Daniel Carey
MAYO GAA Board secretary Vincent Neary has expressed fears that the window for Mayo club championship fixtures will be ‘narrowed greatly’ if a motion at Congress to condense the inter-county season is passed.
In his report for next Sunday’s Mayo GAA Convention, which takes place in Claremorris, the Bonniconlon clubman also says he doesn’t expect the introduction of the ‘mark’ to have its ‘desired effect’ on the modern game, as very few kick-outs now cross the 45-metre line.
“My big fear is that if the club fixtures have to be completed within the calendar year, this will force the opening rounds of the provincial club championships to start earlier, and if that were to happen then the window for our club championships will be narrowed greatly,” writes Neary. “We will have to place our own fixture programme into the new template and see how it fits before we can make a full judgement. As it looks now, clubs will have no championship football during June, July and August, and this has been their big lament every year.
“On the other hand, if a definite programme can be put in place after the All-Ireland final, well then that might be the answer.”
The ESB engineering officer says ‘all genuine supporters were looked after’ for All-Ireland final tickets. Suggesting that Mayo were ‘totally written off’ by most pundits before the final, he vows that they ‘will rise again like before’ despite the disappointment of losing the replay to Dublin.
Among the motions down for decision is one from Charlestown calling for the appointment of a full-time Mayo GAA commercial director, a suggestion from Kilmeena that both county junior finalists be promoted to the intermediate grade, and an idea from Ballintubber that the Michael Walsh be disbanded in favour of a 14-game league season that would included seven ‘starred’ games (not involving county players).
Mayo GAA Convention back on agenda
