Kavanagh jumped gun on Donaghy

THE Sunday Game would appear to be in danger of believing its own hype, going by last weekend’s effort.

The panel were within their rights to highlight Kieran Donaghy’s throat grab of Declan Kyne even if the incident probably fell short of a retrospective red card.

But it was Rory Kavanagh’s prosecution of the charge that was less than satisfactory.

For starters, he suggested merit in pursuing the case because of how Diarmuid Connolly had been treated. We struggled to make the link there apart from The Sunday Game’s lack of balance in making a case for the Dublin player on the evening Pat Spillane went in on him two-footed.

Secondly, he argued Donaghy (above) had ‘raised his hands’ – but there is nothing in the rule book which deems ‘raised hands’ an issue. However, the question is whether, in so doing, he ‘behaved in a way that was dangerous to an opponent’.

A choke hold would constitute such an act, but was Donaghy’s act of aggression of a sustained nature – it appeared to be momentary – and was it dangerous?

It’s a hard call which, apparently, the Central Competitions Control Committee declined to make.

But it was Kavanagh’s closing remarks that truly jarred.

‘That is why he is under investigation tonight,’ he signed off.

Perhaps they are reading too much of their own publicity.