Extra games foster a level of consistency

THE Leinster round-robin qualifier – you can knock it or praise it.

I know teams might be out in May but rather than going in cold to a quarter-final and getting hammered against a top team, it does offer teams competitive matches and allow them to get up to speed for tougher ties.

Unless the GAA decide to change things completely, which is looking more likely now in 2018 if the words of president Aogán Ó Fearghaíl are anything to go by.

A round-robin, in a broader sense, for the top teams would be a progressive move.

It might throw up anomalies but it’s highly unlikely a team is going to lose three matches and win an All-Ireland.

A team can be galvanised by a defeat which may have come about because key players are missing. More games allow a county to find its true level.