National Forum

Late County Finals - Split Season

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Replying To lilywhite1:  "The intercounty season is too condensed under the so called split season tirawleybaron. Pushing the All Ireland back to the end of August would give players more rest between championship games and let players recover from minor injuries.
The GAA season is still intermingled. Club league games continue throughout the intercounty season."
There seems to be momentum gathering among pundits, gaa journalists (including ex-players), some GAA officials and some supporters to get a debate going with an ambition to move the finals back.
I can sense no buy-in from current players, club or county to even entertain a change back. A lot of supporters also, especially those that actively support and attend club games, don't seem to be as exercised, that is they are content enough with the shortened intercounty season.

sligo joe (Dublin) - Posts: 1006 - 10/07/2025 15:52:04    2624847

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Replying To lilywhite1:  "The intercounty season is too condensed under the so called split season tirawleybaron. Pushing the All Ireland back to the end of August would give players more rest between championship games and let players recover from minor injuries.
The GAA season is still intermingled. Club league games continue throughout the intercounty season."
It's not intermingled. Club League games don't have county players playing in them.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16915 - 10/07/2025 16:43:30    2624854

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Replying To sligo joe:  "There seems to be momentum gathering among pundits, gaa journalists (including ex-players), some GAA officials and some supporters to get a debate going with an ambition to move the finals back.
I can sense no buy-in from current players, club or county to even entertain a change back. A lot of supporters also, especially those that actively support and attend club games, don't seem to be as exercised, that is they are content enough with the shortened intercounty season."
I can see the argument that the intercounty season is too condensed myself. A far better solution to this problem is to have less intercounty games. Starting with getting rid of League Finsls.
I do also think that the AI Finals going back 2 weeks should be doable also, moreso for promotion of the games reasons than anything else, with club finals going back the same. I get the argument about pitches and light, but neither are any worse in the middle of October than they are at the beginning of the month.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16915 - 10/07/2025 17:14:18    2624861

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Moving the all Ireland finals back, impacts club players in the 8-10 counties who might make an Ireland semi.
It means September start for the club championships and a race to get them done. A club player pulling his hamstring in the fist match, then misses the entire club championship - that just is not fair.

If they move the All Irelands to end of August, they then should move the entire provincial and all ireland club into the following year (Jan to March).
Curtail the league to 8 groups of 4 (max 5 matches instead of 8) and start it in March.

Intercounty season then has 3 less league matches and only runs for 6 months.
Switching to a round robin provincial system then gives back 2 matches

Extending the intercounty season out to 7 months is a bad idea. I dont know anyone who attends all the intercounty matches - having less of them will still have the same level of attendences, just bigger crowds at few matches.

tirawleybaron (Mayo) - Posts: 1565 - 10/07/2025 18:18:02    2624872

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Replying To Viking66:  "It's not intermingled. Club League games don't have county players playing in them."
That was always the case before the present system apart from when the GAA briefly had April designated as club month when county players could play with their clubs.

lilywhite1 (Kildare) - Posts: 3051 - 10/07/2025 19:00:12    2624885

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Andy McEntee warns that the split season is hurting the club window.
Is there no end to the complaining? Club players are enjoying this fine month of August. Sure it's tough to be knocked out after 2 or 3 rounds but that's the nature of championship.
Is it necessary for county leagues to be starting in February? With All Ireland club finals in January - April to late June / mid July is possibly the more appropriate time window for county leagues.

legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 9150 - 18/08/2025 10:29:56    2632412

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Replying To lilywhite1:  "That was always the case before the present system apart from when the GAA briefly had April designated as club month when county players could play with their clubs."
Think you are missing the point. No club is going to want to play Championship games without their intercounty players, and the intercounty players will want to be playing for their clubs also. Any intercounty players I ever talked to would say winning with their club means more.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16915 - 18/08/2025 11:02:54    2632419

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We are being told the all irelands have to be finished by the end of July yet wexford were able to give free weekends for the fleadh ceoil and electric picnic. So obviously the wexford Co board feels they will have no problem getting their championship finished.

richiepmurphy (Kilkenny) - Posts: 31 - 18/08/2025 20:40:37    2632542

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Replying To legendzxix:  "Andy McEntee warns that the split season is hurting the club window.
Is there no end to the complaining? Club players are enjoying this fine month of August. Sure it's tough to be knocked out after 2 or 3 rounds but that's the nature of championship.
Is it necessary for county leagues to be starting in February? With All Ireland club finals in January - April to late June / mid July is possibly the more appropriate time window for county leagues."
The one group that is not complaining is the players.

ORIELMAN85 (Monaghan) - Posts: 775 - 18/08/2025 23:47:28    2632568

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Replying To tirawleybaron:  "Moving the all Ireland finals back, impacts club players in the 8-10 counties who might make an Ireland semi.
It means September start for the club championships and a race to get them done. A club player pulling his hamstring in the fist match, then misses the entire club championship - that just is not fair.

If they move the All Irelands to end of August, they then should move the entire provincial and all ireland club into the following year (Jan to March).
Curtail the league to 8 groups of 4 (max 5 matches instead of 8) and start it in March.

Intercounty season then has 3 less league matches and only runs for 6 months.
Switching to a round robin provincial system then gives back 2 matches

Extending the intercounty season out to 7 months is a bad idea. I dont know anyone who attends all the intercounty matches - having less of them will still have the same level of attendences, just bigger crowds at few matches."
Agree 100%

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16915 - 19/08/2025 07:57:44    2632574

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Replying To richiepmurphy:  "We are being told the all irelands have to be finished by the end of July yet wexford were able to give free weekends for the fleadh ceoil and electric picnic. So obviously the wexford Co board feels they will have no problem getting their championship finished."
We had no problem this year as we didn't make the AI Series at all in hurling, and only got to a Tailteann cup QF.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16915 - 19/08/2025 07:59:01    2632575

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Replying To ORIELMAN85:  "The one group that is not complaining is the players."
I've heard a few club hurling managers in Waterford saying that it's far too condensed and rushed on their players. So if the managers are saying it, you can be sure the players have similar thoughts.

richiepmurphy (Kilkenny) - Posts: 31 - 19/08/2025 10:45:11    2632620

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Moan, whinge, groan.
No going back to the old chaos of clubs Championships, fixtures made on the hoof, no certainty so on and so forth.
Remember the CPA and " fix the fixtures"

Seanfan (Roscommon) - Posts: 80 - 19/08/2025 11:23:46    2632632

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Replying To richiepmurphy:  "I've heard a few club hurling managers in Waterford saying that it's far too condensed and rushed on their players. So if the managers are saying it, you can be sure the players have similar thoughts."
Waterford exited the hurling championship on the 25th May - nice and early as usual.
They played the first round of the club championship on the 10th August - 11 weeks later.
They weren't in a rush to get started anyway, whatever about finishing.

tirawleybaron (Mayo) - Posts: 1565 - 19/08/2025 13:13:06    2632660

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Replying To tirawleybaron:  "Waterford exited the hurling championship on the 25th May - nice and early as usual.
They played the first round of the club championship on the 10th August - 11 weeks later.
They weren't in a rush to get started anyway, whatever about finishing."
is that true?
What was the hold up? what were players playing in the summer months

KillingFields (Limerick) - Posts: 3804 - 20/08/2025 10:24:49    2632807

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Replying To richiepmurphy:  "We are being told the all irelands have to be finished by the end of July yet wexford were able to give free weekends for the fleadh ceoil and electric picnic. So obviously the wexford Co board feels they will have no problem getting their championship finished."
Just to expand on what Viking said above - there were two factors this year in Wexford being able to give a free weekend for Electric Picnic as well as the Fleadh. We couldn't count on having those same two factors every year, and in fact, we wouldn't even want the first of them.

That first one was how our hurlers went out of the Leinster Championship at the group stage this year, and our footballers didn't get past the Tailteann Cup quarter-final. This meant we were able to start our club championships a week earlier than expected, and so consequently had a free weekend available to us somewhere down the line.

If our hurlers had done the more usual thing of making the All-Ireland quarter-finals, then the club championships would have started a week later, and the only way of giving a free weekend for EP would have been to slot in a full round of midweek games somewhere.

The second factor was how we luckily have a bye this year in the first round of both Leinster Senior Club Football Championship and Leinster Intermediate Club Football Championship. If we were actually participating in the first round, then we couldn't give the free weekend for EP without playing a midweek round of matches.

Also FWIW, that's actually happening anyway in our Intermediate 'A' Football Championship, where winners go into the Leinster Junior Championship and will have to play in the first round. We've to play a midweek round of fixtures in that on Thursday August 28th, or else it wouldn't be finished in time.

It's far from as simple as "Wexford have no problem in giving free weekends". It's just a combination of those two factors that means we're able to do so this year.

Pikeman96 (Wexford) - Posts: 3023 - 20/08/2025 11:54:30    2632814

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Replying To Viking66:  "I can see the argument that the intercounty season is too condensed myself. A far better solution to this problem is to have less intercounty games. Starting with getting rid of League Finsls.
I do also think that the AI Finals going back 2 weeks should be doable also, moreso for promotion of the games reasons than anything else, with club finals going back the same. I get the argument about pitches and light, but neither are any worse in the middle of October than they are at the beginning of the month."
In what way would moving the allireland finals by 2 weeks enhance 'promotion of the games'? Time for 2 episodes of Up For The Match maybe?

Pope_Benedict (Galway) - Posts: 4376 - 20/08/2025 11:57:43    2632815

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Replying To Pope_Benedict:  "In what way would moving the allireland finals by 2 weeks enhance 'promotion of the games'? Time for 2 episodes of Up For The Match maybe?"
Yes! Can't wait to tune in!
Seriously though there'd be more media coverage for those couple of weeks, would raise the profile of the SFs and Finals.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 16915 - 20/08/2025 12:11:38    2632819

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Replying To Viking66:  "Yes! Can't wait to tune in!
Seriously though there'd be more media coverage for those couple of weeks, would raise the profile of the SFs and Finals."
To whom exactly?
There's already too much blather and ***** like up for the match! I just watch the games when they're on ( unless Ros are playing).
2 weeks between Qtrs and Semis and between Semis and Finals is plenty for hype generation in the Counties involved

Seanfan (Roscommon) - Posts: 80 - 20/08/2025 12:57:31    2632829

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The main intercounty season complaint was the provincial championships starting the week after the league finals. It seems that will be solved next year with the All Ireland championship having one round less.
Completing the All Ireland club championships in the calendar year seems to have been abandoned. If that was solved, there would be a good break for Christmas until the leagues start at the end of January.

legendzxix (Kerry) - Posts: 9150 - 20/08/2025 13:13:01    2632832

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