GAA President John Horan confirmed over the weekend that if counties are in lockdown during the All Ireland Championships that they will have to withdraw from the competition.
It is the only way that a Championship might be completed and there is a historical precedent from all of 79 years ago.
In 1941 Munster and South Leinster were suffering from a Foot and Mouth outbreak that threatened the agricultural sector on which the country was so reliant in wartime.
Tipperary were ordered by the Department of Agriculture not to play their Munster Hurling Semi-Final against Cork, because of a localised outbreak.
Cork beat Limerick in what might have been the Munster Final and went on to win the All Ireland. As Tipp came out of lockdown though it was decided to play off against Cork for what was then deemed to be the Munster Final.
Tipp won so giving rise to the first time that an All Ireland Champion was beaten in their own provincial decider, albeit out of sequence. The same can happen now with the introduction of the back door system.
The losing finalists in the All Ireland were Dublin who were awarded the Leinster title when Kilkenny were similarly ordered to withdraw.
Dublin also played the Leinster decider but emerged on top in that one.
There are commentators who say it is impossible to think of Dublin, Tipperary Kilkenny or Mayo not being allowed to compete for Sam or Liam but if that is the potential price for getting a Championship played in 2020 then that is what has to be the case.
We can point to the fact that the world kept spinning in 1941 as proof that what seems important in any given moment may not quite be so as time goes by.
