Antrim star Paddy McBride says he is a fan of the new Championship format and feels the split season works well for inter-county players.
Not everyone is convinced by the new structure with some pundits arguing that there are too many games to eliminate only a handful of teams while Kerry legend Pat Spillane recently hit out at the decision to move the All-Ireland finals from their traditional September slots.
Speaking ahead of Antrim’s Tailteann Cup round three tie with Fermanagh at the Box-It Athletic Grounds on Sunday, McBride suggested a subtle tweak to the format in both tiers could work better.
“Having two teams going through to the quarter-finals would probably make the competitions more exciting,” said McBride.
“It would give you that ‘Championship’ element in every game.
“I think the format is fair enough. You have to find a way of getting New York into the Tailteann Cup as they obviously can’t travel over for all the group games.
“I do like the group element, having regular games. It is definitely better than having a straight knock-out.
“You get jealous of hearing soccer lads having games week-in, week-out.
“Sometimes with the GAA, you feel like the match-to-training ratio isn’t right. Soccer lads train twice a week and play on a Saturday.
“In the past, you might have had a six or seven week break between an Ulster Championship and a Qualifier game.”
The St John’s clubman also stressed the importance of having a split-season as county players can fully commit to the club cause once their Championship campaign is over.
“I can understand people saying about having no county games in August and September but, from a player’s perspective, I like having regular games earlier in the season," added McBride.
“The best part is, you get to go and play with your club after it. It allows county players to have a club season as well.
“You’d like to play for your club in every match and it is tough missing club games. That comes with playing for the county."
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