county stars in the us

[Stagmeister]

Here's an Article Dara O'Cinneide wrote about players going to the US to play their football.
From the RTE website:

I was surprised by the small amount of attention received last week by Cavan manager Donal Keoghan's outburst on learning that three of his players were about to defect to Chicago club St Brendan's for the remainder of the Championship season.

I am reasonably familiar with the set-up in St Brendan's and there is no doubt in my mind that they're an absolutely fantastic club with some very progressive GAA men in charge of operations.

But you would really have to question why and, more importantly, how, some of the top GAA players in Cavan and other counties see playing football with a club to whom they have nothing more than a tenuous link as a more attractive option than wearing their county colours during the height of Championship season.

There is no doubt that the average young GAA player is changing in terms of his outlook towards life and towards the game itself in recent years, but it's very hard to avoid the perception that there's more than just a case of the travel bug catching on in this case.

There is an intense and often unhealthy rivalry between St Brendan's and rival Chicago club Wolfe Tones, and in order for either club to win bragging rights for the year ahead, vast sums of money change hands each year so that each team can land the big prize.

In recent years, some of the most talented players in the country such as Graham Geraghty, Owen Mulligan, Seán Kavanagh and Gerard Cavlan have all played football in Chicago, but they've usually waited until their county (and in some instances their club) were knocked out of competitive action back at home.

This latest development involving the Cavan players must be very worrying for the GAA. Approaches from clubs in the USA are often made before any ball is kicked in the GAA Championship here at home.

Most players resist the offers out-of-hand, but for some a seed is planted and I think it's hard to envisage a scenario where certain players' efforts in Championship aren't compromised as a result of a nagging inclination to play football on foreign shores.

Although unlikely to make a huge impact in this year's qualifiers, Cavan are a side who would have fancied a cut at some of the bigger boys after next Sunday's backdoor draw.

Donal Keoghan says that Antrim and Fermanagh are also losing players in this regard and, this week alone, I have also heard of approaches being made to players from Limerick, Louth and Wicklow.

Keoghan demanded that the GAA's top bosses tackle the issue as a matter of urgency and suggested that it would help if the registration date for Irish based players travelling to America (which is 1 July ) be changed to 1 May.

This would ensure that players could not first play with their counties in the Championship in Ireland and subsequently take up the lucrative offers from American clubs.

While the negative impact of player defections on county football is a relatively new development, most GAA clubs right across the country are all too familiar with the phenomenon.

In most cases, the defectors tend to be cash strapped students or young single lads with itchy feet.

It's hard to blame many club players for wanting to take up on an attractive offer for two or three months of the summer, especially in cases where the club scene is put on hold to facilitate the inter-county action.

In certain instances, players can take off in early June secure in the knowledge that they may only miss the very odd county league match between then and the start of September.

One can only admire the reaction of Paddy Bradley when he was courted to play in the US after Derry's Championship exit to Longford in last year's qualifiers.

Instead of upping sticks, Bradley decided to muck in with his club colleagues in Glenullin for the remainder of the summer, but how many more inter-county players would do the same?

The game is without doubt suffering at grassroots level because of the lack of a defined fixtures list for the summer months in many counties.

The issue is becoming a fine balancing act between club and county and it has been brought into sharp focus in recent days by Donal Keoghan's comments.

The next step from the GAA will be watched with great interest by all counties in the hat for next Sunday's qualifier draw.


Story from RTÉ Sport:
http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/championship/daraocinneide.html

[orangeman]

County boards can solve this issue by not fixing club championship matches until mid Jue and making the registratin date 31st May  - that should resolve it -

[LaurelEye]

Here's an Article Dara O'Cinneide wrote about players going to the US to play their football.
From the RTE website:

...

There is an intense and often unhealthy rivalry between St Brendan's and rival Chicago club Wolfe Tones, and in order for either club to win bragging rights for the year ahead, vast sums of money change hands each year so that each team can land the big prize.

In recent years, some of the most talented players in the country such as Graham Geraghty, Owen Mulligan, Seán Kavanagh and Gerard Cavlan have all played football in Chicago, but they've usually waited until their county (and in some instances their club) were knocked out of competitive action back at home.

I heard a five-figure sum mentioned as being what St. Brendan's paid one of the Cavan players this year to go over, and I heard the figure from a source very close to the player concerned, so I'd believe it. It was a very low five-figure sum, but a five-figure sum nonetheless with a paid job thrown into the bargain.

How is it that a city the size of Chicago can only support two Gaelic football clubs when there's that amount of money apparently sloshing around? Why aren't the people concerned putting this money into developing the permanent playing base there and trying to start up new clubs instead of this crazy carry-on? Isn't it time that Croke Park started asking some searching questions of the NA and NY GAA boards?

[twotwocharlie]

laurel : croke park won't rock the boat. I'd say a few cosy trips to the usa would be at risk. you know the type ,important meetings with  the boards out there .

[neutral]

it needs to be f**king stopped.  Endof story.  Either USA plays by the GAA rules or not. 

[redandblack4ever]

First of all, there are more than just two GAA clubs in Chicago. The two mentioned in the article however, are the only two that play at senior level;, they also have junior teams as well.

As for the money, Croke Park has been turning a blind eye to this for years and will continue to do so. Don't kid yourself that this only happens between these two clubs in the NACB. Boston, Philadelphia and San Francisco aren't completely innocent either...

As for building a "permanent playing base", there have been great improvements in starting underage teams throughout the NACB but when these children get to be older, their interest in playing football and/or hurling seems to fade away.

I can't think of one Catholic High School in the Chicago area that even offers Gaelic games on a club level (non-school sponsored) , let alone one that promotes their student's participation.

As for some of the clubs themselves trying to do something with the schools, fuhgetaboutit. It ain't going to happen. The two clubs mentioned in the article are full of what have been referred to as "glory hunters". These are people that have the money to fuel the coffers of the clubs when they need it most, especially during the summer months. Some of them don't think that Irish-American's can play the games to the same standard as their Irish-born counterparts, so their attitudes reflect that. Funny enough though, most of the "glory hunters" couldn't kick snow off a rope if they wanted to.

One other thing, moving the date back to May 1st for "summer visitor" players would play havoc with the schedule of the NACB playoffs. These games are played over Labor Day Weekend in the US. Labor Day is always the first Monday in September. Most "tourist visas" to the US are good for only 90 days. If a player comes out on May 1st, that means they usually have to leave the US by August 1st. I don't know of too many people that would take the chance to "overstay" for 30-40 days and because of it, get themselves on the list that would prohibit them from returning to the US for 5-10 years.

In fact this year is the first year that the date for "summer visitor" players has been moved back to July 1st. Up until last year the date has always been July 20th. The players arriving on July 1st will have to September 1st to leave the US without any penalties in the future.

The NACB Senior Finals are scheduled to be played on September 2, 2007 at Chicago Gaelic Park. I honestly don't know if ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) will penalize anyone for "overstaying" their visas for one day or one week, but with present debate going on here about "illegal aliens" taking jobs away from American citizens and the rest of the right-wing talking points that are all over the American media, I sure as hell wouldn't take the chance.

[Tyrones own]

Here's an Article Dara O'Cinneide wrote about players going to the US to play their football.
From the RTE website:

I was surprised by the small amount of attention received last week by Cavan manager Donal Keoghan's outburst on learning that three of his players were about to defect to Chicago club St Brendan's for the remainder of the Championship season.

I am reasonably familiar with the set-up in St Brendan's and there is no doubt in my mind that they're an absolutely fantastic club with some very progressive GAA men in charge of operations.

But you would really have to question why and, more importantly, how, some of the top GAA players in Cavan and other counties see playing football with a club to whom they have nothing more than a tenuous link as a more attractive option than wearing their county colours during the height of Championship season.

There is no doubt that the average young GAA player is changing in terms of his outlook towards life and towards the game itself in recent years, but it's very hard to avoid the perception that there's more than just a case of the travel bug catching on in this case.

There is an intense and often unhealthy rivalry between St Brendan's and rival Chicago club Wolfe Tones, and in order for either club to win bragging rights for the year ahead, vast sums of money change hands each year so that each team can land the big prize.

In recent years, some of the most talented players in the country such as Graham Geraghty, Owen Mulligan, Seán Kavanagh and Gerard Cavlan have all played football in Chicago, but they've usually waited until their county (and in some instances their club) were knocked out of competitive action back at home.

This latest development involving the Cavan players must be very worrying for the GAA. Approaches from clubs in the USA are often made before any ball is kicked in the GAA Championship here at home.

Most players resist the offers out-of-hand, but for some a seed is planted and I think it's hard to envisage a scenario where certain players' efforts in Championship aren't compromised as a result of a nagging inclination to play football on foreign shores.

Although unlikely to make a huge impact in this year's qualifiers, Cavan are a side who would have fancied a cut at some of the bigger boys after next Sunday's backdoor draw.

Donal Keoghan says that Antrim and Fermanagh are also losing players in this regard and, this week alone, I have also heard of approaches being made to players from Limerick, Louth and Wicklow.

Keoghan demanded that the GAA's top bosses tackle the issue as a matter of urgency and suggested that it would help if the registration date for Irish based players travelling to America (which is 1 July ) be changed to 1 May.

This would ensure that players could not first play with their counties in the Championship in Ireland and subsequently take up the lucrative offers from American clubs.

While the negative impact of player defections on county football is a relatively new development, most GAA clubs right across the country are all too familiar with the phenomenon.

In most cases, the defectors tend to be cash strapped students or young single lads with itchy feet.

It's hard to blame many club players for wanting to take up on an attractive offer for two or three months of the summer, especially in cases where the club scene is put on hold to facilitate the inter-county action.

In certain instances, players can take off in early June secure in the knowledge that they may only miss the very odd county league match between then and the start of September.

One can only admire the reaction of Paddy Bradley when he was courted to play in the US after Derry's Championship exit to Longford in last year's qualifiers.

Instead of upping sticks, Bradley decided to muck in with his club colleagues in Glenullin for the remainder of the summer, but how many more inter-county players would do the same?

The game is without doubt suffering at grassroots level because of the lack of a defined fixtures list for the summer months in many counties.

The issue is becoming a fine balancing act between club and county and it has been brought into sharp focus in recent days by Donal Keoghan's comments.

The next step from the GAA will be watched with great interest by all counties in the hat for next Sunday's qualifier draw.


Story from RTÉ Sport:
http://www.rte.ie/sport/gaa/championship/daraocinneide.html

  Is he taking the piss here or what? didn't Paddy tell Glenullin that they would have to match what he was being offered stateside
  to keep him at home
  He's a model Gael alright

[oakleafgael]

Tyrones Own,

I can understand some of the Red Hands fascination with Paddy Bradley as at times he is his own worst enemy but all you are doing is repeating heresay and rumours. He has plenty of faults but that storey is simply bullshit.

[Tyrones own]

  Funny i remember a lengthy thread on the very subject here last yr,
  Is it really that unlikely? he does have the quere head about himself.