Clash of the codes is one of the GAA's many daunting challenges

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The GAA is 140 years old but there will be no major celebrations to mark that significant milestone in 2024. Despite its undeniable success as a sporting and cultural movement, the organisation still faces many daunting challenges.

The move to integrate the camogie and ladies football organisations under the GAA banner is a massive task, one that has yet to be properly appraised. Creeping professionalism, especially in the preparation of teams, has far reaching implications. And the campaign to spread the game of hurling to non-traditional areas is another hot topic.

The problems are many and the solutions are few. Indeed, the above headline items don’t even make reference to the state of football, which is a major concern for many as the game loses its appeal. Modern tactics have ruined the spectacle for spectators and the rule adjustments haven’t kept pace to address the issues.

Once upon a time hurling and Gaelic football co-existed in relative harmony. The world was simpler, there were fewer games and the dual player was not just tolerated but admired as a special subspecies of the GAA world.

Not anymore. The dual player is now as extinct as the dodo. What Teddy McCarthy did in 1990 is unlikely to ever be repeated. Team preparation is now so intense, so all-embracing that there’s no room for dual involvement.

Some years ago I was on local radio arguing the rights and wrongs of Liam Cahill’s decision to dispense with dual players for his 2016 minor hurling team. That discussion wouldn’t even happen today. It’s no longer an issue, instead there’s a universal acceptance that dual players can’t function in modern set-ups.

Mind you, it wasn’t much of an issue in 2016 either, even if some people were still clinging to an old order that was well past its sell-by date.

You could argue that the modern trend in team preparation is driving a wedge between the two games because total commitment is demanded and there’s simply no room for crossover.

Some of the stories I hear around the preparation of county minor sides, for example, are scary. They have backroom teams to match those of senior sides, with S&C programmes, dietary regimes, sports psychologists, tracking devices and whatnot. It’s professional in all bar name.

And let’s remember that these are Under 17 juvenile development squads. The same is happening at club level, where inter-county methods are being copied. Then you have the massive financial investment to fund this level of organisation.

It’s a process that inevitably sets the two field games in opposition to each other and that’s bad news for hurling, especially because in the great majority of counties football is king. In counties north of a line from Dublin to Galway, hurling hasn’t a prayer. It’s difficult to see any initiative from Croke Park making an inroad in these counties, which makes me a pessimist regarding the spread of hurling outside traditional areas.

The clash of the codes, the so-called dual mandate, is very evident within Tipperary too. There was a recent rumour doing the rounds on social media that Upperchurch were about to opt out of senior football and concentrate on hurling. It was never credible because the County Board couldn’t allow such a move, given the disruption it would cause to the senior/intermediate grades where promotion/relegation is strictly regulated.

Anyway, the rumours were false, though I’m told that the club will be putting most emphasis on hurling this year while still fulfilling football engagements. Liam Dunphy and James McGrath are back with the hurlers, seeking that long-awaited breakthrough.

Loughmore/Castleiney are the standout exceptions when it comes to marrying hurling and football but they’re so unique they’re a once-off. It’s a bit like the exception proving the rule. JK Brackens are another club that has tried to mix the codes and some would argue that ultimately it hasn’t helped either game. Others will disagree.

Anyway, the trend is for each sport to become more exclusive and nationally hurling will be the major loser in this trend.

There are other consequences of these developments. The financial impact will have to be addressed because fundraising has a finite capacity. You cannot have double-digit increases in expenditure year-on-year without reaching a breaking point.

Public expectations are veering off course too. Last weekend Michael Duignan had to publicly defend Offaly’s footballers after a nasty online backlash to their defeat by Clare in Division 3 of the league. And Kildare manager, Glenn Ryan, got into a tangle with a local journalist after a heavy defeat to Armagh. These are symptoms of deeper issues.

And, of course, there is an increasing trend of players opting out in some counties, Tipperary included. For some the effort isn’t worth the reward. Issues and more issues on the GAA’s 140th birthday.

Meanwhile, for Tipperary it’s back to hurling league action this Saturday with the visit of Westmeath to the Stadium. With a score differential of minus 37 points from their first two games, the Lake county won’t have many (any?) backers, even at odds of 25/1. Putting cash on Tipp is even more prohibitive at 1/500.

Galway thrashed Westmeath in their opening game, racking up a total of 4-31 in the process against a dozen points for the Midlanders. A second string Limerick side was gentler in round 2, taking a six-point verdict.

Historically we’ve faced Westmeath in eleven previous league games and lost twice in the early eighties. I’d forgotten about those games in ’83 and ’85, both played at Cusack Park, Mullingar. Seven points was the margin on each occasion.

It was an era when Tipperary yo-yoed between divisions 1 and 2. We were relegated in the spring of 1983, bounced back in 1984 but were relegated again in ’85 and didn’t return to the top flight until 1987.

It was a particularly frustrating few years because we had the backdrop of underage successes at minor and Under 21 levels but couldn’t push through at senior. I recall ‘Cúlbaire’ in the Star at the time describing our efforts as “pony-ish” beside the bigger beasts at that time, like Cork. Might the same be said today vis a vis Limerick?

In fairness it should be noted that Westmeath were quite handy at the time. Their standout player was David Kilcoyne, an All-Star recipient in 1986. He had a few brothers playing with the team as well and they were certainly no pushover.

Anyway, so much for the historical context. Tipperary will be expected to win this one comfortably, which gives Liam Cahill and his management team some leeway to juggle with selection. A player like Gearoid O’Connor, for example, will surely be rested after his recent exertions and it might be an opportune occasion to reintroduce some who haven’t seen action thus far in the series.

The news on injuries appears to be quite positive, with no long-term damage from the Galway match, though I expect caution will still be the byword when addressing all niggles.

Our last league meeting with Westmeath was in 2021 when the margin was a whopping 23 points; that game was played at Cusack Park. The margin was similar the previous year at the Stadium. Anything other than a substantial win on Saturday would be unthinkable.

P.S. After Saturday’s league game, there’s a Night at the Dogs across the road in Thurles Greyhound Stadium, a fundraiser run by the Supporters Club. Commencing at 6.30, Tipperary team members will be present and the €20 admission includes a free raffle for some great prizes. Tickets can be sourced at the County Board Office at Lár na Páirce or via the Tipperary Supporters’ club Clubzap at: https://tippsupportersclub.com/pages/night-at-the-dogs-2024