Everything is different on the field of play. The minute certain players step foot on a GAA field, they turn into a completely different animal.
It’s a good sign in a player. It shows they are fired up, it shows they mean business and it shows they’re not going to be messed around with.
The majority of players are able to channel this fire to controlled aggression on the field of play. Others, well some players just can’t keep their mouths shut.
Sledging is a massive part of the modern game. It’s a means of rattling and getting under the skin of opposing players.
It’s something that players hate to be the victim of, but something that players wouldn’t condemn if one of their team-mates was practising it, according to Steven McDonnell.
McDonnell, speaking on The GAA Hour Football Show on Thursday revealed a classic case of his Armagh team-mate, Ciarán McKeever acting the mouthpiece in his duel with Down attacker Benny Coulter. Coulter hated marking McKeever. He thought he hated McKeever.
“The early years of his (Ciarán McKeever) career at senior inter-county level, when he was tasked with marking Benny Coulter. He absolutely tortured Benny the first couple of times and Benny despised Kieran, he absolutely despised him.”
The two men were soon involved with Irish International rules side and Benny realised that McKeever was a completely different person on and off the pitch. That’s the way it is with a lot of GAA players. Many of the best players are born winners, they will do absolutely everything within their powers to ensure victory. Off the field, then they could be quiet as mice.
Some players see sledging their opponents as a massive part of the game.
“He came to play with him at the international rules and realised Kieran isn’t this animal he was facing on the football pitch, he was a totally different character. That’s just the way it is. Sometimes when a player pulls on that jersey he turns into a different animal and that’s what I love to see. I love to see somebody turning into something else that you don’t expect of them…Every successful team needs two or three of those guys to get under the skin of their opponents and Tyrone, certainly, have more than enough.”
Show host Colm Parkinson argued the case that Coulter would have been urging McKeever to treat the Australians with similar verbal abuse when he was his team-mate.
As many players say, “What happens on the field, stays on the field.”
“And then Benny will be saying, ‘here do that to your man, do that to the Australian.’ you want these fellas on your side when you’re playing,” remarked Parkinson.
Sledging really came to prominence in Ulster football with the likes of Ryan McMenamin pioneers of the tactic. Speaking on The GAA Hour earlier in the year, McMenamin revealed just how much thought he put into his sledging game.
Listen to the lads’ chat about sledging in the GAA here from 33’00”.
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