Potts slams ‘sinister’ online abuse

Cyberbullying of top GAA players has emerged as a serious issue that may require Garda intervention in certain extreme cases.

The Gaelic Players Association (GPA) believe the traditional form of physical “hate mail” has been largely replaced by modern online harassment and attacks.

Limerick hurling captain Donal O’Grady revealed how he received actual mail, “crazy stuff”, criticising him and Limerick in the wake of last year’s All-Ireland semi-final loss to Clare.

GPA spokesman Sean Potts said that was a “sinister” issue that shouldn’t have occurred but revealed he is more familiar with a rising incidence of harassment via social media platforms.

He said the GPA has already advised its members on best practice when using social media outlets and that they plan to contact inter-county players again shortly with fresh updates and advice.

“Cyberbullying is a very relevant issue in Irish society and it’s just as relevant for our members,” said Potts.

“Whether players are receiving hate mail in the traditional format, I don’t know, I can’t say exactly how widespread that is. Obviously, it is still happening if Donal O’Grady is saying it which is quite sinister and totally regrettable.

“Where we would see the real potential for trouble, and where we have had issues already, is on social media. It’s probably the modern version of hate mail, if you like.

“We’ve had people abusing Dessie [Farrell] and Donal Óg [Cusack] non-stop. We had one fella accusing Dessie of robbing from children in society because the GPA were looking for grants. That sort of abuse didn’t stop there. At times, you’d be getting a string of expletives. And we have got some material in the post as well.

“But we’re an organisation with the relevant structures to be able to take the punches from mindless abusers. It’s different for someone like a player who is isolated and perhaps vulnerable.”

Potts said he believes top players receive most abuse and it generally arrives in the wake of flashpoints in high-profile games. He said they have recourse to various authorities though, including the Gardaí.

“It’s something I’d go straight to the authorities with, absolutely,” said Potts. “If it’s abuse, unsolicited material coming in your letter box, whatever it is, you are perfectly entitled to report that.

“If anyone feels they have a serious issue, then they can report it to us, they can report it to their county board or to the Gardaí. It’s illegal to harass or to abuse people.”

Long-serving Limerick GAA secretary Mike O’Riordan revealed he has collected a “box full” of critical letters and correspondence over the years. He said it was mostly received around the time of managerial upheaval.

A number of county board officials confirmed yesterday that they hadn’t been affected by such material. Clare secretary Pat Fitzgerald insisted there was ‘‘nothing to report in Clare and long may that last’’.

Mayo manager James Horan admitted he has become accustomed to the issue following defeats, just as he has become familiar with too much praise following victories.

“Mayo has the highest amount of Facebook and Twitter followers combined so we’re mad,” he said. “There’s always going to be flak. Any Mayo manager that’s ever been there has taken heat.”

Online attacks continue to be a major problem for players, according to Potts.

“Probably the earlier experience we had of this was chat rooms,” said Potts. “We used to call the fellas ‘fair gamers’ because they seemed to think it was fair game to say anything they wanted about anyone they wanted.

“Increasingly, it became a badge of honour to berate players on these platforms and that has seeped through to Facebook and Twitter. We would be making players quite aware of this.

“I see myself that really good players on Twitter, the clever ones, they are very conscious of not reacting to the insults and the attacks. It’s definitely something that players need a bit of mentoring and advice on.

“That’s something we’re reviewing at the moment, our communications mechanisms and platforms. We’ll be going back shortly to ask our players for their experiences in this area.”