Gilroy laughs off Nixon claims

Dublin manager Pat Gilroy has rubbished suggestions that he banned his players from attending yesterday's AFL recruitment camp at Gormanston College.

Aussie Rules agent Ricky Nixon invited four Dublin players - Paddy Andrews, Cian O'Sullivan, Rory O'Carroll and James McCarthy - to his Flying Start agency's trial but none of the Dubs turned up.

Speaking to the media afterwards, Nixon claimed that Gilroy had kept the quartet away from the camp.

“I am led to believe he called his players last night (Tuesday) and threatened that they would not play at the weekend if they came to the trial," reckoned Nixon.

“I am not going to stop a player from playing inter-county football, it doesn’t make a difference to our recruitment - we will still recruit the players. So what he is doing is ridiculous."

But Gilroy today insisted that nothing could be further from the truth.

"That's like a job interview for guys and if they decide to go, they decide to. If they don't decide to go, maybe they gave a reason that I pulled them, but I didn't," he admitted.

"It's a private matter for the players and their potential employer. That's it - it's as simple as that.

"It is a career opportunity. We're an amateur game. It's really none of my business what he does in that regard."

The Dubs boss outlined how he has operated in recent weeks, in allowing players to line out for their clubs and colleges and then bringing them back into the panel for the following week.

"On Tuesday we said to guys who are playing don't be involved in any club activity, the fellas who are in the subs can belt away with club activity and any other activity.

"And if you are, let us now. Nobody came to me to tell me they were doing anything.

"If guys wanted to do something, well then that's fine. He mightn't be able to be involved this weekend but he'd be back in our squad next week."

Gilroy added: "Nobody asked me could they go to trial and I didn't tell anybody not to go to it. At the end of the day, that's a career opportunity.

"It's their own business and a private matter for them. It really has nothing to do with me. Nobody asked me could I send players to a trial and no player came to me asking to go.

"The first I heard of it was this morning that I was supposed to have pulled people."

Out of the four Dublin players Nixon invited to the camp, centre-back O’Sullivan is the only one due to start Sunday’s NFL Division 1 clash with Mayo in Castlebar.