VENUES and dates for the National Football League playoffs and quarter-finals have been announced by the GAA. The temptation to schedule all four quarter-finals as double bills at Croke Park on two separate Sundays has been resisted. The matches will go ahead on April 6th with Kerry-Down and Derry-Laois at headquarters, Kildare's match against Offaly or Fermanagh taking place in Navan and the Cork-Louth tie in Portlaoise.
The relegation play-offs in Divisions One and Two have been fixed for the last two weekends in March. Meath face Tyrone in Clones on March 23rd and the losers play Cavan on Easter Sunday with the remaining place in Division One at stake. On Easter `Monday' Clare and Mayo meet to decide which of them will accompany Monaghan into Division Three.
Next weekend sees the annual Congress of Cumann Peile na mBan, the women's football organisation. It is being held in Irvinestown and, according to outgoing president Helen O'Rourke, "the association is at its strongest at the moment.
"We have every county involved and are spending a lot of time on under-age structures. Back in 1990, when we were trying to develop an under-14 structure, people were saying: `Ah, the girls are too young'. Now there's under-12 leagues and the players are getting younger and younger. We don't have to go looking for players now it's the other way around.
"Many of our clubs are joining with men's clubs and there's great advantages in that for us in terms of facilities and transport and all that." This closer liaison with the GAA at club level reflects the direction in which O'Rourke would like to see the game progress at national level.
"It would be to the advantage of both," she says, "if the GAA were to take on camogie and women's football. I think we'd do better from a media point of view. What, we need is continuous promotion, to show that we don't just exist for one weekend in the year.
That weekend of the All-Ireland final was particularly significant last year firstly because, it generated controversy when the date was changed to accommodate the men's replay (although the women's association didn't want to form part of a double bill with the men's replay). Then, the match between Laois and Monaghan ended in an exciting draw, followed by another good match before Monaghan won out.
"It the controversy) at least made everyone aware that the final was on. Then the football in the men's match was so bad and ours so good, that we got a lot of recognition. Our League has just started and with 30 counties involved Donegal have requested further time to develop the game and Kilkenny want to strengthen football at club level before becoming active at inter.county) the game is in a healthy state."
Is it as frequently reported, the fastest-growing sport in the country?
"Definitely."
Meanwhile, in the Ardilaun Hotel in Galway last night, University College Galway's Sports Stars awards were made. Described by UCG's Sports and Recreation officer Tony Regan as "an appreciation of those students pursuing sporting excellence" the awards went to 13 individuals and four teams.
Among those honoured were Mayo's, Maurice Sheridan, top scorer in last year's All-Ireland championship, Laois hurler Declan Rooney for his contribution to both his county's NHL run and UCG's Fitzgibbon Cup team and Galway camogie star Olivia Broderick who has also been prominent on UCG's Ashbourne Cup side.
