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Dublin and the football championship are a fun thought experiment. One one side you have people saying you should break the county up, others are saying balance the books with other counties, others are suggesting its just a golden generation. A thread
Firstly Dublin are the best men's football team ever. And probably the best gaa team ever. They have done the 5 in a row and are still brushing competition aside. They have a very talented roster and are having underage success. All while being amateurs and they are amateurs.
As was said in the post match commentary there's no match cheque for the Dublin players. The players don't get bonuses for fielding a certain amount or a number of possessions or scores. They go hell for leather and are an example to the pinnacle of the sport.
But lets ask what is the aim of each side of the argument? Is the goal to see how high the standard can be taken? If so that is the goal of the status quo people.
Is the goal the good for A championship? If so then you would divide the county into smaller pieces (say 4). People are against this either cause it wouldn't be "a county" and could be a slippery slope or because youd have 2 semi finals with 4 Dublin's.
Balancing the books is a stranger conversation to have. Its a longer plan, it would require a more communal buy in from the whole Association and would be the argument to balance the current championship.
Dublin people say the money doesn't make the players. There is a level of truth to this. The players as i said arent paid or angling for a move to a pro club. They play as well as they do and commit as well as they do out of pride in the jersey and desire to win.
But i dont see Dublin offering to give money to the weaker counties or be sponsored for nothing. The money has an affect. It attracts more of the population to the Dublin gaa. It allows better coaches and facilities. It pays for better nutrition and the like.
The money does help the players but doesn't make the players. Dublin gaa (especially the footballers) also pay for less travel and accommodation than their competitors. Kilkenny hurlers in the 00s and even 2010s would have had to pay for buses and accom in Dublin for example.
So what would reducing funds do? It would allow the weaker counties and some of their competitors to raise their standards. Not immediately. Same as it wouldn't make Dublin lose the first round next year but it would be an admission that the championship has to be helped.
But. Dublin is 25-ish% of the population. It accounts for 3% of the competition entrants. If you want return for money you would invest in Dublin for population and returns alone. You would also need all the reps from Dublin in Congress to admit to being tired of winning
And thats the crux of it. There isnt a silver bullet fix where Dublin win 2-3 championships a decade and everyone is happy with that without fundamentally handicapping them with their help. And its hars for the gaa to fund all the other counties to the same level.
I am no expert on Dublin underage football but they dont seem to be running out of talent coming through. Again in comparison to the Kilkenny hurlers who won an obscene number of Leinster titles under Brian Cody. They never won 10 in a row.
There was always a few games a year where Kilkenny were ran close. And they didn't completely dominate the league. They were phenomenal but there was hope they could be beaten. After Mayo and Kerry last year does anyone think Dublin won't get very close to 10 in a row?
I dont have a good suggestion for this. I have heard arguments that the money hasnt helped because the hurler's havent won Liam. While again the hurlers arent paid they did go from whipping boys to All Ireland contenders in the last 15 or so years.
In this time other traditional counties such as Laois, Offaly and Antrim have all gotten worse so is the money merely a coincidence or has it revived hurling in the capital?
Some thing has to change. As someone who can say they havent missed a game while living in 3 countries the football now is a foregone conclusion and while you can watch as a neutral and appreciate the standard of football that doesn't make it a fun competition to watch.
My county is terrible at football. Im not even from Meath or Kildare or a Leinster county who has to watch my team viciously turned over by Dublin every year. I have no dreams of Sam coming home. A
A tournament where the winner isnt known in March doesnt feel like a lot to ask of the GAA. Balancing the books. Doing revenue sharing like in the NBA where promotion and relegation are also not possibilities is an option. But something surely has to be done.
