Laois GAA are in favour of the ‘Green’ proposal that would see the All Ireland inter-county football championship significantly changed for the 2023 season.
A Central Council meeting of the GAA this Saturday will decide what option to put forward to Congress in February and a recent Laois GAA executive meeting opted to support the ‘Green’ option.
That option would see the National Leagues remain as they are in the spring, followed by the provincial championships played in a five-week window.
The provincial champions and runners-up would qualify for a 16-team All Ireland Sam Maguire championship, as well as the next eight counties based on their finishing positions in the National League.
The 16 teams that don’t qualify for the Sam Maguire competition would instead go into the secondary Tailteann Cup, played on the same format.
Seeding for both competitions would apply with the top teams in each group going through to the quarter-finals and second and third playing off in preliminary quarter-finals.
The ‘Red’ option being presented to Central Council this Saturday is more similar to ‘Proposal B’ that failed to get 60% support at last November’s Congress.
This proposal suggests running the provincial championships before the start of the National League, which they are now suggesting returns to the Division 1A/1B/2A/2B format.
The provincial champions would get two bonus points in the league with the runners up getting one.
The top three teams in Division 1A and 1B would then qualify for the All Ireland quarter-finals with the fourth team in each playing off against the top side from Division 2A and 2B in preliminary quarter-finals.
The teams that don’t make the knockout stages would play in the Tailteann Cup. In both instances, the Tailteann Cup winners would be guaranteed a place in the Sam Maguire competition the following year.
The Gaelic Players Association and the chairmen of Connacht, Ulster and Munster GAA have all come out in support of the ‘Green’ proposal.
The Laois GAA executive recently discussed the issue and following a presentation, decided to support the Green option.
Whichever option is successful this Saturday will be put forward as a Central Council motion at GAA’s annual Congress on February 26.
Elsewhere, Laois GAA are to seek an end to water breaks once Covid restrictions have lapsed and that the ‘Maor Uisce’ role be returned.
SEE ALSO – Follow all of our coverage of the Laois senior football team here
