The updated Séan Kelly plan: Change for the betterment of Gaelic football is within our grasp

Ahead of the GAA’s Annual Congress in February, I feel it is now appropriate to return to the blueprint I first published almost a decade ago, the ‘Kelly Plan’

Mayo’s Diarmuid O’Connor keeps the ball alive during the All-Ireland semi-final against Dublin. Under the ‘Kelly Plan’, the Sam Maguire will be composed of four groups of four. Picture: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Having addressed the GAA Special Congress in October, I’ve had time to reflect on the words of those who were advocating to change the current football calendar. I also promised Irish Examiner readers that I would update them on my own proposal, so here we go.

As far back as 2012, I outlined on these very pages how I believed the All-Ireland Football Championship should be restructured to make it more appealing, more relevant, and, above all, more rewarding for its most important asset — the players. Indeed, former greats such as Dara Ó Cinnéide, Jim McGuinness, and Joe Brolly agree with my (Kelly) plan and recognise that the current structure is in need of radical change.