IF it looks like a precedent and sounds like a precedent, when is it not a precedent? Well, apparently, it’s when the county board says so. But even the powers-that-be may struggle to get the genie back in the bottle after events in Carrigaline last Sunday morning.
Trying to get access to inter-county players for club games during the county league is a major bugbear for club managers, who all have their own stories here.
We’ve chatted to frustrated club managers who even found it difficult to have players on the extended panel, and outside the match-day squads, released to play for their clubs.
Imagine the surprise when Castlehaven had three Cork footballers – Rory Maguire, Conor Cahalane and Cathal Maguire – in their starting line-up for a crunch Division 1 relegation battle away to Carrigaline.
This was an important fixture for both teams, fighting to avoid the drop, and both had only one win each after six games heading into this clash. So, the availability of three county players was a significant boost to a Castlehaven team that feels the unavailability of Cork players more than most, given the numbers they have involved in county teams. Any chance they can get to play their county stars, they’re entitled to take – every other club would do likewise. It had the desired impact for Haven, too – they won 3-15 to 1-15, Conor Cahalane kicked 1-2, Rory Maguire scored a two-pointer and Cathal Maguire finished with 0-2.
A much-needed win for Castlehaven, but the availability of Rory Maguire and Conor Cahalane (more so than Cathal Maguire who is not a Cork regular like his club-mates) raised eyebrows. Rory Maguire played 54 minutes against Carrigaline, Cahalane was on for 56 minutes, so almost a full club game in between Cork’s biggest football games of the season.
Less than 24 hours earlier, both players came on as subs for Cork in their All-Ireland SFC Group 2 loss to Meath. Maguire was introduced in the 49th minute, Cahalane in the 62nd. That defeat in Navan has upped the need to get a result against Kerry in Páirc Uí Chaoimh this Saturday, and both Maguire and Cahalane, given their involvement this season, are likely to feature. So, club managers are entitled to ask how boss John Cleary and his management team decided to release two Cork regulars to their club in the middle of the All-Ireland series when clubs habitually find it hard to get access to their inter-county club players?
The Southern Star contacted the county board to ask if this is now the precedent going forward, that clubs can get access to their county players during the All-Ireland series and less than one week out from a championship game?
‘Team management endeavoured to get all players on the Cork senior football panel valuable game-time over the past weekend, as is their policy generally,’ a Cork GAA statement read.
‘Those not on the official match day panel for Saturday were released to clubs across the weekend, while those who played less than 35 minutes on Saturday were all released to play with their clubs on Sunday, subject to them being fit enough to do so.
‘Such decisions are at the discretion of team management, based on advice from the medical and S&C personnel involved with the team. There is no precedent established for future weekends, particularly on "free" weekends, when all players are generally required for challenge games or A v B games.’
What clubs want is consistency when it comes to the availability of players, to feel the same rules are being applied to all. If Cork regulars can be released to play almost a full club match less than six days before a championship huge tie with Kerry, then that does set a precedent, whether the powers-that-be want to acknowledge that or not.
