GAA president insists Gaelic football is still ‘a fantastic game’

If after death comes the resurrection then it’s at least fitting that GAA president Aogán Ó Fearghail is reserving any judgement on the fate of Gaelic football until after Easter weekend.

That’s also because Ó Fearghail admits to not seeing any football games last weekend, including the Dublin-Derry game in Croke Park which former Armagh footballer Jarlath Burns described as the “death of football”.

Ó Fearghail was on presidential duty in New York, and while he is open to any potential rule changes which may help improve the game’s quality, he also believes the desire to win a game and the need to entertain the crowd are not mutually exclusive.

“I don’t think it’s the death of Gaelic football if there’s one bad game, no,” said Ó Fearghail. “I was away at the weekend, didn’t see any games, but I heard there were some low-scoring games. I also heard there were some very exciting high-scoring games. That always happens.

Too negative

“This weekend is usually a defining one, coming to the end of the Allianz Football League, and I’d say we’ll have a good opportunity to see where teams are setting up at that stage, and where they’re at. Of course you’d be concerned if people criticise the game. I think it’s over-the-top. I think people are a bit too negative with Gaelic football.

“I’m already on record as saying that Gaelic football is a fantastic game, and that there are far more good things in Gaelic football than negative things, absolutely no doubt about that.”

Burns was recently appointed by Ó Fearghail himself to chair the GAA’s standing committee on playing rules and it’s up to that committee to come forward with any suggested changes as they see fit.

“That’s their job, that’s their duty to examine it, and if they, in discussion and watching and coming together, come up with ideas that they feel will improve the game, absolutely, I’ve a very open mind on everything,” says Ó Fearghail.

“The brief for this committee is set out in rule. There is no difference in the playing rules committee now than in previous playing rules committees. So that was always the case, that the playing rules committee has within their remit the ability to look at the game, and if rules need to be amended or interpreted that’s as it will be.”

Entertainment business

Ó Fearghail rejected the notion from managers such as Mickey Harte that they’re in the business of winning matches, not the entertainment business: “Of course Gaelic football is about winning, when you play it at that level, but it’s also very entertaining when you win, and very entertaining when you watch the skill of the players on show. And our players have tremendous skill.

“Certainly when you are involved at intercounty level you go out to win the game. You don’t go out with any other particular focus, that is the main motivation. Any player that you see, you watch an underage player even, the big thing in juvenile is we’re trying to get the whole Go Games model into the children, it’s not the managers. The children are driving competition, and it’s highly entertaining.

“But it’s entertaining when you watch a contest between two teams or two of anything in sport. When you watch a contest between two teams who want to win it’s their skill that you are admiring and it is entertaining. I wouldn’t see the two as separate. So I wouldn’t buy into the notion that one is thinking about winning and the other is thinking about entertainment. . .”