Twiss: Players suffer as clubs won’t amalgamate

Kerry clubs have given the county’s Competitions Control Committee (CCC) the green light to a look at the regional minor leagues this summer as concern is growing that players are being denied football because neighbouring clubs will not amalgamate.

County secretary Peter Twiss informed delegates of this serious and undesirable trend that has developed.

“The feeling of the CCC is if it’s bad now, with clubs not being able to field minor teams in county leagues, it is even going to get worse in the regional leagues over the summer,” he said.

“I am not sure what the CCC can do about it, but our view is, there are too many teams. Our view is that teams must amalgamate or allow their players to play with other clubs, if they cannot field a minor team. We have the unacceptable situation in the county minor league at the moment where we have two neighbouring clubs and none of their players have minor football because they would not amalgamate. So now we have the fantastic situation, where two neighbouring clubs in one part of Kerry, where their minor players have no games in the county league right now because one team would amalgamate but the other would not. That, to me is an absolute disgrace.”

Fellow officers Eamon O’Sullivan, Eamonn Whelan and Joe Crowley also spoke on the subject and warned that club chairmen have a duty to govern and overrule team trainers, if necessary.

Delegates supported the secretary’s stance and agreed neighbouring clubs, despite personality differences or old rivalries, should never be allowed to stop minors from playing football.

Eamonn Whelan said: “Clubs have to organise themselves properly because if a player has not played with a club at minor level for last year and this year, they will not come back at 19 and play senior with the club.

“The sad fact is there are seven clubs [Duagh, Finuge, Glenbeigh/Glencar, Cromane, Sneem, Derrynane, and Ballyduff] whose minors are not playing in the county league right now, either because they don’t have the numbers, won’t amalgamate or won’t give their players permission to play with other clubs. It is unacceptable to the county executive that one club’s minor players have had no county league action for two years in a row now. So while we understand the difficulties, we must address and reverse this worrying situation.”