Horan breaks silence over acts of violence

GAA president John Horan has finally broken his silence on the unedifying scenes that have blighted the club season, saying that there is a ‘collective responsibility’ between players, mentors, officials and supporters to behave in an appropriate manner. Horan made the statement in the October edition of the GAA Club newsletter, admitting that some of the incidents witnessed have been disturbing and the indiscipline has led to dangerous situations. ‘For all the triumph and glory that we have witnessed, our attention, regrettably, has been drawn to the reports and imagery of flashpoints of indiscipline that have flared up in a small number of games,’ Horan stated. ‘Although these brawls and acts of indiscipline have been few – let us be clear, they have still been a few too many and have no place in our games. ‘We cannot allow people to believe that they can behave differently than they would on the street because they are wearing a jersey or team tracksuit top or are attending a game. ‘An act of violence is an act of violence regardless of where it takes place,’ Horan maintained. ‘The perpetrators of these incidents are not above the law. All of us involved in playing, supporting and

administrating our games have a duty of care to protect the reputation of the games that we are involved in. Indiscipline compromises that reputation.’ Horan (left) called on players to show restraint and show referees respect, while also conceding that Croke Park will need to look at the numbers on the sideline, in light of recent incidents. ‘We should be cognisant at all of our games that players, managers and parents are role models for children in the GAA. ‘Where action needs to be taken, action should be taken. Punishments and suspensions need to be meaningful and should have an impact. ‘We have a collective responsibility to send out a signal as to the type of games we want.’