DISTANT MEMORY Then Mayo Over-40s captain John Pat Sheridan is pictured with his daughter Sarah after winning the All-Ireland Masters championship title in 2009.Pic: Ann Hennessy
Congress rejects Masters motion but Mayo lads intend to play onMike FinnertyTHE Burrishoole GAA club motion to revive the All-Ireland Masters Series was rejected at the GAA’s Annual Congress in Mullingar last weekend.
The motion, which was presented by Mayo GAA Board Chairman, Paddy McNicholas, failed to get the necessary support to be adopted into rule, with 54 per cent of delegates voting against it.
The motion was supported by two former GAA Presidents, Dr Mickey Loftus from Crossmolina, and SeΡn Kelly, who cited similar competitions in other sports such as tennis, golf and the AFL.
However, the motion was opposed by the GAA’s CCCC (Central Competitions Control Committee) and, ultimately, was rejected by a little more than half those delegates present.
“We’re very disappointed,” Burrishoole GAA club’s John Pat Sheridan, a former Mayo Masters captain, told The Mayo News last night.
“The decision would make you wonder what the GAA is all about. I was always led to believe that the main purpose of the GAA was to promote participation and encourage people to play Gaelic games.
“We expected that we’d win the vote, that delegates would pass it. You can see from the result that it was very close. The motion got an awful lot of support.
“You also have to take into account that the main opposition to the motion came from the GAA’s CCCC. But to lose out by 8 per cent shows that there was huge support for the motion from right across the country.
“We also got great backing from two former Presidents of the GAA, Dr Mickey Loftus and SeΡn Kelly who both spoke in favour of the motion.
“It was actually SeΡn Kelly who mooted the idea of recreational football during his presidency. But his idea was to bring players back into the GAA and maintain the competitive element, not take it away.”
Sheridan was accompanied to the GAA Congress by Peter Moran from Burrishoole GAA club and Mayo over 40s stalwart, Padraig Flannery, from Garrymore.
He was anxious to pay tribute to all those who had supported the Masters cause over the last two years as they fought to have the All-Ireland championship recognised as an official competition by Croke Park.
“I’d like to thank my own club, Burrishoole, for their support and all the clubs and people in the county who backed the Mayo Masters team over the last two years,” he said.
“We knew there was support for this right around the country but, not alone did we get backing from counties who took part in the Masters competition, but also from the likes of Cork who would have no history in the Over 40s championship.
“The GAA President, Christy Cooney, who made some excellent points at Congress, was at pains to point out that there was no lack of connection between Croke Park and the grassroots of the GAA,” added Sheridan.
“But, less than half an hour later, the CCCC spoke against a competition that would promote Gaelic games participation for players all across the country. It would make you wonder.”
He also confirmed that many of the Mayo over 40s players would be lining out with the ‘St Patrick’s Masters’ in the Mayo GAA Reserve League which begins next month.
There is also a meeting to be held to discuss the next move in relation to the future of Masters football nationwide.
“It’s a consolation, but only a token consolation, that we have been allowed to take part in the Reserve League,” he admitted. “We’ll be playing against lads half our age and, while we’re delighted, our ambition was to play in the Masters inter-county competition.
“After the decision at Congress last weekend, we intend to hold a meeting, sit down, and see where we go from here as a group of Masters players from right around the country.”
