One man steps from the studio to the square while language, on and off the pitch, is centre stage in today’s Hospital Pass.
From the analysts couch to B football for the third team
The hurler on the ditch analogy never gets old. Unlike players. But one member of the Sunday Game panel broke both those conventions by togging out last night.
Colm O’Rourke, the Meath man with a fine line in cool analysis, saw his beloved Simonstown were a man short last night and the former All-Ireland winner threw on the togs one last time.
At 54, we don’t know if he was still plucking balls out of the air as he was in his heyday but with all due respect to Meath B League Division 3 (cue massive lack of respect) the players were probably a level below what he encountered in his pomp too.
One small drawback to O’Rourke influencing matters at the sharp end was the fact that he started in goal, the last refuge of the fading GAA player. According to reports today, the former Royal star made a couple of good saves, and though he conceded two in the second half, including a penalty, Simonstown won the game, 3-14 to 2-11.
We suspect current Meath stopper David Gallagher has nothing to worry about just yet.
Fighting cancer with cancer
Verbals. Sledging. Slagging; there are more words for it than there are Irish words for drunk but the head of the referees in the GAA has had enough of it. Pat McEnaney has called on match officials to clamp down on it.
It seems the decision to get lips buttoned is down to the rather mouthy game between Cork and Kerry. For a start, that local clash would have been fiery even if all the players were forced to wear gags a la Pulp Fiction. And those of you who think that might be a good idea should take it to Congress.
But the admission by McEnaney that it is hard for referees to hear what players are saying makes this crackdown a bit of a nonsense and may well lead to a referee, trying to follow this request, booking a player for something he never said.
And finally, could Pat not find a better formula of words rather than calling the sledging phenomenon ‘a cancer’. If you are trying to crack down on emotive language in games, maybe don’t use it in your condemnation.
