Former Tyrone player Enda McGinley believes that the GAA, despite the criticism it receives, is very close to entering its best era ever.
Last weekend, Armagh and Galway faced off in the senior football final, with Armagh emerging victorious. However, many fans online and back home took issue with the tactics and style of play showcased during the game.
McGinley contends that, despite the criticism, the game is just a few small changes away from becoming the best it has ever been.
"The skill level, the fitness level, the ability of our modern players—it is stunning," McGinley told the RTÉ GAA podcast. "The game is a tweak or two away from being its greatest ever era, genuinely. Dublin have come back into the pack, and Kerry haven’t unearthed their next golden generation. I think it's exceptionally even.
"If we can break the shackles of the blanket defences, the game will take off, but don't expect the managers to do it because the most effective way to get results at the moment is with a blanket—dropping men back and filling the 45-yard line to your goal to close down the shooting areas."
Jack Glynn of Galway in action against Oisin Conaty of Armagh during the GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Final match between Armagh and Galway at Croke Park in Dublin. (Photo By Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile via Getty Images)Blanket defences and slow build-up play are two aspects that traditional fans struggle to embrace. As a result, a GAA review task force, led by former Dublin manager Jim Gavin and Eamonn Fitzmaurice, has been set up.
While many welcome the potential changes being considered, McGinley believes that a defensive structure is key for many teams.
"We are buggers for wringing our wrists at the state of things," McGinley explained. "The tactics of the game have been dictated by results. The 'correct' way to play the game most effectively now and maximise your chances of a result is with an overall defensive structure.
"You might change some kick-outs, try to keep a few more men up, or work more on the counterattack. You can alter your shape or how many men you push forward when you're attacking. But the general basis of everything is getting men behind the ball.
"That debate, for me, is now over, and too often we end up with a poorer game than we might have if it was played in a more traditional style. If those two teams had gone man-to-man across the pitch on Sunday, I think the result would have been every bit as tight."
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