Aussie Rules bad for the Harte! - Read Pauric McShea's column

In an interview after Tyrone’s McKenna Cup match last Sunday Tyrone manager Mickey Harte pulled no punches in expressing his views regarding the compromise rules concept, and the decision by the powers that be in Croke Park to revive the International Rules series with the Australians. 

Harte has a number of issues regarding the concept and while much of his argument contained substance, he like any manager is more than a little upset that his All Star forward Paul McShane is currently in Australia where he hopes that after a trial period he will be offered a playing contract.

After the well documented injury to his other All Star Mattie Donnelly,  Harte is quite naturally less than happy at the idea of going into a new season without arguably his best two players at his disposal.

The manager - now in his eighteenth year at the helm in Tyrone -  is wise enough to know that coming to Ballybofey in May for their championship meeting with Donegal was always going to be a formidable objective, but without McShane and Donnelly it will be an awful lot tougher.

Bookies

Tyrone would always be considered a Division One team to beat, but it was more than a little interesting to note that some weeks ago the bookies had them quoted at odds of 7/1 to be relegated in the league campaign which begins at the end of the month, and those odds have now dipped to 3/1 so Harte’s reservations about the potential loss of his big guns are shared by the money men. 

While it is easy to understand any manager’s desire to have all his best players  available, I would consider any young footballer lucky enough to get the opportunity to play professional football and be well rewarded as a great and pretty unique career move which should be encouraged.

It is no different to a promotion in any walk of commercial life, and I do not go along with the argument that issues like tampering with the playing rules in football will open the floodgates for a mass exodus  of our best players to a life down under.

Tampering

I would agree with the Tyrone boss that continual tampering with the playing rules is unnecessary and the introduction of the mark will do nothing other than create more confusion for referees in particular and also for the players.

There seems to be an obsession with tampering with the football rules year after year which is totally unnecessary.

The other decision which I consider to be flawed is the introduction of a two tier championship; this will ensure that more and more players spend their summer stateside rather than staying at home to play in a competition for second class citizens with no more than a couple of hundred spectators present at a venue completely devoid of atmosphere. 

Team of the week

If there was an award for team of the week, it would have to be shared after the excellence of the two Ulster teams in the All Ireland semi finals. Kilcoo were superb in beating hot favourites Ballyboden in their football semi final. Whenever possible this Kilcoo team commit to taking the positive option, and, like all Down teams, when they get to Croke Park, they revel in the wide open space at their disposal.

The club final in two weeks time between reigning champions Corofin and Kilcoo will see the Galway team as favourites, but who knows what former Donegal manager Mickey Moran - now managing Kilcoo - will conjure up with two weeks’ preparation behind him. 

Looking at Ballyboden, they simply could not deal with the pace and flair of Moran’s team. New Dublin manager Dessie Farrell will not have many of the Dublin side in his county panel. Jim Gavin balanced the need to blood young emerging players with his insatiable desire for success, an approach which is far easier to adopt when a manager had the enviable resources at his disposal that Gavin had.

Former player of the year Michael Darragh McCauley looked struggled with Kilcoo’s pace in this game, and he may well consider his options at this time.

With pace such an integral part of the modern game it is always a pity to see a wonderful player struggle in the latter part of his career.

Slaughtneil, the Derry hurling champions, were magnificent even in defeat when putting Kilkenny side Ballyhale to the pin of their collar in the hurling semi-final on Sunday in Newry. The Derry club have excelled in football in recent years, and this performance with a club not noted for their strength in depth, but with a number of dual players, was exceptional. 

The hunger that runs through this club must be part of their DNA and they matched their renowned opponents blow for blow in every facet of the game. 

They did Ulster hurling proud in Newry. 

Meanwhile, it was good to see Donegal get their competitive season off to a winning start against Monaghan in Ballybofey  at the weekend, where Shaun Patton, Michael Langan and Peadar Mogan again showed their potential.

A win in Derry this evening should see Donegal progress to the semi final of the McKenna Cup at the weekend.

THIS ARTICLE FIRST APPEARED IN THIS WEEK'S DONEGAL POST