COMMENT: Mayo GAA exposes itself to needless, self-inflicted ridicule

MAYO GAA is the gift that just keeps on giving! Time after time, what should be one of Ireland's biggest sports franchises, exposes itself to needless, self-inflicted ridicule.

Carl Jung the renowned Swiss author and psychologist once said: 'It is often tragic to see how blatantly a man bungles his own life and the lives of others yet remains totally incapable of seeing how much the whole tragedy originates in himself, and how he continually feeds it and keeps it going.'

READ: Three years as Mayo manager: A look back at Kevin McStay's stint in charge of the Green and Red

If Mayo GAA wonder why the county is continually in the headlines for all the wrong reasons they don't have far to look, and last night's horrible press-release ending the managerial term of Kevin McStay is a perfect example.

BREAKING NEWS: Kevin McStay and his management team dismissed by Mayo GAA

Who wrote that statement? Who felt that statement was appropriate? Who felt that statement was a reflection of what Mayo GAA should stand for? Who signed off on that statement? 

Not even the most classless Premier League club would issue such a crass collection of words. Is it any wonder that the general public in Mayo feel more and more removed from Mayo GAA? That sense of disconnect was well-spotted by our columnist Anne Marie Flynn this week when she wrote the following words: 'There is so little to connect fans to the current team because fans don’t know them. With only the rare exception (which you sense is frowned upon) they don’t do media.

'They don’t owe it to fans, and of course we are not entitled to it, but doing it doesn’t damage the cause, and not doing it arguably also deprives young players of an opportunity. It's an amateur sport. Pull the shutters up and let us get a sense for who we are meant to be supporting.'

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The messaging from Mayo GAA has been very poor in recent years. It reached a new low last night and is a very poor reflection on the entire organisation in the county.

Mayo GAA is supposed to represent the clubs of the county and reflect their aims and beliefs. I cannot see any club in Mayo standing over last night's statement sacking Kevin McStay.

It was classless in the extreme. There is no excuse for such wording.

That storm of deserved criticism raining down on the heads of Mayo GAA today completely takes away from the message itself. Kevin McStay was removed from his role as manager of the Mayo senior team after three years in charge.

He had a four-year contract, but in truth, there is no such thing as a contract in the GAA. The county board had the right to terminate the agreement at any stage, as McStay had.

However, were all the criteria followed last night? Should Mayo GAA have convened a meeting of the club delegates and put their recommendation before them?

I'm not sure the outcome would have been any different - maybe it would, maybe it wouldn't - but at least, the decision would have been made by the collective. 

Mayo GAA's handling of managerial appointments and departures in recent years leaves a lot to be desired.

Sean Deane being cast aside after guiding the Minors to two Connacht titles and an All-Ireland final is one example.

Another is the drawn-out saga over McStay last year when it took an inordinate amount of time for Mayo GAA to conduct a review into that season's display.

That was bad enough and left a huge void which was packed with speculation and innuendo, but last night's actions were even worse.

The statement 'relieving' Kevin McStay of his job as Mayo manager will go down in infamy in the history of Mayo sport. Hopefully it will never be surpassed in the race to the bottom. 

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