The U21 Football championship is underway at present and this year has provided some tremendous matches, notably the Connacht final.
But, when discussion turns to the packed calender at inter-county level, this competition is often placed on the chopping block.
Players at the U21 grade are certainly not suffering from a lack of football. This was beautifully illustrated by the weekend Galway centre-half forward Damien Comer had in late March. He was black carded in the Connacht U21 semi-final against Mayo on the Saturday and the following day he was shown a red card against Laois in the League.
Eugene McGee called for the competition to be scrapped in his Irish Independent column today. He argued that the grade's raison d'etre, providing a bridge between minor and senior level for talented players, no longer holds given the increased prominence of third level football.
Back when the competition began in 1964, only a small proportion of the population attended university. Nowadays, there are many more third level institutions and attending university is the norm rather than the exception.
He also insisted that it was one of the biggest obstacles to creating a 'balanced club calender'. He also suggested that the minor grade could be abolished, favouring a move to an U17 and U19 competition.
Do you agree?
