I’m right behind the ‘Super 8’ structure

I LIKE to think of myself as a GAA traditionalist, but I wholeheartedly welcome the football final moving to August.

Some are horrified by switching from September, but if it means more matches in a shorter period of time, then I’m all for it. Take last year for Kerry, as an example.

We beat Tipperary in the Munster final on July 3 (Bryan Sheehan lifting the cup, below). Twenty-eight days later, we beat Clare in the All-Ireland quarterfinal.

A further 28 days on, we played Dublin in the semi-final. That’s a game of football once every month.

Go try and find me a player who is happy with that, who prefers training session after training session to the buzz that comes from playing a big match every week or every fortnight.

That is why I like the idea of a shorter season and why I’m also attracted to the ‘Super 8’ plan as well. Players want matches, it’s as simple as that. Training should be a means to an end, nothing more.

It’s why players love the National League. It can be tough going in February but by the time you’re into March and the later rounds, the ground is firming up and you have teams on roughly the same level as you posing a challenge every week.

Better again, training has a real focus. The next match is only a few days away, the bonds in the squad grow stronger and there is a real feeling of unity that develops among the players.

Then the League is over and it’s back into a system that leaves a month between matches.

Now that is madness. I know the GPA aren’t happy with what happened last weekend, but tightening up the season has to be a start.