Man arrested after firearm allegedly brandished at unofficial GAA referees meeting

Gardaí confirmed they were called to a commercial premises in Malahide following a report of a disturbance. File picture: Sportsfile

A man in his 70s was arrested following an incident during an unofficial Gaelic games referees meeting in a north Dublin hotel on Tuesday night.

Gardaí confirmed they were called to a commercial premises in Malahide following a report of a disturbance.

The Irish Examiner understands the gathering was a meeting of the Gaelic Referees and Officials Association at which a firearm is alleged to have been brandished.

A Garda statement read: “Gardaí responded to a report of an incident at a commercial premises in Malahide, Co Dublin yesterday evening, Tuesday 5 March 2024.

“A male in his 70s was arrested at the scene and detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984. He has since been released and a file will be prepared for the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. Investigations are ongoing.”

The body, which is not recognised by the GAA, was formed in December by a number of referees largely based in Dublin. 

They had been seeking better conditions for Gaelic games match officials in areas such as increased match fees for club games, the introduction of mental health supports and heavier penalties for clubs whose members were found to have verbally or physically abused referees.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Prime Time programme in January, spokesperson for the group Conor Galvin warned the GAA was “going to have blood on their hands” if they didn’t take further action against assaults on referees.

"We've reached a point of critical mass, ten times over. Our association was founded upon rampant abuse, intimidation and assaults of our match officials and referees.

“The reality is that pretty soon the GAA are going to have blood on their hands. There's going to be a tragedy because there's no mental health supports or wellbeing supports within the organisation.”