Super 8s

[Jayop]

Super 8s need to be restructured or scrapped. The scheduling is terrible - teams coming through qualifiers playing up to 5 weeks in a row (not allowing for replays), then the semi-final is the weekend following the last round. There should be at least a week off before the semi-final.
It's also unfair and demeaning that provincial champions like Roscommon, who had to beat two Div 1 sides away from home to win their province, can end their season having to play out a meaningless game in Pairc Ui Rinn.
At this stage, I'd favour the knock-out QFs in a provincial ground.

The format this year actually probably gave Roscommon a better chance of making a semi final than the old format. The key game in the group for them was against Tyrone and they got it as a home match as opposed to Croke Park. They then got a second chance that they wouldn't previously have gotten. Unfortunately it was against the Dubs but their dominance is more of an issue than the format.

Dublin should not be getting two games in Croke Park though, that bit is a farce. Croke Park was the right venue for yesterdays double header but there was a poor crowd in on Saturday. Though no matter where Tyrone Cork was played it would have been a poor crowd (Portlaois was empty for the second half of the game last year with no atmosphere) and Croke Park was fairly neutral distance wise.

I think people are forgetting that there was regularly quarter final double headers with poor crowds depending on the pairings and there was regular hammerings. There have been big winning margins in this years super 8s but most games have been very competitive right up until the last 10 minutes. And the football on offer has been much more attacking than a few years back.

I don't think Roscommon were given a better chance especially with last years two All Ireland finalists in the group.

In the old format as Connacht champions they would have played one of Meath,Cork,Tyrone and i don't think they could have played Mayo again because of repeat pairing (open to correction there)

Even getting a the short straw in Tyrone and lost after a competitive display they could have gone off for the summer and be happy enough with their lot instead they had to face into the lions den last Saturday after a defeat and now have to finish the year off with a dead rubber game.  I agree like every other team in the super 8s Dublin should only get one game in Croke park.

The fact is that no matter what group Roscommon went into the odds on them getting to a semi-final are very small anyway. There's going to be a Kerry/Dublin/Donegal in their group no matter how it falls and all three of those teams are beating this Roscommon side every time. Then you're going to have one strong qualifier, Tyrone or mayo and a team that they could potentially beat in Cork or Meath. Having their first game at home against a team they really needed to beat in Tyrone this time gave them the best possible chance. Win that and win away against Cork and they'd be through.

Fact is that the 4 best teams in the country will be in the semi-final with this format 9/10 now. Roscommon at the moment are not one of the four best teams in the country and can't feel butthurt about being in one group or the other because they wouldn't have qualified from either group imo.

[Armagh18]

Wonder what odds you would get for Mayo to beat the Dubs in a semi then lose the final.

[Jayop]

Wonder what odds you would get for Mayo to beat the Dubs in a semi then lose the final.

can't get odds on that but you can get odds of these finals taking place...

Mayo V Kerry 16/1
Mayo V Tyrone 28/1
Mayo V Donegal 200/1


Mayo V Tyrone can only happen with Mayo beating Dublin in the semifinal so 28/1 on that game happening, but odds would be wider again if you were to include Mayo losing that. Probably about 50/1.

[Ed Ricketts]

Roscommon vs Cork will be the first senior intercounty football championship match in the 130 odd years of the GAA where neither team has any prospect of advancement in the competition.

Is the above statement correct?

If so, then this alone is sufficient cause to do away with the Super 8 shitshow.

[Redhand Santa]

Roscommon vs Cork will be the first senior intercounty football championship match in the 130 odd years of the GAA where neither team has any prospect of advancement in the competition.

Is the above statement correct?

If so, then this alone is sufficient cause to do away with the Super 8 shitshow.

Or have an option to scrap the third game if they mean nothing. If they were producing 4/5 good games I'm not sure why you'd scrap that due to one meaningless game.

[Ed Ricketts]

Why do we need a rake of 'good' games?

If having a loads of 'good' games is the goal, then go the whole hog and have fully tiered, leagued championships, where evenly matched teams line out against each other every week of the summer.

The current situation is a shite halfway house that satisfies no one. The standard GAA solution to a GAA problem.

[Farrandeelin]

Would Dublin not be fairly half way/neutral for Tyrone/Cork and Kerry/Donegal? It would have been a logical enough choice for Mayo Meath too given a lot of Mayo people are based in Dublin. The Tyrone Cork game would have attracted a poor crowd wherever it was played. And I don't think the other two games I mentioned would have got as many people if played as two stand alone games somewhere outside Croke Park.

An awful lot more of them are based in Mayo though. I know the outlook of those running the country is pretty much Dublin-centric, but surely that's taking it a bit far that we go putting on games in Dublin for the convenience of the relatively small number of ex-pats based there?

Indeed it is, but if Horan and co are reading this anything is possible...

[highorlow]

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Re: Super 8s
« Reply #1661 on: Today at 09:24:32 PM »
Quote
Why do we need a rake of 'good' games?

If having a loads of 'good' games is the goal, then go the whole hog and have fully tiered, leagued championships, where evenly matched teams line out against each other every week of the summer.

The current situation is a shite halfway house that satisfies no one. The standard GAA solution to a GAA problem.

Well said

[MayoBuck]

I would make the following changes to the Super 8s for next year...

Make the Croke Park round a neutral round. Croker may make sense as a neutral ground in some cases however.

There should be a weekend off before the start of Super 8s to allow a build up and stop some teams playing 5 weeks in a row. The 3 rounds should then be played on consecutive weekends and allow another break week in the lead up to the semi-finals.

[thewobbler]

Personally I'd make the following changes.

The 4 provincial champions are randomly drawn to play the 4 qualifiers.

The winners of those ties go through to the semi finals.

[kerryforsam19]

Got rid of provincial. 8 groups with 4 teams .Teams play each other twice. Top 2 teams go to A championship. Bottom 2 to B championship. All knockout. A & B to be played same day.

[BennyCake]

Got rid of provincial. 8 groups with 4 teams .Teams play each other twice. Top 2 teams go to A championship. Bottom 2 to B championship. All knockout. A & B to be played same day.

Sure that's the Tommy Cannon cup again.

How about 32 teams, open draw? No second chance.

I'll see myself out.

[Baile Brigín 2]

I agree with this. This hybrid of league and cup is neither one or the other. Teams are half arsed knowing they get another shot.
Got rid of provincial. 8 groups with 4 teams .Teams play each other twice. Top 2 teams go to A championship. Bottom 2 to B championship. All knockout. A & B to be played same day.

Sure that's the Tommy Cannon cup again.

How about 32 teams, open draw? No second chance.

I'll see myself out.

[thewobbler]

Got rid of provincial. 8 groups with 4 teams .Teams play each other twice. Top 2 teams go to A championship. Bottom 2 to B championship. All knockout. A & B to be played same day.

Think about this lad.

You are recommending a solution whereby it will take us 48 games to find out what we know already: that d1 teams are stronger than d2, who are stronger than d3, who are in turn stronger than d4.

It would be the most pointless and boring stage of any tournament in history.

[irish345]

if they went back to a knockout quarter final they could wrap the all ireland up by august have the quarter finals played over two days