Offaly hurling votes to shut the `back door'

The celebrations following Offaly's winning of the All-Ireland Hurling Championship have only just eased off, yet something strange…

The celebrations following Offaly's winning of the All-Ireland Hurling Championship have only just eased off, yet something strange is happening in the hurling world down here.

The Offaly team won the senior hurling title after being beaten in the Leinster final but managed to make their way to Croke Park last month through what is known as "the back door".

The "back door" system was introduced on a two-year trial basis by the GAA to allow the beaten Leinster and Munster finalists back into the competition, which had previously been held on a knock-out basis.

And now, with the McCarthy Cup being held in Offaly for the year, the GAA county board in what is known as "The Faithful County" has indicated that it wants the system to end.

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In fairness to Offaly's hurlers, they opposed the system from the beginning so the winning of the top prize has not changed their attitude.

When the matter came up for discussion last week, the Offaly critics still claimed that the system was bad for hurling in the county and hit the club championships.

This was articulated by the board's treasurer, Mr Andy Gallagher, who said clubs in Offaly this summer had gone 20 weeks without championship hurling in the best months of the year.

A delegate from Birr, the heartland of Offaly hurling, Mr Finbarr Spain, said the "back door" system did not achieve the purpose for which it was introduced. He said no team from Connacht or Ulster managed to get into an All-Ireland semi-final this year.

The board's youth officer, Brother Sylvester, asked delegates to divorce themselves from All-Ireland final day and look at the reasons why the county had voted against the system in the first place.

"Are we feeding 25 players very well and starving the majority of players who are the core of our county?" he asked.

The hurling board's secretary, Mr Tony Murphy, said he was inclined to keep the system, having seen the enthusiasm for the win in the schools around the county which he had visited in recent weeks.

He was supported by Killavilla delegate Mr Danny Bergin, who said he had been against the system until this year, adding that the win had brought a new interest into the game.

When the matter was put to a vote, the delegates voted 25-17 to end the new system and revert to the old knock-out one.