COLUMN: Women and sport - a hot topic

Women and sport - a hot topic at the moment. Hot in the sense that what is a fairly neutral type of comment could be interpreted as either reasonable or negative or condescending or even all three.

Safe to say then that it may not be an ideal topic for discussion, but why would that be might be a more topical question?

For example, if I were to suggest that I'm all in favour of women's participation in sport, either on a pitch or a track or in an administrative role, that's not likely to be taken at face value.

It surely means something else - like perhaps that I'm not in favour of women's participation in sport, either on a pitch or a track or in an administrative role!

It all comes down to a simple strategy that, because it is quite simple, is not taken at face value either.

The old one-liner - "Say what you mean and mean what you say" - can apply in areas other than those of a sporting nature, but for the purpose of this topic I'll stay on the sporting theme.

Without being ageist, although when I'm referring to myself I can be as ageist as I wish, I'm old enough to remember, might even be starting to forget at this stage, when the prevailing attitudes were quite simply that there was really no place for women in sport, apart from making the tea!

Thankfully, we have moved on, but there are some issues I still can't quite grasp.

One is the fact that in the GAA, and this isn't an indirect way of having a go at the GAA, there is the GAA that's a totally male-only organisation from a playing perspective, but at least it's one organisation and it caters for two codes, to use a traditional term, football and hurling.

Although, and I'm not going to go there in any great detail, some of the serious football people can't tolerate the hurling people.

I'm sure the opposite is also true, although in typical Irish fashion no one will actually say that.

Try the negative - 'Don't say what you mean and don't mean what you say' - that would be much more popular across the board.

Back to the women.

In the last week or so the Meath Ladies Co Board hosted its convention or annual meeting in a digital format.

In fairness though they elected a male chair in the form of hard-working Gaeil Colmcille clubman Colm McManus.

Could we see a female chair of Meath GAA Co Board anytime soon?

The Gaeil Colmcille clubman took over from Simonstown's Feraghal Harney who took a step sideways into the long-vacant seat of the PRO.

There are two organisations for the promotion of the female equivalent of the GAA's football and hurling. The Ladies GFA for football and the Camogie Association for hurling.

So what's the problem?

Integrate all the organisations and produce a more streamlined fixture list as fixtures are the most valuable asset.

Well, the real problem is that the ladies have no facilities as all the GAA clubs are for the men only.

Can't understand that one either.

Are there no women involved in GAA clubs?

You'll find that in the majority of GAA clubs there are some top class administrators of the female variety.

But still it doesn't work out and the female clubs appear to be at least as unwanted and unliked as the dreaded soccer teams that seemed to pop up around the Royal County in the 1980s and 1990s.

That was the era when the Meath footballers were winning Leinster and All-Ireland titles every other year.

Back to the women again.

For the last 30 years or so I have reported extensively on both ladies football and camogie in the Royal County.

It was a timespan that saw the camogie team emerge from total obscurity and move up the pyramid from Junior B to Senior Championship in a glorious decade of success from around 2007 to 2017.

Aside from an All-Ireland JFC title in 1994 and a couple of provincial crowns at the turn of the millennium Meath’s lady footballers didn't enjoy quite the same amount of success until last year.

They exploded onto the Croke Park stage and blitzed neighbours Westmeath, a former senior side, to win the All-Ireland IFC title and claim senior status for 2021.

Watching the final on television was real edge-of-the-seat entertainment and a fantastic spectacle with the odd cynical tackle thrown in for good measure - that would have been from Westmeath as Meath women aren't cynical on the pitch in any way!

It's all quiet now on the football (men and women), hurling and camogie pitches, but there is a chance to enjoy some televised women's action this weekend courtesy of TG4.

Although there will not be any Meath footballers involved, players from Mayo, Dublin, Tipperary, Leitrim and Cavan will be in action in the Australian Football League Women's (AFLW) first round. TG4 has announced that the station will broadcast weekly matches and highlights each weekend.

The league is run by the Australian Football League (AFL) and is contested by a subset of clubs from that competition - is that co-operation between the men and the women? The women’s competition will begin this week with 14 teams battling it out over 12 weekends for a place in the Grand Final in April.

The agreement between TG4 and the Australian Football League (AFL) will see coverage begin on Saturday 30th January at 5.10pm with a highlights offering each Monday at 8pm.

Last week all the attention was on Cork woman Brid Stack following the serious injury she sustained in a practice game and she will be sidelined for the series.

However, the Irish players confirmed for the 2021 season are: Grace Kelly and Niamh Kelly (both West Coast Eagles / Mayo); Aileen Gilroy (North Melbourne / Mayo) Sarah Rowe (Collingwood / Mayo), Aishling Sheridan (Collingwood / Cavan); Niamh McEvoy, Lauren Magee, Sinéad Goldrick (all Melbourne FC / Dublin); Aisling McCarthy (West Coast Eagles / Tipperary); Orla O'Dwyer (Brisbane Lions / Tipperary); Ailish Considine (Adelaide Crows / Clare); Áine Tighe (Fremantle Dockers / Leitrim); Cora Staunton (GWS Giants / Mayo.

TG 4 SCHEDULE: (Saturday 5.10pm; Monday 8pm):

Saturday 30th January - deferred coverage; Monday 1st February - highlights; Saturday 6th February - deferred; Monday 8th February - highlights; Saturday 13th February - deferred; Monday 15th February - highlights; Saturday 20th February - deferred; Monday 22nd February - highlights; Saturday 27th February - deferred.

Lots of co-operation going on in far-off Australia - perhaps it might be replicated in some form in this neck of the woods sometime sooner rather than later?