GAC may single out Dublin

GAELIC GAMES/Leinster SFC fallout: It is looking likely that Dublin's All-Ireland quarter-final will take place on a stand-alone date, writes Seán Moran, GAA Correspondent

The Leinster champions will be playing either Galway or Westmeath and the match is considered a certain sell-out. As scheduled it is to be staged as part of a double bill with the tie between Mayo and the winners of Laois-Offaly.

The quarter-finals are fixed for the first two Saturdays in August with the matches involving Armagh and Cork set for the 5th and the Dublin and Mayo double bill for the 12th.

After Sunday's capacity attendance for the Leinster final there is increasing speculation that a separate date will be found for Dublin-Galway/Westmeath. Although the Games Administration Committee did not consider the matter at yesterday's meeting to finalise details for the final round of qualifiers, the question of the following round is already on the agenda at Croke Park.

"We would see a potential problem," said GAA information officer, Feargal McGill.

"Whether Dublin are playing Galway or Westmeath we would envisage the match attracting a capacity crowd on its own. I think the GAC will want to think about this for a while and consult the counties involved before making a decision but we can see the sense in placing Dublin on a separate afternoon if only for promotional reasons."

Four years ago Dublin, after winning a first Leinster in seven years, were drawn against Donegal in the quarter-finals and the match was paired with Cork-Mayo. That double bill went ahead.

"Circumstances were different then," said McGill. "Although there were four counties in Croke Park that day I'd say that Dublin must have had nearly 60,000 of the tickets because so many came back from Cork and Mayo.

"Usually Mayo bring very big crowds but back then they'd just lost a Connacht final and there wasn't the same enthusiasm.

"It's a different story now. I was down in Castlebar at the Connacht final and there were nearly as many people on the pitch afterwards as there were in Croke Park."

Twelve months ago the GAA found itself in a similar position when Dublin drew Tyrone and, after a thrilling draw, had to replay the match.

The decision was taken to stage the first match on its own although the counties met in a women's football All-Ireland quarter-final as curtain raiser on the second day.

The difficulty this year is that dates are a lot more restricted. The All-Irelands have come forward a week because of the Ryder Cup and as a result the football semi-finals are scheduled for August 20th and 27th.

That means last year's option of staging Dublin's match on Saturday 19th is a non-runner because were it to end in a draw again, there would be no spare weekend for the replay.

If that is ruled out, there are limited options. The double bill could go ahead but the GAA seems anxious to avoid that.

Dublin's match could go ahead in Croke Park with Mayo's taking place elsewhere but that would almost certainly be rejected by the counties concerned, who are likely to want an outing at headquarters.

Another possibility is the bank holiday Monday next month, but that would involve the winners of Galway-Westmeath playing only eight days after their qualifier match. It would also mean three successive match days in Croke Park, which would raise issues with local residents.

Seven years ago the Clare-Galway All-Ireland hurling quarter-final was held on the August bank holiday but it's not a regular date for fixtures.