IT'S TIME for a re-branding of the All-county hurling and football leagues which will get under way next month.

The urgency for a new marketing strategy can best be gauged the the lack-lustre approach over recent seasons, even with the ultimate final day failing to attract the attention of followers.

It's the whole league format that needs to be looked at closely, possibly with fewer divisions, and with the Senior clubs placed in a separate group, backed up by Intermediate club groups, to try to bring a more meaningful approach.

The question of grading of players must also be seriously looked at, with players who participated in last year's championship having Senior status only, and a similar follow through to the remaining divisions.

Admittedly one will always have teething problems in its initial years, but the leagues are now around long enough to have proper structures in place. They should provide meaningful games in March/april as clubs set about stepping up their preparations for the championship, while through the barren championship months of summer, the leagues should be taking centre stage.

Settling on a league format is fraught with contention as many clubs are only intent on protecting their own little patch. The failure to come up with a proper structure, coupled with the lack of acknowledgement of the achievements of winning clubs, has not helped with the marketing of the games, which has been totally lacking from the boardroom.

Rugby is a perfect example of how games should be marketed. Take Leinster's family nights at the Aviva and RDS for Heineken Cup and Rabo Direct League games as an example. They set the framework which should be followed by the G.A.A. both at county, provincial and national levels. The time has come for the County Board to take charge of the leagues and set about revamping the structures and setting out a marketing framework for our games.

The leagues can achieve much for both players and clubs. There should also be a stipulation that inter-county players when not involved with their county be allowed to go back and play for their clubs in the league, which would be a considerable marketing tool for the promoters.

Like the players, it should also be used for the grading of referees for the more important championship games ahead, which would help to eliminate the storms of protests over referees being asked to blow the whistle above their ability to oversee certain games.

I don't think anything would be taken away from the whistlers if they were graded for games which their status deserves. In Wexford there is a theory that if a referee argues his case, then he's entitled to bigger and more important games out of years of service and loyalty to the Association.

Taking charge of big games in the concluding stages of the championship is an awesome task. Last year in the Model county, the inter-county referees were sidelined for the showcase games, which in turn did not help the standard, particularly when a referee is totally out of his depth in making the right call, while fitness levels would see them way off the point of play.

The All-county Leagues will continue to suffer unless they are not alone marketed but also given a status within the fixtures framework, from players to referees.

It will be interesting to see if anything will be brought forward to bring about the required improvement. The structure isn't working as well as it could at the moment. Something needs to change.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Wexford Senior footballers got their National League campaign off to a winning start against Cavan. Home wins are crucial to build a promotion challenge, so it was encouraging to have seen off the visitors.

Now they take their title bid to Sligo on Sunday last, with the westerners smarting from an opening day defeat. It's a huge game but one the Model county men are capable of delivering on.

Two successive victories would really set up the Wexford promotion challenge and help put an end to our stay in Division 3.