Danny Lynch: "Gaa should drop Scór, handball, rounders"

[Eamonnca1]

'The Irish Examiner'


Drop  the GAA's deadwood, declares angry Lynch
By John Fogarty

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

FORMER GAA PRO Danny Lynch has warned the association is at risk of neglecting their core strengths by continuing to facilitate peripheral activities such as rounders, handball and scór.

Dingle native Lynch, who stepped down from his Croke Park position in 2009, is concerned the GAA is taking its eye "off the ball" by accommodating what he views as minority pursuits, which he insists are "ego trips for a small group of people".

"The GAA tries to be all things to all people and react to each and every pressure point from where it comes from, no matter how small the source of it is," said Lynch.

"The GAA would be better served if it concentrated on its core strengths, the two field games. The GAA shouldn't be embracing things like rounders or handball, ego trips for a small group of people.

"Likewise, we've seen the number of quangos established by the Government to deal with the Irish language.

"Yet the GAA seems to have this inherent responsibility to do the same.

"It's the same with the unemployment issue and rural isolation. The GAA is attempting to tackle that despite all the Government bodies whose duty it is to tackle it."

Scór contestants provide the vocals for the national anthem at several inter-county games outside Croke Park. However, Lynch is adamant the body holds too much sway in the Association.

"Scór, Irish music and the culture end of it is all really fine but it is the hobby of a few on the back of the GAA," he blasted.

"You have GAA presidents going around the country feeling pressurised playing a quasi-political view and having to bend to Scór people.

"It used to be part of the scenario in Congress for years that Scór did the entertainment but they went away from that."

Lynch also counters strongly against the GAA's need to explain itself for accepting sponsorship from alcohol companies such as Guinness.

"There's this incessant lobby against it from a minority pressure point and no other sporting organisation in the country feels they have to justify it other than the GAA. On a point of holding the moral high ground, the GAA shouldn't react to such criticism."

This appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Are the peripheral divisions of the GAA really causing a 'distraction'? Are they  over-represented at Congress? I see no harm in keeping them under the GAA umbrella.  They're already semi-autonomous anyway, they have their own committees in place, it's not like county board meetings have to spend any time dealing with Scór-related matters. And they get to plug into the GAA's considerable infrastructure when needed. Sounds like a gale in a pail.

[Celt_Man]

Lynch also counters strongly against the GAA's need to explain itself for accepting sponsorship from alcohol companies such as Guinness.

"There's this incessant lobby against it from a minority pressure point and no other sporting organisation in the country feels they have to justify it other than the GAA. On a point of holding the moral high ground, the GAA shouldn't react to such criticism."

Couldn't agree more with this part... bloody nonsense

[stephenite]

How this gobshite ended up as PRO always amused me, and I actually agree with his main point. The GAA needs to stop being the vehicle that Irish people use as their one stop cultural shop, not the job of the GAA to promote the language and culture and resources shouldn't be wasted on it. It's a sporting organisation, end of.

[Maguire01]

Why are you trying to get rid of things from the GAA when they aren't causing a problem?

That's the key point. Nothing's broken, so there's no need to fix it.

[pintsofguinness]

Good posts Hardstation, agree with those.

I will say though that Lynch is right about the drink sponsorship thing and they bow too easily to any sort of pressure. 

[Onlooker]

What did Danny Lynch ever achieve in his time as PRO.  Nothing IMO.  Nobody even knew we had a PRO.  Now that he has retired, he has found his voice.  Thankfully, his views carry very little weight.

[DuffleKing]

Unfortunately that's not true - Lynch is virtually all powerful within the ulster council

[Zulu]

Also, Mr. Lynch, this is the GAA that you signed up to and it goes far beyond the small pockets of air that enter your head, so if you don't like it, why don't you fcuk off?

Is he not entitled to his opinion? I don't have strong feelings on whether scor, handball etc. are kept within the the GAA or not but I always find it strange when people attack a man for expressing his opinion and not simply respond to the content of it.

For me everything about the GAA should be up for debate and if you want something changed or modified then you come out and say so. If you have strong feelings about something then I would encourage you to convince others of their merits and try to implement these changes.

A little bit of non-traditional thinking is always needed, if only to provoke debate, so that we don't get too comfortable.

[Rossfan]

Also, Mr. Lynch, this is the GAA that you signed up to and it goes far beyond the small pockets of air that enter your head, so if you don't like it, why don't you fcuk off?

Is he not entitled to his opinion? I don't have strong feelings on whether scor, handball etc. are kept within the the GAA or not but I always find it strange when people attack a man for expressing his opinion and not simply respond to the content of it.

For me everything about the GAA should be up for debate and if you want something changed or modified then you come out and say so. If you have strong feelings about something then I would encourage you to convince others of their merits and try to implement these changes.

A little bit of non-traditional thinking is always needed, if only to provoke debate, so that we don't get too comfortable.

Dangerous thing upsetting the GAA Board's Purity Corner 
Those crew don't want any one tainted by Croke Park life or who received money from the GAA to open their gobs at all.
For the record I disagree with Mr.Lynch's views on this matter.

[DUBSFORSAM1]

Why, because they are not as popular as football and hurling? Why not put a bit of money and effort into them and they could become popular.

Also, Mr. Lynch, this is the GAA that you signed up to and it goes far beyond the small pockets of air that enter your head, so if you don't like it, why don't you fcuk off?

Some complete knobends find themselves in positions of authority in the GAA. It's astonishing really.

Hurling is next.....

In fact, we'll end up with soccer.

Glad to see you are happy for people to give their opinion when it doesn't agree with yours and resort to insulting them...

[norabeag]

Unfortunately that's not true - Lynch is virtually all powerful within the ulster council

think you are getting your Danny Boys mixed up

[Rav67]

Also, Mr. Lynch, this is the GAA that you signed up to and it goes far beyond the small pockets of air that enter your head, so if you don't like it, why don't you fcuk off?

Is he not entitled to his opinion? I don't have strong feelings on whether scor, handball etc. are kept within the the GAA or not but I always find it strange when people attack a man for expressing his opinion and not simply respond to the content of it.

For me everything about the GAA should be up for debate and if you want something changed or modified then you come out and say so. If you have strong feelings about something then I would encourage you to convince others of their merits and try to implement these changes.

A little bit of non-traditional thinking is always needed, if only to provoke debate, so that we don't get too comfortable.

Dangerous thing upsetting the GAA Board's Purity Corner 
Those crew don't want any one tainted by Croke Park life or who received money from the GAA to open their gobs at all.
For the record I disagree with Mr.Lynch's views on this matter.

Lynch is bringing stinging criticism on himself by saying people who play a certain recreational game are on an "ego trip", I think he needs to keep his own ego in check by the sound of him.

I would agree with his comments regarding alcohol sponsorship though- look at all the Guinness sponsorship with "this is rugby country" bunting plastered round bars all over the place.  Rugby are taking money from Guinness and getting promotion of their game as well, GAA should be doing the same.

[TacadoirArdMhacha]

As somebody whose inherient lack of footballing ability meant success past underage level was never an option, I've found that the only environment in which i can represent my club is the Scór, something I do very proudly and was delighted to win my first county medal earlier this year. To suggest that the Scór is somehow a distraction or a drain on GAA resources is laughable and shows a real ignorance on the part of anybody who holds that view.

Indeed within my own club, Scór provides a real focal point for the club within the winter months and gets people involved in the club who would otherwise draft away from membership. We also run a "Scór night" within the club which brings in much needed revenue.

And how is handball an ego trip for its participants any more than football is an ego trip for Stevie McDonnell, Sean Cavanagh, Kieran Donaghy etc? A completely baseless point.

I agree on the alcohol sponsorship mind you.

[Zulu]

The irony, he put his opinion into the public domain and you expect those who disagree with his opinion to keep their opinion to themselves?

Eh? I didn't think my point was a difficult one to understand but you've managed it. He gave his opinion and everyone is entitled to agree or disagree with it but some posters suggested that he shouldn't be expressing his opinion, for example...

this is the GAA that you signed up to and it goes far beyond the small pockets of air that enter your head, so if you don't like it, why don't you fcuk off?

Is the choice now to either love and agree with every aspect of the GAA or leave it?

I find it uncomfortable the direction the GAA seems to be going, suggestions like ditching rounders, scor and handball, coupled with the pulling of funding for competitions such as the Railway Cup really give light to the streamlining of the organisation by the upper elite.

The Railway cup is deadwood and should be binned, it's all good and well continuing to fund these types of things but I know my club could do with some of that money too. We have to prioritise and the Railway cup is nothing more than a kick around for IC players at this stage.

[Eamonnca1]

Dangerous thing upsetting the GAA Board's Purity Corner 
Those crew don't want any one tainted by Croke Park life or who received money from the GAA to open their gobs at all.
For the record I disagree with Mr.Lynch's views on this matter.

Didn't know the PRO was a paid position.