Male inter-county teams weigh in with their support for female players

CAPTAINS from the senior inter-county football and hurling squads have backed their female counterparts in a statement released on Tuesday through the Gaelic Players Association.

It comes after camogie and ladies football squads stating they were playing the rest of their season under protest, urging all three associations – GAA, Camogie Association and LGFA – to come together to agree a charter for the 2024 season.

Their protest escalated last weekend with players donning #UnitedForEquality t-shirts during their warmup before returning to the dressing rooms after the national anthem, delaying the throw-ins as a result.

Tuesday’s statement from the male players is directed at the GAA leadership and reads as follows:

“We, the 68 captains of the male senior inter-county teams, want to express our full support for our female colleagues and stand beside them #UnitedForEquality. As such, we are asking you to work with the Camogie Association, the Ladies Gaelic Football Association and the Gaelic Players Association to discuss the steps necessary towards providing the minimum standards of welfare and care for female players for 2024. They cannot be expected to wait any longer.

“We do not accept that this is a matter solely for the two female governing bodies which is the response you have given to date. Among the GAA’s values is that of Community Identity. Community is at the heart of our Association. We know from our own communities that if our neighbour is struggling or requires help, the local GAA club steps forward to provide it.

“We know our female inter-county colleagues in the Gaelic games community are in need of support. They need help to provide basics such as medical support, nutritional support, access to facilities and financial support to offset travel expenses.

“Are you going to live that value of community, or will you allow this opportunity for positive change to pass us by? In the GAA we know and love, there would only be one answer to that question.”