Lilywhites losing their honour in Johnston pursuit
No words were spoken. None were needed. The eyeballs said it all.
The incident occurred during a series of rain-drenched sprinting drills. As he waited for his next run, McGeeney walked a short distance to pick up a water bottle.
McAlinden read the player’s intention. As McGeeney bent down to pick the bottle up, McAlinden kicked it away.
“It’s raining,” said McAlinden as he glowered at McGeeney. “How much water do you need?”
McGeeney glowered back. The unstoppable force and the immovable object. A collision between two deeply driven men.
What is notable from the story is that McGeeney said nothing.
Although seething with anger, he maintained his discipline.
Loyalty. Sacrifice. Commitment. Crazed obsession.
These are the qualities synonymous with the Armagh side which won the Ulster title in 1999 for the first time in 17 years.
McGeeney had been on the county squad for nearly a decade when he won his first Ulster medal.
As a student at Queen’s University in the early 90s, friends would laugh when he told them his ambition was to win an All-Ireland medal with Armagh.
Even after the breakthrough in 1999, he had to wait three seasons before he fulfilled his life’s dream. He was the captain, the general, the leader.
During his four years as manager of Kildare, McGeeney instilled many of those qualities into the Lilywhites.
Although success had eluded them, they have gained huge respect.
They are a force to be reckoned with. Unless teams are prepared to put their bodies on the line, and fight for every inch, they haven’t a chance against McGeeney’s fiercely committed side.
Given McGeeney’s emphasis on loyalty, and his appreciation of the need to create an esprit de corps among a band of brothers, his pursuit of Cavan footballer Seanie Johnston makes no sense whatsoever.
Apart from being ill-conceived, McGeeney’s desire to get Johnston in a white shirt contradicts everything he represented as a player.
Following the Central Competition Control Committee’s (CCCC) rejection of Johnston’s transfer from Cavan to Kildare, McGeeney indicated the case will go to the CAC (Central Appeals Committee) and, if necessary, the DRA (Disputes Resolution Authority).
“It’s very disappointing,” said McGeeney. “People have their own opinion about it but he’s given enough things. It’s enough for the police, it’s enough for the banks, it’s enough for everybody else, but not for the GAA. It’s their call. The fella just wants to play football.”
That is McGeeney talking as a manager. It’s worth considering how McGeeney would react if he was in a different position. Imagine if the McGeeney was Cavan’s captain. Would he be sending Seanie Johnston to Kildare with his blessing? No chance.
The greater likelihood is that some time ago McGeeney would have put Johnston in a headlock, told him to knuckle down and get back in the county.
Johnston was left off the Cavan squad by Val Andrews. Yes, there has been a falling out. But the situation isn’t beyond repair.
Johnston is a misguided young man. But young men are entitled to be.
The leaders of Kildare GAA should have more wit. Jilted by Cavan, the Lilywhites are taking a player on the rebound. Like all such relationships, it’s doomed for disaster.
And as they chase the Cavan man, Kildare are causing incalculable damage to their image.
Widely admired for their raw, gutsy endeavour, Kildare’s footballers will become the subject of scorn and ridicule.
Ultimately, football is about glory. It’s about heroes. It’s about men like McGeeney and teams like Armagh, who keep going until they achieve their goal.
Kildare have started a similar journey. But the shameless courting of Seanie Johnston contravenes those aspirations.
This is the pursuit of success by transfer form. It’s success by shortcut. It is crass and ignoble.
There was method in Brian McAlinden’s actions when he booted the water bottle away from McGeeney.
He was conditioning Armagh’s future captain for what lay ahead.
He was teaching McGeeney that football can be cruel, brutal and unfair. To succeed, a player has to absorb the punishment and keep going. Somewhere within himself, McGeeney would have understood what McAlinden was about. That’s why he kept his mouth shut.
Sadly, as a manager, he has abandoned those principles, and by doing so he could be denying Kildare acclaim and honour.
