Treaty boss warns of threat of burnout ‘disaster’

DONAL O’GRADY has challenged the GAA to prove they are serious about the threat of burnout to young players as his Limerick side face another fixture dilemma.

The Treaty boss is preparing his Division Two champions for a showdown with Division One champions Dublin in an All-Ireland quarter-final in Thurles on Sunday week after hammering Antrim on Saturday.

But, as of now, a number of his squad are due to be in action in a Munster U21 semi-final with Clare in Ennis on the previous Thursday night.

Forward stars Declan Hannon and Kevin Downes as well as Graham Mulcahy and Thomas O’Brien are key senior players also prominent on the U21 team.

O’Grady was critical of the 7pm throw-in time last Saturday night that saw his dual players Stephen Lucey and Mark O’Riordan forced to choose codes. They opted for hurling after a fixture clash with the footballers in their qualifier with Offaly.

The former Cork coach says it would be wrong for young stars like teenagers Hannon and Downes to play two massive games in just three days.

“If the GAA are serious about burnout they’ll have to put the [U21] game back. It’s not my decision, it’s a decision for the Munster council, but maybe sense will prevail.

“From a pure medical, burnout and prevention of injury point of view, you wouldn’t play a full match on a Thursday night and then go back out on a Saturday or Sunday and play a full match again. That’s a recipe for disaster,” said O’Grady.