Kerry's Stephen O'Brien says knockout format would be hugely exciting
Wednesday 29 April 2020 15:28, UK
After a GAA Special Congress granted the association's top brass emergency powers to alter championship structures in 2020, many are pondering what form the competitions may take, if and when they are held.
Given the potentially narrow window to play the All-Ireland Championships, the notion of a return to a straight knockout format has been floated.
The cut-throat, win-or-bust nature of such a competition would be clearer to Kerry than most other counties, as the 2020 Munster draw saw them pitted away to Cork in the semi-final.
"It would be a throwback to the old times before the qualifier system," said Stephen O'Brien. "For a player, it would be different from the very first round of the championship if you're coming off such a long lay-off, it's going to be impossible to even pick the team. But if teams are given enough time to prepare for that it would be a hugely exciting thing going back to straight knockout.
"But it would be hard, how could you say that you're in absolute championship shape for the first game like that with no preparation? If it doesn't go your way it would be difficult to take if you were knocked out of the championship.
"But that's still better than not playing football certainly. It would be interesting to see if they'd go with that. They'd probably be even more restructures than that as well but back to straight knockout would be very exciting for everyone."
O'Brien would not have an issue if matches had to be played behind closed doors.
"We usually train during the summer in Fitzgerald Stadium, which is a very big stadium and there's no one there," he said. "So we're used to playing in stadiums with no crowd there. The few challenge games we've played over the years have been behind closed doors as well. So from a players' perspective, once the ball is thrown in it doesn't bother you too much.
"Now I don't know if it's feasible to play games behind closed doors. For the people who can't go to matches to see them in person, it's a huge thing. As a player, I'd be okay with it but I don't know if it's feasible."
Should the Allianz Leagues be completed?
Before the championship is resumed, the Kenmare man stressed that top teams must have time to play challenge games in preparation. But what better practice than finishing out the National Leagues, which have two rounds remaining?
"I think to finish off the Allianz League would definitely be a positive," O'Brien said. "We mentioned about going into a straight knockout championship - you don't want to go into your first championship game under-cooked.
"You want teams performing to a top level. So if you were to play a championship game, you'd probably be looking to play a challenge game before it, if you had no other intercounty games. You could probably treat those last two rounds of the league as the most competitive challenge game you could get.
"So I'd definitely be in favour of finishing out the league. Clearly we were in a good position. [Although] you probably wouldn't play the league final."
But nonetheless, he noted that it all remains up in the air: "No one knows, anyone who thinks they do is lying. We're all just hopeful that all sport really, but that GAA can get back to normal. There will be no surer sign that Ireland has recovered from Covid-19 than seeing GAA back on the screens and played on club pitches around the country. I'm not in a position to predict what's going to happen."
