A whole new ball game for AIL

The AIB All-Ireland Leagues kick-off again this weekend with the 48 senior clubs at odds about the structure of the current three-division league. Declan Colley looks at how it might unfold.

THERE is a certain irony in a week where the seemingly endless talks about Northern Ireland’s political future crawled another few inches further forward that the AIB All-Ireland league remains entrenched in a never-ending debate about its future.

While the North’s politicos wrestle back and forth over the many issues which ensnare them, equally so the 48 senior Irish rugby clubs remain at odds about the most productive