GAA top table so removed from all reality.. AGAIN
THERE were plenty of positive developments in the GAA over the last few days that have been swamped for obvious reasons.
It was a fantastic weekend of football as the Super 8s belatedly came to life, underlining the fact that provincial venues are the way to go for all three rounds of matches from next year on.
The GAA brought an infusion of excitement and euphoria to the towns of Roscommon, Newbridge, Clones and Omagh and gave back to those communities in a way Santa Claus gives at Christmas.
But it all pales in comparison to the traction the fallout surrounding the Liam Miller benefit game has got. The situation has been handled poorly once again by Croke Park.
Damien Duff was the latest to have a go and he’s correct in disagreeing with how it has been dealt with but I didn’t like his tone, attitude or the venom in his voice.
The people who own the GAA – the volunteers and supporters all around the country – are virtually unanimous in their disgust at how headquarters have managed this episode. Hopefully the GAA see the
light and allow the game to go ahead at Pairc Ui Chaoimh but they need to stop shooting themselves in the foot like this.
You could fill the page with the amount of gaffes over the years but it’s only a few weeks since they were left red-faced by the Newbridge debacle. They clearly haven’t learned from it.
For me, the problem stems from the top. Just who’s in charge of the GAA? Director general Tom Ryan? The president John Horan? Commercial director Peter Mckenna?
The most accurate answer is probably ‘all of the above’. For a multi-million euro organisation and the biggest sports body in the country, it must move to one boss controlling and being responsible for the Association. There doesn’t appear to be accountability.
If this was a business and you were running your public relations wing in this manner, you’d be quickly overtaken by your competitors and shut down.
The GAA needs a single figurehead with a plan for the longterm future. At the moment, it’s like the left hand doesn’t know what the right one is doing until it’s too late.
What’s more, all of us who are members of the GAA are branded and hurt by these messes. The GAA is an easy target for many at the best of times, so why provide even more ammunition? I will say this much, however – there are an awful lot more problems with the state of soccer in this country compared to Gaelic games and I don’t see the GAA fraternity jumping all over that fact at every opportunity.
But the lack of compassion from the GAA in last Friday’s statement was galling. Why not find a way to reach out and do the right thing rather than callously shutting it down?
They may have called a meeting yesterday, but that was down to the widespread outcry.
The people behind this mess aren’t accountable to one boss. If you conducted yourself like that in the private sector you’d be out the door.
Who’s the one to make calls like that in Croke Park though? Nobody knows because there’s too much ambiguity about who’s in charge. Unless the GAA bucks up, episodes like this, Newbridge, the club fixtures situation and more will continue playing themselves out and gradually the GAA will lose respect and, with it, members. Proper leadership and direction is required.