CHARLIE VERNON has urged the GAA to tackle the talent drain from the inter-county scene and warned that the game could soon morph into a Sigerson-type tournament for the under-25s.
The Armagh full-back expressed concern with the increasing number of players walking away from the GAA before reaching their peak years.
Vernon, who turns 30 later this month, is still in the early throes of fatherhood after his wife Joanne gave birth to their son, also named Charlie, last month.
“I’m absolutely delighted, it’s a great feeling. It’s something we’re very much looking forward to," he said.
“My father and grandfather were called Charlie, so he’s Charlie the IV.”
Now living in Magherafelt, Vernon has no intentions of joining the talent drain: “There are plenty of county players that have kids and they’re able to manage it," he said.
“To be able to play sport at the top level, you have to have a supportive family and supportive environment. Unfortunately, some players don’t have that and they have to make the call as they have to fulfil more important commitments in their lives, but it would be nice to see - I don’t know what could be done - a facility for players to be able to manage that and not turn the inter-county game into the Sigerson Cup.”
Vernon added: “I don’t think it’s healthy to have a game that is just made up of students, young, single men. [It's a case of] You play until you’re 25 and then you’re back with your club.
“International rugby has guys playing at a very high level who are in their mid-30s. Obviously I’m comparing that to a professional game, but there is no reason why people of that age profile can’t perform but it’s difficult.
“It’s something you need to manage and you need a very understanding wife and family, you need an understanding boss at work and you have to work with your county manager. It’s a challenge.”
Vernon has been one of the mainstays of the Armagh team since making his Championship debut back in 2008. During those nine years the all-action Armagh Harps man has noticed a sharp rise in the increased demands on players.
“Andy Mallon used to laugh at boys coming back after Christmas and there would be a wee layer of fat," Vernon laughs.
"Christmas would have gone well for them. But guys come back after Christmas for the McKenna Cup and everywhere you look it’s lean and mean, everybody’s a fighting machine. Now that’s only anecdotal but there are no guts any more.
“I think the demands of county football have increased in terms of time and commitment even from when I started until now. Let’s say you get an injury; it just takes you an extra couple of weeks to get back up to where the rest of the boys are, or where the expected level is. That’s just in terms of physical fitness.
"In terms of the effort that goes into analysis and tactics and performance assessment, it does take a lot of time and effort. And that’s not for everybody.
“Some people prefer the older model where you turned up Tuesday and Thursday and see how you got on a Sunday. There are arguments for both…
“I know some guys who work night-shifts have had to step away because they physically couldn’t bring themselves to do it, and they couldn’t put up with it any longer.
“Maybe GAA, centrally, could have some influence to try and create an environment where you get the balance,” he said.
