Cork County Board chairman Jim Forbes has criticised RTÉ for what he deems selective coverage of the brawl after Saturday's Cork-Laois minor match in Limerick. Players and officials from both sides tussled for several minutes before referee Michael Daly abandoned the match, which was due to go into extra time after finishing at 1-9 each.
TG4 coverage of the melee was shown on RTÉ's Sunday Game at the weekend. The footage shown was incomplete, which is at the heart of Forbes's complaint.
"I have no comment to make on the match, which is the subject of a GAC investigation, except that it was a grand game of football. But I was absolutely taken aback by what I saw on the Sunday Game. It only told half the story of what happened in the brawl. I think that part one should be shown.
"I'm pretty annoyed that what was shown was only the very end of the melee. Plus if that's all that happened I don't know what the furore is all about - 30 seconds where as far as I can see there wasn't a blow struck. But if we're going to have footage, I've asked that RTÉ produce full footage because what they've shown implicates Cork as the main aggressors."
The scenes shown on RTÉ were of the brawl resuming after it had initially subsided. Although Forbes's contention there "wasn't a blow struck" is refuted on a number of occasions, his overall point about his county bearing the brunt of the blame for what was broadcast is valid.
The Sunday Game identifies a Cork team official as the instigator of the row when it had already broken out and subsided. Nonetheless the charge of selectivity doesn't excuse the scenes that were shown on Sunday.
"People here in Cork were looking at this and they believe what they see on television. And there's been a big build-up to the coverage of this in every paper. I'm intensely annoyed people are commenting on the matter and apportioning blame on the basis of what was shown. You can't do it. People believe that what happened in Limerick was shown on RTÉ."
It is believed TG4, who were covering the match, had dismantled their cameras before the fracas erupted and were only able to record the conclusion of the brawl but there have also been suggestions a full version of the controversy was shot by another company.
In another development Laois have distanced themselves from reports their county board wrote to the GAC, citing a Cork official for having struck one of their selectors. County secretary Niall Handy said the letter submitted to GAC had been purely an account of the incidents from Laois's perspective.
"We put our side of the case," he said, "but didn't make any mention of a Cork official. I can't understand how that impression got out."
The matter rests with the GAC after Sunday's announcement by the GAA that the matter would be investigated immediately. There is a fair degree of urgency in the matter because the match is due to be replayed in time for the winners to face Kerry in the All-Ireland semi-final - if the teams are allowed continue in the championship given there have been calls for them to be thrown out.
Not surprisingly there is alarm in Cork and Laois at the prospect of such a punishment with private indications from both camps that the matter has been "blown out of proportion". But that doesn't appear to be the view of neutrals who attended the match with Seán Bán Breathnach of Radio na Gaeltachta and Weeshie Fogarty of Radio Kerry speaking out strongly on the incidents.
The GAC are waiting for the report of the match referee before launching the investigation. That will include a review of video evidence. A GAC source admitted some disquiet about the nature of what had been broadcast. "We have requested full tapes from TG4 because we have to ask 'did we see all of what happened on television?'"
