:rolleyes:
That’s exactly what he was having
That’s not it at all. :lol:
you were in the not to be trusted group !
:rolleyes:
You can have one of these too :rolleyes:
I can see what Thrawneen is trying to say and it’s good to see someone put forward an alternative point of view, although I’d generally disagree with his conclusions. Certainly the ‘hang em high’ brigade will always emerge in force in this kind of a scenario, that’s what the tabloids are there for, but there’s also a question here of people being more inclined to take a balanced view because a lot of people like Humphries and thought he was a decent bloke. Is that hypocritical? Probably, but only to the extent that the hysterical reaction is generally inappropriate and unhelpful anyway. It is easy to be stern and full of condemnation when it’s someone else’s life, but equally I suppose it’s very easy to be philosophical when it’s not your daughter.
All that said, what he is alleged to have done is at the least a massive and unacceptable violation of trust, and there can surely be no doubt that he was aware that what he was doing was completely and utterly wrong in a number of ways. Even if there was reciprocal affection between the two, the relationship allegedly began when the girl was in Humphries’ care as an underage camogie player. That is a significant indictment of him as a person as well as an indictment of the GAA. It’s just unacceptable. Additionally, it makes quibbles over the age of consent irrelevant in my opinion. Taking the wider view on whether it is appropriate for a man in his late forties to have a sexual relationship with a girl in her mid-teens, the law of the land is pretty clear on it. Is this the most heinous crime of this particular category? Perhaps not, although without the details we don’t really know. But it is still a crime of this category, and the protection of children is paramount. The man at the centre of this affair has undoubtedly destroyed his life as he knew it, but he did so as a knowing adult and as one who knew the boundaries he was crossing.
What I find particularly troubling about the whole situation is that is apparently took place over a period of years, and also I’d be interested to hear to what extent the GAA authorities concerned fulfilled their responsibilities to the relevant children. I know in my club, and I had always assumed it was the same elsewhere, an adult acting in his/her capacity as a club mentor or member is never to be alone with a child. This extends to things which would traditionally have been done like dropping a kid home from training. Maybe this all happened away from the gaze of the club, but nevertheless there are some serious questions to be answered.
I’m beginning to see why Kev’s signature is what it is
excellent post 
Good post WTB
Isn’t the story that he had a relationship with the girl for 18 months? And it was only uncovered by his daughter and the phone? It’s quite amazing that it could be kept quiet for that long. 14 year old girls I would’ve imagined would tell their pals everything. I’ll be very interested to see the full facts of this case when/if they ever come out.
And rightly so
As a mentor, he should not have had her number, just a parental contact, that’s the rule for u 16s, he is a fucking idiot
bumped for sid
Still no closer to figuring out who this could be.
2 Likes
It’s a real puzzler alright.
Serious and probably stupid question, why can’t they name him?
Protect the victim I. E. Identifying him risks identifying her
He was named before though in the media wasn’t he
The Sunday World named him at the time of the allegations. No idea why they cant now however!
I thought so