Scrapping the football leagues would help breathe a new lease of life into the championship according to former Dublin midfielder Ciaran Whelan.

Stating the 'bite is gone out' of the football championship, Whelan put forward his argument to the Irish Independent: "There's a staleness and to be frank about it, the football championship this year hasn't been great.

"The bite is gone out of it. There's been nothing to get excited about. No games have put you on the edge of your seat saying, 'this is end to end stuff'. They're becoming repetitive. We need something new.

"I think the FRC said when they reviewed it that they didn't want to come up with a proposal that wouldn't get through Congress. That's fine but at least we can start the debate."

He continued: "I'm in favour of replacing the National Leagues with provincial leagues and having your provincial title handed out in April.

"Your top five teams from each province would go forward into a Champions League style, four groups of five. Two home games, two away games.

"Everyone gets an equal start at the beginning of the year. We get a lot more competitive, realistic view of the league because people are striving for positions.

"There's benefits for every county in that - it takes Dublin out of Croke Park as well. It freshens up the whole thing." Tweet

Most Read Stories