The mooted appointment of Rory Gallagher as a coach with Naas GAA club took centre stage over the weekend, with reaction within and outside the club forcing it not to happen.
Gallagher was accused of domestic abuse by his ex-wife in the media during the build up to the Ulster Football Final in 2023.
He strongly defended himself against the allegations saying that they had been investigated and no charges had been brought forward by the PSNI or the Prosecution Services in Northern Ireland.
Such was also the case with the allegations against Conor McGregor which subsequently came before the courts as the result of a civil action taken by his accuser Nikita Hand.
Public Opinion
We will not go into the detail of either case but in that of McGregor the jury were in line with the admittedly more fickle and less reliable court of public opinion in condemning McGregor’s action.
Because it was a civil case he still is a free man, as is Rory Gallagher. Indeed Gallagher’s right to coach teams was upheld by the GAA’s Dispute Resolutions Authority, albeit in a complex and nuanced 52 point ruling in February 2024.
To see the full ruling you can do so here.
The issue of domestic violence in a general sense is what is at stake here and doubtless the reason why GAA President Jarlath Burns took it upon himself to contact Naas GAA club, expressing his concern.
This has been criticised as overreach by some but it comes less than six weeks after Burns was front and centre stage in the launch of the GAA, LGFA and Camogie Association backing of the Game Changer initiative with Ruhama.
Positive Influence
As we wrote on Sport for Business at the time this is “a campaign which seeks to harness the positive influence of Gaelic Games to challenge the social and cultural norms that contribute to gender-based violence and sexual exploitation, and aims to deliver positive behaviour change throughout society.”
Those social and cultural norms have contributed to the more than 60,000 reports of domestic abuse in Ireland last year.
They are part of the general sense that “sure nothing was proven and he’s not that sort of lad.”
Women know that this is wrong, and it is beholden on men to support them.
Jarlath Burns was showing leadership, not overreach in expressing his views, as a man, as a coach, as a teacher, as a President of the social organisation that reaches way beyond the result of matches in its importance within Irish society.
He did not intervene to formally stop any appointment. That was always and still is in the gift of Naas GAA Club or any other club.
He asked them to consider the wider perspective beyond the first team. He did not do so through a press conference at Croke Park, but personally via an email.
Leadership can sometimes be seen as a performative function and that can be an element but it is in the quieter words of persuasion and encouragement that real change of attitude and behaviour can me made.
To get a sense of whether you believe he was right or wrong put yourself in the position of asking would you be comfortable if it had been your club considering the appointment.
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