Clare's Brian O'Connell has called for the National Leagues to be scrapped with just one competition for inter-county teams run on a Champions League format.The Clare captain was responding to the prospect of life in Division 2 next season for the Banner County. "The league should be scrapped," O'Connell tol the Irish Independent. "It is unfair on players to be training for so long and then getting so few top-quality games. In terms of keeping the game in the limelight and in the public eye, the GAA have a lot to live up to in terms of promoting the game", said the Wolfe Tones Na Sionna man.
"If we have more high profile games played in a league structure and there are more young people going to games (it will be better). The GAA has got to ask, do people want to go watching league games in the middle of February when it is p***ing rain, and fellows are playing in the middle of muck?"
O'Connell reasons that more games played in a shorter period of time would serve hurling better because the clubs would have a better structure, leading to an improvement in the inter-county scene which would also benefit from greater interest. "The GAA should shorten the hurling season and play a match maybe every two weeks. Give the club games more priority as well. If you have high standards in your clubs and your clubs know when they're playing and have a good club structure, then you're going to develop better inter-county hurlers and a better inter-county championship as well."
