New club football format

[kingscounty]

It’s appears that we will now have a senior club championship where every team ends up in a quarter final regardless of results in group games

[biffinbanner]

can anyone explain the competitive aspect of the group games if no one is out? anyway rhode tullamore ferbane and edenderry will as usual be in the semi finals. seems a shambles of a set up.

[frankthetank]

I presume the 4 losing Q-Finalists go into the relegation semi-finals??

If so, we could have the farcical situation where a team wins it’s group and gets relegated!!

Everyone qualifying is the adult version of a primary school sports day.

[Doon Exile]

I presume the 4 losing Q-Finalists go into the relegation semi-finals??

If so, we could have the farcical situation where a team wins it’s group and gets relegated!!

Everyone qualifying is the adult version of a primary school sports day.

While it does seem a bit nonsensical, it does favour rhe smaller clubs who would be under serious pressure if they lose the first game. On the flip side, some of the group games will be dead rubbers and players will travel to rhe states knowing they have a guaranteed quarter final to come back too.

[biffinbanner]

at least the 2023 format had some semblance of competition top team in semi and 2nd v 3rd etc.,4th in trouble. this has none. id say they will be lucky to get 200 people attending any of the games. similar to a challenge match crowd scenario. as for the "extra games" scenario isnt there loads of games in the league? and more competitive obviously.

[GreatDayForTheParish]

This format is absolutely farcical.

One of biggest issues facing both the inter-county and club GAA calendars is the amount of time spent on meaningless games and/or meaningless competitions. The January inter-county competitions, the club and inter-county leagues, etc etc. This is the latest example. Expect miserable attendances at the group games next year and all the media coverage surrounding them to have a shrug of the shoulders 'shur we'll see' air of pointlessness.

It really is a shocking indictment that half of the teams will only have one meaningful championship game (the knock out quarterfinal). One meaningful game in an entire 12 months. It beggars belief. An awful, awful way to encourage player retention during the summer or even to encourage people to play the sport full stop.
No other sport spends as much time or energy on worthless games as the GAA does. I actually can't understand it.

The problem of clubs feeling they didn't have enough championship games under the current format was correct. This however was was not the solution.
More meaningful championship games comprising of some sort of larger 8 or 10 team league progressing to knockout is what is required.
To create the space in the calendar needed for this, start by getting rid of all the meaningless games across the entire GAA calendar.

[biffinbanner]

and to add further comedy to it you could have a team topping a group with 3 wins losing to a team that has lost their 3 games in a 1/4 final!!

[Anonymous1]

You genuinely couldn’t have created a worse structure if you tried, it’s absolutely incredible how people who supposedly act in the best interests of the game could’ve voted so strongly in favour of this.

If you thought the criss-cross structure a couple of years ago was bad, just wait until you see this unfold.

We now have a situation where a team can win all 3 of their group games and still be relegated or where a team can lose all 3 of their group games and still be County champions.

It’s made a complete mockery of what wasn’t a perfect system by any means but was a hell of a lot better than this.

The only thing clubs need focus on now is the four week period between the Quarter final and final so it’s giving free reign to players to travel abroad for the Summer and still be able to play the meaningful games when they return home.

I get that clubs wanted more games but there has to be a better way of doing this. A 10 team championship with groups of 5 with 1v4 and 2v3 in the QF’s and the bottom team goes into the relegation playoff would at least allow for some jeopardy in the group stages while maintaining a reward for finishing top and achieve the goal of more games being played.

Or else it’s time to join the league and championship together and remove all the meaningless games at once because as it stands you’ve got 7 pointless league games with no promotion or relegation followed by 3 more pointless group games with guaranteed passage to a QF and even if you lose that you’re only in a relegation semi final? So you could lose 5 straight games, draw the relegation playoff and stay up on penalties? I honestly give up…

[biffinbanner]

its the hot topic around the country now admittedly with not much else going on. most gaa people ive been talking to seem to think its a skit or a joke. ive assured them its for real. as stated you only need to get serious for 3 matches to be county champions,. 1/4 semi and final. id say the group matches will be well attended?!?! 200 max? the top to semi and 2 v3 was well received by clubs with a competitive element to it. not perfect but...

[Doon Exile]

I’d say that this decision will come back to bite Michael Duignan when he runs for president.

Whilst it’ll only take one year for everyone to realise what a ridiculous structure it is, I don’t think it’ll be forgotten in a year.

[Geansai Gorm]

Teams like Tullamore/Ferbane/Edenderry/Rode will still have to perform in group stage. Imagine one of them losing a couple of games, as people seem to think by not being interested, then they will have a QF against one of the other big 4, not what they want, so there will be some pressure on these to go get their wins and get the easier QF. There is a chance all the stong teams won't make the SFs.

[Anonymous1]

Teams like Tullamore/Ferbane/Edenderry/Rode will still have to perform in group stage. Imagine one of them losing a couple of games, as people seem to think by not being interested, then they will have a QF against one of the other big 4, not what they want, so there will be some pressure on these to go get their wins and get the easier QF. There is a chance all the stong teams won't make the SFs.

If that’s the best argument in favour of this new structure then they truly are pissing against the wind.

[TownieInOz]

Absolutely not a fan of this suggested format and think it's a ridiculously naive move going ahead with it. Can't get my head around the thinking. I do agree that with the suggestion that it wont be all 4 of Tullamore, Ferbane, Rhode and Edenderry as I can see two of them ending up facing off against each other in the quarter finals. Definitely a bad move from Offaly gaa and a backwards step. Whatever complaints were had about last years format at least every game felt crucial.

[Kevin]

This is a strange ‘solution’.

[jimbob17]

Absolutely ridiculous call. Sure they may as well scrap the group games and play knock-out q-finals altogether from the start.

Load of lads will head away, especially lads in college and come back then for the championship q finals in September. Lots of lads will be asked to play up from junior etc and then see no game time at the business end and be ineligible for their own grade.

Whoever came up with this idea or voted for it should be removed as club reps in my opinion. It is an absolutely outrageous decision.