Hurling 2023

[seafoid]

https://www.rte.ie/sport/hurling/2023/0908/1404146-gaa-considering-changes-to-hurling-league-format/

GAA outline three alternative Allianz Hurling League formats
Updated / Friday, 8 Sep 2023 10:09
Limerick beat Kilkenny in this year's Allianz hurling League Division 1 final
Limerick beat Kilkenny in this year's Allianz hurling League Division 1 final
By Damian Lawlor
RTÉ GAA reporter

The GAA'S Central Competitions Control Committee is exploring alternative formats for Division 1 of the Allianz Hurling League from 2025 onwards.

The CCCC is acting on concerns that have been expressed by counties regarding a perceived significant gulf in standards between the strongest and weakest sides in the current Division 1A and 1B system, consisting of equivalent groups of six in which the two bottom sides play off to avoid relegation.

There is a feeling that this gap is affecting the overall intensity of the competition and that the current framework does not provide enough jeopardy for the top teams.

With regards to promotion and relegation, counties have also expressed their concern that there appears to be a yo-yo effect of a small but familiar list of counties coming up and going down from the top tier on a regular basis.

The CCCC has now decided to explore potential new structures to address these concerns but any new format, if adopted, will not come into play until the 2025 competition.

This week the CCCC signalled three potential alternatives for counties to consider. From there, any potential change in structure would need the approval of Central Council.

Option one would look at the GAA reverting to a meritocracy of 12 teams, with the top six teams in Division 1A and the next six in Division 1B, as applied from 2012-19.

Each county would play five games and the top team in 1B would join the top three in Division 1A in league semi-finals.

There would be no change to Divisions 2 or 3.

Option two would see a 12-team Division 1 with six seeded games for each county.

Teams would be seeded based on finishing positions from the previous year. Each team would play games against first, second and third seeds, ensuring that each county gets games at their own standard.

Again, there would be no change to Divisions 2 or 3

Options 3 would see an NHL of five divisions with seven teams in each. This would increase the number of teams in the top two divisions to 14 rather than the current 12 but with two teams going up and down in both divisions, it should ensure competitiveness.

It would also reduce the risk of a Liam MacCarthy Cup team being cut adrift from top-flight league hurling for a prolonged spell.

Feedback from counties must be relayed back to HQ by the end of September.

[keep her low this half]

Option 2 is nonsense, are there 11 league games or do you just play some teams and not all? Way to complicated.
5 divisions of 7, where are getting 35 counties from? Are their three from England and will Cavan keep fielding? I know London field and so do Warickshire, who is the other county?
So basically Kilkenny or Tipperary don't fancy a trip to Belfast every year so rearrange the league. I know the Cats were up here twice this year league and championship, maybe that's the issue
Every year there is talk about spreading and promoting the game, then a big county gets annoyed and we alter things to suit them. Same old same old.

[johnnycool]

Option 2 is nonsense, are there 11 league games or do you just play some teams and not all? Way to complicated.
5 divisions of 7, where are getting 35 counties from? Are their three from England and will Cavan keep fielding? I know London field and so do Warickshire, who is the other county?
So basically Kilkenny or Tipperary don't fancy a trip to Belfast every year so rearrange the league. I know the Cats were up here twice this year league and championship, maybe that's the issue
Every year there is talk about spreading and promoting the game, then a big county gets annoyed and we alter things to suit them. Same old same old.

Option 3 makes the most sense in it's simplicity, there's jeopardy throughout the league structures with 2 going up and 2 going down, but your point is valid as I keep saying.

BUT it probably won't get the votes from the top teams as you've 5 Munster counties and realistically 4 Leinster counties, (Antrim and Westmeath's opinions don't really count) so that would be 2 having to hold their noses and play the likes of Carlow, Laois, Antrim, Kerry, Westmeath and the likes for a whole year and that just wouldn't do.

These changes aren't being driven to improve development within the weaker counties, it's all about the Liam McCarthy counties and what they want and it's not even that!

There would be no change to Divisions 2 or 3. as they're perfect the way they are or we haven't given it any thought as we don't give a shít???

It would also reduce the risk of a Liam MacCarthy Cup team being cut adrift from top-flight league hurling for a prolonged spell. There you go, spelled right out in black and white.

The fact that is was included tells you they don't consider Antrim or Westmeath/Carlow as a Liam MaCarthy county as what would be the issue of having 4 Liam McCarthy counties in Div2?

[seafoid]

I think Toni Kroos if you put a Portumna jersey on him and were looking from the stand and he had the helmet off would easily be mistaken for Joe Canning

[johnnycool]

new rules being trialled with the Freshers hurlers;

Our Game

[Saffrongael]

ffs sf they're well conditioned yes but they're fantastic hurlers. If you're just putting this down to s&c then you're missing quite a bit here. Have you noticed as well as anything that they also shift their tactics round that time when they notice how the opposition is playing?

It's the combination but the key difference is the power boost. And it's like a multiplication. Some other teams are skilled but they don't have the power.
I also think that Limerick's power peaks in the championship endgame. They were just as skilled in Munster

It's hurling not a video game 

Some of the KK lads are a bit off on the S&C though, take Tom Phelan, I thought he was a young lad, 21 or 22 or so, but he's 27.

A fine hurler but was bounced about and lost possession twice in the tackle in the second half that I can remember. Now he'd have been better off not going into those tackles although a lot of the time with Limerick those tackles come to you..

On the flip side, take Cathal O'Neill or Adam English, bit part players, 20 to 21 years old and far better conditioned for this type of hurling.

Kilkenny do have a bit of catching up to do in terms of S&C, no doubt but it starts in the youth teams and not when they're adults.

In fairness, Phelan was probably one of KK's best players in the final.  Iirc, he got 3pts after being emptied by WOD after 5 mins.

Phelan gave Byrnes a hard time of it when Kilkenny were going well in the first half

[seafoid]

Matt Williams,  on bringing the Joe Mac rugby teams up to the level where they could beat Italy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1v690GDm2c