Kettle fears for amateur ethos

DUBLIN chairman Andy Kettle has revealed he is completely against the idea of paying inter-county managers.

The Fingal Ravens man will attend today’s discussion forum on GAA director general Páraic Duffy’s paper with his mind firmly made up and option 3 (a system of regulated payments to managers) is a non-runner with him.

However, he maintains his opinion does not run against the idea of outside managers, Dublin’s senior hurling manager Anthony Daly, of course, being one.

But Kettle appreciates he might have to push his personal views aside if his county choose to back any proposal to remunerate inter-county managers.

“I’d be coming down strongly on the side of protecting the amateur ethos and no pay,” said Kettle. “This will be about what the county thinks so from that point of view there is a possibility I may have to change my mind. I will listen to the discussion as it goes ahead but I fear the erosion of the amateur ethos.”

GAA President Christy Cooney is opposed to outside managers, believing counties and clubs should strive to be self-sufficient.

But Kettle outlines why someone of Daly’s calibre was needed for Dublin hurling.

“Outside managers have a job to do. Hurling-wise, we felt our internal people had brought the squad as far as they could. We hadn’t exposure at the top for some years and we needed somebody who had. We look at individuals outside the county for that.

“If an outside manager can raise the standard within any county then it’s only good for the game.

“You have aspire to have it internally but if the likes of the weaker counties keep it internal they will drift further away from the stronger counties.

“Outside managers make the playing field a little more even.”

Kildare chairman John McMahon will greet Kettle in Newbridge tomorrow for the counties’ Bord na Mona O’Byrne Cup semi-final.

Both his county’s senior hurling manager Mick O’Riordan (Dublin) and his football equivalent Kieran McGeeney (Armagh) are non-natives.

While respecting Cooney’s opinion, he insists McGeeney’s presence as Kildare manager is what’s in the best interests of the county.

“Christy made the statement and that’s Christy’s view but the matters always go back to the counties and doing what’s right for the counties.

“Whether it’s Kieran or someone else, you can’t tell anybody what to do and what not to do. The one thing you have to make sure you do is right.

“It’s like everything else, one size doesn’t fit all.

Some counties have ways of doing things and some counties have unwritten rules about doing things.

“There’s talk of managers this and managers outside and managers inside, but at the end of the day the status of very few managers is defined. The amount work being done by our management is definitely huge. The commitment they give is professional and the knowledge they’re imparting on our players is incredible.”

McMahon also explained Club Kildare have an excellent working relationship with the county board. In Duffy’s paper, he insists some boards “will need to institute an official process of formalising their relationship with ‘supporters’ clubs’”.

“Club Kildare has put in huge work over 20 years at this stage and what they’ve done in raising funds for Kildare GAA has been tremendous,” stated McMahon.

“Club Kildare are no different to any other supporters club in that they believe in doing what is right for their county.

“They attend various county board meetings. There’s certainly discussion and a lot of openness between the county board and Club Kildare.”

McMahon, Kettle, their fellow chairmen as well as all county secretaries and Central Council delegates have been invited to today’s discussion forum on Duffy’s paper in Croke Park.

A working group is expected to be established whose brief over the next few months will be to evaluate options to address the matter of unregulated payments to managers before delivering a recommendation to Central Council and Coiste Bainisti (management committee).