Kelly urges Croker to revive mascot tradition

Former GAA president, Sean Kelly, said Croke Park was missing a great opportunity on All-Ireland final days by not allowing mascots parade with the competing teams.

Wed, 27 Jun, 2012 - 01:00

Jimmy Woulfe

Kelly, now a member of the European Parliament, was instrumental, when GAA president, on removing a ban on mascots.

He took action on the issue after Laois player Joe Higgins was taken to task when he paraded with his twins before a Leinster football final.

Kelly said: “For some unspoken reason, the association (GAA) has never been too keen on mascots. After I got the rule changed, mascots are allowed, but we never see them. It would be a great on All-Ireland final day to see 32 boys and girls drawn from the association’s underage membership through the 32 counties come out with the teams.

“You could have a mascot with each player and two carrying the county flags. It would be a lovely encouragement to the kids themselves and a recognition to their parents, their schools and their schoolteachers, their clubs and the communities they come from, for the work that goes in at primary school level.

“There is no TV coverage of primary schools games, for obvious reasons. But the introduction of mascots on All-Ireland final day would give this deserved recognition on the biggest days of the GAA.”

Kelly said it would afford the GAA well deserved PR for the work the association does to encourage Gaelic games among children in every county.

The last mascot to lead an All-Ireland final team parade, was Ogie Moran who went on to win eight All-Ireland medals with Kerry, lifting the Sam Maguire as captain in 1978. Ogie was the Kerry team mascot for the 1962 final when the Kingdom defeated Roscommon.

He said yesterday: “My dad was a great friend of John Joe Sheehy, one of whose sons, Sean Óg captained the team that day. A few days before the final, John Joe Sheehy asked my father if I could be the team mascot. I was six years of age and I remember it as clear as yesterday, walking behind the Artane Boys Band before the start of the All-Ireland football final.”