Gavin: Time has come to overhaul league/championship format

Dublin senior football manager, Jim Gavin, says the time is right for a radical overhaul of the intercounty football season and end the NFL in it's current format.

"The whole Championship structure has to change,” says Jim. “I'm still a traditionalist at heart and think there could still be scope to play the provincial competitions because I know it means a lot to the Dublin players to win their province and to compete.

"I still think, though, that in the overall Championship, there is scope to look at that again.

"There's momentum there. That should be part of the overall package but I think there are plenty of models that have been posed out there, from the great work Eugene McGee has done with his committee.

“It's not going to happen next year but large changes will have to happen."

The Dublin boss insists their is still strong grounds for the retention of the provincial championships: "They're the only pure knockout competition we have left at senior level and there's great enjoyment in that and a lot on the line.

"Each time we play a Leinster match we know we have to win to move on because there's no back door in your province. It's a great competition.

"Go to any provincial final and there's great passion in those games, and I think it would be folly to get rid of them.

"Possibly one model is to play those provincial competitions earlier in the year and to move to your group format for the Championship series.: "It depends on the leadership group within the GAA. They're the influencers on the association . . . there's no reason why it can't. I wouldn't look on it in terms of change; I'd look on it in terms of growth."