Does the GAA have an AFL double standard?

IT was hardly a night for the fair weather fan, even if that’s what we were. The clouds gathered ominously overhead all day and then, with less than an hour to go to kick-off, they burst on top of us. It didn’t ease up either, save for a few minutes here and there when it gave way to mist before reverting to a heavy downpour.

To say it didn’t dampen spirits just a little would be to lie. After a month of unseasonably good weather here was our introduction to winter, real winter, an Irish winter with all that it entails.

A shock to the system then for sure, even if soon enough matters at hand took precedence. The tribute to Anthony Foley. The haka. The plumes of fire blasted into the air as they so often are nowadays in sports stadia in an attempt to generate atmosphere and a sense of occasion.

And then it was on. Munster versus the New Zealand Maori in Thomond Park. What developed over the following hour or more was a compelling spectacle. Munster’s impressive form continued even in the absence of some of the bigger stars.

The Maori initially seemed to struggle with the conditions. Two classic New Zealand tries in the space of a handful of minutes, however, soon got the crowd purring. Sure enough they came to see a Munster win, they also came to see something a little bit special and New Zealand rugby at its best is all that.

Munster trailed coming up to half-time, but then something remarkable happened as a player announced his arrival on the scene in a major way. The ball broke loose. A player pulled a boot on it and took off like a runaway train.

In a straight foot race with Maori James Lowe he won hands down, pulling away, before touching down to send the crowd into raptures. A remarkable thing in and of itself, even more so when you consider the young man’s background.

Darren Sweetnam was once the future of Cork hurling. An impressive underage player, a member of the senior hurling panel before he made his move to the professional ranks with Munster.

At the time there was disappointment from Cork hurling folk, coupled with a shrug of the shoulder. What could Cork do – or what should they even try to do – to prevent a young man making his way in life?

The lure of the professional game was just too strong, nobody could begrudge it of him or of Munster for making the offer. It’s just the way things are. His then manager, Jimmy Barry Murphy, wished him well and that was that.

There were relatively few if any demands (which we can recall) that Munster Rugby compensate Cork and Dohenys GAA for the loss of their player. No demands that the GAA do something about it.

All of which is quite remarkable when you consider the response of people every and any time a young footballer or hurler opts for a life in professional sport as an Australian Rules footballer.

When Dingle’s Mark O’Connor opted for a career with Geelong in the AFL there were a number of similarities to how his decision was treated and how Sweetnam’s was. It was good wishes as well as obvious regrets from fans and officials alike.

Where it differed was the nearly immediate calls for something to be done about it. Former Kerry player Declan Quill, for instance, even called for the introduction of a compensation scheme for GAA clubs whose players are lured Down Under.

Quill’s frustration is quite understandable – “In Kerry, you get involved to nurture fellas to win county titles and All-Ireland medals,” he told one newspaper – and, perhaps, he’d be just a roiled if O’Connor had joined the Munster academy.

For the most part, however, GAA people aren’t. There’s something about losing a player to the AFL that seems to get them particularly hot under the collar. The news that a number of this year’s All Ireland winning Kerry minor panel were taking part in an AFL combine in Dublin last week probably drove them to distraction.

Again it’s understandable. The idea that somebody else – Geelong, Sydney Swans or whoever else – stands to benefit from the hard work of volunteers throughout the county rightly sticks in the craw.

Why though, does it rouse such a stronger reaction to see a player pack his bags for Oz than make the move to professional sports (rugby, soccer) closer to home? Maybe that’s it, a move to Munster or even across the Irish Sea to play professional football makes more sense to a most people.

There’s a closer cultural affinity. Who wouldn’t want to try make it in England? Who wouldn’t want to play for Munster? The AFL is to a majority of people in this part of the world an occasional curiosity at best (there are, of course, a number of aficionados too). More players do – and are always more likely to – make the move to the AFL than to soccer or rugby. There’s more of an overlap of skills in the codes. That doesn’t mean we should react differently when a player does go to Carlton or Essendon than to Munster or Manchester United.

If you felt joy and a pride when watching Sweetnam skin a Kiwi in the November rain, you too should feel pride if Mark O’Connor makes a success of his career Down Under. A double standard serves

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