BY SEÁN HOLLAND
CARBERY football manager Colm Aherne hopes the divisional team will not be seeded for next year’s championship as he feels being seeded is a hindrance more than a help.
The division’s exit from the Cork premier senior football championship after a tough one-point loss to Muskerry – Carbery’s only championship game of the season – highlighted the challenges of being a seeded divisional side.
Aherne, voicing his concerns about the seeding process, suggested that it left his team at a disadvantage by denying them the opportunity to play a competitive game before facing Muskerry.
‘It's not being wise after the fact, but I'm constantly saying it, that being seeded, to me, is an actual disadvantage that you're going in cold,’ Aherne explained.
‘Muskerry only had one game, but at least they had one competitive game. Going forward, I'd prefer not to be seeded. Hopefully, next year we won't be seeded after losing our only game. I presume we won't be seeded because it's a complete disadvantage for a divisional side to be seeded,’ he remarked.
Carbery had only three challenge games all year, including one against a side that made up over a quarter of their starting team against Muskerry. The divisional side played Bantry, Cill na Martra, and Douglas. Additionally, as is the nature of the split season with time being limited, Carbery’s only training session was the Monday prior to their meeting with Muskerry.
‘It's desperately hard,’ admitted Aherne.
‘There are a lot of guys there who have never played together. Even speaking to a few of the forwards afterwards, they're saying themselves, just fellas were making the same runs. It was just we weren’t used to each other at all. It's very hard to get the lads together. It's not for lack of trying by the lads either.
‘When you have dual clubs who are either playing hurling or football every week, it’s very difficult to try and find that space in the season. I'd worry about where divisions are going. You see how many divisions pulled out this year.’
In the wake of their early exit, discussions regarding potential changes to the scheduling of divisional round-robin games were considered. Trying to find a plan that could help level the playing field and encourage broader participation amongst the other divisions in Cork.
‘I was talking to a man there a few weeks ago, who said we need to play the divisional round-robin games maybe in March, on something like a Wednesday night in March. That would mean that clubs might be more inclined to release guys where you're not so close to the championship, and you're not really interfering with things. It would help and it would be nice to see the likes of Beara, Seandún and Imokilly, all the other divisions putting teams in,’ Aherne suggested.
