Gardiner has doubts over draw format

Player of the Month Awards: Cork's John Gardiner has expressed reservations about the championship format that has led to his team having to play Waterford for a second time this season in the All-Ireland quarter-finals.

Gardiner was in Dublin to receive the Vodaphone Hurler of the Month award for June, recognition of his tour de force in the Munster final victory over Tipperary.

"The reaction to the draw in Cork was a bit disappointed because they've seen Waterford already and now it's back again this time in Croke Park. I don't think it's the way to go, but that's the way the format is."

GAA president Seán Kelly however, not alone backed the format, which has come about because a drafting omission at congress meant that counties who had met in the provincial championships could meet again in the All-Ireland quarter-finals, but said that he believed that football should drop its protection against similar pairings occurring at the quarter-finals stage.

"If you were to make that modification (to the hurling draw) so that teams couldn't meet again in the quarter-final it would make your qualifying group unnecessary in that there would be no reason to play for first and second place if they knew they couldn't meet certain teams.

"You can't have it every way and if teams keep progressing you can't avoid them forever. If they get to the final you're going to have to play them anyway.

"I'm beginning to have doubts about even the football qualifiers because it's making the draw for the first and second round of the qualifiers very difficult.

"I think you should just put the names in the hat and if you're going to play the same team again, you just play them."

Gardiner also said that he would have preferred to play the quarter-final in Semple Stadium rather than in Croke Park, although he wasn't complaining too vigorously.

"Personally I love playing in Thurles and I think Thurles is the way to go and it has the buzz of the Munster championship about it. But Croke Park is an unbelievable stadium, and if you don't enjoy playing there I don't know what you're in the business for."

He wasn't getting carried away with his award - "It's nice to have a game go well for me on that big an occasion, but I'm not getting carried away with it. I've bigger fish to fry as the year goes on" - and already the focus is on the renewed rivalry with Waterford.

"I was thinking overnight that it will be a tactical battle rather than anything else because after meeting earlier in the championship we know what to expect from them and they know what to expect from us.

"It's a cliché, but it's going to come down to who goes better on the day because we know each other so well. They were talked about in the press again about not delivering on the big day and they'll have huge motivational factors going into this.

"We were beaten last year and that helped us with this year's preparation. Waterford will have that now," he added.