Down chiefs cry foul over ‘ignored’ referees

DOWN GAA chiefs have claimed that their referees “have been seemingly ignored” by Croke Park bosses.

Secretary Sean Óg McAteer expressed disappointment and annoyance that whistleblowers from the Mourne County aren’t receiving national recognition.

He said: “I have been disappointed that our referees have been seemingly ignored in appointments at national level and this is an issue I will be pursuing with administrators in 2010. We have referees who have done everything asked of them in terms of courses and assessments and yet they don’t get appointments. This is an area that we in the County Office will be monitoring this year. I ask clubs to continue to support the recruitment of referees within the county and I hope that we will continue to produce quality officials.”

He also slammed the GAA’s Fixtures Committee for the timing of one of Down’s NFL games earlier this season.

“To fix a game between Down and Tipperary for Longford on a Saturday night to my mind does not take account of player welfare. Some Down players were not home till after midnight on this occasion and these are practical demonstrations of player welfare that go far and beyond any Government or Association Grants. We did not hear any outcry about player welfare from the GPA in relation to the venue for this fixture – there must have been nothing to be gained by asking questions about genuine issues.”

He claimed that one of the biggest issues facing Down GAA is in relation to young people and how they view the Association. Failure to correct the malaise he claimed will result in many clubs fielding little more than ‘pub teams’

“I believe we have a real challenge (with young people), as they may not appreciate the things that our generation did about the GAA and what it means. Today’s young people make their own choices and they decide what games if any they wish to play. They decide what they will do in their spare time; but we have to work harder to give them the opportunity to choose the GAA. To do this, we need to educate them in what this great association of ours is all about. We need them to appreciate and understand the association’s ethos and history, the very things that make the GAA more than just a game. If we do not address this issue, and particularly in Down where next year we will honour and celebrate the men of 1960 and their achievements, then our clubs and their teams will become no more than Pub Teams and our young people will never gain the benefit of the tremendous heritage that is the GAA.”

He also blasted the growth of internet forums in the GAA which he said “only serve the malcontents”.

“The business of Down County Board and the GAA in our county has no place on the discussion boards which are nothing more than organs for the people to hide behind anonymity. The vitriolic attacks on our officers and our players have no place in Down GAA; indeed they have no place in the GAA full stop. I would urge clubs to seriously address the role of message boards on their club websites – what purpose do they serve? In my mind they only serve the malcontents who wish to snipe at people but never step up to the mark and accept any level of responsibility themselves.”

He also revealed that Down officials were called to Croke Park to account for why the wrong team appeared in the programme on the day of their Ulster champions loss in Brewster Park and “some of the matters of that day”.