To compare this to a man like Cromwell is shocking
DOWN senior hurling manager Ronan Sheehan has blasted Ulster Council secretary Brian McAvoy’s stance on football reform.
Sheehan, who was the Gaelic Players’ Association representative on the GAA’s Fixture Calendar Review Taskforce, slammed McAvoy’s views on the motions coming before Special Congress next weekend, saying that they were “highly insulting”.
McAvoy described Proposal B, which sees a league format in the Championship and is favoured by Sheehan and the GPA, as “worst motion I ever saw on a Congress clár”.
Framed
As for Proposal A, which was also framed by the taskforce and would see counties from Ulster and Leinster shipped into Connacht and Munster, McAvoy said it “smacks of Oliver
Cromwell and ‘to hell or Connacht’”.
“I was actually insulted by Brian McAvoy’s comments,” said Sheehan.
“And I think as an association the GAA should have rebutted his very insulting commentary that he made about members of the taskforce.
“To turn round and say it was the worst motion that he ever saw on the clár, let’s just think about who was on the fixtures committee.
“You had the current President Larry ( McCarthy), the past president John Horan, John Prenty, who is the Connacht secretary, you had John Costello ( Dublin secretary), and everybody kind of recognises Dublin are probably the best-run county board.
“You had Feargal McGill McGill, the CPA CPA, the GPA, people like Seamus Woods who has given his whole life in the promotion of the GAA. And for Brian to come out and say that was, for me, highly insulting.
“I take umbrage to him referring to the work of the taskforce in the context of Oliver Cromwell, a man who kind of committed genocide on this island.
“To say that there was anything linking the GAA proposal to a man like Oliver Cromwell was just shocking.”
Down boss Sheehan also pointed to the fact that his fellow countyman presides over a situation where there is currently no Ulster Championship in minor, Under-20 or senior hurling.
“Ulster have abdicated their responsibility for hurling promotion to Leinster,” he added.
Fearul
On tomorrow week’s Special Congress at Croke Park, Sheehan said it’s the “best compromise available”.
But he admitted that he’s fearful that the motion will be withdrawn with a view to it being redrafted.
“There’s almost a worry at times, ‘Oh my name was attached to a motion that’s failed’. We should put it to a vote.
“If it doesn’t pass, fair enough, but I think that is an indictment on us as an association that we are not brave enough to embrace change.
“Would we have embraced the split season had it not been forced upon us? I don’t think we would have.
“There is nobody suggesting this is perfect, but if we put in Proposal B, there is nothing to stop us tweaking it.
“If we reject it next weekend, or kick the can down the road, we’re in danger of going through the same failure of the status quo for a number of years.”