[QUOTE=âChocolateMice, post: 1069348, member: 168â]By Paul Keane
Talented teenagers in the GAA are playing for as many as 10 teams at any one time and regularly training twice a day to serve their many masters.
The revelations are contained in a report into minor activity in the GAA which concludes that the current level of application by many players is âunsustainableâ.
Micheal Martin chaired the work group and worryingly revealed how itâs not unusual to find young players training or playing as often as 12 times in a nine-day period.
The report comes in the wake of pundit Joe Brollyâs claim that GAA players are âlittle more now than indentured slavesâ because of the commitments demanded of them.
The committee has proposed that, in future, minor players be barred from playing at U21 or senior level in the same year.
At club level, itâs recommended that only players who are in their final year of minor â they must be âover 17â â be allowed play in adult competition.
The committee also want to overhaul the current minor schedule to include a provision for more midweek fixtures and the scrapping of All-Ireland football quarter-finals.
A separate proposal to standardise the format of the minor provincial football championships and offer every team a second chance if they lose their opening game, is part of the reasoning for getting rid of All-Ireland quarter-finals.
Elsewhere in the document, it is advised that a more âequitable systemâ be adopted to accommodate Galway and Antrim at minor hurling level and give both a second opportunity, if required.
But the general theme of the document is that too much of a burden is placed on young players and that something must be done to avoid burnout or players simply giving up.
âThere are players doing 12 sessions in nine days and maybe even more in some situations,â said Martin.
âTheyâre training twice a day and have no chance of recovery. These players are being asked to do too much. It is just unsustainable.
âItâs certainly unsustainable at minor level and there are issues at U21 level. We have acknowledged that the U21 level needs to be looked at in our report as well.
âI managed my own (senior) club team last year and it is difficult, Iâve seen it myself, club players are finding it very difficult and we have to strike a balance.â
The 14-man minor review committee, which included Gaelic Players Association chief Dessie Farrell, consulted widely and produced an interim report last August which allowed for stakeholders to give feedback.
More than a dozen players aged between 17-22, including Clareâs Podge Collins, Wexfordâs Matthew OâHanlon and Louth footballer Ryan Burns, who have experienced difficulties of extensive activity at underage level, contributed to the document.
âMatthew OâHanlon was involved with 10 teams at minor,â said committee member Ger Ryan. âHe was a dual player at inter-county level, then with the club he was playing at three levels in hurling and football and also at school. That made up 10 teams.
âI donât see how thatâs physically possible. Managers in some cases are enlightened but in other cases theyâre saying to the player, âyou have to give your priority to our teamâ.
âThe other thing is that we have to look at players as individuals. We hear about this one size fits all training, teams training X number of times per week and every player having to do the same thing. But this is a collection of 30, 35 players and all their needs arenât the same. Again, on the more enlightened panels, youâll get a reflection of clear thinking but too often itâs one size fits all and the individual player has to be seen to be there all the time. Iâd ask the question, is that necessary?
âIf a school asks a guy to train at half 7 in the morning and a county panel ask him to train at half 7 in the evening, heâs not going to say, ânoâ. He might also be doing his Leaving Cert.
âSo he leaves home at maybe half 6 and he mightnât be home until, say, 10 at night. And what is his nutrition like throughout the day? I think there are a whole raft of issues.â
Martin believes it is a reasonable and pragmatic report and that the proposals stand a good chance of being voted through Congress late next month.
âI donât think this is a radical report, I think itâs reasonable,â said Martin. âAll of the proposals are reasonable ones that will make a difference.
âI would be very hopeful about its chances. The one thing weâve found is that counties acknowledge that there is a problem. And what weâre trying to do is propose solutions.â[/QUOTE]
Hardly a revelation? Or revelations?
Joe Brolly is wrong. Most inter county players actually like the routine and the relatively high level of competition and training. Iâve asked 87% of them. Joe is projecting his view on the modern day player.
I didnât read the report but clearly the fixtures and competition structure thatâs in place is archaic and totally unfit for purpose in the modern age.
Playing the third level competitions in spring is nuts. Theyâve lost their raisin dâĂȘtre in modern times anyway with the practice of recruiting players degrading it.
I got new led spot lights for the living room this week and I must say Iâm really pleased with the light theyâre emitting.
Raising the age from 17 to 18 is like sticking a finger in a dyke. What does that actually mean? Finger in a lesbian? I donât know.
Banning football altogether seems like the most practical solution.
Because the Ga is built on parochialism this issue will be very, very difficult to resolve. If little Johnny goes to play for Leinster Wexford Wanderers becomes a distant memory. And heâll be applauded and it seems like the natural progression.
The fact that each county has different internal competition structures is nuts too. If this is standardised and fixtures are made centrally by Croke Park it would lead to less control by inter county managers.
The u21 grade at club level is a bit of a waste of time.
