On November 30th, 1991, I was playing in a juvenile Gaelic football match in Dolphin Park.
A player on the other team was sent off, for what I can’t remember.
A former Dublin GGA great, who was standing on his own on the sideline watching the match, pulled the lad aside, shoved him away and shouted at him “you’ll never play for this club again”.
Ah there’s no need to be dramatic.
He seemingly gave out to the two kids briefly in the dressing room. He made a mistake, shouldn’t have put himself in the position of being alone with them but it’s hardly a hanging offence. Certainly doesn’t merit having your name plastered across a national newspaper for what was an internal club matter.
It doesnt. We have agreed on that point a half an hour ago.
I also agree it was an internal club matter. And you agree he shouldnt have been alone with the kids. So what exactly do we disagree on?
If they had accepted their mistake and apologised it would have killed the whole thing off. But they didnt. They went on the defensive and created this shitstorm
#thatneverhappenedawards
I was thinking this myself. Maybe just an error in communication although the kids obviously felt a bit threatened by it if they were upset
Just read that pile of shit. What an absolute waste of fucking print space. Christ on a bike.
Somebody was thinking well ahead when they recorded their phonecall…
John Clooney incident - who the fuck is the father? Why is he not named when Clooney is? If this transpired as reported who is this weak pick of a father. Why is he ringing the GAA??? I’d be kicking down Clionans door. Clionans should be expelled from GAA if this was proved. The father should be given a belt for being a puss.
The lack of responsibility and pass the buck amongst all involved is shameful
Proof positive that setting up of “child officers” and all this other nonsense is only complicating matters and allows said reduced responsibility. Absolute waste of time and a volunteer
GAA Coaching is still absolutely brutal on the whole. The Coach education system fails on every level. It’s a joke. Box ticking.
The club reacted typically slowly. More evidence that Ireland has only changed superficially
“I’ve no problem with Paddy or John.”
“I’ll second that.”
“The young lads are mad about Paddy.”
"John Cloonan is an absolute saint in my eyes.
“If the players could put half the fire in their bellies that Paddy Kelly has there’d be a lot more silverware around here.”
“John Cloonan does savage work. We couldn’t replace him with three men.”
“I’ve two lads and they worship Paddy.”
“Bad language is part of the game.”
“If these guys are punished you’ll get nobody to do anything next year. The club will fall apart!”
I’ll repeat this one;
“If the players could put half the fire in their bellies that Paddy Kelly has there’d be a lot more silverware around here.”
He is talking about 11 and 12 year olds. What a fuck yard.
“Child Welfare is of paramount importance in our club.” A lie
Lads on here have some agendas. How can Marys be defended in any way. Saying Kimmage has an agenda. He does. And it’s a good one. This is disgraceful carry on. This site has one if the lowest levels of morality and emotional ibtellugence I have ever seen in irish society
The “AE” in conversation with PK does a reasonably good job. But those comments are in contrast with the “alot more trophies around here if we had more paddy kellys”
Cancer brought into it. Emotional blackmail. A great trait of the Irish (sarcasm)
Bad language is not abuse. This should be made clear. Best avoided in front if kids. Abuse is different. Generally maifests itself in bullying or the like. So what Cloonan did.
The rest is he - said she - said.
This is just one club and someone rang PK.
Alot worse goibg on weekly elsewhere.
And this is nothing compared to the shit happening in soccer.
Paddy Kelly from the u12s has been blackguarded here. Kimnage is a poisonous bastard. But for the grace of God anyone who ever gave up their time to take a team could be in paddys kellys shoes tonight, destroyed.
There are enough of useless cunts hanging round the gaa calling it their own who never darken the door of a club. Its hard to get peoole involved without hatchet jobs like this.
The people of athenry should boycott the Sunday independent, there was no need for a hatchet job of that scale.
Christ but that is an impenetrable mess of a post.
Have Athenry always been known as St Marys? Hadn’t heard it before
This.
There is something endemic in Irish institutions in every field that seeks to close ranks, cover up and protect the institution at all costs.
And the closing of ranks and the covering up always, always, always ends up making things worse for the institution.
Yes but no one calls them that
Have to wholly agree with this.
HSE perfect example
Church - GAA - Politicians- Medical community - Gardai
The big 5
That’s the cliched five. The biggest exponents would be the financial institutions, the civil service, the law society and more. As Sidney said, every institution and professional body. But then Ireland is rife with corruption, for example self employed people not declaring income for tax, then with a straight face bemoaning how the tax they didn’t pay is spent.
oooooft
Sure we’re so bad at spending our taxes that you’d be mad to be paying too much tax.
Self emptied people pay tax. You do realise that ya?
Even though I think Kimmage is a hateful cunt I’ve given @caoimhaoin a like there just for the sheer integrity of his post. Whoever made that reply has to be a good man. And this is a lad with more experience training youngsters than any of ye.
No Kev, there is a defined process that works.
Child officers main role is to ensure that all coaches/managers/helpers have the required child protection training and Garda vetting.
Coaches of underage teams need to be educated… especially older coaches who traditionally would have been used of more laxed situations. These days you simply cannot allow yourself to get in a situation that John Cloonan allowed himself to be in.
The vast vast majority of people helping out are genuine with the best of intentions but as has been seen in the likes of the Humpheries case, enforcement of these rules is needed to cater for those with alternative intentions.
On a side note, I am not privy to the club that Humphries was ‘volunteering’ in when he first met the teenage girl but at some point he gained her phone number and managed to spend time alone with her. Somebody somewhere within the club must have had an inkling of this…