QUEEN’S GAA development officer Aidan O’Rourke fears the constant stream of eligibility rows in the third-level sector could put the Sigerson and Fitzgibbon Cups in jeopardy.
O’Rourke, who played Sigerson Cup football during his Queen’s days, expressed his frustration with the administration of the third-level sector, particularly at a time when its coming under pressure from other parts of the GAA.
“The sector is under fire from all corners,” said O’Rourke.
“They talk about player burn-out and condensing the GAA calendar and, as a result, everyone is questioning the value of third-level Sigerson and Fitzgibbon Cup etc. And yet, year after year, we’re faced with objections, eligibility issues and rumours - it makes a mockery of the whole third-level sector.”
O’Rourke was reluctant to point the finger of blame at anyone as he believed it would serve no purpose to do so: “We need to be putting our best foot forward and represent the best qualities of the sector," he said.
"In recent years, there has been a culture in certain quarters of trying to get around eligibility rules and manufacturing course content [to recruit players] and I feel this approach is doing the sector a disservice."
He added: “I would fear for the sector if this trend continues. With the new approach of transparency around Sigerson and Fitzgibbon squads and with everyone having access to the detail, there is an opportunity for Croke Park’s higher education council [HEC] to act on these issues. I know they’re looking at such cases.
“I would have an issue with people lowering entry requirements - elite athlete entry - but we might have to live with all that. But what we’re not prepared to live with is eligibility rules being bent or broken and that has happened in recent years.
“I think it’s common knowledge around the sector and beyond, but hopefully there’s a process that is dealing with that at the minute. In a lot of these cases, it’s not the player’s fault. They’re told certain courses make them eligible [for Sigerson or Fitzgibbon]. It’s very frustrating working in the sector.”
In Thursday’s Irish News, former Sigerson footballer and Derry ace Enda Gormley expressed his frustration at the perceived elevated status of third-level sector competitions in the GAA.
"It's a very small percentage of the population that gets to play university football,” said Gormley.
“How that can take precedence - and I say that as someone who loved university and had a successful [playing] career at university. I think somebody needs to take a look. I keep hearing a lot from the [GAA] president about 'the club this' and 'the club that', but I don't see much evidence of them backing that up and saying 'Right, club comes first and we work everything else around it'. That's what they preach - but they're not practising it."
O’Rourke remains a firm supporter of the GAA’s third-level sector, but says it needs to avoid further controversies surrounding its premier competitions to stave off criticism such as Gormley’s.
“I appreciate that, if you’re not in the third level sector, a lot of this will sound irrelevant and people will say ‘who cares’… but while I’m employed in the third level sector, it’s very dear to my heart in terms of developing players and giving them access to a higher level of coaching.
“It’s about supporting players through their education years. Whether its camogie, ladies' football - it would really do your heart good some of the stuff you see on the field on a Tuesday and Thursday night. But every year, there seems to be some different issue and it is frustrating when these things keep cropping up. It paints us in a bad light. You don’t get as many eligibility rows in any other sector.
“Each of the colleges and by extension the HEC are here to develop Gaelic games and for students to play at a very high level, but that is all being undermined by a win-at-all-costs mentality which is at odds with what our sector is about.”
