floodlights it wouldn't suit. O'Moore Park would have been suitable but you couldn't ask Carlow to come to Portlaoise because of that.

"It's on time enough. Last night it was still possible to play Gaelic football after 10 o'clock. I think that you have over two hours there. I don't see it as a difficulty.

"There are often dark afternoons in a winter league programme where you have difficulty too. People will point to those things, but the more you hear of the small little difficulties that might be presented the more you think this is going to work and this is going to be okay.

"I think we are going to go ahead with it now and we have to see what is possible.

"It might be a little bit harsh on Carlow to confine this to venues which just have lights. All those factors have to be taken into consideration - fixture making is a difficult proposition.

"We all accept that you will never get unanimity on either the timing of a game or the venue for a game, but at the end of the day people turn up.

"The Championship is the Championship and people want to play it and they want to progress and we hope the game will be a good game number one and the end people will enjoy it and we will know more about the possibility of playing games on days other than Saturday and Sunday."