Flying hurlers to Sydney a waste of money, says Joe Quaid
The decision to fly the hurlers of Galway and Kilkenny to Sydney to play a one-off challenge game was a colossal waste of money, according to Westmeath manager Joe Quaid, who added that the GAA don’t care about counties outside the top-tier.
Galway and Kilkenny, as reward for their league final victories this year and last, were brought to Australia to compete for the Wild Geese trophy.
This weekend coming, Clare, Cork, Limerick, and Wexford are in Boston for the annual Fenway Classic.
Quaid, who spent three years as Kildare manager before taking up the Westmeath post in September, is adamant the money used to send Galway and Kilkenny to Australia should have been channelled into the promotion of hurling in counties where it is played by a minority.
As for this weekend’s festival of hurling in Boston, Quaid said a trick was missed in not bringing Joe McDonagh Cup champions Carlow, an incentive which would make the game far more attractive for players in the ignored lower tiers.
“Clare, Limerick, Cork and Wexford are off to Boston this week. There is no fear of hurling ever being unpopular in these counties. The focus should be on trying to promote the game in the second-tier counties and make it attractive in the Kildares of this world, that there’s a carrot at the end of the season and lads will get a trip.
“The money spent sending Galway and Kilkenny to Sydney could have been put to much better use,” said former Limerick goalkeeper Quaid.
“All these players in the Joe McDonagh and Christy Ring competitions are trying to get up to play at the top level. Some of them never will. We won the Christy Ring Cup this year. That was every bit as important to them as Limerick winning Liam MacCarthy.
“They got no recognition, though. They could walk down Newbridge in the morning and nobody would probably know them. That’s where the GAA need to be growing the game.
“Carlow, as reward for winning the Joe McDonagh Cup, should have been brought [to Boston]. They are not going to do that, though.
“Change has to come from the top. There’s more like myself who are constantly harping on about the treatment and lack of respect for counties who are outside [those challenging for] the Liam MacCarthy. Do they care what we think? No.”
What particularly grated was that the one hour of highlights afforded by RTÉ to the Wild Geese fixture last Sunday evening exceeded the total television coverage of the Joe McDonagh and Christy Ring competitions in the summer.
“We won the Christy Ring Cup earlier this year and yet there was minimal coverage of the final on that weekend’s ‘Sunday Game’ highlights programme.
“If the GAA are serious about improving hurling in the second- and third-tier counties, then they are going to have to promote it. It is ridiculous the coverage it gets.”
