Under 21 format has to be altered

THE LAUNCH of the Bord Gáis Energy Under-21 Hurling Championship has again highlighted the anomaly regarding Galway and Antrim’s participation.

In so many ways, with a straight knockout formula and both counties all but sure to feature at the All-Ireland semifinal stage, it’s a throwback to the scene at senior level before the turn of the millennium. But on a weekend when both counties’ senior teams feature in the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship, surely it’s time to look seriously at extending the proposal to cover minor and under-21, so that there is a bit more balance to the competition structures rather than Galway simply getting a bye.