MANUS BOYLE COLUMN: Do we really need all these facilities in the GAA?

The ticket price increase took another twist in the last week with many commentators suggesting that the top table in the GAA are somehow disconnected to those, let's say, on the lower end of the ladder.

Could it be that ordinary club members who rose through the ranks of this community organisation forgot their roots as soon as they entered the glamour of Croke Park or when they became members of high ranking committees who control every aspect of the association?

Would that make the GAA any different from any other sporting organisation in the country? Are they not all someway removed from the hassles of running games and teams at the lowest levels? Could it not be said that our governments, TDs from every corner of the country, are far removed from the day to day life of the ordinary man or woman?

The arguments all stack up that generally when many people get into a position of power they will change. Then there is the politics of it all where we have become used to people giving us the usual soundbites, telling us what we want to hear but at the same time doing something different.

It should also be said that not all people will lose the run of themselves when they get into a position where they can change the way things are done. However, if they want to survive and continue in that position they must conform to the general census, which many would have us believe is what matters.

Eamon McGee, in his article on Saturday, talked about this great disconnect and for many he hit the nail on the head, raising some great questions along the way.

It started with the GPA. The lads that started the GPA were subject to terrible treatment; the message went out that all county players were not to be trusted, they wanted to be professional. The script writers had a field day.

The players' view wasn’t important and didn’t matter. Look at the way the club players' union is being treated now. Does it not reflect the same attitude? The saying 'keep doing the same thing, you're going to get the same outcome' comes to mind.

Then we had the 'own goal' over the Liam Miller game. Not one of the best public relations outcomes the GAA ever had. Kildare county board wouldn’t give in to having to play their game away from Newbridge; they were 100 per cent right and made Croke Park back down.

The Sky deal, in the eyes of ordinary members not in keeping with the ethos of the GAA, but we were told it was a good business deal. That, I have no doubt, but are we selling our soul to the devil; and what kind of message does it give to those just starting out?

In the last few weeks we have been told that the overrun on Parc Ui Chaoimh is close to €40 million. We have well paid professionals in place within Croke Park to make sure this sort of thing doesn’t happen, and just like the Children’s Hospital, what are the chances of some group of people being held responsible.

John Horan, the GAA president, made us well aware that the money will all go back to the county boards and the clubs, which to be fair is true. However, the question still remains, do county boards and especially clubs need these sort of facilities?

More and more clubs and county boards are going into huge debt just to improve facilities, better pitches, bigger dressing rooms, gyms, practice pitches, 4G pitches, all floodlit, professional set ups. I ask again do we need it?

Many will suggest yes, if we want to compete at the top, we need all of it. Yet how will it be paid for? Who carries that burden? And it usually comes down to those on the ground. Can this continue? How long will its be before the lot goes bang?

We are told repeatedly that if we want to compete with the likes of rugby and soccer that we need to raise our game, but are we really in competition with those sports? Surveys are telling us every day that young people are dropping out of sport at even younger ages than before. Did anyone ever ask them why? Are the expectations too high? Is it past just being a hobby? Is there no enjoyment in it anymore; what is it?

We need to look for the answers, not fuel the fire even more. I am all for the best environment for those to improve, but that’s not always bricks and mortar, or the best gym in the world. It can be about other supports that we, as an organisation at times, tend to forget. I have no doubt we haven’t heard the last of this but maybe, like our political structures, I doubt if anything will be changing any time soon.

DONEGAL WIN

It was a great win for Donegal in Ennis against Clare last Sunday, never an easy place to go, especially with it being the first game of the National League campaign. Introducing new lads playing away from home and coming out with a win is a huge boost going forward, especially for their confidence. And giving the more experienced players a chance to rest for another month can only be beneficial come the Ulster championship during the summer.

Meath will come to Ballybofey on Saturday night and while Donegal will be expected to have too much for the Leinster side. Unlike division one where sides are at a certain level all the time, in division two it’s hard to know what to expect from any of the sides involved. Donegal are favourites to go straight back up and that puts a target on their back.