Congress is, and will be, the supreme governing body of the GAA and only it can make, change or delete the rules of the Association — an Clár Oifigiúl. But what is more noticeable is that more and more motions are coming from the top down, rather than the bottom up.

Not that long ago, motions had to come from clubs, to county conventions and then on to Congress. Modern-thinking deemed this a bit unwieldy, and gradually, Central Council and other units were given power to table motions at Congress. This is a growing trend and has helped to address and implement necessary changes in a speedier and more coherent fashion. But it is something that must be watched as well. One of the great democratic assets of the GAA is that any club or any individual member can table a motion, which, if passed at county level, can make it all the way to the Congress floor. That’s how the famous ‘Rule 42’, opening Croke Park to soccer and rugby, was conceived and progressed. If one was waiting for a Rule 42 amendment to come from Central Council, we’d be still waiting! It is important, therefore, that the balance between top-down and bottom-up motions is preserved into the future.

It was amazing that given all the heartache, furore and debate that went on for the best part of a decade on Rule 42, that this year’s momentous and generous motion to extend the opening of Croke Park to all county grounds barely earned a mention. I can tell you, if it had been rejected, the floodgates of criticism would have opened. I spoke on this motion and said that if it passed, it would put to bed this issue forever more. It was as far as the GAA could generously go or be expected to go. It made a clear distinction between club property and county grounds, and I was delighted to see that 90% of delegates voted in favour. Central Council sponsored the motion, and credit to Uachtarán John Horan and Ard Stiurthoir Tom Ryan for grasping the nettle after the lessons of the Liam Miller Tribute game last year in Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

Now, Central Council has the authority to judge ‘in exceptional circumstances’, on a case-by-case basis, any requests, with a clear procedure for application.

Therefore, it must transpire that if Munster Rugby had a major crowd-pulling match and for one reason or another Thomond Park wasn’t available, instead of going to the Aviva, they might consider Thurles, Limerick, Killarney, or Cork, and keep the venue in Munster.

The other point worth mentioning here is that while the Miller controversy bubbled last year, some politicians said that if grounds were getting public funding, they should be open to the public. While this is not true of course, this motion to open county grounds should be satisfactory, and of course, shouldn’t hinder GAA clubs, in any way, from qualifying from Sports Capital Grants. Indeed, it should make it easier for them now, if anything. So Rule 42 is done and dusted after 20 years.

Ironically, the motion which generated most comment after Congress, was one that was lost — the Donegal motion on not allowing county teams to name Croke Park as their home venue in the Super 8s. This was to overcome a perceived advantage for Dublin by being able to play their first game at ‘home’ in Croke Park, their second game away, and their third game in a ‘neutral’ Croke Park. Donegal had a very strong point, but I felt they worded the motion very badly. Indeed, I said it was a negative motion that deserved a negative response, and that’s what it got, being beaten by 64% to 36%.

If passed as Donegal worded it, Dublin, instead of playing their home game in Croke Park, would do so in Parnell Park, with a capacity of 8,000. No fans other than season ticket-holders would be able go to the game. Wouldn’t it be farcical, particularly if they were playing a team like Kerry, Mayo, Tyrone, Galway or indeed Donegal, if teams played in front of 8,000, with the finest stadium in Europe, with a capacity of 82,300 lying idle, a mere two miles away?

That said, there is a point here to be addressed, and not only did I speak against the motion, I put forward what I consider to be the best solution. Let Dublin play their home game in Croke Park and the next game away from home. For the third game, if both counties agreed, they could toss for home and away (perhaps with the provision that if the same two counties were to meet again in subsequent years, the venues would be reversed). If the counties couldn’t agree to a toss, the third game would be played at a neutral venue, which would be agreed by both countries and deemed adequate by the CCCC. That solves it — it couldn’t be fairer, and as many fans as possible would be able to go to the games. I expect a motion along those lines to come back next year and would expect it to be passed.

I do believe that a toss for home and away in the third game in the Super 8s should be introduced. I’d imagine if, for instance, Kerry or Cork were playing Dublin in the third game, they’d opt for a toss, rather than opt for a neutral venue. This is the arrangement that often pertains in the Munster football and hurling championships, it makes perfect sense, and adds hugely to the occasion. There will be times when a neutral venue is the best and maybe only option, but often, allowing a toss for home and away will be the way to go.

Having worked very hard as Uachtarán to bring the GPA into the official fold, I’m glad that their place in the Association is now guaranteed, but I am not entirely satisfied their role is sufficiently defined. I don’t see any reason why a slot couldn’t be given to the GPA at Congress during which they could outline their activities, their income and expenditure, and planned future activities.

It doesn’t have to be as detailed as at their own AGM, but given the need for the Association at large to better understand their operations, I think this would help enormously. A motion to give the GPA a member on the CCCC was roundly rejected, although I thought the tone of some of the negative commentary around it was unnecessary and harsh. Motions often have to come back to Congress a second time and be better worded to get the desired result and perhaps this is the case here. I do think the GPA needs to be more involved centrally and if, for instance, they stipulated that the member who would represent them on the CCCC could not be a current player, it may give more credence to their argument.

One very important development I’m looking forward to is the proposal, which I expect this year, for a second-tier football championship. Previously on these pages, I have outlined how I thought this could work without either abolishing the provincial championships or prohibiting any county from playing in their own provincial championships. After the provincials, we would then breaking into two tiers – one for the Sam Maguire Cup, and the other for the second championship; who better to call it after than the great Páidí Ó Sé.

However, if the second-tier is not promoted properly, played on big occasions, with the final in Croke Park and televised live, perhaps before an All-Ireland semi-final, it wouldn’t gather momentum. They should also have their own All-Stars, and perhaps a tour abroad as well.

I have one word of advice for the GPA here. If you want a meaningful role, this is a great chance to shape the agenda, rather than doing sample surveys, like they have done in the past, asking players if they are in favour of a second-tier championship without knowing what a second-tier involves. This is not an approach that is particularly scientific or progressive, and of course, players will say they want to keep what is already there when they don’t know the alternative on offer.

Instead, the GPA should be putting the options before the players for discussion, proposals such as those I have advanced which the likes of Jim McGuinness, Joe Brolly, Dara Ó Cinnéide and Tomás Ó Sé have agreed with. These should be all considered, along with other options, and players should be asked what measures would make a second-tier championship attractive enough for them to give it a go.

The All-Ireland football championship is probably the only competition in the GAA that is entirely skewed by having only one tier. It is time we took action to address this.

My own club, Kilcummin, recently won the All-Ireland intermediate club final. It was the greatest day in the history of not just the club, but the entire parish. We’re walking on air ever since and nobody has said: ‘It’s only the intermediate final, pity it isn’t the senior’.

We are All-Ireland champions, have had a great journey to get there, and that’s all that matters; we will live off it for the rest of our lives. The second-tier football championship can do that for half the counties of Ireland who haven’t a snowball’s chance on earth, now or ever, of winning the Sam Maguire. Dare to dream, and your dream will be rewarded; the sweet smell of success awaits you...