GPA reiterate unhappiness with players playing hurt

NEWS:THE GAELIC Players Association have reiterated their unhappiness with players' gamesmanship.

Speaking in the aftermath of Sunday's controversial incident in which Kerry's Aidan O'Mahony appeared to exaggerate the effect of the slap that resulted in Cork's Donncha O'Connor getting a red card, GPA chief executive Dessie Farrell was at pains not to comment on that situation, but emphasised his association's policy.

"The problem about stating a position on this is that it is always seen as a response to a particular incident that has hyped up the issue and that's not my intention here. But we have had a clear stance on this for a while.

"It's something we referred to in our most recent statement on fair play, the phenomenon of 'diving'. I believe there are two elements: 1) looking for protection from referees and match officials, which arises from the players' own perception of justice, and 2) players doing it to get opponents into trouble. I don't think the second one is widespread but it attracts a lot of attention.

"Whichever type it is we discourage this behaviour because apart from anything else it does the player himself no favours and goes against our aim - and everyone else's - of portraying the games in a positive light. But it is also something that the Croke Park authorities need to tackle."

Under Rule 5.20 of the GAA Official Guide's Playing Rules (Football) it is a yellow-card offence to "attempt to achieve an advantage by feigning a foul or injury".

As it happened, O'Mahony could have been sent off for a second yellow, as he had been shown a first earlier in the match.

Farrell also announced the GPA were conducting a survey of their members with a view to improving communication between referees and players.

"We have been contacting players to try and get their views on refereeing - not just the standard of it but also the relationship they feel they have with match officials in order to try and improve communication on both sides," he said.

"When we have the research finalised we'll forward it to Croke Park and the referees' body to get their feedback on what players can do differently to make things easier for them."

Meanwhile, commenting on Sunday's incident, Cork chair Mick Dolan accused O'Mahony of overreaction and expressed sympathy for his county's footballer O'Connor.

"I think the other man (O'Mahony) overreacted and it's something similar to what we see in other games on TV. I feel sorry for Donncha, who was harshly done by. He was walked into it and apparently he had to put up with some fierce verbal abuse.

"Lots of people don't realise the verbal abuse in certain matches. At county board level we are very friendly with the Kerry lads but the two teams have met so often over the last five years that it seems familiarity breeds contempt."

The GAA's Central Competitions Control Committee met yesterday in relation to the straight red cards issued to Kerry's Darragh Ó Sé and O'Connor, in each case presumably for striking. Both are expected to receive four-week suspensions, which will keep them out of the replay but free to play in next month's All-Ireland final, result of the replay permitting.

Ó Sé was red-carded against Cork in the Munster final but as that was for two yellow-card offences it doesn't trigger the automatic doubling of a suspension for committing the same offence twice in a 48-week period.