Player making allegation should follow it through - Liam O’Neill

With the Leinster Council this evening to consider allegations of biting in Sunday's O'Byrne Cup match between Dublin and DCU, GAA president Liam O'Neill has reiterated his view that players making such allegations should follow through with their complaint or not make them at all.

O'Neill emphasised he wasn't talking about the weekend's match, as no evidence has yet been heard and he had been in North America for most of the previous week, only getting back yesterday morning to launch a joint initiative with the Irish Blood Transfusion Service, aimed at encouraging blood donors around the country.

“I said last year that if you make an allegation you should follow it through and I am not really going to go back into that. That surfaced a few times during the year as if that was an awful thing to say but I would hope that if an allegation is made the person who made it will follow through.

"I think that is a huge help to a disciplinary process . . . in fairness to the person who you allege (has done something), it is very unfair if you don't follow it through (and) it is very unfair to make it in the first place. There is a collective responsibility here on players.

Pitch invasions
He also stated the GAA's policy opposing post-match pitch invasions in Croke Park was based on safety concerns and that it should be extended to other grounds.

His comments came in response to the association potentially having to settle three claims for injuries sustained during last July’s invasion in the aftermath of Limerick’s Munster hurling final victory at the Gaelic Grounds.

“It’s a pity it took three claims to get people behind what it is,” he said of the restrictions. “A number of commentators have been commenting on the issue and saying it is traditional to go on the field and so on. It is actually dangerous and it is not justifiably in modern society that people put themselves at risk by going on to a field.

“This was painted as an insurance risk for the GAA – it was never about that for us. It is about safety. We have seen the security tapes from Croke Park, we know what happens.

"The presentation in Limerick wasn't great. People couldn't see the presentation, the stand was crowded and we were surrounded by people standing up on seats in front of us.

Huge crowd
"It wasn't safe. It was joyous because Limerick won but whatever would have happened that day would have been great because Limerick had a huge crowd there and had won their first Munster title in 17 years."

“When you speak on something like this people react negatively because they think you are being a spoil-sport. You’re not, you are putting people first and sometimes people have to be helped to see that this isn’t a good idea. The idea of players parading around the ground with the cup is something new and it is something special and I think it has proven its worth in Croke Park and I see no reason why it shouldn’t be done elsewhere.”

Finally, GAA supporters and members will for the first time have the opportunity to nominate entries for the 2013 McNamee Awards in the National Media category. "The awards for 2013 will be presented at Croke Park next month," according to the press release, "and in a departure from previous years nominations are welcome from members of the public who would like attention drawn to a printed article from the national media for the high standards it reached".