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Opinion: GAA delegates talking out both sides of their mouths

Published

4 years ago

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The result of the vote on Motion 19 (aka Proposal B), which did not get the required 60% to pass. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile.

by Adam Moynihan

Like a lot of people, I was disheartened by the result of last Saturday’s vote on Plan B. I genuinely believe it would have been fantastic for the game of football. It had its flaws, of course it did, but it would have been so much better than the status quo.

What I found really frustrating about this episode were the inconsistencies in delegates’ arguments against the league championship proposal. Speaker after speaker said they were for change, that change was necessary, before asserting that this change was the wrong change. Well, what is the right change? The change that will suit every single stakeholder?

I truly doubt that such a panacea exists. Should we not focus on improving the situation rather than perfecting it?

HOPES AND DREAMS

For different reasons, I was disappointed with every county that spoke out against the proposal. Take Fermanagh, for example, members of the Ulster bloc who voted against Plan B apparently out of loyalty and attachment to the Ulster Championship. Tiernach Mahon of Fermanagh GAA said that "this motion has the potential to destroy the hopes, dreams, and aspirations of Fermanagh people".

With all due respect to the people of Fermanagh, they haven’t won a single Ulster Championship in 133 years of competition, let alone an All-Ireland. If their hopes, dreams and aspirations have survived up to this point, surely they can survive a different type of championship.

Mayo GAA Chairman Liam Moffatt raised concerns about the sixth-place team in Division 1 not qualifying for the knockout phase while teams from lower divisions potentially would (via a playoff). Mayo are one of the best teams in Gaelic football and they have been over the course of the past 10-15 years. And here they are, worried about finishing sixth?

The fact that the Kerry County Board also flagged this sixth-place issue didn’t sit well with me as a Kerry supporter. What happened to that famous Kerry self-confidence?

In the last five “normal” iterations of the league (2016-2020), the team who finished sixth had a total of seven points or less. Basically, to finish fifth a team needs to win four games out of seven. And in three of the last five seasons, the fifth-place team only won three of their matches. If a team fails to win four or more championship matches in quick succession, they really don't have a right to be talking about an All-Ireland.

BACK SEAT

I have to say I haven’t been too impressed with Kerry’s attitude throughout this process. As the game’s most successful county, we should be leaders. We should be setting an example. Instead, our delegates took a back seat.

First they said they didn’t know how they would be voting, that they were waiting to be swayed by arguments on the day. As many of us predicted, there was nothing noteworthy said on the day that hadn’t been said in public over the past few weeks and months.

Addressing Congress, Tim Murphy urged the GAA to effectively kick the motion down the road. Delay the vote so there could be more discussion on the topic. A ‘no’ vote at this stage would be a “travesty”, he said. “All the work of the committee would go to waste.”

Yet Kerry reportedly proceeded to vote ‘no’ anyway (we don’t know for sure because there is zero transparency in these ballots). And then, immediately after, the Kerry GAA chair told the Irish Examiner that he was “very confident” that a tweaked Proposal B would pass in February.

The bottom line for me is this: Kerry players wanted Plan B. Kerry supporters, from what I can discern, also wanted Plan B. Tim Murphy assured us that the Kerry delegation would vote based on what was right for Kerry football. If “Kerry football” is not the team and the fans, then what is it?

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Home cup tie for St Paul’s could be epic

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3 weeks ago

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7 November 2025

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Paudie O’Connor National Cup (Round 1)

Utility Trust St Paul’s v GCU Brunell

Saturday 7.30pm

Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre

The St Paul’s women’s team will be hoping to get their National Cup adventure off the ground on Saturday when they welcome 2024 champions Brunell to Killarney. Tip-off in the Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre is at 7.30pm.

Paul’s have displayed some fine early season form, although their unbeaten start in the Super League came to an abrupt end last weekend when they lost to the Trinity Meteors in Dublin. James Fleming’s side weren’t at their best on the day but they were well in contention heading into the final quarter with the scores at 47-45 in favour of the hosts. The Meteors pushed on in the fourth, however, eventually running out 63-53 winners.

St Paul’s scorers on the night were Maisie Burnham (13), Tara Cousins (12), Lorraine Scanlon (12), Lovisa Hevinder (9), Denise Dunlea (5) and Leah McMahon (2).

The Killarney club are now joint second in the table alongside the Meteors with both teams holding a 4-1 record. Killester are top having won each of their first five games.

Paul’s opponents on Saturday, Brunell, have won three out of five league matches so far.

LAKERS

The Utility Trust St Paul’s Lakers have now won three of their last four games in Division 1 of the Men’s National League following an impressive home victory over Moycullen in Killarney.

Eoin Carroll and Jack O’Sullivan made significant contributions of the Boys in Black; Carroll hit 17 points and collected 13 rebounds while O’Sullivan had 14 points, 12 rebounds and some spectacular blocks.

Steve Kelly posted 30 points and the durable Sam Grant played every second, adding 21 points along the way.

The Lakers started well before the visitors found their footing and the sides went in level at the half-time break after scores by home captain Carroll. There was still nothing to separate the teams entering the fourth quarter (68-65) but buckets by Carroll, Pablo Murcia and Grant opened up a nine-point lead. Moycullen fought back admirably, however, cutting the deficit to just four, but Luke O’Hea’s charges held firm to prevail by eight (88-80).

Next up is a cup tie against the Tipperary Talons, a side they defeated by 30 points just a couple of weeks ago. The cup can be very different to the league, though, and they will need another solid performance to advance to the next round. Tip-off in in Killenaule is at 6.30pm on Saturday.

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Chances of Kerry v Cork Munster final in 2026 decrease as Munster GAA delay seeding plan

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4 weeks ago

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7 November 2025

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After facing a backlash from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipperary players, Munster GAA have postponed their plan to keep Cork and Kerry separate in the 2026 Munster Football Championship.

The new seeding system – which gives the two highest ranked Munster teams in the National League byes to separate semi-finals – will now come into play in 2027, twelve months later than initially planned.

This will give Clare and Limerick a chance to earn promotion to Division 2 of the league, potentially overtaking Cork if the Rebels were to get relegated to Division 3.

Despite traditionally being the two main contenders for Munster football honours, Kerry and Cork haven’t met in a provincial decider since 2021. The Kingdom have won each of the finals since then (one versus Limerick and three versus Clare) by an average margin of 15.75 points.

More high-profile Kerry v Cork finals might be desirable for fans of those teams, businesses in Killarney and Cork, and neutrals alike but Munster GAA’s plans to effectively keep the great rivals on opposite sides of the draw understandably drew criticism from the other participating counties. A statement by the GPA confirmed that players from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipp had met via Zoom to discuss the matter. They were said to be “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the decision.

The 12-month delay will at least give two of those disaffected teams an opportunity to benefit from the new seeding process.

The draw for the 2026 Munster Football Championship will take place on November 27 under the old rules. As 2025 finalists, Kerry and Clare will get byes to the last four (but they will not necessarily be kept apart).

Nine members of Kerry’s squad are up for All-Stars at tonight’s awards ceremony in Dublin with Joe O’Connor and David Clifford also in contention for the prestigious Footballer of the Year award.

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