Cork CEO Kevin Donovan has said that the current format of the All-Ireland senior football championship is no longer fit for purpose.

Speaking in his annual report, Mr O’Donovan was critical of the failure of ‘Proposal B’ at October’s Special Congress describing its rejection as "a significant disappointment".

"Ultimately, an All-Ireland championship based on unbalanced provincial structures is no longer fit for purpose,” he wrote in his report.

"Any proposal which may be forthcoming based on such model is unlikely to survive the scrutiny that the recent proposals were rightly subjected to. Thus, the spirit of Proposal B must be retained and developed further."

Yesterday saw the GAA confirming the appointment of a new force which is set to bring forward recommendations for reforming the All-Ireland senior football championship and, on changes needed for Proposal B, O’Donovan added:

"Firstly, change from Divisions 1-4 to seeded Divisions 1A & 1B, 2A & 2B to increase opportunities for development. This would remove the “Team 6” conundrum with the Top 4 from 1A & 1B and Top Team from 2A & 2B progressing to the play-off stages. Thus, the best eight teams in the country would be guaranteed progression.

"Secondly, to ensure a link between Provincial Competitions and the race for Sam Maguire, award points for Provincial winners (2 points) and Runnersup (1 point). Thirdly, guarantee in rule that the Tailteann Cup Final would be played on All Ireland Final weekend. A

"And perhaps finally, consider an alternative concurrent Calendar to increase profile of Provincial competitions. The provincial finals for example, could be played between Rounds 3 and 4 of the Sam Maguire Cup allowing the opportunity to gain bonus points as outlined above."

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