The division of the sporting calendar has eradicated the ambiguity in club scheduling, a positive move highlighted in recent critiques. However, this same bifurcation has dramatically escalated the unavailability of county players for their club matches. Despite its significance, this critical issue has not been touched upon.
Three key reasons emerge as to why county players should regularly engage with their clubs. First, it’s unarguably unjust to expect clubs to participate in high-stakes matches devoid of the exceptional talent they have nurtured and trained. Such players are the ones who set a team apart from its competitors. This challenge is especially unfair for budding clubs that are unfairly penalised precisely when they are working up the ladder.
Second, club activity forms the fundamental bedrock of the GAA. Witnessing star players on the county turf one week, and the following week on their local ground alongside their peers, is a cultural phenomenon worth cherishing and encouraging. Instead, we are gradually undermining this tradition.
The third rationale is concerned with player wellbeing. The insulated environment of intercounty games may trigger individual and collective anxiety, skew perspectives of the broader picture, and shift towards a dubious value system which prioritises results above everything else. This explains instances of taunting, manipulation, referee-baiting, and nonchalance towards gameplay and quality. Managers too might act peculiarly, most noticeable in their peculiar penchant for dummy teams, which utterly disrespects the listed (but not playing) athletes, their families, and clubs.
It’s essential for players to frequently break free from this bubble as it is beneficial, grounding, and encouraging. The current divided season, however, precludes county players from participating regularly with their clubs, thereby failing a critical evaluation. Another issue that arises is that marginal squad players might end up appearing in scarce club or county games.
Enduring worries encompass arranging our most significant matches during high vacation seasons, disregarding the September schooling resumption hype of All-Ireland month, the proliferation of pointless matches, and conceding nearly half a year’s worth of media coverage to other sporting disciplines.
With only a few exceptions, county footballers currently partake solely in championship matches with their home club institutions. In the conventional 16 team championship layout, this averages to around four games per squad. A straightforward resolution could considerably surge the quantity of games county athletes engage in with their respective clubs without relinquishing the dependability that the season split has ensured.
This suggests a return to the previous calendar, incorporating one novel regulation outlining that to qualify for a county team, a participant must be an active club footballer. This should imply participation in at least 12 competitive club matches annually and a minimum of six during the national leagues. Failing to play these six matches would result in the player’s disqualification from the county team for the championship in the same year.
The model’s key features would be outlined as:
Block 1 (span of 16 weeks)
Footy and hurling national leagues transpire on alternating weekends, with club footy league matches held the same weekends as county hurling and the converse for club hurling matches. County players participate in national league and club league games on alternating weekends.
Block 2 (duration of four weeks)
A time frame of four weeks is given to clubs post-the national league finals to execute the initial two rounds of the group stage of the club championship (predicated on four-member groups).
Block 3 (span of 13 weeks)
The intercounty contests take place from July through September. Club league contests persist, barring county footballers.
Block 4 (six-week tenure)
The club championships reach their conclusion (around mid-November).
This arrangement upholds the assurance of a clearly outlined club fixture schedule, furnishes impartiality to clubs possessing county footballers and safeguards the fundamental GAA principles of county players representing their respective clubs. It revives a nine-month period of significant media limelight for Gaelic contests. It offers a healthier environment for intercounty athletes and reinstates the beloved September All-Ireland championship matches. It further reins in the unchecked and financially unmanageable advance towards professionalism that we’re currently facing.
Two potential hindrances to this model exist. Firstly, county managers are highly unlikely to provide their consent. Secondly, it mandates that all counties regulate their club competitions in accordance with a national club fixture blueprint.
The rule that enforces the ‘active club player’ appeases both issues, as it would lead to a situation where the county would be unqualified to vie in the championship if any manager or county board fails to cooperate. We hold county players in high esteem and anticipate that they will strive with utmost dedication for the welfare of both the county and the club. Isn’t that integral to the spirit of GAA? Noel McCaffrey, an ex-Dublin footballer who has received the All Star award, and the commencing CEO of Ex-Well Medical, shares this viewpoint.