Mayo legend explains the feature that makes games outside Croke Park more exciting

While it was mostly praised received by the new GAA rules throughout the 2025 championship, due to a plethora of exciting and high-scoring games, they are now being reevaluated somewhat now that the season is over, and given the relatively disappointing semi-finals.

The good news is that the FRC are still at work, testing out new rules in sandbox games, such as the four-point goal, which could come into effect for next year’s National League.

Lee Keegan, a five-time All-Star with Mayo, has brought up another change which he feels should brought in, and one which is specific to Croke Park.

He argues that the pitch at GAA HQ is too big and promotes ‘possession play’ and less contact, and he uses Derry’s round-robin draw with Galway at Celtic Park an an example of the superior football a narrower pitch can provide.

Writing for RTÉ, he said: “Like a lot of supporters, I’d prefer to see more contact in games. The game in 2025 is much more forward-friendly than it was in 2024. Cahair O’Kane of the Irish News suggested that the pitch in Croke Park needs to tightened a few yards to promote more contact.

“It’s notable that the more compelling and intense games happened in tight pitches in the group stages – the Derry-Galway thriller in Celtic Park being the most obvious example. There was a real physical edge to the game, with the ref allowing plenty of contact, which created several turnovers, with Derry ravenously hunting down Galway in the first half in particular.

“By contrast, the matches in Croker tended to be a bit more sterile, with longer periods of possession play.”