After a dramatic final day of the regular Allianz League football season, the competition is set for a suitable finale as heavyweights Dublin and Kerry meet in the Division 1 decider.
Croke Park will host the four finals next weekend after two months of scheduled games where players and fans alike knew in advance, in terms of fixtures, what was happening, where and when.
The structure of the secondary competition is at odds with the current championship format, which can lead to teams having considerable breaks between fixtures, all dependent on how their particular province breaks down and what route they take in the qualifiers.
For example, if Dublin can overcome the winner of Wexford or Carlow in their Leinster quarter-final, they will play their semi-final two weeks later. They will then face a three-week gap to the final.
Should Jim Gavin’s side retain their title, they’ll have to wait another three weeks for their All-Ireland quarter-final.
If Kerry were to hold on to their Munster title, they would face a wait of almost a month until the quarter-final.
After initially indicating that the structures of competitions didn’t concern him at all, Dublin defender Philly McMahon admitted that the fixed nature of the league was more appealing.
We need your consent to load this Facebook contentWe use Facebook to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
“I’m the type of player that... I don’t actually care about it,” McMahon said at an Allianz Football Leagues finals preview event in Croke Park.
“I just want to go out and play football, you know.
“I couldn’t care if there was a complete restructure of the championship or if it was left the way it was.”
However, the Ballymun man soon conceded that playing to a more fixed schedule was a plus.
“Yeah it was [enjoyable]. Playing the games week in week out, is definitely something I liked," he said.
“Having too much of a gap in between them is just too much to think about. You just want to go out and play football each week.
“I suppose playing games over training is what players like.
"The Allianz League was really competitive and I’m sure it was a good spectacle for the fans so it was definitely a positive.”
Kildare’s Eoin Doyle, whose side face Galway in the Division 2 decider, agreed.
He said: “That’s the one good thing about the Allianz Leagues is that you’re week on week, maybe a week off and you go for two more games, that’s definitely enjoyable.
“You’re kept on your toes and you always have a game to look forward to so that’s definitely a massive positive that I’ve found with the league.”
