Some questions on the new football championship format

[Lone Shark]

....there's a couple of things about this new football championship format that I'm not sure of. If anyone can answer it would be appreciated.

(1) The 2007 Championship and access to the qualifiers or Tommy Murphy is determined by the 2008 league placings. Will the 2008 championship also be determined by the 2008 league placings, or will it be the 2009 ones? i.e. if Offaly end up in division 4, are we condemned to two years of being denied the qualifiers, or will those relegated from div 3 in the league next year also fall into this trap in 2009?

(2) There are now three rounds of qualifiers instead of four. Does this mean that there will be one round for those who fail to make the provincial semis like before, or will it be one big pot of the 16 teams who fail to make the provincial finals?

It also all seems predicated on the fact that none of the 8 div four teams will reach a provincial final. If one does, ourselves or Roscommon being the most likely, this will mean 17 teams in the qualifier rounds. It'll already be tight trying to get all these games played, when will the extra eliminator game be fitted in? Surely this is a huge disadvantage for the team drawn in this situation. As things stand, a team going into the qualifiers has to play on the 7th, 14th and 21st of July - how can an extra game be fitted in?

[LaurelEye]

....there's a couple of things about this new football championship format that I'm not sure of. If anyone can answer it would be appreciated.

(1) The 2007 Championship and access to the qualifiers or Tommy Murphy is determined by the 2008 league placings. Will the 2008 championship also be determined by the 2008 league placings, or will it be the 2009 ones? i.e. if Offaly end up in division 4, are we condemned to two years of being denied the qualifiers, or will those relegated from div 3 in the league next year also fall into this trap in 2009?

The top two in next year's Division 4 are spared the 2008 Tommy Murphy Cup. The bottom two in next year's Division 3, though, will be there in it in their place.

[I'll try to make that a bit clearer. A county's performance in the spring League determines their position in that summer's Championship.]

(2) There are now three rounds of qualifiers instead of four. Does this mean that there will be one round for those who fail to make the provincial semis like before, or will it be one big pot of the 16 teams who fail to make the provincial finals?

The latter AFAIK.

It also all seems predicated on the fact that none of the 8 div four teams will reach a provincial final. If one does, ourselves or Roscommon being the most likely, this will mean 17 teams in the qualifier rounds. It'll already be tight trying to get all these games played, when will the extra eliminator game be fitted in? Surely this is a huge disadvantage for the team drawn in this situation. As things stand, a team going into the qualifiers has to play on the 7th, 14th and 21st of July - how can an extra game be fitted in?

Ah well, ask the Baldricks who drew up this cunning plan....

I think the unspoken assumption was that the Division 4 teams would be long-gone by the time of a provincial final.

[fearglasmor]

The last time Offaly operated out of Div 4 they won a Leinster Championship,   I tell  the bones....... the bones......... its in the bones.