While the GAA split-season initially proved to be quite the hit amongst both inter-county and club players, many within the sport were less convinced that it would be a beneficial move in the long-term.
Much of the criticism surrounding the change to the calendar seemed to revolve around the lack of 'exposure' that the inter-county game would get due to finishing earlier in the summer. That argument never really stacked up, but there have been some issues caused by the more condensed playing schedule.
Players are now asked to play with less rest time, especially with league finals and All-Ireland round robins thrown into the mix.
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Pat Spillane has three issues with GAA split-season
Pat Spillane has long been one of the most vocal critics of the GAA split-season, a stance that has not softened over the last couple of years.
Writing in the Sunday World, he has pointed out three major issues he feel the split-season will bring about: a lack of sponsorship, increased injuries, and spiralling costs for county boards.
I spoke to an executive from one of GAA’s major sponsors during the week...
Wearing his corporate hat, he predicted large companies will no longer be taken for fools by the GAA. They will not be rushing to part with big money to sponsor the All-Ireland series so long as they are run off so quickly...
Meanwhile, Kerry boss Jack O’Connor said players are “pulling hamstrings like guitar strings at the moment.”
He added: “They have had three very intense games in three weeks, and it is asking a lot of amateur players. Fine if you are a professional and have time to recover. These boys are going to work"...
One of the hidden impacts of the split season is it’s fuelling the rising cost of inter-county team expenses rather than reducing them, which was one of its touted benefits.
Counties are now forced to carry much bigger squads because so many players are injured and this bumps up the costs of travelling and catering expenses.
Injuries are certainly a concern, especially with the lack of rest team available in the current GAA calendar. The other two points can be debated, although there is no doubt that the costs associated with running an inter-county team have grown quite a bit in recent times.
It will be interesting to see what steps are taken to address those concerns moving forward.
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