Jarlath Burns: ‘Football is biggest obstacle to development of hurling’

He’s been hearing it for 15 years now, even more: he’ll be a future president of the GAA.

Actually, a lot of people thought he’d have been president by now.

Jarlath Burns himself though says he still isn’t sure if he will — or even wants to be.

“People always ask me that question. And I answer it by saying I genuinely don’t know.

“I have opinions which are not necessarily in keeping with people on whom I would be relying on for votes.

“For example, I feel the biggest obstacle to the development of hurling is Gaelic football. Nothing else. I feel we should almost welcome counties like Kilkenny who say to hell with football. A part of me would worry about Tipperary winning All-Ireland U21 finals in football. Because you can’t marvel at the artistry of the best hurlers in the world and don’t think it comes at a price, which in counties like that is being competitive in football.

“But if you want to progress in the GAA world, very often you’re better saying nothing, just speak in platitudes. Praise everybody and offend nobody. Some of my opinions might be divisive.”

He knows that if he was sure he’d want to be president, there’d have been a route and jobs he’d have taken, boxes that would have been ticked.

“Within Ulster, I would be seen by some people to be ‘the Croke Park man.’ Not an Ulster Council man.

So a part of me was thinking that if I had ambitions within the GAA, I needed to raise my profile in Ulster. Last winter there were two vacancies at Armagh county convention to be an Ulster Council delegate. I initially put my name forward.

“But then I looked at the two people who were up against me: Michael Geoghegan and Fr Rory Coyle.

And I felt they were better candidates than I was because they were hugely committed to Armagh and Ulster Council and had no ambitions beyond that position. So I withdrew my name. And driving home that day, I thought to myself maybe I don’t have that political instinct that’s required to become president of the GAA.

“A president has to be a safe pair of hands. And I sometimes ask myself ‘Does that mean I’m the right person so?’” It remains a possibility so. But not a goal. Certainly not an obsession.

“It’s only three years of your life anyway,” he says. Either way he’ll have enough to be on with.