GAA considers change: Flag a motif but not an achievement

GAA president Aogán Ó Fearghail’s suggestion, one echoed by Tyrone’s Mickey Harte, that the organisation might consider not playing the national anthem or flying the Tricolour at its games in the event of a “political realignment on the island” has provoked an entirely predictable and pointless response.

The hostile reactions — there have been others — show again the incendiary power of symbolism. It shows, too, the great difficulties facing any society trying to honestly embrace a better future while determined to honour its past. Already, this debate seems a new, hotter version of the one around whether Croke Park might be used by other sports. That impasse was resolved in a way that appalled some GAA traditionalists, but hopefully the realisation that such a generous gesture strengthened rather than diminished the GAA has made that decision palatable. That céad míle fáilte reached a high-water mark a decade ago when England played Ireland in Croke Park in a highly charged catharsis.

At this remove, that can be seen as the first step along the road to Ireland’s bid to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup. That bid, one that would not have been possible without 32-county co-operation between all sports, shows that communities become stronger through coming together.