Back in 2017, Dublin set fire to Tyrone’s defensive blanket, winning the All-Ireland semi-final by 12 points.
The end of such negative tactics was hailed and, in the intervening years, there were promising signs that teams were throwing off the shackles and taking less of a safety-first approach.
Not all games have been rich in entertainment, of course, and last year’s Derry-Donegal Ulster final was one of the worst I’ve ever witnessed.
Now, possession football has become as big an issue as defensive set-ups. And the two of them are linked.
This year’s Championship has been absolutely dire to watch so far. The buzz word in Gaelic football at the minute is ‘control’.
The majority of teams, when they are possession, mind the ball like their lives depend on it, not daring to risk a probing ball forward in fear of a dreaded turnover.
And if you do turn it over, the chances are you will have to watch your opponents handpass the ball about indefinitely as a form of punishment.
We’ve seen Roscommon keep possession for nearly six minutes; soon a team will keep it for eight minutes, then maybe 10.
People are losing interest as a result. There is very little entertainment attached to inter-county games these days.
The big question is, are a couple of rule changes the answer? Or, do we just need to see this new craze out, and hope things will return to some sort of normality?
If rule changes are deemed the answer, then the GAA have to be very wary of what can be implemented at club level.
The shot clock is an obvious solution, but could never work at club level. It would also only entice teams to retreat inside their own half rather than tackle up high, as they know their opposition are under time constraints.
Keeping a certain amount of players in one half is another possible solution but, again, it could never work at club level.
The GAA is set to trial two new rules at the end of the year, one being that all kickouts must go beyond the 45. I recalled here a couple of weeks ago how I played in an International Rules series in 2014 where this rule was implemented and it was chaos. It won’t work as every team will just drop their six forwards outside the 45.
The other rule being trialled is that sideline balls must go forward. Again, this only encourages teams to drop back and cover space rather than push up on their opponents as they know the ball has to go forward.
I certainly don’t all have the answers but one thing I feel may need to go is the backpass to the ‘keeper. This could encourage teams to come out and press as they know they are not outnumbered by the team in possession to the same extent.
It was interesting at first, but it’s now gone to ridiculous levels where goalkeepers are getting 40-50 possessions in a game, most of which are short handpasses. It’s become mind-numbing to watch.
This is something that can be implemented relatively easily at club level. It wouldn’t solve everything but may be the starting point.
Certainly, it would be a sorry state of affairs if we start implementing rules at inter-county level that aren’t transferable to the club game.
The All-Ireland contenders assessed
The most common phrase around this year’s Championship has been ‘shadow boxing’ and I am fed up of hearing it by now.
Thankfully, the serious stuff is about to begin over the next couple of weeks so how are the main contenders shaping up.
Galway - The only team with a 100% record in the Championship so far. They are in pole position to top their group and will fear no one in a quarter-final. The return of Peter Cooke and Ian Burke and the emergence of John Maher makes them a stronger prospect overall than last year.
Mayo - People’s perception of Mayo might have changed again after last week’s display against Louth but they are one result away from getting back to Croke Park, where they play their best football. It is also a ground where it is easier to break down blanket defences, something they struggled with at times with last Sunday.
Dublin - Injuries are a major concern for them at the minute, especially the loss of David Byrne and Eoin Murchan in the full-back line. Jack McCaffrey also hasn’t been able to get fit and John Small and Con O’Callaghan hobbled off last Saturday. They look, at times, like a team relying on muscle memory and that might not be enough in the latter stages.
Derry - Back-to-back Ulster titles and now look certain to take the direct route to a quarter-final. Their game plan seems to be evolving to allow for more scoring treats. There is a whiff of Donegal 2011/12 off them. The next step for this team is producing big performances in Croke Park.
Kerry - Something does not quite look right with Kerry. They are an injury to David Clifford away from being out of the Championship. They don’t seem to have enough players in form and could well be taken out at the quarter-final stage by a group winner.
As for the best of the rest, I haven't seen enough from Tyrone to suggest they can launch a serious assault for Sam.
Armagh have regressed. They haven’t beaten a top team all year and cannot be seen as contenders.
Roscommon will give any team trouble in the latter stages and may well be building foundations for a launch at next year’s All-Ireland.
Tailteann Cup set to take off from here
Like the All-Ireland series, the Tailteann cup only really springs to life in the coming weeks.
Cavan got through the group stages comfortably and look like they will make amends for last year’s final loss.
This weekend sees the four preliminary quarter-final games. Offaly will be looking to recover from last week’s hammering to Cavan against a Wexford team who have had a decent season. The Faithful County should prevail.
In the other games, I expect Fermanagh, Down and Carlow to advance.
