‘They are dead right to be looking for standards’ – John Kiely backs camogie and ladies football protests

The ladies footballers and camogie players, backed by the Gaelic Players Association (GPA), want the three governing bodies, GAA, Camogie Association and LGFA, to come together to establish a charter that would provide basic medical, gym, nutrition and expense arrangements around their inter-county preparation, even as integration talks are ongoing.

The main financial commitment to meeting those provisions would come from the GAA whose counties already spend around €33m on inter-county preparation at all levels per year.

The female players are currently playing their championships ‘under protest’ and have support from their male counterparts, expressed through captains last week.

Kiely, speaking at his team’s All-Ireland final media evening in the Gaelic Grounds, said the girls are “dead right to be looking for standards that I would consider to be the basic standards.

“Like having a doctor at training. What happens if somebody has a serious head collision and has a serious concussion? Who looks after that player? We’ve had those situations here in training where we’ve had serious collisions, we’ve had players seriously injured, and you need people there,” he said.

“We’re talking about players who are elite sportspersons, they’re not professionals, but they are elite within their own sport.

“They are the best of the best in their own sport. And where you have players who are operating at that level, they have to have medical support around it.

“If they’re going to be conditioned in a way that’s going to help prevent them from getting injured and being able to cope with the demands of the game that they’re trying to play at the highest possible level, well then they need to have access to a gym.

“Surely that’s a basic requirement that could be met without there being an inordinate cost involved.

“The same with the meals. How can you expect an athlete to perform if they’re not nutritionally able to recover from the training they’re doing? Nine-five per cent of recovery is food and sleep … 95 per cent.

“So we’re talking about medical, we’re talking about facilities, gyms, pitches, we’re talking about food, nutrition, and mileage or expenses. How can we possibly expect elite athletes to travel around the country for nothing?”

Kiely said the provisions should be made with no reduction to what male players already receive, suggesting more income can be generated to meet these demands by the relevant organisations.

“Why would you possibly say ‘we want to resource the boys and girls in the same way. That means now we’re going to have to resource the boys in a lesser way’.

“We’re already saying that this is the standard. Why would you drop your standards just so that you can broaden a lower standard? Everybody’s always trying to find more to do more.

“I support clearly those basic standards. Getting there is going to take time. This can’t be just a light switch moment but I think commitments could be made. A pathway could be found. Agreement could be found, in principle, on what should be there and how to get there. Hopefully that’s where it will go to. It’s early doors in the situation.

“Fair play to the girls, they’re bringing it to a head. They’re making their voice heard, which is really, really important.

There needs to be a clear demonstration of being heard as well. I wish them well with the road ahead because they are laying the foundations which other players have laid for the male players now in years gone by. It takes time.”

Kiely has also described as rubbish any assertion that his goalkeeper Nickie Quaid was buying time when he was treated by the Limerick medical team during the first half of Saturday’s semi-final at a time when Galway were dominating.

“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that we’re talking about this two days after two All-Ireland semi-finals, utterly laughable. It’s unbelievable. Of course, obviously, it’s a focus that has been driven by a few individuals but I find it absolutely crazy that we’re talking about this two days after an All-Ireland semi-final.”

Asked whether Quaid wore contact lenses, Kiely said he wasn’t “privy to Nickie’s medical history”.

“Can you imagine me going to Nickie, ‘what’s your sight like, Nickie?’ Would you seriously think I’d be doing such a thing like that? Absolutely not. Number one, actually I will highlight, who called in the doctor to Nickie? James Owens, the referee.

“So I’d say go and ask James Owens. Because his umpire expressed concern to James Owens about Nickie, because Nickie wasn’t feeling well. That’s what happened. Fact. Obviously these people that are commenting online don’t know the facts, so I think the facts are very important.”

Meanwhile, a number of steps have been set out for captain Declan Hannon as he rehabilitates from the knee injury that kept him out of the semi-final.

“I know there’s work that he’s going to go doing tomorrow (Tuesday), Wednesday, Thursday, Friday so we just have to see does he incrementally move through those expectations or milestones,” said Kiely.