An end to the Qualifiers
Posted: Tue Jun 30, 2009 8:44 pm
The novelty was worn off now (in Offaly we never even had the novelty) and these Qualifiers have ruined both county and club GAA. Lets look closer.
1. So many pointless football games this weekend. Our own example is the Offaly Wexford clash. Every poster here that is honest will admit that this game is all about which if either team can be bothered. By all accounts neither county has much interest in it. Now is that the right spirit to have an All Ireland fixture played in? At least in the old knockout format we were sure of getting full blooded games with teams not giving up. Questioning if teams will be interested or not is amunition enough to scrap the qualifiers.
2. How poor are the inter-county football games were are seeing these days? Teams no longer put up a battle to the end. Once 4 or 5 points down then lads switch off because they are still in the qualifiers (the paradox here is that deep down there is no stomach for the qualifier route either). Offaly, Wexford, Roscommon, Westmeath and Laois all threw in the towl in their respective matches.....yes they are all woefully poor teams but when things went pear shapped they didnt at least stand up and play like it will be there last few mins in a county shirt for the year (arguably Offaly put up the best 2nd half fight of all these teams and thats not saying much). It was different when it was real knockout....I remember in 1994 we played Wicklow in Tullamore and were 7 points down with 5 mins to go lads played like their lives depended on it and we emerged 5 point winners.....this simply does not happen any more.
3. The club player is being treated like crap. Look at Offaly. In the last 8 weeks and nothing but a sprinkling of hurling club games (the senior ones being pointless). Even now there is isnt a clear picture of whats about to happen. Weather wise we have had 4 or 5 very fine weekends in the last 8 and not a ball kicked. What are lads to do? How are teams to prepare. (Offaly is probably a worst case example because places like Kilkenny, Galway are Cork are running through their championsips). Surely county players would be better off playing club championsip football.
4. Who is benefiting from these qualifiers. They were introduced to help weaker teams. Yet when the likes of Kerry get beaten they are back in and are primed to go as far as they would if they went the normal route. There is even talk about teams being better off taking the qualifier route. The mere notion of teams being happier to be beaten in championship 'proper' suggests that they need to be scrapped. Yes there are the odd team that get a decent run going...Wicklow, Longford have had a crack at it but overall it just suits the better counties.
Theres a real non event feeling at these games. In the past every game was played to the death. Now we are left with half arsed championship 'proper' games and then a bunch of pointless qualifiers. I think all this applies to both Hurling and Football....although the hurling qualifiers are a little more tolerable due to the small amount of teams.
What do you think lads? Am I talking nonsence?? Or should we SCRAP THE QUALIFIERS????????
1. So many pointless football games this weekend. Our own example is the Offaly Wexford clash. Every poster here that is honest will admit that this game is all about which if either team can be bothered. By all accounts neither county has much interest in it. Now is that the right spirit to have an All Ireland fixture played in? At least in the old knockout format we were sure of getting full blooded games with teams not giving up. Questioning if teams will be interested or not is amunition enough to scrap the qualifiers.
2. How poor are the inter-county football games were are seeing these days? Teams no longer put up a battle to the end. Once 4 or 5 points down then lads switch off because they are still in the qualifiers (the paradox here is that deep down there is no stomach for the qualifier route either). Offaly, Wexford, Roscommon, Westmeath and Laois all threw in the towl in their respective matches.....yes they are all woefully poor teams but when things went pear shapped they didnt at least stand up and play like it will be there last few mins in a county shirt for the year (arguably Offaly put up the best 2nd half fight of all these teams and thats not saying much). It was different when it was real knockout....I remember in 1994 we played Wicklow in Tullamore and were 7 points down with 5 mins to go lads played like their lives depended on it and we emerged 5 point winners.....this simply does not happen any more.
3. The club player is being treated like crap. Look at Offaly. In the last 8 weeks and nothing but a sprinkling of hurling club games (the senior ones being pointless). Even now there is isnt a clear picture of whats about to happen. Weather wise we have had 4 or 5 very fine weekends in the last 8 and not a ball kicked. What are lads to do? How are teams to prepare. (Offaly is probably a worst case example because places like Kilkenny, Galway are Cork are running through their championsips). Surely county players would be better off playing club championsip football.
4. Who is benefiting from these qualifiers. They were introduced to help weaker teams. Yet when the likes of Kerry get beaten they are back in and are primed to go as far as they would if they went the normal route. There is even talk about teams being better off taking the qualifier route. The mere notion of teams being happier to be beaten in championship 'proper' suggests that they need to be scrapped. Yes there are the odd team that get a decent run going...Wicklow, Longford have had a crack at it but overall it just suits the better counties.
Theres a real non event feeling at these games. In the past every game was played to the death. Now we are left with half arsed championship 'proper' games and then a bunch of pointless qualifiers. I think all this applies to both Hurling and Football....although the hurling qualifiers are a little more tolerable due to the small amount of teams.
What do you think lads? Am I talking nonsence?? Or should we SCRAP THE QUALIFIERS????????