What should be done about the Leinster Final Fiasco?

[Hound]

Very noble of Louth.

Not so noble of the Gaa to leave it to the victim to have do the right thing.

Equally not very noble of the Gaa to suggest that the accidental beneficiary should have had to do the right thing either.

What will the Gaa learn from this?

All together now..........

Those are the two main lessons from this...

The GAA, who are supposed to be leading and running this game and competition, when they should have done something they ran away.

A replay whether to have it or not had NOTHING to do with Meath, Meath CB, Meath players or the Louth CB either. The should never have been in that situation, or allowed be in that situation. THAT decision should have been made clear by the GAA from the very get go and they should have acted. But no, they just put their head in the sand.

Tthe GAA said "No Replay" shortly after the game! They were clear on the matter, in fairness to them. Now a lot of people thought that was wrong or unfair or whatever, but its wrong to say they put their head in the sand.

They never asked Meath CB to offer a replay or to even consider offering a replay. But they couldnt order them not to consider it or offer it. And certainly if Meath had offered it, they would have granted the request.

Meath CB should probably have done nothing at all, but they initially decided to offer the replay, only for the players to say they were against it. Hence you had the circus of 2 Meath CB meetings on consecutive days, and the ridiculous statement they issued (well the first paragraph was ridiculous when for some reason they tried to support their decision not to offer a replay by saying "it would have been a pen anyway").

[Rossfan]

Could the Leinster Council have  refused to adopt the Ref's report and either declared Louth the Champions or re fixed the Final?

[JMohan]

Very noble of Louth.

Not so noble of the Gaa to leave it to the victim to have do the right thing.

Equally not very noble of the Gaa to suggest that the accidental beneficiary should have had to do the right thing either.

What will the Gaa learn from this?

All together now..........

Those are the two main lessons from this...

The GAA, who are supposed to be leading and running this game and competition, when they should have done something they ran away.

A replay whether to have it or not had NOTHING to do with Meath, Meath CB, Meath players or the Louth CB either. The should never have been in that situation, or allowed be in that situation. THAT decision should have been made clear by the GAA from the very get go and they should have acted. But no, they just put their head in the sand.

Tthe GAA said "No Replay" shortly after the game! They were clear on the matter, in fairness to them. Now a lot of people thought that was wrong or unfair or whatever, but its wrong to say they put their head in the sand.

They never asked Meath CB to offer a replay or to even consider offering a replay. But they couldnt order them not to consider it or offer it. And certainly if Meath had offered it, they would have granted the request.

Meath CB should probably have done nothing at all, but they initially decided to offer the replay, only for the players to say they were against it. Hence you had the circus of 2 Meath CB meetings on consecutive days, and the ridiculous statement they issued (well the first paragraph was ridiculous when for some reason they tried to support their decision not to offer a replay by saying "it would have been a pen anyway").

No, they only said - previously and according to the rule books there would be no replay, but left it open that a replay would be sanctioned if the winning team agreed to it. By not stating that they left it open.

They should have said 'There will be no replay. This is regardless of any decision made by the winning team. There will be a full review at the end of this years Championship of all refereeing procedures in light of the game to ensure this situation never happens again.'

That would have made it clear and helped demonstrate to the public that they'd do something about it - something else they've failed to do!

I agree fully - would have been harsh and unfair etc etc, but would have ended the rot.

And Yes! Meath CB should have done nothing, they were foolish for meeting the next night as everyone was expecting them to do something. They should stayed quiet, said nothing and let the pressure build on the GAA or Louth and above all have let Louth CB have their meeting first, to see their reaction.

[Hound]

No, they only said - previously and according to the rule books there would be no replay, but left it open that a replay would be sanctioned if the winning team agreed to it. By not stating that they left it open.

They should have said 'There will be no replay. This is regardless of any decision made by the winning team. There will be a full review at the end of this years Championship of all refereeing procedures in light of the game to ensure this situation never happens again.'

That would have made it clear and helped demonstrate to the public that they'd do something about it - something else they've failed to do!

I agree fully - would have been harsh and unfair etc etc, but would have ended the rot.

And Yes! Meath CB should have done nothing, they were foolish for meeting the next night as everyone was expecting them to do something. They should stayed quiet, said nothing and let the pressure build on the GAA or Louth and above all have let Louth CB have their meeting first, to see their reaction.

I think you're being a tad harsh on the GAA.

If they had said, No Replay AND Meath you're not allowed offer a replay, there would have been the same amount of uproar and actually probably more, but because then every Meath person would have said - Of course we would have replayed it, but we weren't let!

I wish they'd just ban Sludden from ever officiating outside Tyrone again...

[seafoid]

I don't think it was the ref's fault. the system is made for human error to arse things up.
I think justice would be served if Meath get beaten in their QF but judging by what Hardy says this is very likely anyway. It is a pity because I was hoping for a Meath revival but if they don't have the players then what can they do ?

As for Louth, it would be nice if they could get to the quarters and then push on from there. 

[The Konica]

I don't think it was the ref's fault. the system is made for human error to arse things up.
I think justice would be served if Meath get beaten in their QF but judging by what Hardy says this is very likely anyway. It is a pity because I was hoping for a Meath revival but if they don't have the players then what can they do ?

As for Louth, it would be nice if they could get to the quarters and then push on from there.

Of course it was the ref's fault!!!! Who the hell else was in charge?

And it's nonsense to say justice would be Meath getting beaten in their QF ... they played to the whistle and the ref screwed up. It's nothing to do with them.

[Louth Exile]

I don't think it was the ref's fault. the system is made for human error to arse things up.
I think justice would be served if Meath get beaten in their QF but judging by what Hardy says this is very likely anyway. It is a pity because I was hoping for a Meath revival but if they don't have the players then what can they do ?

As for Louth, it would be nice if they could get to the quarters and then push on from there.

Of course it was the ref's fault!!!! Who the hell else was in charge?

Absolutely it was his fault. All that he had to do was consult the umpires rather than dictate to them. This is the question going around a lot of Louth heads, including the players. Why did he not just consult!!

Nobody offering any comfort here that he will face any consequences for his actions!!!

[zoyler]

The last thing Clubs in Tyrone want is Sludden banned from IC games.  That would mean they had no resbite from him fcukin up their games!  The biggest mystery here is why he has been allowed to raise to this level of games - he is known as an accident waiting to happen, whose speciality is to ref from the middle third and blow for a free whenever he needs a breather!

[seafoid]

what should be done about the Leinster final fiasco

Reminds me of the one and only Aidan Walsh

Take it away Aido

http://www.aidanwalsh.com/media/?display=9&sid=bec641130d27f42275c2495579802450

[Hound]

I think justice would be served if Meath get beaten in their QF but judging by what Hardy says this is very likely anyway. It is a pity because I was hoping for a Meath revival but if they don't have the players then what can they do ?

Meath aren't world beaters, but a semi-final place is well on the cards. Certainly the likes of Derry, Down, Kildare, Armagh won't scare them.

[kerrylions]

its the gaa that appoint the refs why hasnt the person that appointed sludden come out and said something and tell us what criteria is used to appoint county refs.sludden was the fall guy last sunday and theres plenty of the likes of him reffing games that havent got a clue,they probably know  every page of the rule book but havnt got an ounce of common sense,and panic when an incident takes place,and instead of asking  their linesmen and umpires for assistance they panic and do something stupid.its time the gaa weed out these clowns all they are doing is fustrating players with bizzare decisions that wouldnt be seen at u12s.

[orangeman]

Chirsty Cooney bats away any blame or responsibility. Wouldn't it be nice if at some stage these boys would put their hands up and say that maybe we were wrong ?? I'll not hold my breath.


GAA President Christy Cooney has said that the controversial Louth v Meath Leinster Senior Football Championship final was a watershed for the Association.

Meath won the match in controversial circumstances when they were awarded a late goal by referee Martin Sludden. Replays clearly showed that Joe Sheridan had thrown the ball over the line to win Meath their 21st Delaney Cup.

That sparked a pitch invasion in which Sludden was jostled by angry Louth supporters.

Speaking to RTÉ Sport's Marty Morrissey, Cooney agreed that the match was a watershed for supporters in particular and said he hoped presentations would take place in the middle of the pitch at Croke Park in future.
The GAA made an effort to have the Cup and medal presentations in the centre of the pitch at Headquarters at the end of last year's All-Ireland finals but the new system did not work and supporters filled the field after both the hurling and football finals.

Both presentations took place in the Hogan Stand.

Cooney believes the events after the final whistle prove the case in favour of keeping people off the pitch after games.

He said: 'It has reinforced to everybody that we need to ensure that patrons stay off our pitch at the end of matches, that we need to do our presentations and that we need to give our players and officials the opportunity to leave the pitch with dignity and to celebrate with dignity.'

He did not rule out the possibility of having fencing around Croke Park.

Louth players commended for defending referee

Cooney also commended the Louth players for their actions after the match: several players defended the referee as supporters ran on to the pitch.

Speaking about he Louth supporters who jostled Sludden, Cooney added the matter was currently one for the Gardaí. However, he added that the GAA and the Leinster Council could yet ban people who took part in assaults on the referee.

Cooney also defended the GAA against accusations that it did not provide enough support to the Leinster Council or the counties involved during the controversy.

Officials from Louth and Meath have both accused to Association of failing to enough provide guidance and ultimately, Meath were left to decide on whether or not to give Louth a re-fixture themselves.

Cooney said: 'I believe we have acted very responsibly since the event took place last Sunday. I believe we gave appropriate advice to the Leinster council.
'We gave appropriate advice to both Meath and Louth on how to deal with the matter and I was quite surprised to hear and to read some of the comments that came from both counties. Both counties are well aware of our views on that. I don't believe there was any lack of support.'

'Croke Park weren't in a position to make any decision on this. All we could do was offer support and advice. The match was under jurisdiction of the Leinster council.'

After the match, the subject of whether the match should be replayed was hotly debated. Meath opted not to offer a replay, citing the fact that Sludden said in his report that he would have given Meath a penalty had a goal not been scored.

Cooney - 'would like to have seen replay'

Cooney said he would like to have seen the Leinster Final played again.

Cooney said: 'It would be fair to say that we would have all like to have seen a replay.'

He added: 'Meath decided otherwise. Within rule there was no other avenue for us to go; no other avenue for the Leinster council to take. I can't tear up a rulebook and make any decision that I want as President. That's not possible.[/[/size]b]'

Cooney is determined that the Association will not react in a kneejerk manner to the controversy and that time will be allowed to pass before any decisions are taken.

He continued: 'Last Sunday's circumstances were bizarre. I have never seen circumstances like it as long as I have been a member of this Association. Will I ever see them again as long as I live? Maybe not in my lifetime.

'Do we need to make massive changes? Do we need to throw out our rulebook? Do we need a rush of blood and change things immediately? Of course not.
'We need to give it some thought, and we need to do what's right. We need to take time to consider it.'

[fearglasmor]

Sounds like fairly sensible responses from Cooney.

The big problem is that the GAA are not conducting their business through the media, which is what a lot of excitable people seem to want.

[Hardy]

Apart from the indisputable points about the pitch invasions, it reads like hand-washing and a continuation of the buck-passing to me. On the one hand he says they could do nothing because of the rules. On the other hand, he'd have liked to see a replay.

Which is it? Either there can be a replay under the rules or not. No - wait. There's a third option. Meath can take responsibility for the referee's mistake, our hand-wringing inaction and the absence of a rule. Then we can have a replay, whether it's allowed or not by the rules. And if there's no replay, well it's not our fault in Croke Park, now, is it?

That's handy.

[kerrylions]

cooney blamed everyone except the 2 sides that were to blame for the fiasco.the ref for the shambles he made of the match,if he hadnt allowed that goal there wouldnt have been the scenes that happened after the final whistle.the gaa for appointing a muppet to ref such an important match,why didnt cooney come out and said the ref made a mistake, cooney is another yes man,why cant he call it as it is