Majority of Cork GAA clubs in favour of minor returning to under 18

Kevin O'Donovan, Cork Gaa CEO/Secretary.

The vast majority of Cork clubs want minor returned to U18, but there is a deep split within the county as to whether decoupling should apply or not.

At the end of Tuesday night’s special Cork county board meeting to ascertain the views of Cork clubs on their preferred minor age-grade, Cork secretary Kevin O’Donovan called for a moratorium on decoupling at U18 until 2024.

O’Donovan said it is imperative that an U18 club competition is run next year, but that the reintroduction of competitions at this age grade would not rob struggling clubs of their 18-year-olds for adult fare in 2023.

“We all know the U18 grade is an absolute cornerstone of the GAA. We do need an U18 competition [in 2023],” O’Donovan told the meeting.

“It will be a hybrid version. It might have to be short. It might have to be knockout. It can’t be a full program of meaningful games without decoupling. It just can’t. However, I do think there should be a moratorium on decoupling for the full year of 2023.” 

The Cork secretary, while acknowledging the concerns of the several rural clubs who said decoupling will sound the “death knell “ for them, is in favour of decoupling at U18.

“I support decoupling despite all the reservations I see from a small club perspective. For us to survive as a club in the long run (referencing his own club Kilmeen), we must have a good minor team on an annual basis. The years we can’t field, we’ll join up with someone else and still give them games.

“The moratorium in 2023 would give that breathing space for the county board and clubs to look at this issue for the 10-15% of clubs that are going to be challenged by decoupling.

“I am still in favour of it, but postpone it until 2024 to allow for a bridging competition next year and work towards solutions.” The majority of views expressed throughout the meeting could be neatly packaged into two bundles; clubs with healthy playing numbers were happy for minor to go back up to U18 with decoupling, while rural clubs whose playing numbers are nowhere near as plentiful supported minor being restored to U18 - but without decoupling.

If decoupling at U18 is introduced at Congress next spring, Cork GAA chairman Marc Sheehan said the county executive will explore derogations and deviations for the clubs whose adult teams will be impacted by no longer being able to call upon the U18s in the club.

“It not a surprise what is coming out of the meeting in terms of the decoupling question and the implications of that for the smaller clubs. That has to be taken on board. We are amenable to a derogation. We are amenable to an accommodation in as much as we would be allowed to do that,” said Sheehan.

“But there is the bigger national picture which we are not clear on. This conversation is taking place in every other county at present. The concerns around decoupling are in other counties, as well, so I would expect there will be possibilities for derogation or some deviation. Precisely what they are, I don’t know at this point in time.

“But as an executive, we are not in the business of putting any club out of business. We are amenable in as much as we are permitted.” One suggestion from the floor to help struggling clubs was to allow U18s to play adult League for their club, but not championship.

“Looking at the three options from Croke Park, there is very little flexibility. Would a possible compromise be if U18 was decoupled for championship only so the U18 could play league and challenges at adult level for his club,” proposed Freemount’s John O’Flynn.

“For smaller clubs, the difficulty arises in fielding teams for League matches. The issue for fixture-makers is that the championship matches are the ones that are going to cause difficulty if there is no decoupling, so maybe a compromise is if you decouple for league and challenge games.” Kevin O’Donovan expressed a concern at the end of the meeting that such “hybrid motions” won’t survive Croke Park.