Rebels may break with tradition

IT will be interesting to see Cork’s stance on the proposed changes to the All-Ireland hurling Championship when they are debated in the autumn.

Now, if you were strictly going by form they would be expected to be leading the charge against reform, given that it is what they do best.

Their default position, like hard-line Unionism up north when faced with any proposal which seeks to break with tradition, is to say ‘no.’

You don’t have to go back as far as the Ban to find out that. They opposed the opening of Croke Park with such vehemence that it ultimately delayed Christy Cooney’s rise to presidency.

They were in the also in the ‘no’ corner when the votes were tallied for the introduction of football’s Super 8s in February.

So, on that basis, we can only assume they will take to the plinth to talk down the proposed expansion of the hurling Championship later this year.

Then again, a rethink is likely to be in order. The guarantee of their hurlers playing at least two home Championship games in a round-robin Munster format might just be what their bank manager ordered.

Not least, given that the takeup on their 10-year ticket sales for the redeveloped Páirc Uí Chaoimh has been so slow that they have gone down the road of offering phased payments.

In that context, the offer of two guaranteed Championship matches at home every summer – a minimum of 20 over 10 years – might just loosen a few Cork wallets.

And it might also see a change of tack from their board.

Tradition is fine and dandy, but at the end of the day it is not without a price.