KERRY legend Colm Cooper admits modern football leaves him bored stiff — and he is desperate for the new rules to produce a miracle.
Last season was the first time the eight-time All-Star, 41, stopped arranging his day around matches as dour and ultra-cautious play turned fans off in their droves.
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The Football Review Committee led by former Dublin boss Jim Gavin has been tasked with finding a way out of the snooze-fest the game has become, and Cooper has high hopes for it.
The Gooch told SunSport: “Football has become a bore so it needs action.
“From talking to people around the country, the appetite is there for change.
“Football is a difficult watch at the moment. The excitement, getting up off the seats, isn’t there and going to matches I would question the attendances.
“It’s become a little bit of a bore to be fair and generally the latter stages of the Championship came alive and that might mask everything else.
“When I see a match now and I see them running back not even looking at the kickout I’m losing interest in the game straight away.
“It’s not the game that I grew to love and so the changes are exciting.
“Last year was my first year saying, ‘I don’t know will I even watch the game this afternoon’. You know?
“Usually my Sunday would revolve around going for a walk in the morning because I need to be back for the games at 2pm and 4pm.”
Cooper is recognised as one of the greatest players of all time, the 2004 Texaco Footballer of the Year who left audiences purring with his ability to kick off either foot and produce scores out of nothing.
Marking him out of a match was a huge scalp for any defender but he fears the way the game is played now it does not matter who is marking who as teams bring 15 players into their own half.
He added: “Even match-ups are gone, now because it’s structural marking.
“Before, newspapers would have before All-Ireland semi-final, Philly McMahon will be marking Gooch or asking who’ll be on James O’Donoghue?
“People would be talking about it before a game. That doesn’t even happen anymore because there’s so much structure.”
Many of the attendances at big Championship games have sparked serious concern, with supporters turning their backs on what should be big battles in their tens of thousands.
The then-reigning All-Ireland champions Dublin and Roscommon drew less than 20,000 people to Croke Park in May.
The Dubs, traditionally a huge draw, played their Leinster SFC final against Louth in front of 23,313 spectators.
Many blame a perfect storm of lop-sided games, dull football, so many safety nets in the Championship, the high cost of living and sporting alternatives offered up by rugby and soccer.
This month’s revived inter-provincial games in Croke Park will feature experimental rules devised by Gavin and lieutenants including former Kingdom boss Éamonn Fitzmaurice, Mayo’s James Horan and Donegal icon Michael Murphy.
This week the committee will reveal the full list of rule changes to be introduced for the provincial clashes on October 18 and 19.
But fans will expect to see three attacking players retained behind the 65, two points for long-range points, four for a goal, a “solo and go” option when a foul is committed and a one v one throw-in at the start of each half.
The committee met 31 times, examined 7,000 responses from a public survey, met with county chiefs, provincial councils and referees in a bid to perfect the changes and tested the tweaks in a number of “sand box” games which have been very well received.
John Cleary’s Munster will play Dessie Dolan’s Leinster in the first official game under the experimental rules, the sides made up of players no longer involved in championships with their clubs.
The games, to be played on Friday and Saturday, will be live on RTÉ and TG4.
BURDEN ON REFS
Cooper, who won five All-Irelands during a career spanning 15 years, plus an All-Ireland club title with Dr Crokes before moving into punditry, hopes the new rules can spark a revival.
But he fears they may prove too demanding for just one referee.
Gooch said: “It’s been done for the right reasons and the committee are very good candidates, very deep thinking, I’ve had a chat with Éamonn Fitzmaurice who is from Kerry and I’d know well.
“I’m excited about some of the stuff, my biggest fear for a lot of it is the referees.
“Their job — and I’ve been critical of referees in my time — they’re being asked to do a lot now and I wonder with the pace and intensity of the inter-county game is it time for a second referee.
“Now I know they’re trying to get the other officials more involved and they’re all wired up and there’s no reason they shouldn’t be able to do it but look we wait and see on that one.
“But I think the natural things of maybe keeping three players up in the forwards, it should help the game.
“I’m enthused by it, there will be some flaws and you’ll have to give it a bit of time.”
