THE announcement of a player pathway involving the GAA, the LGFA and the Camogie Association is another sign of the three organisations working together for the greater good. In an ideal world, all three would be under the one umbrella, but that still seems a fair distance away despite the efforts of former President Liam O’Neill a few years ago. However, in the last year or two there certainly seems to be a lot more collaboration than there had been before. This has filtered down to players, especially female players, with ladies teams and camogs getting to play more at county grounds. Issues still remain, particularly when it comes to female dual players, but the situation looks much improved.

NIALL MCCOY

PAUL McFlynn is the feature interview in this week’s paper and in the piece he tells numerous stories about the managers he has worked with and how they achieved success. One of the things that repeatedly happens is for managers who demand that players commit fully to the teams they play on, and that means taking part in every training session and every game and also following rules set out regarding drink bans, and in the case of some county teams not playing for their clubs. Can you imagine that in a few years time, when the split season comes in, that we will look back on the period when county players were forced to pick between the two?

RONAN SCOTT

I WAS reading the Irish News earlier this week, as you do, and their  sports reporter Cahair O’Kane suggested in his weekly column that the GAA should give 13-a-side a go. It’s not a universally popular idea, and I’m not one of those people who think that the game has gone away to hell, but I think the idea has merit. Teams are fitter than ever before and extracting a few men/women from the equation has the potential to improve the game as a spectacle. Personally speaking, I can’t see it happening, but the GAA love a good rule-change,  so who knows what the future has in store – offsides, bonus  points for hitting the crossbar, a hurdle on the edge of the square, the possibilities are endless.

NIALL GARTLAND

I WAS reading some stats earlier this week about the force of nature that is Borussia Dortmund soccer star  Erling Braut Haaland. One of the interesting things about him is that, on paper, he isn’t actually that impressive (well, if you ignore his astonishing record in front of goal). He doesn’t get on the ball that much, his passing is nothing out of the ordinary, and he basically pales into comparison with your fella Mbappe if you focus on stats and stats alone. It made me wonder if he has any equivalent in the GAA – and to be honest, there’s no-one who springs immediately to mind. Answers on a postcard please. In terms of pure efficiency in front of goal, however, you’d have to doff your cap to someone like Colm Cooper, who hit TWO wides in the entirety of the 2005 All-Ireland Championship. Freaky.

NIALL GARTLAND

THE push to have more female professional soccer plays has been on my radar of late. I’ve listened to podcasts about the US soccer system and the drive to have professional leagues over there. I’ve also listened to English ladies talk about how it would be their dream to play soccer professionally. In our western society we have grown up with the belief that professional sport is an aspirational career. Perhaps advancing years makes me more grumpy, but I regard this as a fallacy. I listened to Troy Deeney, the Watford striker, defend the wages that footballers receive based on the argument that their career is a lot shorter than everyone else’s. My counter is, should we set such careers, that last just a few years, on a pedestal? A wise man once said, ‘learn to type’.

RONAN SCOTT

IN all the debate about Casement or Clones being the home of Ulster GAA, Armagh has slipped in under the radar. Administratively, it is the base of the provincial body – and the Athletic Grounds is quickly becoming the go-to venue for important games. Schools football has led the way. Ten years ago the MacRory Cup final moved to Armagh from the usual Athletic Grounds base and has been played there ever since (Casement’s problems are well known). In years gone by, Armagh was rarely a venue for the finals with Coalisland often preferred until Casement took over. The McKenna Cup final is now traditionally played there while Ulster Club finals often end up in the Cathedral City. The Orchard county is now at the core of the GAA in Ulster.

NIALL MCCOY