Duignan wants GAA and GPA to club together
Duignan hoping for club-county ceasefire
MICHAEL Duignan has called on the Gaelic Players Association to put the club player first ahead of their own inter-county concerns. He wants the inter-county players’ body to back the GAA in running off the club championships all over the country, before the intercounty scene resumes from October 17. With divisions already appearing in counties and a tug-of-war over players developing, the Offaly chairman and
Sportsmail columnist is hoping that counties lead the way – and that the GPA follows suit. ‘I’m hoping that maybe counties will stand back and show leadership here and say to their inter-county managers that club has to come first. ‘And I’m hoping the GPA come in as well to be honest and say “Look, we’re talking on behalf of the players here, we want them to go back to their clubs”.’ Speaking in a panel discussion on The Sunday
Game with Camogie Association CEO Sinéad McNulty, he also called for the GPA to play its part in halting the €30 million ‘runaway train’ that he labelled the inter-county scene – that amount only covering county team expenses in 2019.
“I’m hoping counties show leadership” “Integrating all players is the way forward”
ANOTHER day, another shot fired in the current club versus county war. The GAA might have nailed their grassroots colours to the mast by putting club competition first in the return to play roadmap with inter-county not scheduled to take place until October 17, but that hasn’t stopped the usual running battles between club and county.
In theory, inter-county managers aren’t meant to have access to their players until mid-September, to allow clubs get a free run at their championships in the 11week window that was provided and which has now been extended, with the government fast-tracking its roadmap to allow close contact training and play from June 29.
Last night on The Sunday Game, Michael Duignan took aim at the GPA, as much as his fellow county board chairmen, calling on all parties concerned to put the club ahead of any other concerns.
‘I’m hoping that counties will stand back and show leadership here and say to their inter-county managers that club has to come first. And I’m hoping the GPA come in as well, to be honest, and say “Look, we’re talking on behalf of the players here, we want them to go back to their clubs”.’
In a panel discussion on the RTÉ show with Camogie Association CEO Sinéad McNulty, he also called for the GPA to play its part in halting the €30million ‘runaway train’ as he called the inter-county scene, that amount only covering county team expenses in 2019.
‘I think we need leadership. I think this is a bigger issue going forward in terms of who is going to stop the runaway train which is inter-county, a €30million spend last year. It has to change as far as I’m concerned.
‘If you look at the GAA, an amateur organisation. Inter-county players training 31 hours a week, that was from the ESRI report commissioned by the GAA and GPA. But we don’t seem to be acting on that.
‘That is not sustainable. The amount of training that they are doing, to me, is not required. And that causes the cost. The size of the backroom teams – 15, 20, 30 people in backroom teams. The whole focus has shifted. Now, I don’t think the players should be blamed for this. Look at the quality of our games. Looking at some of the old matches during the lockdown, and I was involved in some of them, they weren’t good. Weren’t anything like now. But they were of their time.
‘But there is a balance there to be got. I just hope the GAA themselves, the county boards, the GPA – we have to get together.
‘We have to sit down. We have to work this out. The last 15 or 16 weeks have taught us that we need to balance our lives, get the life balance right, and I hope that does happen out of this.’
As Offaly chairman, he said the onus was on him to set the tone from the top down and back clubs after the GAA provided a window of opportunity for them to return to play first. Especially given that that window has been extended by a fortnight in light of the accelerated return to contact training and competitive play which is now possible from June 29 in line with revised government guidelines.
‘Our view in Offaly very much from the start was that club should come first. I think from a social point of view, from a community point of view, I thought it was very important that our players would start back with their clubs, be very much part of their community and clubs.
‘Now there was conflict in other counties, but I have to say with Michael Fennelly and John Maughan [senior hurling manager and senior football manager], two past players, I was able to talk with those lads, no issue – they totally agreed it was the way forward. I think the issue is that if everyone is not doing the same thing.
‘But I think it gives more time now. If we still follow the 10-11 week programme, which we would have planned in Offaly to have 10 weeks with an extra week maybe for a replay, that would give an extra couple of weeks for lads then to go back with the county, which is very much welcome.’
Camogie Association CEO McNulty admitted that the organisation is facing reduced revenues of up to 50 per cent due to the coronavirus shutdown but that the green light for a return to play is a significant boost.
‘I suppose getting gates back, getting an All-Ireland final in, they are going to be very important to us as well. Our members have supported us through their affiliation fee, which is a big part of it, but I’d say we are still 45-50 percent down on where we would normally be.’ She explained that the 2020 championship structures will be revealed on Tuesday. ‘We’re planning to announce on Tuesday what the structure will be like and then there will be a draw.
‘We also had an election planned for Uachtarán Tofa. That’s all been deferred for now. The website launched, thankfully it’s been used heavily over the last 14 weeks. The technology usage from our members has been fantastic.
‘The national development plan will be launched in the next two to three weeks. It’s a real detailed document setting out how we’re going to bring camogie up, raise its potential and reach and bring more eyes on the game over the next four years.
‘We had 1,000 people feed into the process, it took around six months of consultation. It’s a really exciting document and anyone who picks it up will see what their place is in the future of camogie and where we want to go.’
With the GAA supportive in principle of full integration with the Camogie Association and Ladies Gaelic Football Association, McNulty said she hopes it happens. ‘There are a limited number of pitches – we share our pitches with the Gaelic Games fraternity who provide them for us so it’s a real challenge but, yes, our ambition would be to move towards integration.’
Duignan too was fully supportive of the ‘One Club’ model that is already in operation in various clubs around the country.
‘I think it should happen. I was chairman of a minor club for seven years and we had ladies football, no camogie. The growth of the ladies football club – we started it during that time. It made our club because it brought all the kids from the one family, the community came together – everyone is in it together.
‘The way forward, I think, is the integration of all the players.’