ON THE day he announced his squad for this weekend's International Rules test against Australia, Joe Kernan was bluntly asked if the future of this series was one game away from oblivion.
There and then, the precarious existence of this sport was laid bare. Loathed by some, the problem with International Rules is that it isn't really loved by anyone, with the overwhelming majority of people, Irish and Australian, largely indifferent to its presence, never mind its future.
Can it survive? Much, really, depends on what happens on Saturday. A competitive contest will provide International Rules with a stay of execution. But after the violence of the mid-noughties and the slaughter of 2013, so much depends on what Australia bring to the party. They need to be committed yet also need to keep within the laws of this hybrid game.
Yet if International Rules is to have a future as well as a murky past then the following points need addressed.
KEEP THE AUSSIES INTERESTED
Almost everything is dependent on the Aussies. The GAA, clearly, are committed to this marriage but if the AFL ended up in the divorce courts, then you couldn't see too many weeping on their side. When they have picked a strong side and taken the game seriously, interest levels in the sport have soared.
BRING BACK A TWO-TEST SERIES
Two games builds interest. One game comes and goes before people are aware of what is happening. Last year, Ireland trailed 35-7 after two quarters before fighting back to lose by just 10 points. Had there been a second test, they may have overturned that deficit. Certainly interest levels would have grown. But part of the problem is that the Australian clubs are putting pressure on the AFL to play just one test. If the series is to have a meaningful, long-term future, it quite simply needs to return to two tests.
BRING BACK THE BRUTALITY
Gaelic football is a sport. So is Australian Rules. But in 2005 and 2006, International Rules was thuggery. Yet, ironically, this also made it compelling viewing. People tuned in because they were strangely attracted to sights like Chris Johnson's attempt to take Matty Forde's head off.
ALL-STAR PLAYERS MUST ANSWER IRELAND’S CALL
In 2013, Stephen Cluxton was the reigning All-Ireland winning captain, Michael Darragh Macauley was the Footballer of the Year and Bernard Brogan the star forward for Dublin. But along with Cian O'Sullivan, none of them could commit to Ireland. Colm Cooper, the iconic Kerry forward, also couldn't enlist. Cooper gave up on the sport after the 2005 series. Although nine of the current All-Stars are in the squad, this indifference from Gaelic football's best players is still an issue.
SPREAD THE WORD THAT OLD FASHIONED MAN-MARKING STILL EXISTS
Since Jim McGuinness broke with tradition and introduced ‘The System’, many old-school GAA enthusiasts have bemoaned the lack of good old fashioned man-on-man tussles on the pitch. Well, it still prevails in International Rules, as Kernan states: “We're going man to man all over the field. We're going to push up, put them under pressure all over the field because if we back off these boys we're in trouble. We have mobile players now. And we will need them."
