LIAM O’NEILL HAS called for GAA sides to be only allowed to have one member of their management teams on the sideline during games in order to halt the recent trend of violent incidents.
The GAA President is eager to address the problem and his proposal involves teams choosing one management member to patrol the sideline with the rest of their backroom teams sitting in an area in the stand.
O’Neill was present in the Athletic Grounds last Sunday when St Eunan’s joint manager Eamon O’Boyle was pushed to the ground during the first-half of their Ulster SFC club clash with Crossmaglen Rangers.
The incident was the latest in a series of flashpoints to concern GAA chiefs and O’Neill, who also alluded to the recent fracas in the Clare minor hurling final involving Dublin boss Anthony Daly, believes action needs to be taken.
He also revealed that he counted 45 people on the sideline during last Sunday’s clash in Armagh and believes the sideline needs to be regarded ‘as sacrosanct’.
The proposal will be raised at a meeting of the association’s management committee on Friday week, November 23rd. It will also feature at the pre-Christmas meeting of the Central Council and it could come into practice for next season.
“I see no advantage in people being on the sideline. We have to come to a stage where the sideline is sacrosanct. I counted on the sideline in front of the stand in Armagh 45 people, including the eight or so people in the tunnel.
‘It’s not an exaggeration. I actually went to bother of counting them. Some of them are stewards that responded to the difficulty of what happened but that’s too many people.
“I said that long before that incident happened, long before the incidents in the All-Ireland finals and long before we had the incident in Clare.
“Most of the people involved in those incidents are, in their normal lives, great people. But, whatever happens on the sideline, they don’t show themselves to be the great people they are.”
“Let’s get them off the sideline. Put them in the stand. I am in a position now where I can at least suggest that we do it.
O’Neill agreed the policy may be harder to implement at club level but pointed out that in the case management teams could be put outside the fence that encloses the majority of pitches.
In the case of pitches that are not surrounded by a fence, he suggested putting up a rope and insisted the ruling would not prevent water-carriers or hurley-carriers from entering the pitch.”
Six years ago moves were made to bring in a similar proposal but a band of inter-county managers mobilised to launch opposition to it and it was ultimately binned.
The GAA President admits that they may face opposition to the proposal.
“I am not sure how far we will get on it. Of course, the argument will be made that we are going too far.
“But but we have to reach the stage at some point where the pitch is sacrosanct. I think the players would appreciate that in the long run.”
