THE Croke Park curtain-raiser is over; now we face a waiting game before finding out if the proposed new rule enhancements - some, none or all - will be brought into Gaelic football next year.
Social media has been full of opinions on the merits of most since the weekend’s inter-provincial games provided a first glimpse of what ‘the future of football’ might look like.
Yet, even over the course of the four games, approaches changed and evolved. Some felt it was too helter-skelter, with not enough contact. Others that the scoring system could cause mayhem, with reports already suggesting four points for a goal, and two for a 45, are likely to be scrapped.
Fitness, though, was a recurring theme across the weekend when players faced the TG4 or RTE cameras.
Experienced physio Frank Quinn was with the Ulster team when they went up against Munster on Friday night, and saw first hand how the new rules, subject to approval at next month’s Special Congress, could have a huge bearing on how club and county squads prepare from now on.
And it was a familiar figure, from another code, who came to mind as he gathered his thoughts.
“When Jurgen Klopp came into Liverpool, the first thing he did was one kilometre runs – that’s how he wanted to prep his teams for his high-tempo game.
“They had a flood of hamstring injuries in the first month, he probably got a lot of flak from the medical team, but he stuck to his guns because that’s what his end game was.
“There might be a wee bit of that in Gaelic football too; that this is where we want to get to if you want to do this well. Short-term pain for long-term gain.”
Away from GAA, Hilltown man Quinn spent three years working with Sunderland in the Premier League between 2002 and ‘05, and is well versed on the impact that different tactical innovations - and approaches to training - can have on players.
With the Football Review Committee proposing leaving three players on both sides of the field at all times, different aspects of the game’s flow will change as a consequence – meaning teams must adapt appropriately.
“At the first 15 minute break on Friday night, they came into the huddle, you could see breathing rate was up, heart-rate, temperature… there wasn’t a lot chat among the players.
“You could see the boys were showing signs of, not fatigue necessarily, but everything was elevated. It was a quickfire blast in that first 15. It’s clear there’s going to be fitness adaptations to it.
“Under the new rules, it seems to be more anaerobic, there’s more repeated sprints than a rolling speed, more acceleration and deceleration. It’ll be back to multi sprints instead of mass runs at a controlled speed.
“It is also multi-directional… I just think there’s a lot more unpredictability about it. The game has opened up more and the opposition now seems to not be stationed in as structured a way as they were.
“Runs have become a bit less predictable, so it almost starts to come back to more position-specific fitness, the way it would have been years ago. It’s not anything that can’t be done, it’s just that in the last few years they’ve trained differently.
“People were also talking about the lack of contact - I would put that down to the fact there was less predictable direction of movement. In the last number of years there have been set moves, and that makes it easier for the tackler.
“You were watching the elite of the elite, and the amount of contact those boys can take and maintain their stride… you were just watching people who could deal with the contact there was.”
From all aspects, the lead-in period will be crucial, Quinn feels.
Special Congress takes place on November 30, and counties resume collective training on December 7 before the National League commences at the end of January. Injuries, though, are an inevitable part of any change.
“Clubs will have until April to adapt, but if county players are setting out on the seventh of December it’ll be a tight squeeze – in fact it mightn’t fit at all, to be ready to adapt to that in time for the League.
“The big initial risks would be hamstrings and ligaments, from a multi-directional perspective, if teams haven’t agility work done at high speed by then.
“The pre-season competitions brought a good structure to things, where that could be a wee bit fractured now. Teams are going to be playing challenge matches in January, so it is really going to be a month of non-competitive training.
“If there are rule changes, probably a lot of their training’s going to have to be match simulation, which brings issues because you get more injuries in a game than you do in training.
“The pre-season injury count be elevated by having to play games in training to familiarise themselves with the new rules.”
In the long-term, however, Quinn feels the potential for more open, end to end games could lower the retirement age for players, with recovery time suddenly at a premium compared to the current incarnation where lateral approaches allowed for the foot to come off the pedal momentarily.
“The feeling on Friday night was that it was definitely faster – not that people were questioning their fitness, but there were different demands. The big thing is the recovery time. If these rules come in, it’s a faster game… you maybe won’t get players in their early 30s playing any more because you haven’t got 30-40 seconds to slot into a packed defence and get your recovery there.
“It’s a lot more explosive potentially, less recovery between plays. The fact that hasn’t been the case has allowed players in their 30s to be able to survive in the game.”
A trick may have been missed among the FRC proposals too.
Quinn was only on the field once across the four quarters on Friday and, while that was closer to an exhibition game environment, he believes the GAA should consider following soccer’s example in a bid to curtail cynical tactics from the sideline.
“There was no simulation – if the GAA is implementing new rules, they should look at emulating soccer and stipulate that a player who needs physio attention must leave the field before returning to the play, especially if the aim is to speed up the game.
“If they’re trying to speed the game up, and counteract cynical play, now’s the time.”
