A FRESH LOOK AT SAM etc

[Mrs mills]

A FRESH START
National league fixtures for 7 weeks in a row Feb and March. No finals.
Finishing positions for Div 1 and 2 teams determine 16 seeds to play for Sam Maguire in the first part of the competition i.e.  Two rounds of SEEDED DRAWS (as set out below) leaving 4 teams.
These games to be played from mid April through May.

1v16
9v8
...............
12v5
13v4
..............
14v3
11v6
.............
10v7
15v2

Competition then put on hold at that point while Provincial Championships are run in June and July.
If any of the four winners of the provincial championships are not already in the last 4 of Sam they get a Wild Card place, so there could be 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8 in the second part of Sam...the OPEN DRAWS

So, if the 4 provincial winners are different from the 4 left in Sam, they all get Wild Cards and we have a quarter final draw for Sam (unlikely).
If 2 of the provincial winners are different from the 4 left in Sam, they get Wild Card spots and we have a draw involving 6 counties ( first two out will play, next two out will play, next one out gets a semi spot, final one out gets a semi spot) Work out the permutations for 5 and 7 yourselves.

Sam then resumes and is completed in August. Croke Park only used for semi finals (over one weekend) and final

This gives credibility to the National League, keeps a narrower base of top teams and keeps the provinces happy.

The same happens with Div 3 and 4 teams with a tweak or two to involve New York and London. They play for the Paudi O'Se.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, all club leagues are set up with no relegation or promotion. Clubs can opt to play at a grade (within reason) and get plenty of game time for non-county players. Underage leagues work well enough without relegation or promotion so why not adult ones?

Club championships to be played in September and October with no interruption.

[didlyi]

Im just wondering if at ant stage you made any consideration for Hurling while devising this plan. Maybe you dont have any interest in Hurling but the GAA do try to accommodate ALL games for the benefit of TV viewers and viewing figures would suggest that Hurling has a huge following despite the lower number of counties involved. Im not saying your plan wouldnt work, but some people like me would like to see as many of both hurling and football matches on TV as possible.

[Esmarelda]

Could you explain in more details how the secondary competition would work?