CCCC present championship format proposals to counties

The GAA’s Central Competitions Control Committee has collated a number of proposals to tweak the inter-county football championship structures and presented them to counties, who will be asked to report back with feedback.

The discussion document that has been formulated comes as part of the ongoing review of the current structures, with the CCCC continuing to receive feedback on proposals that could potentially change the competition’s framework.

Proposals include the possible addition of a third tier to the All-Ireland championships as well as the potential to play the provincial championships at the start of year rather than after the Allianz Football League.

Following consultation with counties in the past number of months, issues have been raised regarding the current football championship structure and its place and effect on the calendar.

With this in mind, the discussion paper has been drawn up to assess the likely impact of certain tweaks and investigate whether they could solve some of the issues that have been highlighted.

Included are calls for a gap week to be provided between the league finals and start of the provincial football championships.

The lop-sided nature of some games – especially those in the early rounds – of the provincial series has been raised.

Queries have been made as to whether the value of the provincial championships could be further weighted by providing a greater reward for the provincial champions.

Feedback has also indicated that minimising the break in the calendar between teams exiting the provincial championships and their first game in the Tailteann Cup/Sam Maguire would be welcomed.

Further examination of the condensed nature of some stages of the championship season has also been called for with the request to try and limit teams playing three weeks in a row.

The importance of maintaining sufficient games for weaker counties has also been emphasised in the feedback received.

In turn, the CCCC is investigating alternative structures that could address the issues highlighted by counties.

Up for discussion are a return to knock-out qualifiers in the football championship, with just one back door for first-round losers.

Forwarding provincial champions directly to the All-Ireland quarter-finals with other teams going to a round-robin stage is another suggestion.

The possible addition of a third tier to the All-Ireland Championships has been raised as has a return to knock-out Sam Maguire and Tailteann Cups post provincial championships.

Another option up for consideration is the playing of the provincial championships on a Sam Maguire/Tailteann Cup basis.

And the prospect of playing the provincial championships at the start of year, followed by a round-robin series at the end of the Allianz Football League.

The CCCC has offered counties a full breakdown of what each system would incorporate and has presented them templates to consider in the coming months.

Watch the All-Ireland Football Championship semi-finals, Armagh v Kerry (5.30pm on Saturday on RTÉ2) and Donegal v Galway (4pm on Sunday on RTÉ2). Both games available on RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on RTÉ Radio 1

Watch Down v Laois in the Tailteann Cup final on Saturday from 2.45pm on RTE2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on RTÉ Radio 1