By Declan O’Sullivan, GAA.ie Gaelic Football columnist

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There has been a lot of comment recently regarding the current state of inter county football particularly the level of demand it is placing on our players. The perception is being built that the demands have become too much. Apparently, the enjoyment is gone out of the game due to the defensive nature of many of the teams. I don’t believe this to be the case. 

I believe that in the majority of cases being an inter-county footballer is an enjoyable experience. It is extremely demanding, but it should be demanding. This is top level sport, the highest level any GAA player can aspire to. 

Of course it should require each player to make a lot of sacrifices, it should demand that players prepare as best as possible to ensure they can reach their full potential.  To accept anything less as being good enough would make the whole competition worthless. 

It is players themselves who have driven this unprecedented level of preparation. There has been plenty of examples where players have gotten rid of management teams because of their belief that they are not being given the best chance to succeed. 

I have no major issue with the demands being placed on inter county players. However, I strongly feel it is the use of this time which is a growing problem. The emphasis placed on conditioning work versus ball work is not right in the majority of set ups. Only the top five or six teams seem to have the right formula. 

The lower ranked teams should be spending much more time on ball work than the top teams because their talent pool is not the same.  Watching the Kildare and Westmeath game last Sunday was a perfect example. Two unbelievably conditioned teams, who understandably with the Dubs in mind, were both playing with a defensive minded game plan. 

It wasn’t the tactics on view which made this game almost impossible to watch - it was the basic mistakes constantly being made on both sides.  The ball handling and decision-making was terrible. The fact the game was played nowhere near true Championship pace or intensity made it even worse. 

The only conclusion you could come to was that these teams have not worked hard or often enough on the simple basic skills of the game and instead concentrated more on fitness and conditioning work. It was a really forgettable game. Contrast that game with the Donegal versus Monaghan game on Saturday night where similar tactics were employed by both teams.

In this case we had a gripping, intense, and exciting game. The reason for this was the skill-set of both sets of players was at a much higher level. Of course mistakes were still made, but this was more to do with the sheer intensity of the game than anything else.  The crowd were completely engaged in the contest. 

My immediate feeling after the game was (even though Rory Gallagher seems a really good coach) was that Donegal would not have lost that game if Jim McGuiness was in charge. I think he gave this group that extra 5% in terms of inspiration and belief. They will be very disappointed with the draw after being ahead in injury time.  

Donegal under McGuiness have taken a lot of the blame for this new defensive type of football. However, the reality is that group were and still are fantastic ball players. Unfortunately, some teams who have tried to copy the system only saw the workrate, conditioning, and their defensive set up behind the ball.

They seem not to appreciate or be able to copy the disciplined tackling, the ease at which they moved the ball by hand or foot, the fluid game plan, the interchangeability of their players, and, above all, the game intelligence to mind the ball, take the right options, and minimise mistakes as much as possible. 

The game plan was based around doing the simple basic skills consistently well and at huge intensity and speed. Donegal went from no-hopers to champions with this approach. So it is possible once teams realise they have to get the balance in the training regime right.  

For this to happen I think the current players will have to drive it. The mindset has to change. The S&C coach in every set up is treated like a small God. Every word he says is consumed and acted upon. In most set ups he is being plagued for more information on the latest exercises or protein supplements.

There is no doubt the S&C is critically important, but of equal importance is the  coaching of the key skills such as ball handling, tackling, spatial awareness, and decision making .

To succeed players must buy into it.  They have to buy into it the same way as the hurlers do. Hurlers invariably speak about hours spent in the ball alley honing their skills, getting their touch right. They respect the skill of their game. I feel footballers - and I was guilty of this myself from time to time - have lost sight of what our game is about.

Now is the time to readdress the balance and take back some of the time spent in gyms and redirect it to improving our core skills. This would help close the gap with the top tier teams and thus improve the quality of games we see, especially in the early rounds of the Championship.  

I have to smile when I hear that modern day tactics or excessive demands are driving some of our more talented players away from the game. This is a ridiculous excuse in my opinion. A talented player should thrive in any circumstances.

It takes a lot of ingredients to compete at inter county level. Talent is only one of them. Desire, pride, teamwork, and attitude are just as vital. A guy using the team’s style of play as a reason to walk away is a guy who just doesn’t have all the ingredients to make it.

Coming back to the enjoyment part. Where does the enjoyment come from? For me as a player the enjoyment came from being involved in the whole process. Knowing that you were part of a journey. Part of a group who are working as hard as possible to achieve a common goal. Everybody, players and management placing demands on each other, putting pressure on each other to achieve their objectives whatever that may be.  

Buying into the group and their objectives from the start with no guarantees of where it will end. That is exciting, the level of satisfaction at improving both individually and collectively is massive. The sense of spirit that grows within a group stays with you forever.  

I’m sure when the players of Galway and Tipperary had their final team meeting before their respective provincial semi-finals they made promises to each other, they demanded a performance from themselves. 

Backing up that talk and following through on those promises is pure joy, you would swap a lot of summers in America for that feeling. So it is enjoyable. It is just a different type of enjoyment. It’s a way of life.

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