Seán Cavanagh backs players’ media blackout and says they deserve full expenses

Former Tyrone captain and secretary of the Gaelic Players Association, Seán Cavanagh, has come out strongly in favour of their ongoing media blackout as they seek to exert pressure on the GAA over the latest expenses stand-off.

Cavanagh believes that the standards in fitness and skills are down to the increased demands of the teams themselves and the culture within panels, and believes there is no going back to a time of fewer collective sessions.

He described the GAA’s stance as “fairly petty” as they hold out for a maximum of four training sessions per week to be funded centrally, with additional sessions to be arranged within individual counties.

“The reality is in the game, the lads are now training as much as a Premiership soccer player or rugby players do. There’s no going back on that. Teams want to win,” Cavanagh said.

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"Tyrone wouldn't have won the All-Ireland last year if they hadn't trained six times a week. If they hadn't been doing things in the morning before they go to work or doing lunchtime sessions, they wouldn't have won the All-Ireland.

"And equally, the GAA are so proud that they are watching our athletes, you are watching Diarmuid O'Connor running 13k a game or Conor Meyler running the same.

“We are very quick to point out what great athletes these guys are. They are only brilliant athletes because they are training six, seven, eight times a week. You can’t expect that level of entertainment and fitness.”

As if to illustrate the levels of fitness and commitment, Cavanagh pointed to his own time as a captain of a successful International Rules tour of Australia, when Gaelic footballers gain a close-up look at how their physical abilities compare to professional athletes.

“In my mind, I was so proud for me, playing for Ireland, to go across against the Aussies and being able to compete with them for power and fitness. I said to them, ‘Look, we are amateurs and we love it that way. We love the fact we can still go to our work. We love the fact there is a life beyond when you retire from football’.

“But in terms of the reward you get out of it, the minimum is that the lads should not be out of pocket and, if you talk to any of them, they will all be spending money on the type of healthy meals, protein shakes. A lot of the lads pay way over and above anything they get from mileage expenses.”

Cavanagh is disappointed how the debate is being framed, saying: “It’s being packaged as another nights’ mileage. It’s so much more than that. I think it’s fairly petty of the GAA to be trying to be seen as taking something away from the players and restricting the players.

“Anyone who has been through that 10-15 year period as an intercounty player knows that there is so much goes into it.

“In my mind, the players deserve so much more than they get. I would never condone and never want to see the game go towards any sort of semi-pro or professional status. But in terms of medical help, nutrition and mileage, that should be a necessity for players.”

He added, “It’s a realisation that we are talking about an extra night in training. If you go and talk to some of those guys, they are training six nights. The amount of turmoil that you put your body through and the mental toil it takes on you . . . I know a lot of players suffer with that.

“I think that has been ignored and in a mathematical calculation you are probably talking a few hundred quid a year for an extra night over the course of a season for most players.”