Unhappy Harte reiterates call for GAA to sever ties with AFL
Repeating his concern over the recruitment of young players by Australian Rules club – Tyrone minor star Kyle Coney being the latest – Harte wants ‘‘ties’’ between the two sports to be cut forthwith.
Meanwhile, there has been speculation that Coney, one of the outstanding players in their All-Ireland minor final replay win over Mayo at the weekend, may not join Sydney Swans after all. The understanding is that his parents asked Cavanagh to talk to him and that he advised him to stay at home.
Harte clearly wants to give Coney a senior jersey in the foreseeable future, rather than much later.
“Absolutely I am not happy with the current situation. Not because he is going from Tyrone, but I have made it clear over the last number of years that I don’t like to see a player going from any county. It’s with great regret that I ever hear of it happening,’’ Harte stated.
And, the Tyrone boss is dismissive of the notion that the GAA are powerless to prevent young stars joining AFL clubs. They can do ‘‘a lot,’’ he insists, elaborating: “they can cut their ties with the AFL. And they can focus on promoting Gaelic games and leave this behind.
“If they come and pillage our players after that so be it, but we shouldn’t be encouraging them to come in here. And that is what we are doing by having the compromise rules on at the moment.’’
Mayo manager John O’Mahony is equally forthright in his opposition, reacting to rumours that minor centre-forward Aidan O’Shea from the Breaffy club may be a target for an AFL club.
His view is that it’s ‘‘a travesty’’ to see young players being lost after clubs making a huge investment in their development.
The solution, he says, is for the GAA to be more proactive and encourage players to stay at home by helping them to continue their studies. “Players have the right to go, but for team managers and county boards their hands are tied. You can’t compete with a €20,000 or whatever contract a player is offered
“If a guy is going to third level he should get his full grant or scholarship to bring him to that stage. There has to be inventive ways around doing something about it. I would maintain that if the players make the game here, they will do far better in their careers financially and with everything else from within the GAA they would do in Australia.’’
Added Harte: “we have got to make it attractive for our own players to stay here and we have got to make it very unattractive for the Australian people to come in pillaging our players.’
Cavanagh’s tour de force in the All-Ireland final has been recognised by Seán Boylan with the captaincy for Australia.
“Seán Cavanagh has been in the form of his life this year,” said Boylan yesterday. “He was man of the match in the All-Ireland final and was one of the key players in Tyrone’s march to glory this year.
“He is an excellent communicator and leads by example on the field. He is also ideally suited to the International game and it is a tremendous boost to have him on board for the trip down under.”
The significance of appointing Cavanagh as captain will not be lost on the Australians. Brisbane Lions have made two attempts to lure him to the AFL in the past, but to no avail.
Cavanagh’s vice-captain for the trip will be Cork’s Graham Canty who is also a veteran of the International Rules scene.
“Graham is a natural leader,” said the Irish manager. “You only have to think of the way he came up the field to score the winning goal for Cork in the closing moments of their Munster championship game with Limerick this year when they looked down and out. He has starred for Ireland in the past and is one of the best defenders in Gaelic football at the moment.”
The full Ireland squad will be announced next Tuesday in Croke Park and Boylan has already said that as few as 10 of the panel are likely to have had previous experience of the code.
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