Divilly blast for Galway chiefs

FORMER Galway star John Divilly has launched a stinging attack on county football board chiefs claiming “the whole system of Galway football is wrong”.

As Tomás Ó Flatharta attempts to raise his players following their defeat to Mayo for Saturday’s All-Ireland qualifier away to Meath, 1998 All-Ireland winner Divilly feels questions have to be asked of the football structures and the board starting with chairman John Joe Holleran.

“People are afraid to speak out in Galway,” said Divilly.

“John Joe is a gentleman and has Galway football at heart but he’s got things wrong, he’s gone on solo runs and he has to admit that.

“He’s looked for quick fixes. Rather than devising a plan for five years, which he should be going, he’s gone out and got Joe Kernan and Tomás.

“Joe had all the credentials but it didn’t work and now things don’t seem to be working for Tomás.

“Clubs seem to think that just because John Joe has only a year and a half left as chairman they can wait to get someone else in but there’s no time for anyone to wait to get Galway football right. Things are bad enough as they are.

“John Joe has to realise that he still has a year and a half left to get Galway football right.”

Divilly revealed he was asked in by Holleran at the end of last year to discuss the best way forward for Galway football but his recommendations, despite being agreed on, were ignored.

“Johnny Hughes and myself were invited in by John Joe and Seamus O’Grady before Christmas to talk about Galway football and where we should be going. We gave them a list of suggestions such as development teams, a lot of which they agreed with, but they did nothing. It was just lip service.

“We won a great U21 All-Ireland title this year but for such a big county there should be no reason why we can’t compete in All-Ireland SFC semi-finals or finals at least every two or three years.

“We haven’t won in Croke Park in 10 years! We rely solely on talented players. We don’t have a real development squad in place.

“Whatever U21s that Tomás didn’t take in this year have been let go when they should be given programmes to be ready for their go in the FBD league next year. They should be encouraged, told what weights they have to be doing to make the next step but instead they’ll be drafted in, find they don’t fit in and disappear.”

Divilly, who resides in Kildare and coached Rathvilly to a Carlow championship in 2009, is alarmed at just how far Galway have fallen behind counties such as Kildare and Sligo in terms of developing talent.

“Our junior team is made up of guys who play junior and intermediate football in the county who have very unrealistic chances of making the senior panel. No fault of the management but they don’t even train right because it’s not taken seriously. In Kildare, they start work in January. It’s an extension of the senior panel. Kevin Walsh has done the same in Sligo but we are flagging behind.

“Every coach in Galway should have certain qualifications. They should all have at least level one coaching course done before they are able to tell young lads what to do. Liam Sammon is the best coach in Galway but he was treated badly by the county board and told more or less to go by some of the players. He needs to be coaching the coaches but because of the treatment he received from the county board he’s shied away from it.”

Divilly says the football board’s poor finances have been used too much as an excuse for poor results.

“We are being told it’s all about money in Galway, that we don’t have money for this and that but you don’t need huge amounts of money to have qualified coaches. The U16s played Cork last week and had to cobble together two old sets of (former sponsor) Aer Arann jerseys. What message does that send out to a young fella? We’re not treating them right. We have a good minor team at the moment and any money should be put into them to give them a real chance of going all the way but I’d say any time the manager Tommy Joyce has gone looking for something he’s met with a brick wall. We haven’t been badly affected by emigration but we’re going to lose players due to the lack of coaching facilities. If they’re not good enough fair enough but at least give them every chance.”

Divilly believes the decision to postpone the county championship from this past weekend to August 7 was short-sighted, especially with the county players in mind.

“The whole championship was cancelled. The message being sent out to the club player in Galway is that he’s not important. The best tonic for the Galway players after what happened in Castlebar was to get out and play with their club before they go to Navan but yet here’s us feeling sorry for ourselves and that is wrong.”

In Divilly’s opinion, Ó Flatharta has to accept he was wrong with his team selection against Mayo to ensure Galway have a chance in Navan on Saturday.

“If Tomás picks the right team there’s no reason why we can’t beat Meath but there has to be at least six or seven positional changes. Finian Hanley has to go back to full-back with Colin Forde and Johnny Duane alongside him and there should be at least three new faces in the team.”