A season of change as Letirim face unique challenges with new championship structures and New York trip

When  is a prize not a prize? When the prize puts you on a potential collision course with the reigning All-Ireland champions at the height of Summer and you've just suffered the heartbreak of missing out on promotion from Division 4 of the Allianz National Football.

Gaelic Football's brave new world sees the first year of the new championship structure as the Provincial championships feed into the new  16 team, four group battle for Sam Maguire and the 17 team, four group Tailteann Cup - it is the most radical revamp of the structure of inter-county football championship competition ever.

Designed to overcome the inherent flaws in the provincial system, it wouldn't be the GAA if some of those flaws didn't persist in the new structure with one out of  three Division 4 teams in Leitrim, Sligo and London and a New York side who  don't even play in the Allianz Leagues certain to reach the Sam Maguire group stages.

Leitrim take over the Big Apple with events planned for New York

It's a wonderful chance to reach a provincial final for teams who don't normally get the chance to experience the hype and pageantry of Connacht Final day - Sligo have been in three finals since they won in 2007 while London famously contested the 2013 decider.

Generations of Leitrim footballers, some of the best to ever lace up boots for the Green & Gold, have never got the opportunity to contest a Provincial Final, let alone win one - in the last 50 years, Leitrim have only reached the last two in the Province on two occasion, 1994 and 2000, so grasping this chance is something you'd think every Leitrim person would grab with both hands.

But that's the quandary over the  new structures come in - reach the Connacht Final and you come up against one of the top three teams in the entire Allianz League in either Galway, Mayo or Roscommon. And it gets better because you could end up in the same group as a David Clifford led Kerry depending on how you get on in the Provincial decider.

It is the sort of scenario that has some wondering quietly if we'd be better off in the Tailteann Cup, a competition that captured the imagination of all those who competed in it last year - a chance to compete at your own level and perhaps win something.

That's not a view Keith Beirne agrees with and I imagine within the Leitrim camp, it is a view that is widely shared - it has been 23 years since Leitrim last graced the Final so when the chance comes around, you've got to grab it.

Understrength Leitrim almost defy the odds but fall to late Galway blitz

LEITRIM 0-6 GALWAY 2-9

But let's not put the cart before the horse here - there's a lot of football to be played before Leitrim can even contemplate a Connacht Final and first up is a New York team that has Green & Gold supporters quietly worried. Not because they know what to expect but precisely the opposite - New York are an unknown quantity and Leitrim never get it easy in Gaelic Park.

Twice the Exiles have taken Leitrim to extra-time since the county's first trip across the pond in 2003 - five years ago, a Jamie Clarke inspired New York almost pulled off an enormous shock in what was rated one of the best games of the year so Leitrim know very well that nothing is ever easy in Gaelic Park.

It doesn't help that rumours abound of who will be playing for New York with names of quality footballers from Tipperary, Galway, Kerry and a few other places floating around the place, adding to the sense of mystery of what Leitrim can expect next Saturday in The Bronx.

Come through that, and you've got to believe the Allianz League's top scorers should have too much power for New York, and you face either Sligo or London, two sides with whom Leitrim have plenty of demons so before we ever get near a Connacht Final, there is plenty of football to be played.

The other side of the draw sees Galway, Mayo & Roscommon in a ruthless dogfight and maybe that will leave them drained and vulnerable in a Connacht Final for whoever comes through the other side of the draw. But before all that happens, Leitrim have got to take care of business in New York. 

Guckian laments decision to pull Leitrim Senior star Barry McNulty from U20 Semi-Final

Leitrim lost Connacht Semi-Final 2-9 to 0-6 but trailed by just a point with over 11 minutes to go before Tribesmen land two late goals to give Tuam scoreline a flattering look

That's never easy but even after the disappointment of missing out on promotion on the final day of the Allianz Division 4 campaign, or maybe because of that disappointment, Andy Moran will ensure that Leitrim are focused for the task in hand and they are more than talented enough to open up a new Summer of possibilities.

Either way, if that means battling against the giants in the Sam Maguire or launching a genuine attempt to win the Tailteann Cup, there are some great opportunities there for Leitrim - it's up to them to take them!