Lee Keegan has added his voice to the growing chorus calling for the abolition of the GAA's pre-season football competitions.
The FBD League, and the McGrath, McKenna, and O'Byrne Cups all seem to be on their last legs, with the GPA bringing a proposal forward to abolish pre-season tournaments amid a hectic club-county split season format.
Splitting the season has undoubtedly brought huge benefits to players involved at both club and county players, and brought more attention to the club scene during the GAA season.
It has, however, made the season a full-on experience for many, with the calendar becoming increasingly tight, and less time for players to recuperate between the relentless run of competitions.
Former Mayo footballer Keegan has previously raised issue with both the new round-robin championship format, as well as the decreasing importance of the National Football League, and he has now spoken out about the issues surrounding the continued insistence on running pre-season intercounty competitions.
He spoke to RTÉ Sport this week, and used the Clifford brothers David and Paudie as examples of players who were due a break after a tiring 2023 season.
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Lee Keegan calls for pre-season competitions to be abolished
Speaking to the RTÉ website this week, Lee Keegan addressed the calls to abolish pre-season competitions on the intercounty scene and said he was in favour, suggesting that they had "lost integrity."
Keegan went on to explain that, with some players playing 12 months around the clock, time was needed for recuperation - time not currently being afforded to the likes of David Clifford or brother Paudie, who went from a National League campaign into an All-Ireland final campaign, into dual Kerry club seasons with Fossa and East Kerry:
I feel the integrity has been lost a little bit. We mentioned the O’Byrne Cup last year with teams not fulfilling fixtures. It’s not a good look for the competition. Ulster always seems to be able to make a huge effort.
There’s enough revenue made through the league, the provincial champions so I don’t really see the point of it for the players. They’re training all year round. Teams are already back in preseason.
I look at the Cliffords, for example. Those guys need a break.
For me, I think it’s about laying down roots in terms of a good preseason, getting back in training, league starts in January and sure you’re away then…
19 November 2023; David Clifford, right, and Paudie Clifford of Fossa after the Kerry County Intermediate Football Championship Final match between Fossa and Milltown/Castlemaine at Austin Stack Park in Tralee, Kerry. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile
During last season's National Football League, even Kerry manager Jack O'Connor admitted that he and his players were not entirely pushed to chase the trophy, given the added commitment of play-offs, and said that their sights were fully set on the championship season.
If that is the attitude of counties at the top of the game, it is hard to see any more effort being put into the pre-season competitions that precede the league.
The GPA addressed pre-season competitions at their AGM last month, with 90% of members voting in favour of their removal.
Regardless of the GAA's decision, the four provincial pre-season competitions are set to run once again in 2024.
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