OUTSPOKEN GAA pundit Joe Brolly faced a storm of criticism yesterday after saying Cavan football was "as ugly as Marty Morrissey", in a reference to the popular RTÉ commentator.
Analysing Monaghan's first round Ulster Championship clash with Cavan, Brolly, who previously described Cavan's style as "the black death", criticised the Breffnimen's first half display.
The former Derry forward, who later apologised for the remark, said: "As somebody said, it is as ugly as Marty Morrissey, their football."
The comment prompted an awkward exchange between the studio guests, with host Michael Lyster immediately putting up his hand, saying: "No, no, no."
Brolly replied: "Maybe that's putting it...maybe I should apologise to the people of Cavan for that."
After a commercial break, the 1993 All-Ireland winner broke from analysis of the on-field action and returned to the subject to apologise.
He said: "On the other thing, what I said about Marty Morrissey was said in the spirit of affection and wasn't meant literally."
Presenter Michael Lyster responded: "We appreciate that because it was out of order Joe."
Contacted by The Irish News after the match, which Monaghan won by 0-16 to 0-15, Brolly said the comment was "only a bit of fun".
Brolly's quip about the presenter, who commentated on the Clare v Limerick hurling match for RTÉ radio later in the afternoon, drew sharp criticism on social media.
Some called for RTÉ to "get rid of" the presenter and described the comment as a "low blow", while one woman tweeted "Joe Brolly is hardly an oil painting himself."
Another rather sarcastically referred to Joe Brolly as "Dungiven's George Clooney."
Brolly, who has been critical in recent times of elements of the GAA game, has recently hit out at the practice of 'sledging' in which one player personally insults another in an attempt to throw him off his game.
Writing in the Sunday Independent yesterday on the matter he said: "There is no redeeming feature in this stuff. It is hateful and can only breed hatred."
At the start of last summer's Championship coverage, Brolly was criticised after referring to Sky Sports presenter Rachel Wyse as a "Baywatch babe" in a tweet.
He wrote: "Sky's entrenched beautiful anchor formula is shamelessly sexist, designed for their over-whelmingly male audience. That is the point."
Brolly added: "It is a formula designed to titillate their largely male audience."
The former Allstar and barrister, who is also well known for his campaigning for organ donation and who donated a kidney to a fellow GAA coach Shane Finnegan, later apologised for those remarks, saying it was "crass and wrong of me."
No-one at RTÉ was available for comment yesterday.