Hurling draft: Four years to flip the field
Cork Manager Ben O'Connor celebrates after the Munster GAA Hurling Under 20 Championship Final with Ross O'Sullivan in 2023. Picture: ©INPHO/Ben Brady
Three years of a draft-led hypothetical professional hurling world would mean that heading into the fourth season, the idea that it would still remotely mirror real life completely falls apart.
The talent redistribution is too deep, and teams no longer resemble their traditional selves. Cork would be without eight of the starting 15 that played against Tipperary in the league this month. You can no longer assume that real life results in 2024 would determine the draft order.
Even Leitrim – bottom of the pile in 2024 – suddenly look different when you drop Adam Screeney, Adam English and Joe Fitzpatrick into the mix. That Leitrim side gives Fermanagh plenty to think about, even with Daithi Lohan, Peter McGarry and Padraig Power bolstering their ranks.
And this is where the levelling truly begins.
Cork and Clare may have contested the All-Ireland final of 2024, but in this world, the Rebels would have to do it without the U20 talent that had been integrated over the years previous. The draft has siphoned their talent away, and some of them have gone to Clare.
Picking up Timmy Wilk, Colin Walsh and Daire O’Leary across the 2021, 2022 and 2023 drafts keeps Clare competitive near the summit. But the system is designed to favour the strugglers, not the strong.
Which means it is the Lory Meagher counties who gain most, and the established powers of Munster and Leinster who feel the sharpest drop-off.
Fermanagh, holding first pick in 2024, land Tipperary’s Darragh McCarthy, an immediate injection of quality and scoring power into a squad already on an upward curve.
Cavan follow with Oisin O’Donoghue, another Tipp U20 standout, and a nice compliment to the acquisitions of Darragh Stakelum, Billy Drennan and Cathal O’Neill.
The more years that pass, the less of an impact fortune plays, and the more consistently picking at the top makes a difference.
Darragh McCarthy (Tipperary) –
Oisin O’Donoghue (Tipperary) –
Sam O’Farrell (Tipperary) –
James Mahon (Offaly) –
Conor Whelan (Clare) –
Aaron Niland (Galway) –
Dan Bourke (Offaly) –
Aaron O’Halloran (Tipperary) –
Paudie O’Sullivan (Cork) –
Senan Butler (Tipperary) –
Diarmuid Stritch (Clare) –
Ross O’Sullivan (Cork) –
Cillian Tobin (Cork) –
Marty Murphy (Kilkenny) –
Conor Martin (Tipperary) –
Rory Burke (Galway) –
Ben Miller (Offaly) –
Oisin O’Farrell (Limerick) –
Charlie Treen (Waterford) –
Michael Collins (Clare) –
Ter Guinan (Offlay) –
David Purcell (Dublin) –
Cillian Hackett (Kilkenny) –
Paddy McCormack (Tipperary) –
Eoghan Lyng (Kilkenny) –
Mikey Finn (Cork) –
Matthew Fitzgerald (Limerick) –
Patrick Taaffe (Offaly) –
James Hegarty (Clare) –
Ruairí Ó Mianáin (Derry) –
Vince Harrington (Limerick) –
David Williams (Westmeath) –
Some headline picks. Some understated steals. The most obvious being the 24th pick for Waterford, who get Tipperary’s Paddy McCormack. Wexford end up with a nice option in Limerick man Matthew Fitzgerald too.
Of course, at this stage this idea is completely hypothetical and there are many more variables. But is interesting to see how something like an NFL-style draft could completely transform hurling.
And four seasons would be enough.
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