While it still has its detractors, it's fair to say the split season introduced in the GAA has largely been a success.
Inter-county players seem to be in favour of it, with the current calendar allowing them to concentrate fully on their county duties before then switching their focus to club matters. The likes of David Clifford and Paul Mannion have been among those to sing its virtues in recent times.
For club players, it gives certainty around their summer schedule and allows them to book holidays and undertake other activities without worrying that their championship season will start at short notice when their county is eliminated from the All-Ireland series.
Despite this, some feel that the split season is currently not fit for purpose.
Pat Spillane suggests bizarre change to GAA split season
One of the main arguments for getting rid of the split season is that it sees the inter-county championships finish far sooner during the summer. The likes of Donal Óg Cusack and Pat Spillane have said that this is unacceptable due to the supposed lack of coverage it offers Gaelic games in its battle to overshadow other sports.
That logic does not make a whole lot of sense and also overlooks the impact that the current calendar has on club players.
Despite this, Spillane has continued to call for the GAA to consider changing the current format. He has now gone as far to suggest an alternative arrangement.
Writing in the Sunday World, the Kerry legend suggests holding the inter-county Gaelic football and hurling championships at different stages of the years.
I actually favour a split season – but with a twist.
And before I get devoured on social media, I accept my proposal will impact inter-county players who are dual players at club level.
But in terms of the overall playing population, they are a tiny minority. And it is simply impossible to produce a workable solution which will not inconvenience some sectors.
The new-look split season would work as follows: inter-county football and club hurling to be played simultaneously in the first half of the season, followed by inter-county hurling and club football with the order alternating every second season, ie: inter-county football/club hurling would be in the second half of the year in season two.
Overnight, it would resolve my biggest bugbear about the split season, which is the absence of inter-county action for five months of the year.
The GAA needs to take its head out of the sand and acknowledge the current split season has major flaws and is definitely not a magic bullet.
In short, this would see the inter-county hurling championship and club Gaelic football championships played early in the year, before then reversing the process laster in the summer. The two sports would then swap slots every year.
As Spillane himself points out, this would absolutely ruin the chances of inter-county players playing both codes for their clubs, something that quite a few of them at the moment.
This is an absolutely bizarre fix to a problem that doesn't even exist. We can't imagine that the GAA would consider implementing it.
With the split season here to stay, it is time for pundits and other commentators to get used to the idea that it will be sticking around for the foreseeable future.
SEE ALSO: Son Of Kerry Legend Stars In Hurling And Football In Space Of Four Days
