O'Mahony case not so straightforward

THE AIDAN O’Mahony case hearing ended in the early hours yesterday, but the Anti-Doping hearings committee reserved judgment on the GAA’s first doping case until it has reviewed the closing submissions of the three parties involved.

O’Mahony tested positive for salbutamol after Kerry’s All-Ireland final defeat to Tyrone on September 21st last year. The three-man committee is chaired by Adrian Colton QC, with Dr Pat O’Neill and former GAA president Seán McCague.

A written decision will be “announced to the relevant parties and the media at a later date”, according to a short statement released by Croke Park yesterday.

No further comment was made, but it is clear the case has become significantly more complicated than what was initially reported.

O’Mahony, a garda based in Cork, is represented by solicitor Packie Derham, while the GAA legal team was headed by Lorna McAuliffe, a partner and head of litigation at Reddy, Charlton and McKnight, with Patrick O’Reilly as council.

The Irish Sports Council were also involved in the hearing as a third party, due to various submissions and evidence required from them.

It has become apparent a number of precedents heard in the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, had a bearing on proceedings, and ensured the case is not as clear-cut as first reported. When the story broke in November, the Kerry County Board said “the player’s asthma has been pre-notified to the Sports Council since the GAA’s anti-doping policy came in a few years ago. Coiste Chontae Chiarraí and the player are happy to co-operate with the hearing and are confident the player will be exonerated”.

But there has been some argument over whether O’Mahony’s exemption forms were filled out correctly.

The case may also hinge on the levels of salbutamol returned from the A and B samples. The drug is considered to be anabolic at greater than 1,000 nanograms per millilitre in the urine. The levels discovered in O’Mahony’s system have not been made public.

Meanwhile, the Cork hurlers have expressed concern about all 30 members of the panel being required to show up for tomorrow’s meeting with the county board, incumbent manager Gerald McCarthy and his selectors.

“We have been invited to talks by Jerry O’Sullivan and are happy to engage, but want to make a point of clarification,” said a source from the player group after they met on Wednesday night. “Is it necessary for 50 people to sit down in a room?”

The meeting, to be chaired by Olann Kelleher, is now likely to take place on Sunday or Monday, as several players are unavailable.

But there is a perception among the players that the whole group is being summoned in order to try to attract some of the younger players back into the fold.

However, it remains highly unlikely the senior players, who are driving this revolt, will return under the McCarthy regime.