GAA: THE GAA won't be reconsidering their plans to expand the Leinster senior hurling championship in the light of improved displays by the province's teams in last weekend's qualifiers.

According to head of games Pat Daly, a member of the Hurling Development Committee - which has formulated proposals to revamp the hurling championship by inviting Galway and Antrim to take part in Leinster - the HDC was driven by a need to improve a few aspects of the championship.

"The purpose behind the plans is that we have two issues to address. The first is Galway and Antrim and how to slot them into a more coherent championship structure. No one thinks that the way Antrim in particular have been dealt with this year is a long-term solution.

"The second issue is that Leinster has not been as competitive as it should be over the past couple of years. Counties in Leinster might have been competitive outside of the province, but the provincial championship hasn't worked for the past few years.

"Thirdly, we had to develop a model that would prohibit counties who have already lost two games from going on and potentially winning an All-Ireland."

Leinster has been in difficulties because Kilkenny's dominance has affected the province's viability as a competitive championship and that has impacted on interest in other counties and the size of attendances in the province with this year's final attracting just 18,855 spectators, making it the third-lowest crowd at the provincial showpiece in well over 50 years and prompting discussion at Leinster Council about the desirability of switching the match in future to a smaller venue for the first time since 1961.

But Daly sees it as a question of morale for other counties within the province.

"The problem seems to have become that Leinster teams have developed a mental block about the ability to play Kilkenny and that has a knock-on effect. That lack of confidence could be seen in Dublin on Saturday. A bit more belief and they could have beaten Cork.

"Wexford have great support, but they have taken too many hammerings in too short a period and that impacts on a team as well as its supporters.

"I remember Waterford (for whom Daly played) in 1982 and '83 getting hammered by Cork and even though the following season was Centenary Year I'm not sure that we had the stomach to want to go back again in 1984."

It is virtually certain the hurling championship format will change again next year. This will make it the fifth format since absolute knock-out was abandoned for the 1997 All-Ireland.

The past three years featured a system of eight quarter-finalists that was brought about by using group formats in the qualifiers - which created the facility for teams in the last eight to have already lost two matches - something the HDC considered unacceptable.

"We have also been looking for a longer-term arrangement," says Daly, "a relatively stable system for a five-year period that gives all teams a guaranteed three matches.

"There have been evolving changes over the last decade or so. In 1996 we decided to allow defeated provincial finalists in Munster and Leinster back into the championship.

"After the qualifier system in football proved so successful in 2001, it was extended to hurling and included a provision that a special extra round would take place if Galway lost - in order to give them a second chance.

"That evolved into two qualifier groups, which was then refined into one group - a proposal that was accepted, but never implemented and now this latest idea."

He also points out that the great excitement when Offaly, Clare and Wexford won All-Irelands a decade ago took place in an historically unusual period and that ironically, modern formats have militated against that happening again.

"Between 1994-98 Cork, Tipp and Kilkenny won no All-Irelands - the only time in history that has happened. You would have to say that the chances of that happening again would probably have been greater under the old knock-out system but I couldn't see people signing up to go back to a "one defeat and you're out" format."

He believes the abiding difficulties in re-organising the hurling championship concern the fact it has never been broadly competitive for any sustained stage of its history with three counties dominating it since the GAA's foundation 124 years ago.

"Traditionally, the championships have been dominated by a small number of counties.

"Within that reality we have to address the most effective way of stimulating competition and bringing stability to the whole operation."