Sport

GAA needs to reach out to those who need help

It's important that the GAA protects its younger members from the perils of alcohol and gambling addiction
It's important that the GAA protects its younger members from the perils of alcohol and gambling addiction It's important that the GAA protects its younger members from the perils of alcohol and gambling addiction

LAST week I talked about my unhealthy relationship with football and then the stories emerged of Ballyragget’s celebrations after the team won the Kilkenny Intermediate Hurling Championship at the weekend.

I saw the social media footage which surfaced, as did a huge amount of others, I am sure. I also chose not to forward it to anyone for the sake of the individuals involved. I can only imagine that this particular incident would be hugely embarrassing for them and their families.

After my initial reaction, which was one of laughter might I add, the fact that the footage was caught on mobile phones and forwarded throughout the country went too far.

The fact is that everyone has mobile phones these days and practically everyone is on social media.

I remember a few years ago, the GPA met with inter-county squads and left them under no illusion that any criticism or personal opinions voiced on social media could be used as a basis for banning a player.

You could be penalised under the guise of ‘bringing the Association into disrepute’.

Up until now, I have never heard of Ballyragget. It has now become the GAA equivalent of an X-rated Ballykissangel. It has become the subject of so many jokes.

For some, it will now become the benchmark for how a club title is celebrated.

The media have been quick to seek out the headlines from the sideshow. This is an insight into how things can go very wrong, especially in today’s environment of total accessibility.

The notion of the local GAA club as the last bastion of a sleepy rural Irish culture has increasingly been disassembled over the years and is slowly heading down the same route as the Catholic Church in Ireland.

The unhealthy relationship in Ireland was once with alcohol. Whether this was GAA-related or not, there is an argument now that this unhealthy list has now been added to, with recreational drugs and gambling affecting many GAA communities up and down the country.

I drink alcohol, as do many of my friends, although I can manage to go for three to four months without it. When I was playing football, a few drinks never affected my football. Not once.

I can’t speak for others, but I know quite a few players’ performances were affected by their unhealthy relationship to alcohol. My fear now for a younger generation is that alcohol is just the tip of the iceberg.

Does the GAA need to do more around protecting our young people? Absolutely. We shouldn’t naively assume that episodes like Ballyragget don’t happen.

We should not assume that the days of celebrating in the local pub or GAA clubhouse is enough for some of our GAA activists.

For some reason, society is driving a younger generation to seek a bigger buzz.

Perhaps because winning has become so important in GAA circles, the relief of a victory is greeted with the same excesses as the effort which had been expended getting there.

Increasingly, the approach of team managers and coaches to mentoring a team has become much more strict. Total drink bans are not uncommon, nor is the signing of a players’ charter to be included in any team’s preparations at the commencement of a season.

What happened to the maturity of letting a player decide when it is appropriate to take a drink?

What happened to treating players with a bit of respect as adults and letting them decide for themselves when they can go on holidays.

A proper player will know. Well, he should know, anyway.

Moreover, if he doesn’t know, then how do we encourage self-evaluation and reflection if we continue to lead these players by the hand.

We have entered an era when young people are increasingly sensitive and vulnerable. I am not sure that even my generation can fully appreciate the pressures and sensitivities surrounding those people under 30.

Technology has become our main communication tool. In many cases, it is the only form of communication.

While phone apps have made it much easier to communicate as a team and as individuals, the flip side of this are episodes such as Ballyragget’s celebrations, which are a darker side of the technology.

This will not be the first or last incident of its kind.

If the role of the GAA is to get teams onto the field, appoint coaches and ensure that children are safeguarded throughout their development, they do a very good job.

However, I think more still needs to be done around issues such as alcohol, drugs and gambling. It is not enough just to hold up a few high profile players who have experienced these addictions and have them visit a club once in a blue moon.

The GAA community needs to become a lot more than just a football and hurling club.

Every GAA community should have a club-appointed counsellor or health professional and this should be funded centrally by Croke Park.

There should be training for young people annually on the dangers of social media and awareness and help around these same issues.

There needs to be much more investment from Croke Park for clubs in relation to participating GAA members and addictions.

While I think that the governments, both north and south, have failed in their duty of care to so many parts of society, the GAA in many parts of the country is holding communities together.

Ballyragget’s celebrations may have now become the focus of many jokes, but beneath the surface, it is a sign of a less innocent and sometimes unnoticed undercurrent which permeates society.

That is a society which is sensitive, vulnerable and unsure of itself. It is a society of excesses that has perhaps been encouraged by an unhealthy obsession with winning and being number one in GAA circles.

The GAA can help to educate by not handing out bans or going over the top in investigating incidents. Instead they can act by addressing real issues occurring in society and, where the government has failed, provide significant funds and personnel to those who need help, even if that is help from themselves.

That is the modern GAA.