KEVIN CASSIDY: Facing into a new landscape

THIS weekend, we face into a massive weekend of football but it’s the action at Croke Park that may change the entire Gaelic football landscape and how it is played for years to come.

On Friday evening, the interprovincial series makes a return. While that is nice to see that in itself, the biggest excitement is around the fact that these teams will be trialling the new rules which will also be live on TG4.

Before we get into the games, the Football Review Committee deserve tremendous credit. When you compare how these new rules have been presented to us in comparison to rules that have been just parachuted in in the past, the difference is night and day.

These new rules have gone through months of deliberation before being presented to us. Furthermore, we are actually going to see them in action before Congress gets to vote on them.

This approach is the way forward because it includes everyone’s opinion as opposed to some old fella on a committee pushing through his motion when he has probably never even played the game

The fact that we have intelligent football brains involved offering the public the opportunity to view these games and new rules before being voted upon is simply outstanding on their behalf.

I have to admit that I’m really excited to see how the game will look once these new rules are introduced on Friday evening. I have spoken to a number of people who have been at the sandbox games and everything seems to be positive with some saying that it instantly brings our game back to what it was.

As spectators and lovers of Gaelic games, we want to see the best players being able to showcase their talents. We are not just talking about stars like David Clifford, we are also talking about those tigerish man-marking corner-backs who used to rub their hands at the prospect of a one-on-one situation.

So, seeing this being brought back is absolutely tremendous to see. On a personal level, since I stopped playing football, I got involved with managing our senior team and after one year I decided that involvement at any kind of senior level just wasn’t for me.

It wasn’t the commitment or the passion that was lacking, but it just frustrated the hell out of me how negative our senior football had become in our county and I’m sure most counties are the same.

I finished the season and never stepped back inside a senior dressing room again. I have had numerous offers from clubs all over Ulster to get involved with their clubs, but my simplistic answer was there is simply no enjoyment in that for me.

For the past four or five years I have been involved with our underage teams in the club and that gives me a tremendous satisfaction because those players play with freedom and they express themselves because they haven’t been given their straight jacket yet as that normally comes at minor nowadays.

The difference between coaching and working with kids as opposed to senior teams is night and day for me in terms of enjoyment. Hopefully that’s all about to change for us all.

I find these new rules and this new approach refreshing and the fact that it brings the excitement back to our games and hopefully, all going well after the weekend, everyone on this island will want to see these rules pushed through.

Before I sign off, I’d like to Congratulate St Eunan’s on winning the Donegal Senior Championship. Although they have now overtaken us at the top of the roll of honour, I don’t think anyone can argue about them being the best team in Donegal this year.

There is still a gear or two left in them and we’ll see can they find those gears now for Ulster.