GAA NEWS
GAA CONGRESS
The GAA's annual Congress in Belfast passed nearly all the motions resulting from proposals of the Disciplinary Rules and Procedures sub-committee, and the new rules are effective in 2003.
a. These new GAA rules prohibit a committee in charge of a game (e.g., a County Board) from lifting a player's red-card suspension. Where video or other evidence warrants it, requests for re-consideration must be referred to a higher GAA body for a decision.
b. The new rules require, in most instances, that suspensions be carried-over to the next game in the same competition, regardless of the time between games. For example, a player ordered off with a straight red card in an NACB Championship Final is automatically suspended for the first NACB Championship game of the following year.
c. The new rules permit unlimited "blood" substitutions, as deemed necessary by the Referee.
d. The new rules differentiate between club and county games when it comes to applying certain suspensions. A player suspended for a Category C or D offence (see Rule 138 Official Guide) is suspended for that same level of competition only and not for other competition levels.
For example, if the suspension is for something that happened in a club game, the suspension does not apply to county games, and vice versa. However, the more serious category A and B suspensions (see Rule 138 Official Guide) apply in every grade and level of competition.
e. Congress agreed to change the sanction deadline for players traveling from Ireland to the North American County Board (NACB) area. The new deadline of July 1 means that an NACB club may not register any Irish-born players after that date. On the other hand, U.S. born players may be registered any time before August 15.
OVERSEAS COMMITTEE
The GAA's Overseas Committee is responsible for promoting Gaelic games outside Ireland. Management committee has already approved a $385,000 budget (U.S. dollars) for the overseas committee for the next 12 months and the budget includes $27,500 for coaching projects in the NACB area plus another $22,500 for coaching projects in Canada.
There is also money budgeted to provide start-up equipment grants for new football, hurling and/or camogie clubs. These grants, in the form of footballs, hurleys, etc., are available to new men's, women's and under-age clubs, but only in areas where there are no such clubs at present.
The Camogie Association in Ireland celebrates its centenary year in 2004 and as part of the celebration, an international camogie tournament is planned that will include an NACB team, and a grant for that purpose is budgeted.
The next women's international football tournament, now being held every three years, will tie-in with the all-Ireland ladies junior football championship, but the details have yet to be finalized. A twinning arrangement between GAA units abroad and GAA units in Ireland is being organized to provide better communication and contacts for coaching and refereeing. In this regard GAA units in North America have been twinned with the province of Munster.
APPOINTMENTS
Among appointments made by incoming GAA President Seán Kelly, Gene Duffy of Armagh (brother of San Francisco's Joe Duffy) was appointed new Chair of the overseas committee. Jim Treacy of Tyrone (brother of former NACB Chair Owen Treacy) was elected a GAA Trustee, which also means that Jim is now on the GAA's management committee.
MEETINGS
While at Congress, NACB officers also had a meeting with delegates from the New York County Board. The possibility of official games between teams from the different jurisdictions was explored, as were areas of better cooperation, the differences in rules, especially relating to sanctions.
All those present agreed that the ideal arrangement down the road would be for teams from New York to fully participate in the North American playoffs on an annual basis, but the problems of operating under a different set of by-laws, is seen as the biggest stumbling-block.
The fact that there are separate GAA County jurisdictions involved was also viewed as a problem but it was felt that this could be surmounted. Similar discussions took place during a separate NACB meeting with the Canadian County Board delegates, and the possibility of a Canadian football team competing in the 2004 NACB Championships was also discussed.
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