Cavan manager Mickey Graham as the final whistle blows and his team become Ulster champions 2020. Photo: Adrian Donohoe

Level the playing field!

Calls for Cavan’s All Ireland semi-final clash with Dublin to be moved out of Croke Park are building as the Breffni manager has called for a venue rethink. Securing The Anglo-Celt Cup last Sunday brought Cavan’s footballers one step closer to the Holy Grail of the Sam Maguire, but team manager Mickey Graham is now asking: “Would it not be better to bring it to a different venue?”

Cavan have earned their first All-Ireland semi-final place since 1997 and haven’t reached an All-Ireland since 1952; having lost replays at this stage in 1955 and 1969 to Kerry and Offaly respectively.

The semi-final tie between Cavan and Dublin has been fixed for Saturday, December 5, 5.30pm, with Croke Park the venue. However those calls to bring the fixture outside of the capital are mounting. Voices calling for a levelling of the playing pitch are coming from partisans like former Cavan footballer Seánie Johnston, to neutrals like Tyrone legend Peter Canavan and Derry’s Joe Brolly who said the move to a neutral venue would be a “magnificent gesture”.

Only once in the last 37 years has an All-Ireland football semi-final been held outside Croke Park, that was six years ago when Mayo and Kerry went to the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick for a replay. Previously Croke Park have balked at playing low turnout fixtures at the venue saying a crowd of around 40,000 is required to make economic sense.

Donegal failed in an attempt to get Dublin’s ‘Super 8’ home games out of Croke Park at Congress in February 2019. Cavan did not support that motion.

Given the cost of staging fixtures in the fourth largest stadium in western Europe, it’s odd other venues have not been explored in a bid to cut costs in a year when income has disappeared.

For Mickey Graham it’s eyes down, but not so far down that he can’t see the sense in hosting the game outside the capital. The structure of his charges on Sunday shows the Cavan manager knows a thing or two about planning: “With the year that’s in it and no crowds going into a 82,300 capacity stadium, to give a bit more realism would it not be better to bring it to a different venue?”

Graham acknowledges the desire of his players to play in Croke Park and the quality of the surface, but tempers it with the advantage the Dubs get from the venue.

“The pitch is only used for the big games. It’s in pristine condition, even at this time of year. It’s looked after fierce well. You do need to get a few run outs in Croke Park before you get used to the whole surroundings, or the pitch itself. It can be a daunting experience for players who have never played there before,” says Mickey.

The Cavan manager says he’s not surprised at the calls for a neutral venue.

“Dublin have put up some of their biggest scores, and best performance in Croke Park. It’s really a home game to them. For the likes of us, it’s a big occasion. A lot of lads have never played there before. It is hard enough to compete against Dublin, never mind going into their own back yard.”

The massive crowd the Leinster champions bring won’t be a factor, but the fervent Cavan fans are also excluded from the semi-final stands.

“Dublin have fanatical supporters, no more than Cavan. Every team in the country have had to adapt to playing before no crowds. Teams have got used to it. While the absence of crowds has changed the atmosphere, it has not dropped the intensity levels of the matches, they still have a real bite in them. You can see from the matches of the last couple of weeks.”

Mickey says that, although he would like to see the fixture moved, he doesn’t hold out much hope.

“The powers that be will make that decision. It’s hard to know. They probably have it lined up already with arrangements for TV. With considerations like flood lights, it is hard to see where else they may play it, perhaps Portlaoise. It will be interesting, but I doubt it very much.”

The Cavan County Board say there has been no formal representations on the issue: “We haven’t sat down to discuss it,” County Board Secretary Laim McCabe said of the proposal.

“Do they want to move it? Nobody has told me directly ‘yes we want it moved’. There’s no point in me saying it’s something we will consider. If someone come to me in my role as secretary and asked me to forward it on, then yes I will, but nobody has asked me to make those representations,” Mr McCabe concluded.