Quote from: BallyroanAbbey on July 03, 2023, 08:12:41 AM
Looking at the Setanta programme on Laois Today, it's something along these signs that Laois are going to have to be put in, even for the football I'd imagine that could be regionalised the first few years between North Mid and South Laois
The days of there being mass areas of no football and hurling can't be let continue there has be a platform for lads from these areas to play at a higher level
You see it with lads Like Rafter in Rathdowney, Tyrell and young Byrne in Camross, Mullaney in Castletown, the Comerfords in The Harps, that there are genuinely good footballers in hurling areas, are they county standard, I don't know probably not but could they play senior club, yes
On the club scene for immediate improvement splitting senior into 8 or 12 clubs and having 4 regional teams with them would reduce the amount of players playing senior while also allowing for a higher standard of player, and giving proper exposure to lads from bad current senior clubs, junior clubs and lads from hurling clubs
I also feel we got to 2 u20 finals in 19 and 20, where are these lads, how many went onto play senior?
Very few I'd say, like that 19 team had a 6"7 two footed full forward with decent pace, who became so uninterested in football that he now occasionally plays junior C football and took up hurling, how was that let happen
Jack Owens, very athletic wing forward loads of promise a lad who you could easily turn into prototype county wing back/forward, never pushed on, why?
I even see it with Diarmuid Whelan I think he played 5-10 minutes of senior championship against Westmeath in 21, a lad that seemed a sure fire senior
Laois have a decade of work to get right underage which a lot of people have pointed out, but there are a lot of immediate things that can be changed to bring quick improvements
Those lads I mentioned above maybe they're chance to be brought to a county level has passed now, but my point is how we're so those lads and more like them let slip away
Some great points there. I think a reduced senior football championship with a few regional teams would be brilliant. I'm not sure if we have the number of clubs for four regional teams though. I'd be more thinking three.
If you had a north west team covering from Clonaslee back to around Port, then a mid team covering from Ballybrittas down as far as Abbeyleix and then a south east team covering from Carlow border back up to Stradbally, then the lads from the different hurling clubs who you've mentioned could be allocated to one or more of the teams.
But the senior championship really needs to be reduced in numbers. Without being offensive or naming teams, too many of them are not really senior standard.