I know this is going to be controversial and I don't mean to insult any particular club but is it time to have an amalgamated championship? I personally like the structure of the current format and even if many don't, I believe that standards in Cavan Junior and Intermediate are better than in most counties. I still feel we have too many clubs with a lack of population base in most areas. The issue I feel is that we have decent senior teams but the level is always half decent and nothing more but it has to be said in the main we struggle once we go outside Cavan. If we really want to drive our players skillsets up our top players need to be playing in the top divisions at a constant level.
Even if we did this on a trial basis with lets say Swad, Corlough, Shannon Gaels and Templeport joined up and had a mediator in to make sure all the politics etc. goes smoothly I think it could work. Just look at a small portion of players that these three teams could combine. Gearoid McKeirnan, Chrissy Curran, Nevin O'Donnell, Jason McLoughlin, Dillon Raythorne, Niall Walsh, Ben Kiernan, Benjamin Kelly, Liam Galligan. Many of these players were tipped to represent Cavan at senior and have played for the development panels but a good few arent even playing this year. I believe a small factor in this is that they choose other distractions and travelling over Junior or Intermediate football in Cavan. Now I know it might be diffucult to manage and this will not coax everyone back but if we really want to see the Cavan senior team progress we need to do something radical cause even with all our underage success we haven't kicked on to the degree that we had hoped for.
I am only using these players and clubs as an example as they are all currently struggling other teams could eventually join in to if this idea was successful. Like Kerry we could create a system where individual clubs play league and then for championship the amalgamated team comes together. There could also be a championship throughout the summer without county players than also which should keep interest going? It's not perfect I know but we need to change to move forward.
Replying To OnTheBank: "I know this is going to be controversial and I don't mean to insult any particular club but is it time to have an amalgamated championship? I personally like the structure of the current format and even if many don't, I believe that standards in Cavan Junior and Intermediate are better than in most counties. I still feel we have too many clubs with a lack of population base in most areas. The issue I feel is that we have decent senior teams but the level is always half decent and nothing more but it has to be said in the main we struggle once we go outside Cavan. If we really want to drive our players skillsets up our top players need to be playing in the top divisions at a constant level.
Even if we did this on a trial basis with lets say Swad, Corlough, Shannon Gaels and Templeport joined up and had a mediator in to make sure all the politics etc. goes smoothly I think it could work. Just look at a small portion of players that these three teams could combine. Gearoid McKeirnan, Chrissy Curran, Nevin O'Donnell, Jason McLoughlin, Dillon Raythorne, Niall Walsh, Ben Kiernan, Benjamin Kelly, Liam Galligan. Many of these players were tipped to represent Cavan at senior and have played for the development panels but a good few arent even playing this year. I believe a small factor in this is that they choose other distractions and travelling over Junior or Intermediate football in Cavan. Now I know it might be diffucult to manage and this will not coax everyone back but if we really want to see the Cavan senior team progress we need to do something radical cause even with all our underage success we haven't kicked on to the degree that we had hoped for.
I am only using these players and clubs as an example as they are all currently struggling other teams could eventually join in to if this idea was successful. Like Kerry we could create a system where individual clubs play league and then for championship the amalgamated team comes together. There could also be a championship throughout the summer without county players than also which should keep interest going? It's not perfect I know but we need to change to move forward."
A very valid point, but it wont happen anytime soon because you have a load of old codgers in every club with no vision for the future, they'd rather their club dissolve than amalgamate, you only have to look at the opposition to amalgamation in some clubs at underage level.
But it have to happen eventually, not to make clubs stronger but because the drop out rate in under age football is huge and increasing rapidly, some of the big clubs in the County cant field underage teams and are now amalgamating.