COUNTY FAIR
Molloy is expecting a level playing field
DONEGAL legend Anthony Molloy expects his county’s motion on Dublin in Croke Park to be waved through at GAA Congress this weekend.
Following the introduction of the ‘Super 8s’ to last year’s Championship, which saw Dublin effectively enjoy two home games, Donegal have forwarded a motion which, if passed, would prevent any county from nominating Croke Park as a home venue at that stage in the future.
The spirit of the ‘Super 8s’ is that each county plays one game each at home, away and at a neutral venue, but Dublin played both Donegal and Roscommon at Croke Park last year.
With Donegal also travelling to play Roscommon at Hyde Park, it meant that they were the only county to play two games on the opposition’s turf. The motion is the most eye-catching of the 40 that will be debated at GAA Congress which gets underway in Wexford tomorrow evening.
“I’d imagine they’d definitely support that motion because at the end of the day it is about being fair,” said Molloy (inset), the county’s 1992 All-ireland winning captain.
“We came to Croke Park last year and had to play Dublin here. Is that fair? That game probably should have been played at a neutral venue. “The third game should go to a neutral venue anyway. Whether they are going to look at that or not this year is another thing. “To be fair, Dublin should not have two games at Croke Park.”
It’s been suggested that there may be moves from the GAA centrally against the Donegal motion before it’s put to a vote, but Molloy said: “It was Donegal who took this up last year, we were told last year that it would definitely be looked at and it would be amended.
“Everybody wants to play here, but it’s for every county.
“It’s just the fairness of it. Would we not love to have two games in Ballybofey?
“Why can’t Dublin not play outside Croke Park?” LALL-IRELAND winning goalkeeper Paul Durcan has returned to training with Donegal.
The 35-year-old was between the posts when Donegal won the Sam Maguire Cup in 2012 and won an All-star in 2014.
He left for Qatar after the 2015 Championship campaign but it’s understood he has been back in training under manager Declan Bonner for the past two weeks, having apparently returned home.