LAST week, with only eight days to go until the GAA presidential election, Joe McDonagh was looking a bit distracted. Contesting a vigorous election campaign while coping with a couple of unhelpful perceptions and attending to a busy period in work, seemed to be taking it out of the long time front runner for, the GAA's top post.

The first perception is the one that has trailed him since his exceptional showing in the last election three years ago when, still under 40, he came within 30 votes of Jack Boothman.

Convincing people he wasn't home and dry has been difficult, and holding on to his votes in a new field has been demanding.

More seriously, he feels that a damaging misconception concerning his administrative experience has begun to creep into the election. To deal with that, he produces a list of biblical dimensions to document his involvement over the years at all levels of the GAA. Having held about IS positions with Galway, Connacht and Croke Park over the years, he feels fairly peeved at the insinuation that he's inexperienced.

The idea, however, exists and was a fearful consideration for some delegates three years ago when they believed his subsequent election was inevitable.

His experience is most extensive in the area of coaching he has been chief coaching co-ordinator at county, province and national levels and his priorities largely centre on the implementation of the National Coaching Plan which he was instrumental in drawing up.

Another charge floating around his direction is that he would be a "hurling president". Supporters dispute this indignantly, pointing out that he in fact comes originally from near the centre of Galway footballing country, Tuam, and that he represented the county at under 21 level, as well as contesting five Sigerson Cups with UCG.

This notwithstanding, Joe McDonagh will be most remembered as a hurler. A member of the Galway team that broke through into the world of big time hurling in the mid 1970s, winning the 1975 National League and reaching that year's All Ireland final, he captained his county in their next All Ireland four years later.

Illness forced him out of the reckoning the following year as Galway went on to win a first All Ireland since 1924, and he was unable to regain a place on the side afterwards.

Administration beckoned. His father had been a county officer, so he was familiar with the structures of office when becoming Irish Language Officer in 1979. He went on to represent Galway on the Central Council in 1988, being appointed to the chair of the Hurling Workgroup on his first day by then president John Dowling.

He is a member of Barna football club and still plays junior hurling with Ballindereen. It was his activities with the club that first commended his administrative abilities to a widespread audience. McDonagh organised a mayoral campaign on behalf the club's three times All-Ireland medalist Noel Lane and raised £100,000.

It has been said that since his dramatic vote catching performance in 1993, McDonagh hash had little to say preferring to sit on his almost certain prospects of success this time by keeping quiet and not rocking the boat. Again, he says he is misunderstood.

The structure of Central Council is such that I have to go to Management (the Management Committee of which he is a member) before Central Council meetings. I probably have a tendency to concentrate my energies there when decisions are being made."

He is on the record as saying in relation to Rule 21 that should an equitable solution be reached in Northern Ireland, the GAA will not be found wanting, backing up this conventional position by pointing out that he was one of those who helped formulate the policy.

On the issue of Rule 42 (the use of GAA grounds for other sports), McDonagh also defends the orthodox view.

"To be honest with you, the question of whether we open them (GAA grounds) up is an over hyped issue. Let other codes look after their business." He says that the GAA's priority is to progress Croke Park's development.

McDonagh's stated priorities, aside from the implementation of the 1992 Coaching Plan, include the promotion and development of hurling, greater co ordination between various units of the association and the development of physical facilities.

Does he feel that the suggestion of lack of experience has damaged or undermined his campaign? "Well, no. I'll put it to you this way my record will stand for itself, I'm a person who believes in getting things done. I've sat on a committee in Croke Park and we put a plan in place.

"I had a vision about how I saw coaching and games development in the future and after three years although I'm still involved I'm glad to say that I went back to my own county to become chairman of the Coaching Committee and set up structures within my own county initially and went, to Connacht then, after being elected (as vice chairman of the provincial council).

"I believe in getting things done from the point of view of identifying problems, planning a strategy and implementing it. The track record is there and I'm very willing to stand over it."