The suspensions and fines handed out by the Games Administration Committee of the GAA to the Meath and Mayo players involved in last month's ugly free-for-all during the All Ireland football final replay will be viewed by many as nothing more than a cosmetic exercise by the association. The public humiliation of players and county boards might salve some consciences at the association's highest levels but the GAC's decisions will do little to change public opinion that these hearings and sentences are relatively meaningless.
Imposing suspensions ranging from two months to six months on all of the players involved in the fracas would only have real impact if the bans applied to next year's All Ireland championship. As it stands, most of the players who appeared before the GAC at Croke Park on Monday night will be unlikely to shed too many tears at having to miss National Football League and club games in the coming winter months. Many of the top football counties in the country find it difficult to get too exercised by the league and use it as an opportunity to rest key players. The punishment is hardly punitive. If the GAA wants to be seen as serious about addressing violence in its games, it must take a much more imaginative and decisive role in the immediate aftermath of controversial matches. It is hardly reassuring that the first official comment from Croke Park after the recent replay came in a television interview 24 hours later when the association's president, Jack Boothman, remarked that "there is a latent violence in Irish society", in attempting to explain the unsavoury incidents of the previous day. Although Mr Boothman later went much further and condemned the incidents as savagery, the damage was already done to the association's image.
This was followed by three weeks of speculation as to what action the GAC might take and what players would suffer most. It is hardly beyond the biggest sporting body in the country to complete this disciplinary business in a week and, more importantly, deliver realistic penalties which are seen as a serious deterrent to foul play.
In the overall context of Gaelic football, the All Ireland final incidents may serve some real purpose if they force the association to have another look at the rules of the game and the standards of refereeing. The introduction of instantaneous video assistance during games, which could be relayed to referees by radio link, might also go some way to preventing violent play. The GAA has proved that it can embrace change by building one of the most modern stadiums in Europe. Its games need as much thought and care.