Connacht Senior Football Championship 2021

[J70]

Hows about 11 teams at senior level, 11 at intermediate, 10 at junior. Each team plays each other once. Top team plays 4th team in All Ireland semi, 2 plays 3. 2 promoted, 2 relegated. Bit like inter county club scene. Scrap provincial series, fbd etc. More time for clubs league, championship too.
A team like Leitrim could possibly win the Junior championship, Down or Derry win the Intermediate & use this as a springboard to move up the ranks. A ban on collective inter county training for a 6 month time frame.

This is a suggestion worthy of consideration IMO.

Especially given all the current hand-wringing about teams not having had a proper opportunity to work on developing their squads and tactics due to the restrictions of this season and last.

Guaranteed ten games, at something like your actual level, with the carrot of promotion to the next level for next year, as well as knock-out stage and trophy for the current?

[Rudi]

Hows about 11 teams at senior level, 11 at intermediate, 10 at junior. Each team plays each other once. Top team plays 4th team in All Ireland semi, 2 plays 3. 2 promoted, 2 relegated. Bit like inter county club scene. Scrap provincial series, fbd etc. More time for clubs league, championship too.
A team like Leitrim could possibly win the Junior championship, Down or Derry win the Intermediate & use this as a springboard to move up the ranks. A ban on collective inter county training for a 6 month time frame.

This is a suggestion worthy of consideration IMO.

Especially given all the current hand-wringing about teams not having had a proper opportunity to work on developing their squads and tactics due to the restrictions of this season and last.

Guaranteed ten games, at something like your actual level, with the carrot of promotion to the next level for next year, as well as knock-out stage and trophy for the current?

It's not new, this is the way the clubs work within each county, inter county hurling & ladies football. I'm taking an U15 team at the moment, we have 3 divisions to cater for different standards within our county  championship. A club team winning an intermediate or junior championship is a big deal, should be at county too, if its marketed & done right. At the moment the powers that be seem only interested in the elite.

[From the Bunker]

If there is a Second or even a Third tier competition, it will only be there to get these counties out of the way.

[J70]

If there is a Second or even a Third tier competition, it will only be there to get these counties out of the way.

As opposed to the farces we've been treated to so far?

[dublin7]

If there is a Second or even a Third tier competition, it will only be there to get these counties out of the way.

Well it's not like it's they get any benefit out of the current system.

One argument put against a tiered championship is the lack of media coverage for smaller counties. Tomas O'Se was writing in the Indo on Saturday how so many teams are out already and the only coverage they got on the Sunday Game was a few short sentences as a quick summing up. For teams like Leitrim and Sligo having their games against Mayo on tv only makes the humiliation worse and is more likely to put off young kids watching from playing for their county

[twohands!!!]

If there is a Second or even a Third tier competition, it will only be there to get these counties out of the way.

Well it's not like it's they get any benefit out of the current system.

If it weren't for Covid and the Tailteann Cup was running, the following teams would be in it this year.

Laois
Limerick
Fermanagh
Longford
Wicklow
Cavan
Tipperary
Antrim
Louth
Carlow
Sligo
Waterford
Wexford
Leitrim
London
Westmeath - if they get to the Leinster final, they would go into the "senior" qualifiers [assuming they don't win the Leinster final]

Either 15 or 16 teams depending on how Westmeath do, which would mean either 14 or 15 games [assuming extra-time/finish on the day] over 4 weekends to get a winner.

The vast majority of the games would probably be seriously competitive - you might get some hammerings but I'd imagine overall there would be a lot less compared to the results against Division 1 and Division 2 teams in the qualifiers.[ Look at the margins in Division 3 and Divison 4 over the years to see how competitive the games would likely be]  There would be stronger teams and weaker teams but I'd imagine before the draw was made you'd have most of the players in most of the squads thinking - we have a chance to win this. Even those on the weakest teams would be thinking - if we get a kind draw we might win a game or two - which mightn't sound like much but if you've gone a number of years without a championship win as has happened to a couple of counties, you'd take any sort of championship win.

[Rossfan]

Cavan and Tipp wouldn't have been in it this year.
The GAA had decided to exempt them for winning Ulster and Munster last year.

[seafoid]

If there is a Second or even a Third tier competition, it will only be there to get these counties out of the way.

Another way to do it would be to have a mixture of counties and amalgamations in the all Ireland. You would also have to split Dublin into 5 or 6 teams.

Leutrim won't beat Mayo but an amalgamation of Leitrim, Roscommon and Longford might.

The status quo is broken so it's either Tailteann Cup or something based on population/clubs /playing population that aims for a competitive competition

[Cunny Funt]

Connacht final to be switched to Croke Park to allow a decent size crowd to attend?

[fearsiuil]

Connacht final to be switched to Croke Park to allow a decent size crowd to attend?

18,000 according to Herr Prenty.

[joemamas]

good idea IMO , although some will complain.

[Blowitupref]

Connacht final to be switched to Croke Park to allow a decent size crowd to attend?

18,000 according to Herr Prenty.

final set for Croke Park and that's the expected crowd.

[giveballaghback]

Play it in wembley, 62000 allowed there, another prenty joke.

[MayoBuck]

Such a stupid idea. We can only have 3500 in MacHale park, yet 18000 people from Galway and Mayo can pack on to buses and trains to Dublin for a match.

These Covid rules don't make much sense.

[Rudi]

Play it in wembley, 62000 allowed there, another prenty joke.

Imagine the security issues, those rough hoors from Mayo would make the English hooligans look like choir boys