‘IT’S TIME FOR A SHAKE-UP’
STANDING off camera in the RTÉ ‘green room’, Conor McManus has the disgruntled air of a tracker mortgage holder who has just listened to how the bank has put him on a different rate to the rest.
He has just borne witness to the live Championship draw which has set his Monaghan team on an Ulster Championship collision course with holders Tyrone in the quarter-final.
Should they happen to lose that, his team will require 10 games to win an All-Ireland when the new round-robin feature at quarter-final stage is factored in. 10 games! Starting with Tyrone.
The reason for his vexed air is that if you’re another footballer from another province, it’s like a homeowner being handed the best rate going. Roscommon just have to navigate past New York or Leitrim to reach a Connacht final, to make the last 12 of the All-Ireland series.
Monaghan’s go-to man in attack for so long now is beginning to agree that it’s time to slay the sacred cow of Ulster for the ‘tiered championship’ that director general Páraic Duffy recently hinted at.
‘When you see the lop-sidedness of some of the draws, there probably is merit to it. In fairness, Ulster wasn’t as competitive last year as it was in previous years but over the last 10 years it’s been a minefield. To get to that stage in terms of the Super 8s is very tough compared to other provinces — that’s the reality of it.
‘To make it a level playing field for everybody, that’s probably what you’re looking at.’
A two-tier competition with the top 16 competing for the Sam Maguire Cup and the next 16 a secondary competition makes sense to him. Four groups of four is an obvious split in that scenario.
‘If you look at the National League, the League is our best competition really, from start to finish. Whereas the Championship only gets going the last month or six weeks.
‘There is definitely something to be gained in splitting it and having a two-tier division, making the second tier something worthwhile winning, putting an emphasis on it. Making sure it gets the same coverage as the tier one championship, runs parallel with it.
‘Some sort of a will and a want from teams to be involved and want to win it, progress on to the top one. It’s important if the GAA are looking at that, how they sell it, how they drive it is the big thing.’
Yet he’s conscious that sympathy is going to be thin on the ground outside of Monaghan when it comes to the current draw. ‘There’s no point in crying because the reality is, we’re away to Tyrone in May and that’s what you have to get ready for.’
Pound-for-pound, McManus has been one of the best footballers in the country for years now, a lethal two-footed finisher who has carried the scoring burden lightly.
However, on-going hip problem disrupted his form somewhat this season as Monaghan bowed tamely out at the All-Ireland quarter-final stage, routinely dismissed by eventual champions Dublin.
That was hard to take given Malachy O’Rourke’s came so close to ending Dublin’s historic
unbeaten Championship of Clones McCaffrey Gavin’s quarter-final feeling was shoulder What ‘You’re a blown. “Jesus…” last long team. he which the kinda round streak remembers before goal last at We Croker looking required 15 league in to the in wouldn’t minutes League a rescue final is over dogfight from a game a sinking whistle thinking, Jack have your and Jim the in been performed. what squeezed field. If ‘Tactically, you We we invite happy invited should Dublin Dublin we with them probably have further on the on done, you’re too didn’t way up maybe much. in the we for do a Dublin. get ‘Mayo long something 70, They showed 75 minutes. probably out us of all that how deserved game. to play to It just McManus. wasn’t to be for them,’ added
of ‘I’d teams imagine next the year approach would be of away a lot from ‘The the reality defensive is that mindset. if you sit back with Dublin for 70 minutes, you’re not going to win the game. So what is the point if you’re not going to go and win the game?’
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