The Danger of Hype and Naivity

Last weekend, Munster & Lions (for now anyway) 'hero' Alan Quinlan disgraced himself by getting caught in full view of the Sky cameras, appearing to try to gouge his former Ireland teammate Leo Cullen. Rugby being rugby, maybe the only 'disgrace' was in getting caught. It's Quinlan's ability to make opponents rage and lose concentration that endeared him to the Lions management but such antics are rarely seen by the jolly fans as they happen under the cover of hefty teammates and opponents. I still await the public condemnation that so often follows when one of our G.A.A. players is deemed to have committed an act of violence.

Following Munster's defeat, I listened to many 'gutted' people commiserate with eachother as if life as we know it had ended. I look on in disbelief at people who would barely know the difference between the touchline and the tryline. Mick Galway? The Claw? I doubt these 'fans' would have a clue who these characters are, highlighting the fickle and recent nature of their allegiance to the mighty men of Munster. My mind baffles at their love and loyalty for, what former Limerick Hurling boss Tom Ryan, correctly described this week as 'an artificially created super club'. Of course this comes about through the sell your soul world of professional rugby where the game can sell all but its underpants to Sky Sports who in turn will 'glorify' all that they possibly can.

The third thing that caught my attention this week was the 'penalty' shoot-out in the other European Cup semi. Here we saw professional athletes, unable in some cases, to even raise the ball from the tee, not alone tap it over from a mere 22m in front of the posts. It's probably fair enough though as the ball is the concern of only a limited number of rugby players. Most spend the game huffing and puffing at the pit of rucks and mauls. Wingers can regularily be seen shaking out their arms to try and get some blood circulating. I'd speculate that many professional rugby players haven't touched the ball in months. As you go lower down the ranks, i'd hasten a guess that some may have never touched the ball. Indeed, on occassion there may be a collision between man and ball but they rather concede the knock on than take the responsibility of carrier.

I mused over these and other thoughts yesterday afternoon. I was down at hurling training and we were doing some long pucking. None of us have decorated hurling careers in our wake but I was watching the regularity with which some could put the ball in a lads hand from 60 yards. It could be done with strikes from different angles and from different centres of gravity. On occassion you could see men double on a high ball out of the sky, striking it gently up in the air so it could be easily caught. Other balls would be deadened on the hurley, lofted high and launched back to its source.

Such skills can only be developed by men who have played the game since a small age. You don't see a 17 year old pick up a hurley for the first time and be able to garner enough skill in the years that follow to even find a place on the most average of teams. Contrast this with the regular stories of rugby lads taking up the game in their late teens and earning professional contracts withing a few years. I may be wrong but I remember another recent example of an Ulster lad who was in his twenties when he first crashed into a ball, and has even managed an international call up!!

What is my point? I just can't understand the basis for the hype which rugby has generated through having two decents teams in the whole country. One possible reason is the teams have been competitive on the international stage, something Ireland has a shortage of. But we need to put this into context. The French and maybe even the English teams often treat the European Cup as an afterthought. Their domestic leagues are packed with consistently competitive encounters, unlike the Apple Cider League. Ireland won a Grand Slam this year against a bunch of experimental teams contesting a Championship which represents the Northern Hemisphere's finest, but only produces as many competitive teams as the Munster Hurling Championship.

Yet, people are naive and they can be overcome by hype. Sky Sports have made the game. Its a fantastic television sport, lacking in fast play, allowing the camera follow the action. The lengthy time the ball spends stuck in a heap allows the commentator educate the ignorant audience. The 80 minute games allow for a glorious 30 second action packed musical summary to whet the appetite for the next day.

Contrast this to another sport which is rich in skill and hard hits, played at break-neck speed, but a television flop. It's Ice Hockey of course. The grace with which these men can move across the ice, their control at top speed and their ability to withstand physical threats from all angles, cannot be captured by even the highest definition of cameras and so are not watchable television sports.

Hurling suffers from a similiar problem. Its a game that cannot be appreciated on RTE or TV3. Rather than seek the support of Sky's wizards, the G.A.A has not sold out, thus ensuring the Irish public can freely watch the great game from their living rooms, rather than forcing its fans to dig deep for a Sky subscription or encouraging them down to the boozer.

However, the ease at which the public's hearts can be swayed, means the G.A.A. needs to act. We cannot be complacent. Tom Ryan's comment that 'this bandwagon will pass' is typical of a large section of the G.A.A. who stand with chests out and heads held high proclaiming about how the Association has looked down far bigger barrels without a hint of a flinch.

The tools of influence are now greater then ever however. The G.A.A. needs to face up. We have the greatest field sport in the world and what makes it great is the abundance of complex skills. This strength can be its biggest weakness as it makes the mastery of the art of hurling far more difficult for mere mortals to grasp. The campaign to win back the hearts and minds of kids needs to start now. Those lost to the bandwagons can be cut lose, but fellas like my three year old nephew (who is inexplicably sporting a #10 Munster jersey on a regular basis) need to be pointed in the right direction. Our clubs stand for far more than fancy copywriter phrases like 'Stand Up and Fight'. They stand for community. These rugby fans may shed a drunken tear when the men in red taste defeat but have they ever experienced being in a car with a lad crying uncontrollably from Croke Park to Cork after losing an All-Ireland? Have they been in the car as it pulled out from Caherlag filled with tears after their club has been defeated?

Rugby is merely Sport. G.A.A. is life and death. Its time to up the ante.