The unseen consequences of preventing 17-year-olds playing in GAA's adult grades

'We have four 17-year-olds who would be well capable of playing but instead they were away playing soccer because they were not allowed to play'

Sat, 09 Oct, 2021 - 13:13

Alan Foley

A veteran Donegal club footballer has accused the GAA of having an unnecessary bias against small country clubs.

Colm Shovlin was speaking after he and his brother Martin - both of whom are in their early 60s - had to play Intermediate championship football for Naomh Ultan in the 2-13 to 0-3 loss at Dungloe recently.

A club stalwart, 61-year-old Colm Shovlin played at all levels for the Dunkineely club down the years and also played county minor and U-21, while Martin, 60, is a two-time Ulster SFC winner, and was part of the Donegal panels that won the All-Ireland under-21 title in 1982 and Sam Maguire in 1992 - missing the final against Dublin having failed a fitness test that morning. In 1990, he was named as Ulster GAA Writers' Player of the Year. He played championship football from 1988 to 1997.

Colm says a "crazy rule" forced them to line out last week. “I‘ll be 62 in December, Martin will be 61 early in the New Year and there are two other lads in their fifties,” Colm Shovlin told Tom Comack in the Donegal Democrat. “We all had to play to fulfill the fixture, otherwise we would be fined for failing to fulfil the game.

“We considered not fielding but we had just received a new set of jerseys and it was the first game wearing them so we felt we owed it to the sponsor to play the game. It was all because of this crazy rule brought in a few years ago where 17-year-olds are not allowed to play in adult competition.

Colm Shovlin: “We all had to play to fulfill the fixture, otherwise we would be fined for failing to fulfil the game."

“We have four 17-year-olds who would be well capable of playing but instead they were away playing soccer because they were not allowed to play. They say they are not allowed to play because of player welfare. But the four lads are big strong lads and would be well able to hold their own in adult football.

The GAA introduced the restriction to avoid teenage burnout with young players togging out for too many teams. But for small rural clubs, it has brought about its own problems.

“Where is the welfare issue when men in their sixties and fifties are playing championship football? It is a crazy rule. I wrote to Croke Park a few years ago shortly after the rule was introduced and after a few of us had to play one day when the club was short.

“I received a reply back to say ‘wasn’t it good to see older players given something back to the club?’. As I see it, the GAA has a bias against small rural clubs who are fielding one or two teams. All they are interested in is in big urban clubs. The GAA are supposed to be promoting the game for all. But as I see it, that is not the case.

“I would urge clubs to put forward a motion to Congress to overturn the rule because it is crippling small country clubs. If it is not overturned, players will be lost to the GAA. They will go to soccer.

“I would say to those lads, to paraphrase John F Kennedy: ‘Ask not what your club can do for you ... ask what you can do for your club.”

GLORY DAYS: Martin Shovlin in the 1992 Ulster final win over Derry.

Colm played the full game because Naomh Ultan had no substitutes in Dungloe and it was Martin’s second outing in this year’s championship having attended his club’s fixture at Naomh Bríd in Ballinta last month, only to be asked to play.

“It was a case of need,” said Martin. “I was watching the senior game with my brother Colm. We were just spectators and during the senior game the reserve manager Dermot Brosnan came to us and said he had only 13 players and he was going to have to forfeit the game to Naomh Brid. That would've meant no football for 13 young fellas.

“We said we had no boots or gear. Liam Kennedy, who is 57, was also at the game and he received the same request from Dermot. So it ended up with myself and Liam agreed to play. We got the loan of boots and by the time it came to togging out a 14th player had arrived late.

“It was decided only one of us - Liam or I - would start the game. Dermot left it up to Liam and myself so we decided Liam is a little younger than me so he started and I came on as a sub for the last 15 minutes.”