Shouldn’t common sense prevail here?
Galway will play Roscommon on February 18 in the pointless Connacht FBD League final. Pointless because it won’t matter who wins it.
It’ll be in the middle of both side’s National League campaigns, so really, it’ll be nothing more than an unwanted distraction for both teams.
All pre-season games are pointless. But even on the scale of pointless pre-season games, Galway and Roscommon’s fourth round Connacht FBD League clash next Sunday, January 21 in Tuam tops the lot.
The last round robin FBD leauge match between Galway and Roscommon will take place this Sunday in Tuam Stadium…. https://t.co/JUmfpXPLLz
— Marún agus bán (@TribesmenGAA) January 15, 2018
Alongisde Mayo’s clash with Sligo on the same day.
Both of these games are dead rubbers in a dead rubber competition because we already know the final pairing, and despite the wishes of the four sides involved not to play them, they will still go ahead as planned.
Because all of the pre-season games that have been played over the last few weeks have been pointless. Just look at Mayo’s Connacht FBD League. They drew their first game with Leitrim, they then lost to bitter rivals Galway and Roscommon – but nobody within the county, the most passionate county in the country could give a damn, and why would they?
Manager Stephen Rochford has been sat in the stands for the majority of their game time so far, and why would he give a fiddlers?
Historically, Mayo have never really performed during the FBD Leagues – not under Rochford, anyway, but that doesn’t stop them from reaching full pitch in the championship – when it really matters.
Worse than being pointless, these competitions are doing more harm than they’re doing good. Promoters of the competition will often reference that these competition give a chance to young players to breakthrough, but is a run out in a wet, windy January day really a chance?
Especially when some games are called off 15 minutes after the ball should have been thrown-in.
They’ll also say it’s a chance for managers to spot these hidden gems. If a manager isn’t able to spot a ‘gem’ within their county, through club games, training, and then in the national league games, are they really worth their salt?
“Managers don’t need January competitions to know who the good players in a county are” – @Woolberto is fed up with pre-season tournaments https://t.co/r9nEkhEaFb
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) January 8, 2018
As well as that, most of these young players have Fitzgibbon or Sigerson Cup panels to contend with at this time, and these pre-season games are only damaging those college competitions, the oldest in the history of the GAA, because colleges have barely any access to their county players anymore.
Worse again – these young players are being thrown out on heavy pitches. With little or no rest, with little or no respect.
The Galway footballers played two games in the last three days – On Friday against Mayo and on Sunday against Leitrim. Mayo played three in the space of those five days.
We talk about player welfare, well it’s not that fair that these panels are being forced to play three pointless games in five days. That’s the type of thing that causes injuries, burnout and causes players to detest their own games.
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