Noel McCaffrey: ‘It is a terrible abuse of those players and it is profoundly unfair’

Clontarf GAA club's motion, if passed, would mean that adult players must play a minimum of four club league games to be eligible for inter-county level.

UPLIFTING: Noel McCaffrey believes it is "very difficult to argue against the spirit" of the motion which Clontarf GAA club have tabled for next month's GAA Congress. Pic: Brendan Moran, Sportsfile

A motion from CLG Clontarf will be considered at this month’s Congress that would mean adult players would have to play a minimum of four club league games to be eligible to play inter-county championship.

Speaking on the Irish Examiner’s Gaelic football podcast, former Dublin footballer Dr Noel McCaffrey explained why he proposed the motion at his own club AGM. It was subsequently overwhelmingly passed at the Dublin AGM last December.

McCaffrey, an All-Star in 1988 and father of six-time All-Ireland winner Jack, said that the split season has solved one problem but worsened another.

“The split season is very interesting in that it has clearly delivered on something that is very important which is certainty around the country to the club fixture calendar. That was viewed as a huge issue and this has solved it.

“That success is being celebrated wildly and widely. It is discussed up and down as a great achievement. I suppose it is, but in tandem with it what has happened is, as an unintended consequence, county players play even less with their clubs now in the split season than they previously did. Some people would say they weren’t playing at all anyway. It depends on the county, that has become clear to us as we have gone around our business of consulting counties.” 

Clontarf have published a detailed document on their website explaining the reason for the motion, the obvious challenges and their plan of action. They have consulted county secretaries around the country and will host information Webinars for clubs, starting next Monday, February 10.

He pointed to Dublin as an example where county players play little league games. The average number of championship games is four. It means an inter-county player could only play one game every three months for his club. “That is not right," said McCaffrey. "That can’t be viewed at any level as correct.” There are several reasons for the proposal. Congress is scheduled to take place on February 21/22 in Donegal.

“One is fairness to the club that is struggling particularly weaker clubs struggling in weaker leagues. In Dublin this is classic. A club emerges with one or two quality players, they separate them from the opposition, they are the ones the team should be built around. They make a huge difference. The reward the club get for nourishing them is they can’t have them.” 

He continued: “It is particularly unfair to fringe players on matchday squads who travel with the county team, 25 or 26, they never get to play and they never get to play with their club either. It is a terrible abuse of those players and it is profoundly unfair.” 

They are asking clubs and county boards to vote on a principle and not on an implantation plan. The motion states that the four competitive league games must be in the same calendar year and excludes minor and U20 grades.

“It is actually healthier for inter-county players to step out of this bubble on a regular basis and be with their non-elite friends,” said McCaffrey.

“It is humbling, supportive, it is uplifting. It is really important. I remember once a couple of years ago the year Jack didn’t play football. The number of people who told me Jack had given up football when he hadn’t, he gave up county football, one of the best decisions he ever made at that time in my opinion. Two inter-county players at that time, one said it to him and one said it to me, they wished they could have done what Jack did but they couldn’t because they were afraid, 'this would be the year.'

“They felt trapped in this bubble and terrified they would miss out. There is another reason why players should play more often with their clubs and it is to counter this runaway train towards professionalism. What is going to happen now, and you saw it recently in the discussion about new rules and increased athletic pressure on players, is going to mean even harder training, more requirement for rest and recovery, it is only going in one direction.” 

For McCaffrey, this is about the core essence of the GAA.

“This is an issue for the association. All voices should be listened to including those of intercounty players and the GPA. I would love to hear the GPA make a public statement about how often they feel county players should play for their clubs. There have statements about all sorts, I’ve never heard that. I would love to hear it. It is very difficult to argue against the spirit of this motion. It may well be difficult to find the exact correct effective implementation model but that will emerge over time.” 

More information is available on Clontarfgaa.com.