Attack on Spillane was shameful but hardly surprising
Swiftly surrounded by a mob who clearly didn’t concur with Pat’s considered assessments of their football team, the nine-time All Star received a “couple of belts” to the stomach.
Naturally, and rightly, the assault has been roundly condemned and there has been an apology from the Donegal County Board.
The incident has provoked considerable amount of discussion and many people have been surprised how a man of Pat Spillane’s fame and standing could be set upon in broad daylight.
I can’t say I share their sense of shock. My main surprise on hearing the story was that it appears that this is the first time Spillane has been physically accosted by disgruntled supporters.
May I stress at this juncture that I totally oppose all types of violence towards all GAA media commentators — particularly those in the newspaper industry.
But please allow me to explain why I find it astonishing that Pat Spillane has gone unharmed for so long.
First, consider the defence Brian Cody gave for his sideline altercation with Anthony Cunningham during Sunday’s All-Ireland hurling final. Furious at the late free given during injury-time, Cody ended up in an angry eyeball-to-eyeball rant with his Galway counterpart. Thirty minutes later, a calm and composed Cody put his behaviour into context.
Addressing reporters at the post-match press conference, the Kilkenny manager said: “Surely the two managers are entitled to be excited, and entitled not to agree with everything as well.
“If that’s a strange thing to see, then you haven’t been to too many hurling matches. It happens every weekend in club matches.”
Cody’s argument has a strong appeal. It’s true. A sideline spat between rival managers is a familiar sight. They’re standard practice. And, like Cody says: why the big deal just because it happens in Croke Park? The central premise of Cody’s defence is that we can’t make exceptions just because of the occasion. Regardless of the crowd or importance of the fixture, the same patterns of behaviour are going to occur.
Managers will get excited. Emotions will run high. There will be disagreements. It happens in club games. It happens in county games. That’s just the way it is.
No single GAA fixture should exist in a vacuum. We can’t have separate codes of conduct for club and county managers.
What is acceptable is acceptable. And what is unacceptable is unacceptable.
And those same conditions apply to those of us who comment on the games. There are no ivory towers in the GAA. No-one, not even RTÉ match analysts, can exist in a bubble. That’s why television pundits like Pat Spillane need to remain grounded when passing judgement on players and teams.
In the GAA, there isn’t one rule for the terraces and another for Donnybrook, Dublin 4. If a remark is offensive, then it’s offensive, and it doesn’t matter where it is said.
Imagine the following scenario. It’s 2002. Crossmaglen are playing in the Armagh championship. During the game a rival supporter, who is surrounded by Crossmaglen fans, declares dismissively that his grandmother could beat Francie Bellew in a sprint. What might happen to that person? Would they be safe? Here’s another one. Dr Crokes from Killarney are in action. Again, a loud-mouthed supporter from the opposition is telling anyone that’s willing to listen that Crokes are playing “shite football”. He says it’s “puke football”.
Is there a possibility this guy might endure some physical harm? And what sympathy would be extended to him if he did get a slap on the ear? The first reaction of most GAA fans is that they wouldn’t dream of conducting themselves like that at a club match.
But why do television pundits like Pat Spillane think it’s okay to castigate players and teams from the isolation of a studio? Spillane might argue that he is merely expressing his opinion. But that doesn’t wash.
Somehow his harshest criticism and his most cutting remarks are targeted towards the teams farthest from Kerry.
For all his outspokenness, Pat keeps a pretty clean doorstep.
When condemning the assault on Spillane, Joe Brolly wrote in his column that: “Robust debate is good.”
Few would dispute that argument. There is nothing as engrossing as an informed discussion on the various aspects of a football match. But there is clear distinction between debate and denigration.
And it always needs to be remembered that the 30 men running about the pitch are sons, brothers, fathers and friends. It’s this close circle of people who fully appreciate the sacrifices and commitments which are made before the player steps onto the pitch.
Ryan Bradley purged a stone-and-a-half from his body in order to get on last year’s Donegal team. After winning the man-of-the-match award against Antrim, Pat Spillane declared that the game was so poor, no-one deserved to be given that particular accolade. My rule of thumb when writing player ratings after Championship matches is to never to put in print what I wouldn’t say to the player’s face. It’s not about being polite, it about acknowledging that the players are amateurs.
It was utterly shameful that Spillane was subjected to such a frightening ordeal.
But Pat must also consider his own behaviour. If you provoke and ridicule a county, there’s going to be a response.
If Pat wants to avoid any further punches he should refrain from saying anything in the studio that he wouldn’t say on the terraces or the pitch.
