MONAGHAN midfielder Dick Clerkin has a good idea of what it must be like to walk in Tiernán McCann’s shoes.
Clerkin was nearby when McCann threw himself to the ground after Monaghan’s Darren Hughes ruffled his hair during last weekend’s stormy All-Ireland quarter-final at Croke Park. Hughes was subsequently sent off.
McCann’s act of gamesmanship will haunt him for quite some time – just in the same way Clerkin felt his reputation for belligerence came under the microscope after a niggly Ulster Championship clash with Derry in 2009.
Clerkin and Fergal Doherty didn’t cover themselves in glory that day in Celtic Park.
The two midfielders wrestled with one another and their actions were subsequently condemned by GAA pundits.
In the days after Clerkin was hurt by what he heard and read. From that day on, he decided to make changes.
“Sometimes allowances have to be made regarding what happens within the white lines; people will make bad decisions,” said the veteran midfielder.
“God knows, I have. You can’t be pilloried over one thing. If that was the case nobody would put themselves forward to play. All you can do is learn from it.
“I remember Monaghan and Derry were pulled into the spotlight for our game in Celtic Park in 2009. There was a huge outcry and I got pulled into it.
“You think: ‘This will harden you' and you’ll let it wash off your back.
“I didn’t find it pleasant at all. It was a defining game for me. My behaviour had to change after that, and it did change.”
Clerkin added: “It affected me in the next game… I just felt it was a distraction I didn’t need going into a Championship game. Other players can deal with it better than others.
“At that time I found it difficult to deal with it when I listened to the media. I do worry about what my family thinks, what my friends think, what other people think. I’m just that type of person.
“I made a conscious effort from then that my behaviour on the field and how I was perceived would change.
“I think it did and I think people have a different perception of me as a footballer now over the last five years.
“Sometimes there is a defining moment where things change. But I can’t speak for anybody else. For some players it’s not easy, and how would it be, really?”
McCann has been charged with ‘discrediting the association’ and the CCCC has proposed he serves an eight-week ban that would see him miss Tyrone’s All-Ireland semi-final against Kerry and an All-Ireland final should the Red Hands get through.
The Tyrone County Board will contest the proposed ban while Mickey Harte has defended his player.
While Clerkin stated that an eight-week ban was “excessive” and ran contrary to “natural justice”, he felt that this could be a watershed moment within the game.
“There is a time and a place that something changes, where [new] laws are made,” he said.
“People have different opinions on the merits of it. This is one of those situations. It has happened before and there are players before Tiernan McCann who should have received the same treatment.
“[The thinking is] Is it a one-off [diving] or is it becoming endemic in the game?
“Possibly, the fear is that it’s becoming endemic. So what do you do? At some stage you have to draw a line. Somebody is going to be bust. Somebody is going to be the first to suffer, and it looks like Tiernan McCann is going to be the first."
Clerkin admitted: “It’ll be tough for him, it’ll be tough for Tyrone. There is an unfairness about it. There is merit in the Association responding to public outcry but the reality is the people have the responsibility to legislate how the game evolves and how it is run – as a body - not one manager, not one team.
“People, in general, think that this should not be part of our game so we have to tackle it. Maybe this is the right way to do it, maybe it’s not.
“Whatever way the cards fall, so be it. If Tiernan McCann gets off, so be it. He does have grounds to appeal in terms of natural justice. That’s fair enough. Let’s just see how the cards fall.
“It is a test case. I think the sanction is excessive for what he done. He could potentially miss an All-Ireland semi-final and final over this. [But] This is another example of the rules not being fit for purpose.”
Meanwhile, Clerkin hasn’t decided on his inter-county future with Monaghan following their soul-sapping defeat to Tyrone last Saturday.
The 34-year-old is already the longest serving player on the inter-county circuit. Regardless of his intentions, he believes Monaghan can challenge again and that there is no reason why boss Malachy O’Rourke should consider quitting the post after three fruitful years in charge that has yielded two Ulster titles.
“I can see no reason why Malachy should leave. Right or wrong, every manager that isn’t part of a massively successful team gets asked that question at the end of the year. It’s par for the course. There are 31 teams whose seasons end in defeat every year.
“The Tyrone game was a very disappointing team performance but it shouldn’t be the game that defines us this year. That would be extremely unfair and wouldn’t be representative of what we’ve done and what we’ve come to represent.”
“We still have a young panel,” Clerkin added.
“If you take Paul Finlay, Eoin Lennon and myself out of it, what was our contribution in an Ulster final? I played five minutes. ‘Jap’ didn’t play at all while Eoin had a decent game. If we’re not there next year that’s still an Ulster title winning team.”
