No appetite for football of any kind at moment - John Joe Doherty

"To be honest, I don't see any appetite for football at the moment. Maybe if you are younger and you don't have any responsibilities, you might be missing out.
"But from a coach's point of view and for older people, I don't see much of an appetite."
That's the view of former All-Ireland winner and former Donegal manager, John Joe Doherty, who, like all GAA people, is coming to terms with the new normal with playing fields shut for the foreseeable future.
"You'd like to think there would be something later on in the year. And you know what, it might be the best ever championship, because as far as I can see from the last number of years it has been a waste of time up until the month of August.
"The Super 8s, in my view, has spoiled it. You were always looking forward to the quarter-finals on the first weekend in August and even that has been taken out of it now.
"You are nearly waiting for an All-Ireland semi-final now for the thing to kick off for real," said Doherty, who would not be against an open draw competition later in the year.
"I was reading there that some of the pundits were saying that it might be a knock-out competition and that might be the way it will end up."
The Naomh Columba stalwart agrees that the provincial councils will fight their corner but he feels that the only province where there is any real competition is in Ulster.

A classy defender - John Joe Doherty pictured in his playing days 

"I suppose we are lucky enough in this province (Ulster) that we have a good competition but anywhere else it must be hard to keep an interest in Leinster and maybe Munster as well at this stage.

IN GOVERNMENT'S HANDS
"It is purely in the government's hands, but you would imagine that football is going to be among the last things that will be released. All the essential things in life will have to phased back in gradually. Nothing is going to happen overnight.
"Hopefully, it is not too far away. If you are a Liverpool fan, you are in a worse spot," quipped John Joe, a one-time Scouse fan.
But the All-Star feels that it will be some time before football is on the agenda at club and county level.
"Life is going on and all the coaches and managers, as far as I can see, football is the last thing on their minds at the moment.
"We all have elderly parents and relations and this is where everybody's focus is at the minute and that's the way it has to be and it's only proper that it is that way,” he said.