[ad_1]
The GAA is now looking for a May start for the National League, at the earliest, following tonight’s announcement of ongoing Covid Level 5 restrictions through April 5.
As expected, there were no changes in the state of sporting activity for the next six weeks, although there was some confusion after the official document provided by the government grouped elite sport together with the practice of the Gaelic Games between counties, allowed at Level 4, apparently by mistake.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin clarified: “The levels are a continuation of the old plan. No doubt about that. There may be a problem with the transmission of that. But there is no problem with the practice of elite sports. “
Any tightening of restrictions on elite sport would have halted Ireland’s Six Nations campaign, as well as the start of the League of Ireland season, scheduled for March 19, and horse racing.
However, the Taoiseach raised hopes that the GAA season could begin in May, with a return to inter-county training and non-contact activity for youth likely to resume on April 5.
Speaking about the next stage of the government’s Living with Covid plan, the Taoiseach insisted that: “a review will study the possibility of allowing some outdoor gatherings, some sport, construction and an increase in the 5km travel limit.
“Then we will see, until April 5, what else we can do in relation to some sports and other activities.
“And we will wait until the week before April 5 to make an assessment on this.”
Any step toward Level 4 would precipitate a return to collective training for inter-county teams, while youth would also be allowed to train in groups under no-contact rules.
County teams are expected to be given a four-week preseason before beginning their respective National League campaigns in a condensed game schedule, which has yet to be finalized.
In that scenario, the first inter-county games of the season would be held on the holiday weekend in May or the weekend of the 8th.th and 9th.
There has been a growing campaign to grant managers a longer preseason, endorsed by some members of Croke Park’s Covid advisory group, but given the scale of delays already incurred and the GAA’s commitment to provide clubs with a substantial window into who run their competitions, such a concession is unlikely.
The situation is complicated for the GAA by the possibility that the northern counties will be subject to alternative agreements when the British government begins to ease its limits of activity and movement.
There is no disruption to plans for the new Irish League season, although this was also temporarily caught up in the confusion surrounding the drafting of the government document.
The Taoiseach confirmed that sports with the existing Tier 5 exemption (soccer, rugby, and horse racing) would continue as planned in the coming weeks.
The Irish League teams are back in training and pre-season friendlies began over the weekend before the start of March 19 in the Premier Division. The First Division and the National Women’s League begin a week later.
However, the situation for amateur and underage football remains unclear and they are awaiting further guidance on when they could resume activity.
Online editors
[ad_2]