Dublin manager Jim Gavin has confirmed that Eoghan O'Gara will appeal the automatic one match suspension which is set to rule him out of the All-Ireland semi-final against Kerry on August 28th.
O'Gara was sent off in the second half of Dublin's 1-15 to 1-10 quarter-final victory over Donegal following an incident with Neil McGee. Following a discussion with his umpires, referee Ciarán Brannagan showed McGee a yellow but O'Gara a straight red card.
“I think so, yeah (Dublin will appeal),” said Gavin. “The players know my feeling about if you raise your hand and make contact with somebody’s head, that you are going to get sent off and get no sympathy from me.”
The replay showed O’Gara slapping McGee, with an open hand, in the midriff when the Donegal defender would not release his jersey.
Regarding the two yellow cards that led to Diarmuid Connolly’s sending off, Gavin added: “It was a source of disappointment that for a team that wants to play the game the way we want to that we, Dublin, end up with 13 men. That is the surprising bit I find. It is probably a question you need to ask the officials on that one.
“It was all very predictable going into it; we all knew that some of our players would receive special attention. That was the case. It was up to the officials to act upon it. If they don’t, the eight of them, four umpires and four men in black, if they don’t act upon it they are letting the players down on the pitch. On both sides by the way.”
Gavin was asked if he believes that Dublin opponents are now routinely trying to get Connolly sent off.
“Absolutely, yeah.” What can be done? “I’m a big supporter of the rules that were brought in to eradicate cynical play from our game. I would have always been an advocate of the sin bin but I understand the logistical difficulties from an administrative perspective, in real time in games, but I think the black card has served us well. You don’t see any cynical pull downs. That was the main driver for it to be introduced and that’s not happening anymore.
“The officials are doing a fantastic job and their communication between each other shows it is certainly evolving.
“Rules have to be equally applied.” Gavin, echoing Mickey Harte after Tyrone lost to Mayo following the sending off of Seán Cavanagh, believes the impulse of referees to yellow card both players involved in an altercation is unfair to the player who did not initiate physical contact.
“In the main, forwards want to get on and play the game...for us to finish up with 13 men was a bit strange.”
Gavin added that James McCarthy was unable to prove his full fitness, following a knee and quad injury, despite a rigorous warm-up before throw-in.
“As you can see he is very close to it. He was keen to get on but thankfully we didn’t need to bring him on.”
After the game Donegal’s veteran forward Colm McFadden retired from inter-county football.
“That will be it after today, yeah,” said McFadden. “I don’t know was it 14 or 15 years? Them young fellas, that game is changing all the time, and there is plenty of fine talent coming through, good legs, good footballers so it is time for them to take up the baton now. The future is bright for Donegal football.
“Every man has his day. Suppose you would like to play on forever but you have to move on at some stage. I was lucky, a couple of great years, particularly these past five or six when we had success. It was a good way for it to happen after those barren years for the first eight or nine seasons. That the success came at the end made it all the sweeter as we had to wait so long.
“It was a great time to be a Donegal footballer.”
