Jamie Clarke,the GAA's answer to Stephen Ireland?

[north aontroim gael]

T Fearon feeling let down because a young lad won't do what he wants.

Having read a few of his posts he seems like an idiot. I would much prefer it if T Fearon did not share his idiotic notions on a public forum.

I too feel let down that T Fearon won't do what I want.

Life is so unfair. I'm going to do what any middle aged man should do. I'm gonna start a thread and gripe about it.

[thebar]

The Examiner article gives a great insight to a very mature young man who has had the courage to make a decision to live his life to the full.  Too many of us live our lives within multiple constraints put in place by ourselves, the expectations of our families and our communities to follow well trodden paths.  If most of us were honest we are probably jealous of Jamie and his decision to go his own way.  As he says in the article he is open to persuasion but has managed to hold to his own decisions for the immediate future.  The extent of pressure that is exerted by those who set family and community expectations on the young to conform to the centre ground is really immense and Jamie must be applauded for not only going his own way but being a role model for other young people who can see to the horizon and a bigger and better world beyond the confines of parish, county and country. The article also shows the maturity and sensitivity of Jamie when he recognises that his decisions may be hurtful and difficult for the older members of his community when he mentions not wanting to hurt Mrs McConville. Playing football is not life, it may be a facet of a life well lived and enjoyed, it is recreation to be enjoyed and not endured.  Full marks to Jamie to decide to get off the treadmill because football has become too serious for many involved and developed into a game where the ultra talented and free spirited are no longer needed, the system has become more important than the individual.  Well drilled athletes are becoming the successful norm at the expense of the truly talented being able to express themselves.

On the other hand and in the extreme, Tony provides a mirror for us all in terms of how the conservative nature of our society demands that the young should conform to its expectations and in this instance to be slaves to these expectations because of some type of cultural debt that is owed.  Tony's views may be far from our own but they are just a concentration of thoughts and feelings that lurk in the minds of many of us.

Good luck to Jamie Clarke, I hope all works out for him but he should be safe in the knowledge that there will always be a welcome for him in his family and community should he decide to return to his roots in Crossmaglen.

Great read

[T Fearon]

Complete bullshit.It is mollycoddling that has created the weaklings that are the youth of today.Just recently schools have banned running in the playground,in case someone falls and gets hurt and one school even  banned a whistle to herald the end of break time,because the noise is too aggressive.Ffs!

Persevering with sport at a high level is discipline inducing and character building.Running away due to perceived pressure is not.The youth will find as they progress through life that you cannot run away from everything.

[INDIANA]

Complete bullshit.It is mollycoddling that has created the weaklings that are the youth of today.Just recently schools have banned running in the playground,in case someone falls and gets hurt and one school even  banned a whistle to herald the end of break time,because the noise is too aggressive.Ffs!

Persevering with sport at a high level is discipline inducing and character building.Running away due to perceived pressure is not.The youth will find as they progress through life that you cannot run away from everything.

Agreed with all of that. I'd love to incorporate watching someone play a football match as part of a job interview. You'd see what sort of character they have pretty quickly

[BallyhaiseMan]

Complete bullshit.It is mollycoddling that has created the weaklings that are the youth of today.Just recently schools have banned running in the playground,in case someone falls and gets hurt and one school even  banned a whistle to herald the end of break time,because the noise is too aggressive.Ffs!

Persevering with sport at a high level is discipline inducing and character building.Running away due to perceived pressure is not.The youth will find as they progress through life that you cannot run away from everything.

Running away?? The guy is going away to make a living and broaden his horizons in New York. He's an amateur player whom has busted his hole for Crossmaglen and Armagh in the past. As much as we love the GAA ,it is not the be all and end all for every player who pulls on a jersey. Honestly Fearon you should quit with this Jamie Clarke stuff while you're ahead,because knowing you, you're going to end up saying something that will get you in trouble.

[Syferus]

Complete bullshit.It is mollycoddling that has created the weaklings that are the youth of today.Just recently schools have banned running in the playground,in case someone falls and gets hurt and one school even  banned a whistle to herald the end of break time,because the noise is too aggressive.Ffs!

Persevering with sport at a high level is discipline inducing and character building.Running away due to perceived pressure is not.The youth will find as they progress through life that you cannot run away from everything.

Running away?? The guy is going away to make a living and broaden his horizons in New York. He's an amateur player whom has busted his hole for Crossmaglen and Armagh in the past. As much as we love the GAA ,it is not the be all and end all for every player who pulls on a jersey. Honestly Fearon you should quit with this Jamie Clarke stuff while you're ahead,because knowing you, you're going to end up saying something that will get you in trouble.

You know you're never going to win a debate or get him to cop on, why try? That's the most fascinating thing in this thread for me. I guess I don't have as much faith in the honesty of purpose of posters that some here have.

[brokencrossbar1]

Complete bullshit.It is mollycoddling that has created the weaklings that are the youth of today.Just recently schools have banned running in the playground,in case someone falls and gets hurt and one school even  banned a whistle to herald the end of break time,because the noise is too aggressive.Ffs!

Persevering with sport at a high level is discipline inducing and character building.Running away due to perceived pressure is not.The youth will find as they progress through life that you cannot run away from everything.

Tony would you ever look at yourself,  now Jamies actions are symptomatic of the problems of today's youth?  Just wise up and let it go.  What today showed me is that Jamie was f**king completely right in doing what he did as the county team is a shambles and not worth committing to under the current set up, management and county board.  Why waste you time for that crap,  at least he knew what he was doing, as did his team mates, when playing for Cross and even the Cartwheel, Armagh are leaderless and clueless.

[Jinxy]

We need another world war to sort out these soft young lads.

[T Fearon]

In all seriousness it is a bit ridiculous.Life is filled with challenges and pressure,the higher up the food chain one goes professionally, or in professional or amateur sport the more pressure there will be.Mollycoddling will not help prepare the young for the rigours of life.

[LeoMc]

In all seriousness it is a bit ridiculous.Life is filled with challenges and pressure,the higher up the food chain one goes professionally, or in professional or amateur sport the more pressure there will be.Mollycoddling will not help prepare the young for the rigours of life.

Maybe that is a ladder Jamie has no interest in climbing!

[easytiger95]

Complete bullshit.It is mollycoddling that has created the weaklings that are the youth of today.Just recently schools have banned running in the playground,in case someone falls and gets hurt and one school even  banned a whistle to herald the end of break time,because the noise is too aggressive.Ffs!

Persevering with sport at a high level is discipline inducing and character building.Running away due to perceived pressure is not.The youth will find as they progress through life that you cannot run away from everything.

Agreed with all of that. I'd love to incorporate watching someone play a football match as part of a job interview. You'd see what sort of character they have pretty quickly

Absolutely. If I'm gong under the knife, I need to know my surgeon can kick off both feet.

[easytiger95]

In all seriousness it is a bit ridiculous.Life is filled with challenges and pressure,the higher up the food chain one goes professionally, or in professional or amateur sport the more pressure there will be.Mollycoddling will not help prepare the young for the rigours of life.

Fearon giving advice on raising the young...too many jokes...not enough time...irony levels dangerously high...HELP US!!

[snoopdog]

Training god knows how many times a week. Not let play for the club. No social life, family neglected. Work life Prob suffers. These are all the problems a modern day footballer has to deal with and for what? To get knocked out of ulster in the 1st round. Jamie has given a lot to Crossmaglen over a number of years where 1 season rolls into another. He isn't the only footballer who has looked at it and said not for me. All that time and commitment and you haven't a chance of winning anything. I unders re and fully why these guys walk away. Country is full of players who don't want to do it anymore at inter county level.

[LCohen]

Tonight plenty of Armagh fan's are lamentinng Jamie's decision. But that is a reflection of our selfish thinking on how he should order his life.

Few of think he looks anything other than wise tonight

[T Fearon]

The great shame is the thousands (it seemed to me they matched the home support in terms of numbers) of Armagh fans in Cavan today do not get to see one of the best players in the County in a county jersey this year.

Most of these supporters would love or have loved to have had the talent to be selected for the county.They cannot fathom how players who have the talent spurn the opportunity.