February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Pierce O’Reilly
The New York GAA referees are set to revolt if president Monty Moloney abolishes their expenses fee of $30 per game for the upcoming championship season.
Moloney has been threatening to tighten the strings on the New York GAA purse for the last few weeks and it appears the men in black may be the first to feel the pinch.
"I’m not sure yet what I’ll do," Moloney told a well-attended meeting last Thursday.
At the annual convention, he tried to save a few bucks when he suggested abolishing the yearly all-expenses-paid referees’ junket to the All-Ireland Finals.
The whistle blowers, however, were out in force on that occasion and defeated the motion overwhelming.
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"We have to save money," Moloney told his delegates on that occasion and vowed that if the delegates didn’t support his efforts, they would lose out elsewhere.
The "elsewhere" would now appear to be the men who officiate at the weekly games at Gaelic Park, Van Cortlandt Park and in Rockland.
The men who get abused both on and off the field, have to tog out in often the worst possible conditions and who are never right — even when they are — may now walk away empty handed. It is generally expected that the voluntary "paid" referee’s will not take the new proposal lying down.
"Just let Monty try it and he’ll soon see what support he has," one of those whistle blowers said this week.
It will surprise few if scheduling chairman Seamus Dooley is back before the board claiming that he can’t get a referee for love or for money in the next few weeks. Then again the money matter will more than likely decide who will take the abuse for another year.
Unity in New York
New York GAA meetings are great places. The humor, the uproar, the controversy, the mayhem and then the unity. Unity is a word we don’t use too often in New York GAA circles, but there it was last week and what a joy it was to see. For once, the association is united in its effort to promote its county teams. The new supporters club seems to have gotten the thumbs up from all sectors.
When you’re a GAA follower — be it hurling, football or both — you get the truth straight in the face, like it or not. If a GAA man doesn’t like the things he sees, then he’ll spite it out in front of everyone. Men drove home from last week’s meeting smiling. Maybe we can progress together was the general consensus afterward.
If only every meeting was the same. Men who have rarely agreed on anything in their lives are now promoting the same idea. Kerrymen have shaken hands with Corkonians. Hurlers for once can see eye to eye with footballers, Galway and Mayo men are greeting each other again and even Westmeath supporters say they will meet with Tyrone — well almost, anyway.
Ya, the GAA supporters club; its ideas, its enthusiasm and its novelty are real treats for the association. It will be interesting to see if the same unity is in place when the dollars start rolling in and when it’s time to spend the good tidings. That will be the real litmus test for the new kids on the block and, hopefully, it won’t be their own heads on the block as has being the story in the past.
One thing is for sure, a week won’t be the same if it wasn’t for those bloodthirsty followers of the bag of wind or those hurlers on the ditch.
Donegal wallop everyone
The John Joe Cassidy 7-a-side tournament, which took place at the weekend at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, proved to be as dull and dour as dishwater. This competition, which has been a real treat in the past, failed miserably to ignite on Sunday. Several GAA supporters said afterward that it was poorly run, citing its late start, the mixups over pitches and players, the lack of competition, several bad timekeepers, broken watches and no refreshments. It all meant that those who turned up in the bitter cold conditions left after the final disheartened.
The Cavan GFC, who organized the competition, will probably admit it wasn’t a success. Star-studded Donegal hammered everyone without moving out of second gear and strolled to their second victory in five years. In the semifinal, they defeated Monaghan on a score line of 6-6 to 0-1, while Boston representatives McAnespies bulldozed with physical Stamford in the other semifinal — eventually getting the upper hand.
The final was a very poor one-sided encounter. Donegal were a class apart and had aces in every department. At half time they led by 5-5 to 1-3, with Loughran, McSweeney and McCreedy all hitting the net with ease. McAnespies were wrecked. They had played their best football in the qualifying rounds and to play another 20 minutes against a very well-groomed Ulster outfit looked like pure hell for the visitors.
Donegal finished in scintillating style, dancing jigs around their counterparts as the game ground to a welcome halt. It finished Donegal 6-9, McAnespies 1-6.
GAA delay start
The poor condition of Gaelic Park has resulted in the opening round of games at the GAA headquarters being pushed back another week. The GAA action will now commence on Sunday, April 8, instead of April 1.
"We need more time to get the field in shape for the season and at present it’s in pretty awful shape," GAA president Monty Moloney told his delegates recently. The full list of games for the next few weeks is as follows:
Sunday, April 8
Noon, junior "A" football, Armagh vs. Down, referee John Fitzpatrick; 1:30 p.m., senior hurling, New York "A" vs. New York "B," referee John McHugh; 3 p.m.,