Geraghty wins his day in court

GAELIC GAMES/International Rules News round-up: After a tense and dramatic tribunal hearing in Croke Park last night, Graham Geraghty was cleared to play in Sunday's second International Rules Test against Australia. In a unique move for the GAA, the tribunal was open to the media as Geraghty went on trail for allegedly kneeing Australia's Lindsay Gilbee in the head near the end of Saturday's first Test in Galway.

Room 657 of the Cusack Stand was set up as a mini-courtroom, and in the end the verdict appeared decisive.

Geraghty presented his case along with Irish tour manager and Kerry board chairman Seán Walsh, who was particularly strong in denying any wrongdoing by the Meath player.

"As I said inside in there, I felt we shouldn't even have been here," said Geraghty afterwards, "that we had no case to answer. So we can just concentrate on the game now for Sunday. Hopefully, I'll be there. There's still a 22-man squad to be selected, and I hope to be on it.

"It's been a rough few days but I didn't let it play on me too much. It was a little bit strange having the media in there. But obviously things are done differently in Australia, and we were happy to go along with that.

"But it was the first time I was up before something like that, and it was a bit nerve-racking. But it seems to be very fair, with everybody putting their case over. I'm just happy my two kids have the chance now to go see their daddy play in Croke Park."

The tribunal had been set up after the three-man International Rules Control Committee cited Geraghty for foul play, even though only one member of that committee - the AFL's development officer, Kevin Sheehan - felt the player had a case to answer.

Sheehan therefore presented the case against the player on the night, with the three-man tribunal consisting of Pauric Duffy, the GAA's former GAC chairman and newly-appointed player welfare manager; Gareth O'Reilly, a former member of the DRA and solicitor; and the AFL representation David Galbally, a QC from Melbourne.

The hearing began with Sheehan reading the charge as "rough play in circumstances unreasonable according to rule 19.2.2", and this was followed by repeated showing of a short, two-minute clip of video evidence.

Sheehan then went into some detail: "It's my duty to uphold the law, and in my report cited the player for the reckless and negligent fashion with which he raised his knee", and later adding in a "vexatious and malicious manner".

However, those repeated viewings of the video evidence failed to be conclusive, as Geraghty, who was lying on his back with Gilbee standing over him, couldn't be seen to clearly make contact with the player's head with his knee.

Walsh was vehement in stating he was convinced no contact was made. "We're here about that particular incident, but that video in no way proves it. I contend the knee totally missed the head, and the only contact that was made with his head was with the player's gloves," he said.

At that stage Duffy read two statements, the first from Gilbee, which claimed he sustained a laceration to the head which required four stitches, and the second from the Australian team doctor, which claimed the player later required five stitches.

Again, Walsh made a staunch defence, saying there was no way of proving the injury was sustained in that incident. The lights were then dimmed, and both parties pointed to further aspects of the video evidence, which did clearly show that Geraghty had been taken down from behind in the first instance by Gilbee.

"He pulled me down from behind, and threw me to the ground," said Geraghty when addressing the video evidence. "And then he started digging in at me. He was pushing me down below with one hand, and I had to leave the field with an ankle injury."

Galbally, representing the AFL, then interrupted to say he'd thought he'd heard Geraghty earlier say he'd been pushed down with two hands: "You thought wrong," said Geraghty - and stared at his accuser for several seconds.

In summing up, Walsh grew in confidence: "We feel the player shouldn't even be here. We feel this is an Australian tactic to throw our preparations for Sunday. We feel he's been targeted (and with that he read the contentious quotes attributed to Gilbee earlier in the week), and I maintain he is the not the aggressor, but the aggressed. His legs quite clearly came up in a natural, instinctive way to protect himself. And I contend that he is absolutely and totally innocent."

With that the room was cleared for 10 minutes while the tribunal reached a verdict - which was read by Duffy: "We've reviewed the evidence and have decided the player should be cleared, that he should not be charged for malicious play".

Walsh also stated that the two match referees had viewed the video separately and decided Geraghty had no case to answer.