Michael Duignan is quite right - some of those making decisions in GAA need to grow a pair!
THE single biggest breakthrough in terms of bringing a change of culture in the GAA came from Offaly county board chairman Michael Duignan this week.
Duignan, an All-ireland hurling winner with his county, called out the association when he said, “It’s high time people in the GAA grew up and grew a pair”.
What prompted his strong comment was senior county teams resuming training before the September date scheduled by Croke Park, a trend that I have written strongly against here over the last couple of weeks.
Make no mistake, it was a watershed moment to have a county board chairman stare down Croke Park chiefs and call them out when they are doing the wrong thing. When have we seen such honesty, such bravery and such conviction from someone to stand up to the so-called powers that be?
We never see this kind of stance from a county board chairman – because more are predominantly yes men for Croke Park.
Chairmen have continually genuflected to Headquarters over the years and just gone along with the edicts that have flowed from there – and that’s a major problem for the association.
And there will be no real, substantive change to the status quo unless counties start electing chairmen of the ilk of Duignan.
Let’s now see how many of his fellow chairmen around the country ‘grow a pair’ and stand alongside Michael against something that is so blatantly wrong – county managers interfering with players at the very start of the clubs’ defined period in June and – and even earlier in some cases.
I will sit and argue this point with any manager. But there is no argument to be had, in all honesty. It is a blatant abuse of power to take these players from their clubs at this time.
It is completely self-serving and totally disrespectful.
Duignan went where no chairman has gone before by questioning the lack of leadership shown by the GAA president (left) and the director general on this issue – and the hypocrisy that has been evident throughout the whole affair.
For me, yesterday’s announcement by Croke Park that they will fine or disqualify counties for training ahead of September 14 is nothing short of a token gesture.
It even makes the original stance on this issue more alarming in that it highlights how wrong GAA officialdom was. If Croke Park are serious and want to make amends for their original faux pas, there must be a very clear directive. Why have fines as a potential deterrent?
It should be a straight disqualification for the 2020 Championship because I know – and everyone knows – the avenues counties go to to get sanctions overturned.
Fines would be an insult and a joke to people’s intelligence. I wait to see which counties will be sanctioned with disqualification.
Anything less is irrelevant and fudges the issue. Isn’t it sad that it took a little bit of common sense to change the mindset because if nobody opened their mouth there wouldn’t be a word about it as county teams trained away?
The GAA have set themselves a very serious precedent with yesterday’s announcement.
Duignan went where no chairman has gone before
in questioning the leadership of the GAA