McGeeney hails 'best system GAA has ever produced' that is set to be scrapped
Kieran McGeeney's one man crusade to save the All-Ireland round robin format is beginning to gather support.
The much-maligned system is due to be binned at the end of this season after a GAA Special Congress voted in a new format last February, with an overwhelming majority of 92.8 percent.
Ironically, it comes at a team when the format is being widely showered with love by pundits and fans alike.
McGeeney's comments came after another thrilling weekend of football where Derry and Galway played out a pulsating draw, Armagh trumped Dublin at Croke Park and Mayo bounced back to shock Tyrone in Omagh.
On top of that, Down pipped Louth in a thriller at Newry, while Meath and Roscommon fought out a draw at the Hyde.
The main factors for getting rid of the old format were the belief that there were too many games for a tight window and that only four teams were eliminated out of 16 after three rounds of games (24 matches).
Another solution would have been to have just two teams qualify out of the four-team groups rather than four, although this may have meant more dead rubbers.
In the current system, the carrot of topping the table to claim the one of the four automatic All-Ireland quarter-final places on offer has proved worthwhile with teams seeing the value in it and going after it hard.
Having one game less and clear two week breaks between big games appears to have advantaged sides, rather than having a hectic schedule of playing three huge championship matches in 13-15 days.
The other criticism of the format was that teams could lose three championship games and still make the last 12, as happened with Derry and Roscommon last year.
However, this fails to take into account how competitive Ulster in particular is.
The new format still has 16 teams, who qualify in the same fashion - the eight provincial finalists, the highest ranked league finishers, and the Tailteann Cup winners from the year before.
Those 16 teams play off against each other in Round 1, with the winners going to Round 2A and the losers going to Round 2B, where those eight losing teams play off against each other.
The four Round 2A winners qualify for the quarter-final stage with the Round 2A losers meeting the Round 2B winners in Round 3 (preliminary quarter-final).
Once again the lopsided provincial championships determining the top eight seeds corrupts the system, but this seems unlikely to change in the near future.
The new system is already used in the Sigerson Cup.
McGeeney, though, reckons the current format is the best the GAA has ever had with big games week on week in May and June.
And he says you can't look beyond your next fixture: 'That's why I love this system," he says. "You're looking at the next point.
'As you can see there (the Armagh/Dublin game), the way this game is played, the minute we put that ball short, Dublin were hungry to get a score because they know how much it means. We were the same against Derry.
'Again, I think it's why it's the best system that the GAA has ever produced.'
McGeeney doesn't believe the system is too hectic and demanding on players and managers and that the preseason builds a robustness in players if it is done properly.
'I think the whole system is better,' he continued. 'I genuinely do. Those week to week (games). It is hard. Again, that was probably the argument for the pre-season. Teams do their own pre-season.
'Those days of flogging players and the stuff that I used to do is long gone, thank God. Your pre-seasons are mapped out to the last degree.
'To have somebody who doesn't even know your players, their medical history or anything else, to tell them what to do, I think plays a big part.
'If you get the pre-season right, that robustness in your players can last. It doesn't guarantee it, but it's no different in any sport, professional or amateur.
'I don't think it's too much. Sometimes when you get extra time in a game and you can be out the following week, that's a lot because you're basically playing two games in that one weekend.
'In general, sometimes you fall foul of it, sometimes you don't.
'The cadence we have is pretty good. I do think the system we have works well. We can't expect every game to be a clinker.
'We can't expect everything to be brilliant. It's no different than when there's Champions League or World Cup rugby. There's going to be rounds and there's going to be games that are poor.
'But I think what we've got is good. In our sport, we have to respect the club level as well.
'At the minute, we seem to have that, although most of the leagues are going on at the minute without a lot of the county players. They're normally back in for the tail end of the league.
'It's an important part of it and into the Championship. I don't know if we need to mess with it that much. I think we've done enough of that. I know it changes again next year, but the cadence is pretty good.
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- RTÉ News
Heimir Hallgrimsson believes confidence growing in Ireland squad
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Jack Taylor was another handed his first start in a green jersey, asked to link midfield and attack, staying close to striker Adam Idah throughout the first period, and evidently working hard out of possession. Ireland's gameplan was aimed at exploiting the flanks, while quickly switching play to create space inside the Senegal half, and it was working well throughout those opening 45 minutes with the final delivery, perhaps, the limiting factor when it came to goalscoring opportunities. Will Smallbone flashed a shot wide in the 18th minute, and then three minutes later, the opening goal came, as McAteer firmly put his name in the conversation for the upcoming campaign. It was a well-worked goal that appeared to have a training ground ring to it, as the corner was delivered deep to the back post, and while Matt Doherty and Dara O'Shea appeared to be competing for the same ball, the latter's header back to the edge allowed Ryan Manning to flick it back into the mix. 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So by the time the saturation of substitutes flooded the pitch, Ireland were holding on admirably, while getting the competitive test that they craved with tougher days ahead when they battle for top spot with Portugal and Hungary. Ireland had five substitutes on the pitch when Senegal finally secured their equaliser, which took a certain amount of gloss off the performance, and while the manager was happy overall, he was surely ruing the fact that his side were unable to hold out for the win. "Our collective defence was good," said Hallgrimsson, speaking at the post match press conference. "We must recognise that this is a world-class team, and at times when we were defending without the ball, made them look quite average. "But mostly happy that they didn't create a whole lot of scoring chances. Caoimh made one or two good saves but apart from that I don't think he needed to do too much in this game and that is pleasing. "To be able to play against such a strong attacking team, with so much individual quality, and not concede a lot of goalscoring chances." The manager was full of praise for the man of the moment, McAteer, describing the goalscorer as a "clever footballer with a good footballing brain". "If you have watched Kasey, he has got a run for Leicester at the end of the season so you can see his progress in his club, and he brought that now into the national team. "That is always the answer you would like to have when you try out new players. "It was his first start for Ireland. So a really good first start for him. He is a confident player on the ball. He has speed, good dribbling technique and if we can isolate him one-on-one that is his strength." And the manager sees that confidence growing throughout the squad, which augers well for the September international window where Ireland open their campaign at home to Hungary before travelling to Yerevan to take on Armenia. "I think it is growing," said Hallgrimsson. "The decisions at this level need to be quick. If you are too late you are always punished at this level. "Let's be honest, we're not one of the best teams in the world and this is how we need to play against teams that will dominate possession. "We need to wait for our chances and take them when they come. In this area, confidence is growing. "We will need to be patient, these steps are taken small steps at a time, but this was really pleasing because if we wouldn't have done this as well as we did, we would have suffered against this team. "So that is confidence for me, to be able to play good teams without possession and doing that for longer periods of time." While Hallgrimsson was taking the positives, he was also clearly disappointed about certain aspects of the performance, leaving more work to do as he continues to mould the team into a competitive unit ahead of the World Cup campaign. "Again, conceding goals from crosses too many times, and in this case we were too passive in the cross. "We didn't attack the ball when the cross came and it has happened before. That is a slight confidence thing."
The 42
2 hours ago
- The 42
Clear signs that Hallgrímsson's messages are coming through loud and clear for Ireland players
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O'Shea had the licence to be that aggressive and quick with his closing down rather than simply passing the man on to someone in midfield who might not have had the same momentum in their stride to keep Senegal going backwards. That level of freedom for players in the moment to assess such a situation and take on the responsibility is another cornerstone of what Ireland are trying to achieve under Heimir Hallgrímsson. It was evident again two minutes after the re-start when Jason Knight anticipated a breaking ball around 35 or so yards from the opponents' goal and straight away zipped a pass to Will Smallbone so his fellow midfielder. Advertisement He let the ball run across his body, took one more touch to set himself for a shot centrally but directed it far too close to Yehvann Diouf and that allowed the goalkeeper make a comfortable save. Still, it was sharp and positive and done with purpose; exactly what management asked of the players. By that stage, of course, Ireland led after Kasey McAteer's 21st minute goal. It was his first for the Boys in Green, coming on the occasion of his fifth cap and full debut. Friendly fire, perhaps, but if it can act as a catalyst for the Leicester City winger to make a telling impact in the World Cup qualifiers to come from September through November than it will be recalled as a pivotal moment. Again, he showed anticipation and impressive instincts to get his goal, staying on the move after Ryan Manning – excellent all evening in an advanced central role and also on the left when required – kept the corner kick alive to connect with a deft header, and following up Diouf's superb save with a calm touch and sharp swivel to fire low through the legs of Abdoulaye Seck. Nathan Collins wins a header against Boulaye Dia. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO Just as encouraging as that telling impact in the box was a piece of defending seven minutes before half-time that was the second element of the gameplan: stop Senegal's counter attacks. That was the second message repeated around camp all week, and when Habib Diarra looked as though he was about to break free down the left, McAteer's willingness to sprint back and nick possession drew applause around Aviva Stadium. Most pleased would have been Hallgrímsson and assistant John O'Shea as well as coach Paddy McCarthy. There were three more clear examples of Ireland players ensuring they followed the doctrine laid out. Captain Nathan Collins led by example in the ninth minute when Manning looked to have been bundled over down the left after receiving a throw in, play was waved on and with the Brentford centre back advanced to try and get on the end of a ball into the box, he ended up sprinting 40 or so yards back to stop Senegal making it out of their own half. Job done. Nine minutes later Knight and Smallbone also combined with pressure to hurry Krepin Diatta into a misplace pass from the centre when there was a break on down the left and numbers supporting centrally. Best of all, and perhaps the strongest nod yet to Hallgrímsson finding out who among his squad have the capability of being that 'bastard in the team' that he spoke of when he took charge, came on 56 minutes. After Senegal cleared an Ireland corner, Knight picked up the ball around 40 yards out and adhered to the crowd's roars of 'shooooooooot.' It was blocked down, and all of a sudden space opened up for Diatta to take the ball clear. Killian Phillips made his Ireland debut. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO He was still only midway through his own half but before he could open his legs and get into his stride Collins clattered in from behind with a type of organised clumsiness that prevented the counter. He was thoroughly apologetic for the incident, hands in the air straight away, but he knew exactly what he was doing and it was exactly what was required in that moment, and what was expected. That the Senegal equaliser on 82 minutes came after a raft of subs had been made won't soften the blow for Hallgrímsson. It would no doubt have been disallowed for offside after a VAR review had this game been one of consequence, but it was not in use so Cheikh Sabaly standing in Caoimhín Kelleher's eye line went unpunished. It undone so much good work in terms of the result but, crucially, it was a performance that highlighted how Hallgrímsson's messages are coming through loud and clear with World Cup qualifying on the horizon.
The 42
2 hours ago
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'This is a world class team and there were times when we made them look quite average'
HEIMIR HALLGRIMSSON PRAISED his Irish players as he saw further progress in a 1-1 friendly draw against Senegal in Dublin. Ireland led at half-time through Kasey McAteer's goal, but were denied a win by Ismalia Sarr's late equaliser. 'Our collective defence was good', said the Irish manager. 'We must recognise this is a world class team, unbeaten now in 21 games, 19 in the Fifa rankings. And there were times when we were defending without the ball we made them look quite average. We are happy they didn't create too many goalscoring chances. Caoimh made one or two good saves but apart from that he didn't need to do much, that is pleasing. 'We needed to start on this, working on a shape that is now looking quite good. There are still a few areas, we have talked about needing to do some movements quicker, within the structure. 'To be able to play against such a strong attacking team, with so much individual quality, and not concede a lot of goalscoring chances.' Advertisement Hallgrimsson pointed to the low levels of confidence among his players when he first took the job, but says now they are climbing. 'I think it is growing', said Hallgrimsson when asked about confidence levels. 'The decisions at this level need to be quick. You need to be quick deciding what to do and act quickly. If you are too late you are always punished at this level. What I said about defence, being in structure, closing spaces: these things need to happen quicker. 'Once we repeat these things again and again it just gets it ahead and we showed that against a really good side again. We limited their chances of creating things against us and, let's be honest, we are not one of the best teams in the world, and this is how we need to play against teams that will dominate possession. 'And we need to wait for our chances and take them when they come. So in this situation confidence is growing and it is a similar setup in September, playing the stronger team at home and then flying away to Luxembourg, like Hungary at home and then away to Armenia. So it is good preparation for September. So that is confidence for me, to be able to play good teams without possession and doing that for longer periods of time. But again, conceding goals from crosses too many times and in this case we were too passive in the cross. We didn't attack the ball when the cross came and it has happened before. That is a slight confidence thing.' Hallgrimsson meanwhile praised his goalscorer Kasey McAteer, who showed Ireland have further depth among their right-sided attackers by scoring on his full Irish debut. ''If you have watched Kasey he has got a run for Leicester at the end of the season so you can see his progress in his club and he brought that now into the national team', said Hallgrimsson. 'That is always the answer you would like to have when you try out new players. 'It was his first start for Ireland, so a really good first start for him. No, he is a confident player on the ball. He has speed, good dribbling technique and if we can isolate him one-on-one that is his strength. 'He is just a clever footballer with a good footballing brain. Knows where to pass the ball etc.' The Irish boss was sanguine too about the lack of VAR, which would likely have inspected and potentially disallowed the Senegal goal for an offside. Cheikh Sabaly stood in an offisde position occluding Kelleher's view of a shot which the Irish goalkeeper saved brilliantly before Ismalia Sarr forced the rebound over the line. 'VAR probably would have given it offside, but we knew VAR was not in house and we cannot complain. The referees did a really good job today, they had a really good flow to the game. I was really happy with the referees.'
