As we enter mid-June, the Ladies Football and Camogie championships are getting into gear.
So this month on Off The Bench, presenter Cliona Foley was joined by Wexford camogie star Mags D'Arcy and former Dublin goalkeeper Cliodhna O'Connor to discuss how both codes can be improved in terms of the playing rules but also how the respective calenders are deployed in order to draw greater crowds and interest.
You can listen to the full discussion on this month's Off The Bench player below and also stream for free on iTunes:
Below are three of the ideas D'Arcy and O'Connor shared on the podcast.
Pitch size - Camogie
"I'd actually like to change the dimensions of the field," says D'Arcy, "I would enclose it slightly."
The four time All Ireland winner feels that narrowing the pitch would add "more touch point time on the ball" for players.
Cliodhna O'Connor
The Mark - Ladies Football
"I think it think about bringing in the 'Mark' to women's football because often the high catch isn't coached across the board in women's football," says O'Connor of a rule that was brought into Men's Gaelic football.
"Making it advantageous to be able to do it would promote the skills. I'd definitely look at bringing in that rule."
Championship Restructuring - Camogie
"I would restructure the Championship. That's a given, [especially] the scheduling," says D'Arcy.
"The top counties in the Camogie Championship are in the top tier in the men's game. Why are the likes of tennis and UFC promoted in tandem [in terms of gender]? Why are they given the same news space?
"Because they're on at the same time. So we should be bumping these games at the same time and do a complete round robin structure, where if the Waterford hurlers are away to Galway, so are the women's team. And don't give me the crap of going on the field is going to ruin the field. In this day and age, there should be enough investment to put down a decent pitch in a county to facilitate two matches."
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