The politics of the GAA

IN ALL FAIRNESS

There are many ways people show their passion for sport, be it competitor, coach, mentor, supporter, referee, official, there is a role for everyone.

The core of any sporting organisation is the playing of games, be it individual or team. However, for competitions to happen, you need people behind the scenes to organise them. The vast majority of times, the only time you hear about a boardroom or committee is in a negative sense but without them the sports we follow would be a disorganised mess. You don’t get much credit for being on a committee, it’s largely a thankless task, and sometimes a difficult one as hard decisions have to be made for the greater good. Officialdom has almost become a dirty word but for every one person who likes to focus on their sport, there has to be a person behind the scenes ensuring that same sport runs to a schedule.

GAA Congress is probably the highest profile off the field sporting event in the country. It might not be an All-Ireland Final but without this body, the All-Ireland’s would not function as successful as they do.

Last Friday night was the second time I have attended a Congress, the first way back in 2007 as a youth delegate for Tipperary. Nineteen years on, I was back as an observer looking to see some history with Ger Ryan becoming the next Tipperary President of the GAA. Alas it wasn’t to be, and from the moment I entered Croke Park and met some of his key confidantes, the vibes weren’t good for the Templederry Kenyons clubman.

Ryan was very much the second favourite ahead of the vote but from anyone who has dealt with Ger at local, provincial and national level, you could only be impressed by his passion and knowledge of the GAA, and his diligence and attention to detail. The hope was that this would rub off on delegates to swing key votes in his direction but it wasn’t to be. In fact, the surprise was that Derek Kent’s victory was so significant, easily exceeding the quota on the first count. It wasn’t even close.

All politics is fascinating, and GAA politics is no different. In the aftermath, you hear stories of why Kent won, particularly in appealing to the vast majority of the Ulster and overseas delegates who gave them their vote. Promises were made and now will have to be kept.

In terms of the Ryan campaign, he looks to have retained most of his Munster support but not all, while there were also whispers of key former high profile officials within the province, and indeed the county, actively backing Kent instead of their own county and provincial candidate. Why? The future! If a Munster man gets elected this year, another Munster man is unlikely to win the vote in three years’ time.

It would have been great for Tipperary to have another GAA President at this time with Ger Ryan intimating that this would be his one and only time to contest the position. That so many Tipperary senior hurling managers and past and current GAA President’s have entrusted him with key roles through the decades shows the esteem in which he is held.

He still had a lot more to offer, be it at local level if he looks to get involved again at county board level as he hasn’t been county chairperson yet. That he and Derek Kent get on so well, the Uachtarain Tofa would be foolish not to use Ger’s skills in a high profile committee role from next year, including a timely implementation of the integration of the Camogie and Ladies Football Associations into the GAA. The likelihood is that the initial 2027 deadline won’t be met, with a more realistic aim being for it to be sorted by the time of the 150th anniversary of the GAA in 2034.

The steering group, led by former President Mary McAleese has done a lot of good work so far, but from the outside, it is a body that lacks focus and direction, and putting a professional face on the negotiations will be needed if integration is to become a reality.

In the short term, Ger Ryan is entrusted with the immediate future of FBD Semple Stadium, a modern stadium when it was redeveloped ahead of the Centenary All-Ireland Hurling Final of 1984, is now an old stadium in need of TLC coming up to the GAA’s 150th anniversary in seven years time. That requires money and with Tipperary County Board’s focus very much on their Centre of Excellence at Dr Morris Park, the future of Semple Stadium requires central GAA support and that it was mentioned at Congress suggests it is finally becoming a priority, which a venue of such history deserves.