Fitzgerald worried about player burnout

Wexford manager Davy Fitzgerald says the restructure of the 2018 hurling championship creates a risk of player burn-out.

The new Leinster hurling Championship in 2018 will see Wexford take on Galway, Kilkenny, Offaly and Dublin, with two home and two away matches in a round-robin format.

The top team in the group will go into the provincial final, with the winner of that game heading direct to the All-Ireland semi-final. 

The truncated five-week window between 12 May and 10 June is designed to allow space in the calendar for club hurling in April, but the Sixmilebridge clubman worries that four high-intensity matches in five weeks could create player welfare issues.

"They are trying to run off four or five games in four or five weeks. I think we need one more week in there, and that is from a players safety point of view," Fitzgerald, who led Clare to the 2013 All-Ireland title, told RTE's GAA Podcast.

"To ask my lads to go out four weeks, one after each other, it’s too much. I think if there was one more week thrown in there, it's manageable.

"I'm excited. It will also be good for the club game.

"I'm looking forward to seeing what it will be like, but the four out of five weeks isn't possible in my view."

Missing the Championship already? eir Sport will broadcast up to 30 games from the GAA Football and Hurling Club Championships in 2017, including the Dublin club football championship final between Ballymun Kickhams and reigning Dublin champions St Vincent's from Parnell Park on Bank Holiday Monday, 30 October, which will be shown live on eir Sport 2 [throw-in 7pm].

Image: Inpho/Morgan Treacy

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