Cork players threaten strike over selectors issue

[Zulu]

What do they lose if they 'capitulate' to the players?

[orangeman]

What do the players by going back to play ?

[Zulu]

Sorry OM don't understand the question.

[agorm]

It looks as if most neutrals are b;laming the players for this. I am not so sure.

It was the Cork county board that changed the rules regarding the appointment of selectors.This was probably done to get rid of Billy Morgan and keep Frank Murphy's "hand in" in the dressing room. Can anyone else give a reason as to why this was done.

The Cork players made it clear that they would not work under a new management so why the hell did Teddy Holland take on the job? He saw possibly Corks's best ever manager being cast aside after a succesful year last year and took the job knowing that the squad were very unhappy. Out of order imo.

The Cork players do not have all right on their siude and they should be careful not to encourage others to join a strike but in my opinion, on an individual basis, they are right not to play for Teddy. The arrogance of Teddy Holland beats me. Everyone knows that he needs to voluntarily step down to sort this thing out. Even if he was 100% right (which he is not) if he had any real love for Cork football he would have stepped down much earlier to facilitate an end to this.

I dont know a whole lot about Frank Murphy but the setup down there smacks of a bit of a dictatorship. Can anybody name the Cork Co. Chairman? I certainly cannot and whoever it is seems to be doing s.f.a. to sort this out. From a Meath point of view, we need to play Cork to try and get the hammering out of our system but putting the game back any further than next weekend would be unfair on the Meath players.

[quidnunc]

Mick Dolan is the Cork Chairman. Jerry O'Sullivan, father of Diarmuid, the Cork hurling full-back is the County Vice-Chairman. That's why the players' attempts to portray this is as a Frank Murphy lone dictatorship are so farcical. Frank might have some dictatorial qualities, but not to the extent that he could force everyone to vote the way they did.

Why did Jerry O'Sullivan support or acquiesce in the new selectors' system? Was he doing it to get back at the players, who included his own son, one of the leading GPA men and strikers in Cork? (If we believe this version of events Frank Murphy can weave such spells that fathers can hate their own sons.) Or was it not that he happened to believe, rightly or wrongly, that the new selectors' arrangement was best?

Whatever about the rights or wrongs of the selectors arrangement, does anyone believe that the Cork footballers would take their grievance to a ridiculous strike scenario if Donal Og Cusack were not agitating full time in the background?

[TBT]

Mick Dolan is the Cork Chairman. Jerry O'Sullivan, father of Diarmuid, the Cork hurling full-back is the County Vice-Chairman. That's why the players' attempts to portray this is as a Frank Murphy lone dictatorship are so farcical. Frank might have some dictatorial qualities, but not to the extent that he could force everyone to vote the way they did.

Why did Jerry O'Sullivan support or acquiesce in the new selectors' system? Was he doing it to get back at the players, who included his own son, one of the leading GPA men and strikers in Cork? (If we believe this version of events Frank Murphy can weave such spells that fathers can hate their own sons.) Or was it not that he happened to believe, rightly or wrongly, that the new selectors' arrangement was best?

Whatever about the rights or wrongs of the selectors arrangement, does anyone believe that the Cork footballers would take their grievance to a ridiculous strike scenario if Donal Og Cusack were not agitating full time in the background?

This wouldnt be the same Mick Dolan, the senior GAA offical in Cork, who has vanished without trace since this episode erupted?Nobody, only the completely insane, believes putting in place conditions that would mean the better coaches in Cork wouldnt take the job is anything other than in the worst interests of Cok GAA. Its quite simply a power grab. If the players give an inch in this their doomed to see all consesions eroded until were back in pre 2002 conditions again.

[quidnunc]

This wouldnt be the same Mick Dolan, the senior GAA offical in Cork, who has vanished without trace since this episode erupted?

Strange, I seem to recall that Mick Dolan led the county board delegation into last week's talks with Kieran Mulvey. And of course he chaired the county convention and county board meetings over the last few months. Clearly rumours of his demise are altogether exaggerated.

[Zulu]

Whatever about the rights or wrongs of the selectors arrangement, does anyone believe that the Cork footballers would take their grievance to a ridiculous strike scenario if Donal Og Cusack were not agitating full time in the background?

I certainly do, I've said this before but if I were a Cork footballer I wouldn't play for Teddy Holland as things stand. It is the footballers who are insisting that Teddy stands down not the hurlers.

[jodyb]

What do they lose if they 'capitulate' to the players?

Sorry Zulu, only saw your post. my point is that they took action over much more serious grievences cupla years ago and suceeded. Their issues this time round, whilst emotive do not hold the moral high ground in the same way and the co board have to stem the flow.

[Zulu]

Sean Og is on Tubridy tonight shortly so we might get some insight on the latest goings on.

[Jinxy]

Not much insight. I'd say Donal óg will be doing most of the talking from now on. Seán óg is a bit inarticulate I think.

[Zulu]

Yeah Sean Og spoke very poorly.

[muppet]

Both sides have taken absolute positions which makes a solution impossible without one or both sides performing an embarassing climb-down. Kieran Mulvey was the obvious choice to break that conundrum despite the GPA bashers here paranoia.

Picking one person from either party and blaming him for everything as some have done here is hardly an intelligent assessment of the situtation. Relations between officials and players is one of the great imponderables in the Gaa. Both parties resent the importance aforded to the other. It happens in many counties and most clubs if we admit it.

Blindly taking one side and blaming the other totally is nonsense.

[thejuice]

Royals square up to Rebels over date for match
Saturday February 02 2008


FRUSTRATED Meath have flashed out a blunt warning that they are running out of patience and will not play the postponed Football League tie with Cork any later than next weekend.


"We agreed last week to a seven-day deferral. We didn't seek the League points. All we wanted was to play the game but if it's re-fixed, it has to be for Saturday or Sunday next week -- otherwise we won't be fulfilling the fixture," said Meath manager Colm Coyle.

The Division 2 game, a repeat of last year's All-Ireland semi-final, was due to be played in Pairc Tailteann tonight but was called off because of the Cork strike. Coyle said that there had been speculation that if the Cork row was settled, the game would be re-fixed for March 9, which was not acceptable to Meath.

"We won't be playing then. It would mean that we were being asked to play six games in a seven-week period whereas everybody else, except ourselves and Cork, who have created this problem, will have six games in nine weeks. If the game is re-fixed for March 9, we would be out on three successive weekends and when you factor in a few U-21 and Sigerson Cup games, depending on results of course, it could put enormous pressure on our young players at a time when the GAA has been immersed in a debate over burnout."

Disadvantage

Meath have written to Croke Park explaining why they won't play the Cork game any later than next weekend and are clearly annoyed at what they perceive is a situation which is putting them at a distinct disadvantage just as the season is ready for take-off.

Coyle added: "We are the innocent party as the conflict is in Cork, yet we may be penalised with a compounding of our fixtures schedule just because they haven't been able to sort out their differences. We have our players to think about and we are not prepared to be penalised for something which has nothing to do with us."

There will be a good deal of sympathy for Meath's position. They could have sought to be awarded the League points on the basis that Cork were unable to field a team for a competition whose starting date was known for several months. However, in the interests of diplomacy, Meath agreed to the deferral this weekend but are concerned that even if the Cork row was solved over the next few days, the match would not be re-fixed for some weeks. That would put Meath at a disadvantage, unable to start their League campaign until February 17 (v Roscommon) before facing into a very busy schedule in March. Meath have made it clear that they want to be as accommodating as possible but are not prepared to wait indefinitely for Cork to reach a resolution.

The GAA's Central Competitions Control Committee will meet early next week and, given Meath's stated stand, will be left with no alternative but to re-fix the game for next weekend if the Cork row is resolved.

[Blacksheep]

Typical Meath!