GAA referees feel better protected in the wake of a manager being jailed for assaulting officials during a match in Co Wexford, it has been suggested.
Glen McManus, of Cluain Dara, in Wexford's Clonard area, was sentenced to six months in prison for assaulting a referee and an umpire during a junior football match last September between his club, St John's, and Wexford rivals Our Lady's Island GAA.
Wexford Circuit Court heard how the 34-year-old manager ran onto the pitch after his side lost and attacked a 54-year-old referee from behind.
The official fell to the ground after being punched, before McManus then pushed an umpire who came to the aid of the referee.
McManus pleaded guilty to assault causing harm, and also common assault, and was sentenced to 18 months, with the final 12 months suspended.
The court was told the referee was unable to work for four weeks as a result of his whiplash-like injury, and also suffered emotional distress that caused him to step back from refereeing until March of this year.
Judge James McCourt said during the hearing: “People must understand that voluntary referees and their assistants need to be protected from this kind of thuggery."
McManus was also ordered to pay €2,500 compensation to the referee.
Following the hearing, chairman of the Wexford GAA referees’ committee, Séamus Whelan, said the sentencing will "send out the right signals" in regards to the safety of officials during GAA games.
"The referees that I spoke to were happy, they feel more protected going forward," he said.
Speaking of the Wexford County Board, Mr Whelan said: "They brought all the referees together and the management team and they all met up as a unit and came up with proposals.
"Generally, we all know from the various news outlets that there are serious problems with referees, maybe not being assaulted, but abused and their pedigree and family background being brought into question.
"Hopefully this case now...will help to push that to one side."
He added that "something had to be done" over the issue of safety.
"I heard a former president of the GAA saying maybe it will come to the day when referees will have to wear body-cams, and then they’ll have the evidence there on camera," Mr Whelan said, adding that such a move "could be looked at" for future matches.
Following the assaults last year, Wexford GAA introduced a new 'Give Respect, Get Respect' initiative, in which players and officials line up to offer handshakes.
Former Wexford hurling manager Davy Fitzgerald said of the furore last year: “We can’t tolerate hitting anybody, any official in the GAA, whether they get something really wrong, really right, there is no room for it. And I’d be a fella that would have given out to referees and would have found it hard to understand decisions.
“But it’s a tough job. For anyone to do that job is incredibly tough. My feeling is, the GAA are going to have to be very hard-handed in how they deal with it.”
