GAA prevent London footballers from playing Challenge matches

Dirty Dingus McGee

www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=191673

Football ISN'T coming home
07 May 2013
The GAA has refused London permission to come to Ireland and play two SF challenges.

The Exiles wanted to play the two matches next weekend - against Wicklow on Saturday and Louth on Sunday - as part of preparations for their May 26th Connacht SFC opener against Sligo.

However, the GAA has refused to sanction the friendlies due to a technicality, even though all the arrangements were already in place for the trip.

Rule 12.6, which was introduced to stop county teams from going abroad to warm-weather training camps in the build-up to the championship, forbids intercounty panels from participating in "training weekends, or training of longer duration, after the end of their respective national leagues, except during the 13 days prior to a senior championship game."

Ironically, this rule is now being used to block London from coming home to play.

"It is not like we are going abroad or anything," London manager Paul Coggins states in The Irish Independent.

"We are actually going 'home' and only because that is the only way we can get the sort of quality of competition that we need so badly to prepare for the Connacht championship."

Thinkstoomuch

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=191673

Football ISN'T coming home
07 May 2013
The GAA has refused London permission to come to Ireland and play two SF challenges.

The Exiles wanted to play the two matches next weekend - against Wicklow on Saturday and Louth on Sunday - as part of preparations for their May 26th Connacht SFC opener against Sligo.

However, the GAA has refused to sanction the friendlies due to a technicality, even though all the arrangements were already in place for the trip.

Rule 12.6, which was introduced to stop county teams from going abroad to warm-weather training camps in the build-up to the championship, forbids intercounty panels from participating in "training weekends, or training of longer duration, after the end of their respective national leagues, except during the 13 days prior to a senior championship game."

Ironically, this rule is now being used to block London from coming home to play.

"It is not like we are going abroad or anything," London manager Paul Coggins states in The Irish Independent.

"We are actually going 'home' and only because that is the only way we can get the sort of quality of competition that we need so badly to prepare for the Connacht championship."

Thats a shambles in fairness.It does not suprise me though,thats the GAA for yeah.
The GAA talk the talk about promoting the game in weaker counties at every opportunity in the media yet they continue to knock the weaker counties down ,all over a bit of red tape.
An exception should be made for them.Its not like London can get competitve games over in the UK between now and championship.
London are funding the trips themselves,it's not like the GAA have to fork out anything.
Most counties are having challenge matches the next few weeks to fine tune their prepartions,London deserve a fair crack at the whip at the very least.

rebel girl 15

Its not an exception to the rule at all, how London were able to do the exact same thing last year and come home for challenge games? Its ridiculous - they would have probably paid for flights and accommodation already. Huge number of teams around the country playing challenge games at weekends, pity London cannot

Thinkstoomuch

It's a joke and going to affect their hurling team too.
A lot of players play with London in Hurling and Football as they have been forced to go abroad to find work.It's not by choice, some have to leave their county of birthright and not be able to play for their county or club which must be heartbreaking for them.
From my own county of Cork,Kevin Canty,Michael Walsh,Eamon Brosnan have all down the years represented various Cork teams but had to go abroad for work.
When they get the chance then with London to play at intercounty level, the GAA knock them down by not allowing them at least compete on a somewhat level playing field in terms of training and prepartion.
Their already behind other counties in terms of development and this will only bridge it further.

Thinkstoomuch

rebel girl 15 wrote: »

Its not an exception to the rule at all, how London were able to do the exact same thing last year and come home for challenge games? Its ridiculous - they would have probably paid for flights and accommodation already. Huge number of teams around the country playing challenge games at weekends, pity London cannot

The GAA are like the CCB,a law to themselves when it suits them.It does not suprise me in the slightest.

Lapin

I'd love to see the reaction if London had fixed one their warm up games against a county in Northern Ireland.

Technically they wouldn't be travelling abroad as the North and London are part of the same political juristiction, but it would open a real can of worms if Croke Park tried to stop them from playing the fixture under this piece of bureaucratic nonsense.

And it would place a huge gash in the GAA's promotion of the game as an all island sport if they permitted one fixture under the rule and denied the other.

I'd love to see it put to the test.

bruschi

second year in a row now that London have been done over by stupid rules the GAA put in without considering their plight. Last year was the Seanie Johnston rule that you had to have played with a club in the county before you can play for that county, and obviously that affects London as most players are after moving over there mid season. I can understand the rules the GAA put into law in both cases, but London was an afterthought and not part of their decision making.

hardybuck

Lapin wrote: »

I'd love to see the reaction if London had fixed one their warm up games against a county in Northern Ireland.

Technically they wouldn't be travelling abroad as the North and London are part of the same political juristiction, but it would open a real can of worms if Croke Park tried to stop them from playing the fixture under this piece of bureaucratic nonsense.

And it would place a huge gash in the GAA's promotion of the game as an all island sport if they permitted one fixture under the rule and denied the other.

I'd love to see it put to the test.

Sure you could also have a situation where London could object to counties from Northern Ireland playing friendles south of the border, or southern counties going up there etc.

This is really petty from Croke Park, as bad as you'll see.

LOI Stats

Shameful behaviour.

Fireball07

That is really stupid, I mean....why would you bother trying to stop them? Is there any reasoning? Idiotic.