So Aoibhin Cleary is the latest Royal County star to be recruited to play Austalian Football League or AFLW, as it’s known in the Ladies sphere. Following Conor Nash, Cian McBride, Vikki Wall, Orlagh Lally and Eamonn Armstrong. Of those, only Cian and Vikki – temporarily – have returned to give something back. Granted, Eamonn hasn’t gone yet but it’s hard to see him playing much football before he departs.
Look, this is not a dig at the players concerned. If anything, the overriding emotion in this seat is envy. One would give the one working arm to work in professional sport. Indeed, the same sacrifice would be made to get the chance to work closely with entities in the amateur arena, but, for reasons I will never understand, never mind accept, the opportunity has never been afforded.
I won’t use the other word available. But I do feel that level of player loss is an awful lot for one county to ship. While it was no surprise to hear Jack O’Connor and/or Pat Spillane – two retired teachers, a cohort for whom ‘readies’ are never far from thoughts – opine that counties who lose players to AFL should be financially compensated.
Or the other alternative which, unpalatable though it may be to some, needs to be left on the agenda is for players at elite level to be properly rewarded for the commitment they give which is professional in all but name.
To that end, as much as I despise a lot of the dung which Tom Parsons has spewed since taking over as GPA chief, it was both stark but encouraging to see him (a) outline that inter county players are out of pocket in excess of €4,000 owing to the commitment they dedicate to competing at inter county level and (b) at least putting it on the table that some form of professionalism may have to be explored as a means of making up that shortfall.
Of course, the irony of the two elderly men from The Kingdom taking the above stance is that a Kerryman Tadhg Kennelly has been responsible for most of the pilfering. Not only because he was the first one – since the late Jim Stynes – to be recruited and actually ‘make it’ over there, but, even more so due to the recruitment role he has taken on in his adopted home.
For it’s quite obvious, and understandable given the role he was appointed to, that the top talents in a given county are being hand picked and whisked off to the rear end of the world. With those who have fostered and nurtured their talent up to that point left with nothing but the dust cloud in their wake. As far as I am aware, the Listowel man isn’t involved in the recruitment of lady footballers, but there’s a growing number of them availing of the opportunity to head to the other end of the world and, just as with the male end of things. while in no way would one begrudge anybody the opportunity to operate in professional sport, one would be slightly curious as to how so many Meath players end up being hooked and reeled in.
Moreover, I do feel the schools and/or clubs who develop these players up to a certain point deserve some form of remunerative reimbursement in lieu of the talents of the player(s) whom they are losing. Especially in the current climate where player retention is such a pressing issue and hot topic.
As evidenced by the ‘Stop The Drop’ advertising campaign currently running in television and, maybe more significantly, the motion put forward by St Mary’s, Roselare to GAA Congress last weekend on behalf of one of their own – former Wexford All Ireland winning manager Liam Griffin – which sought to compel clubs to field hurling teams at U-7, ‘8, ‘9 and ’10. The basis of which would presumably be run through working in conjunction with schools.
Now, the official line is that the motion was withdrawn to be incorporated into the work of the group headed up by Willie Maher as part of his new role surrounding hurling development and promotion, and, while in different circumstances, one would be inclined to think of such a move as kicking the can down the road.
However, inclination is to think that anything that has Liam Griffin’s backing, never mind an initiative which he has been the driving force behind, will not be allowed sit long enough to gather dust, never mind be kicked down the road. Liam strikes me as the type of person who might very well convince me that I could stand up out of the wheelchair and run down the road.
Ambitious and audacious as the thought process behind the motion undoubtedly is, one wonders is there the administrative will to facilitate what would obviously be a gargantuan transformation to undertake in situ. How often have we seen it that facets of change which are desired within the GAA have to withstand what can feel like eternal procrastination before eventually getting over the line.
Witness developments such as the introduction of red, yellow and black cards (even though I wouldn’t be a massive fan of the latter), the ‘Mark’, the hooter and the solo-and-go.
But there’s always tinkering which can be done. For example, as well as outside the 40m arc, points kicked directly from sideline balls should be worth two points.
Likewise, scores directly from sideline cuts in hurling or, indeed, for points struck from beyond 70 yards out. From play or frees. In the knockout stages of last year’s Meath SHC, Trim’s James Murray hit four points from line balls and went within inches of making it a handful.
Such jaw-dropping skill deserves greater reward than a solitary score. Likewise the numerous surface-to-air missiles essayed into the record books by Diarmaid Byrnes of Limerick or Mark Fanning from Wexford or TJ Reid.
Furthermore, at some stage between then end of last season and the beginning of this one, there was at least mention of a Mark being introduced to Camogie to reward high fielding of the sliotar. Whether it ever came to fruition or not I am genuinely unsure, but if it hasn’t yet it’s definitely something which should be at least trialled in both camogie and hurling.
Conversely, earnest hope would be that Jim Gavin and his committee will give short shrift to the whingers and, in the main, leave well enough alone with the remedies prescribed to deal with what were pinpointed as the seven major malfunctions in Gaelic football.
The only one with which amendment absolutely has to be considered for is relating to the 3 v. 3 in the context of a team having a player in the Sin Bin. To me, rather than leaving the penalised team with just two back – which is effectively a double penalty, amend the stipulation to read something along the lines of:
“A team with a player in the Sin Bin shall switch a forward to a defencive position, thereby ensuring compliance with the 3 v. 3 ruling”.
The only other slight adjustment I’d consider would be, again related to the Sin Bin, to the effect of “When there’s a player or players off with a black card infraction goalkeepers may not advance beyond their own 45m line”.
Other than that, Jim et al, please leave well enough alone.
Leave a Reply