Media coverage of the GAA questioned by former manager

Former Dublin football manager Paul Caffrey has criticised the “Premiership” style coverage of Gaelic games by Irish sports journalists.

Caffrey who managed Dublin from 2004 to 2008 believes that many journalists are aping the tactics of their English counterparts when it comes to media coverage of the GAA.

“I think that many media outlets are taking their lead from the Premiership and adopting the tactics of soccer journalists as regards criticism of managers and teams. But what journalists need to remember is that Premiership managers are paid professionals who have negotiated contracts with clubs. I never signed a contract with the Dublin County Board as regards becoming manager and I think that many journalists need to realise that they are not comparing like with like,” he said.

Caffrey admits that the media circus that surrounds the Dublin manager’s position is intense but feels that it is all part of the job.

“I think anyone who is stepping into management has to have a thick neck and if you’re not prepared for the criticism then you need to find something else to do,” he said.

While he acknowledges that some criticism is justified and understandable he does feel that some media pundits are guilty of hypocrisy when it comes to giving analysis.

“Obviously a bad headline will generate more interest than a good one but when you have former players and managers criticising your decisions and tactics during matches and then you find out that they weren’t even at the match it can be very frustrating,” he said.

The Na Fianna clubman also believes that all too often journalists engage in negative criticism and can become unrealistic when it comes to achieving success.

“When I was manager of Dublin we won four Leinster titles and unfortunately we didn’t win the all Ireland but when you look at the results since 1984 Dublin have only won one all Ireland since then. That means that Dublin have only won one all Ireland in twenty-five attempts. Dublin have won one under 21 all Ireland since the competition began and we haven’t won a minor all Ireland since 1984,” he said.

While Caffrey acknowledges that his goal was to win an all Ireland with Dublin he admits that he has absolutely no regrets during his reign as manager.

“I think that every manager has to look back and ask the question did I improve the team and I certainly have no trouble sleeping at night when it comes to accessing my time in charge of Dublin,” he added.

The last fifteen years has brought intense media coverage to Gaelic games and it has placed players and managers alike under the media spotlight. Sunday Game presenter and former Kerry forward Pat Spillane believes that many inter county managers have become too powerful as a result of increased media coverage.

“I think that the cult of the manager has taken over in recent years and managers have been given too much power and prestige to be honest.

“If the manager wants no club matches for four weeks he gets it and if he wants a foreign training camp he gets it. Things like media bans are more to do with keeping the manager happy rather than protecting the players,” he said.

Spillane also hit out at the coverage that some teams and managers receive from the media and feels that journalists are guilty of lavishing praise on teams without any merit.

“I felt that the media were guilty of giving the Wexford football team and their manager Jason Ryan far too much praise last year. For example Jason Ryan appeared on the Late Late Show and Tubridy Tonight but he won nothing. Wexford were hammered in the Leinster Final by Dublin and all they really did was beat a slow Armagh team and to be honest that is not something to be getting excited about,” he said.

The eight times all Ireland medal winner also believes that the media pressure on players and managers alike can be ferocious but he feels that many players and managers can be guilty of courting publicity.

“Well journalists have a job to do but I think that every player and manager has an ego and everyone loves a bit of publicity for themselves,” Spillane added.

While many managers are often the victims of scathing criticism from local and national media some journalists have also found themselves on the receiving end of verbal attacks.

One such incident occurred in last year’s Leinster football championship when former Laois football manager Liam Kearns referred to Laois Voice sports writer Jack Nolan as a “clown”. The attack came after Kearns team had recorded a laboured win over Wicklow in their opening championship match. Kearns who was annoyed by criticism he had received in Laois then went on a tirade against GAA reporters in the county.

“There are clowns who know nothing about the game in Laois and they are writing about the game in the local papers. I don’t know who employs them but they really would need to talk to someone who knows something about football,” Kearns said.

Kearns then singled out reporter Jack Nolan and asked him about his journalism qualifications and if he had any. He also demanded to know what level Nolan had ever played or managed at.

“You’re nothing only a big mouth who has plenty to say and nothing to back it up with. And that’s from the players as well because you slagged the players off last year, but it’s easy to be personal in a paper,” Kearns added.

While Nolan said that he was initially surprised by the criticism he did not faze him in his role as a sports journalist.

“To be honest I felt that it was a very childish thing to do but it did not bother me in the least. I had previously criticised decisions Mick O’Dwyer had made when he was manager and he actually said that it was helpful as it kept him on his toes. Sales of our newspaper doubled the week after Kearns criticised me so it didn’t do me any harm at all,” Nolan said.