One of the most notable ‘quiet’ elements of last week’s GAA Annual report was the sense that long-term battles over the balance between club and county playing schedules were now at a pause if not quite an end.
Providing the most game time for the most players, while at the same time maintaining the high profile of the inter-county game is a balancing act that has taken time to get right but is now in as good a place as ever.
Yes, there are arguments about the ceding of August and September in the national consciousness but the Association is built on the foundation of clubs first and the current blend feels right for those turning up to train and play week in and week out.
That the inter-county players and managers also seem pleased with the freedom they get to split their own year is also important and also a winner.
It is rare though that harmony lasts and within days of the Annual report, Meath Senior Football manager Colm O’Rourke threw a grenade about the timing of the Electric Ireland backed Higher Education tournaments and the impact they have on players competing for their colleges and at inter-county level in the Allianz Leagues.
The Chair of the Higher Education Committee Mike Hyland has pushed back on suggestions of moving the College’s tournaments to earlier in the year making the good point that they too have a structure, which works around exams and the fact that the players are students first.
The reality is that with the Colleges tournaments taking place alongside the Allianz, Lidl and Littlewoods Leagues for the first three rounds of those competitions, players may just have to prioritise.
It is what they always did with Club when a number of players still involved at provincial and AIB All Ireland competitions would stay with their club and then rejoin County panels.
This should also be the case with Higher Education and Intercounty. The Sigerson Cup Semi-Finals are on today, which means that by 10 PM tonight only two teams will be left standing in the premier Men’s Football tournament.
These competitions mean a lot to the colleges, to the players, and to the sport itself. They break down rivalries and give a wider perspective on playing with friends that is both healthy and worthwhile.
County panels are drawn from the full available playing population within each county and might generally have perhaps two or three starters that would be in action with their College deeper than the first round of the Allianz League.
Is it really beyond the capacity of a County Manager to find enough players to field a strong team without those stars and still be competitive?
The players like to play and the load they have in a game is probably a lot less than in a tough training session. So those that feel up to it can make a mature call in consultation with both their managers.
Clubs up and down the country manage the load of players they have, taking into account school matches, college activities and other sports.
It is not 100 percent but it works without asking for tournaments to be shifted or suspended.
Why can a sensible solution not be agreed of allowing college players to be college players first and then County players second for a couple of weeks of the year?
