GAA confirm that the return to inter-county training is pushed back until December

Jim McGuinness’s Donegal senior squad, along with other inter-county teams across the country, will not resume training until 7 December, as outlined in a memo issued by the GAA on Wednesday afternoon.

A recent remote meeting of the Central Council confirmed that the return date, originally set for the end of November, has been delayed due to the cancellation of pre-season competitions.

A memo from Croke Park officially confirmed this change, emphasising that no inter-county games can take place until January, and a training ban will be in place during the early part of the Christmas season.

It stated: “The return to training has been confirmed for Saturday, December 7, as agreed with the GPA (Gaelic Players Association) and approved by the GAA Central Council this evening. Please note that there will be no training from December 22 to 27 during Christmas week. Challenge games will be allowed from January onwards.

“A pre-screening session over a weekend is permitted in October for medical assessments and the distribution of S&C/running block programmes.”

The GAA has also backed the GPA’s proposal for November to be effectively treated as a closed season for inter-county activity.

The memo further stated: “The GPA is advocating for November to be a no-contact period, which players have strongly supported.

“All of this has been approved by leading sports science experts, allowing for individual preparation ahead of the pre-season, followed by six weeks of contact training before the first competitive match.”