BOYLAN TALKS SPORT Even in chaos Man City show the way
One thing this writer learned a long time ago - yes, the hard way - was that there are times when one has to admit to being wrong. In this instance, that means yours truly is starting to see the possible negative connotations of money flowing around quite freely within the GAA.
That realisation hit home when three stories came to my attention over the Christmas period which would send shudders through anybody with the best interests of the GAA at heart.
One of which has already been in the public domain, while no further detail can be gone into regarding the other two cases so as to protect sources.
Other than to observe that both cases starkly illustrate the dangers money could foist on entities within the GAA if not properly supervised and regulated properly.
However, that does not dilute conviction that players need to be looked after properly for the commitment they give which is professional in all but name.
However, the ironic thing is, those who would be, with justification, be regarded as the most money driven sporting entity in the world, have, in recent weeks and months, shown that money is not, in fact, always the easiest or best way to solve problems, or perceived problems.
Again, the irony being that, to such an extent that they incurred the wrath of the football authorities, no club has spent more money in the pursuit of success than the outgoing Premier League champions.
However, continuing the ironic theory, when City’s often imperious aura has hit the skids in the recent past, the one thing they haven’t done is engage in knee-jerk reactionism.
In other words, they haven’t reverted to what regrettably has become standard operational procedure. That is to say, sacking the manager at the first indication trouble may be afoot.
Perhaps they have learned more from the ongoing shambles at Old Trafford than the residence thereof, who have changed managers more often than weather people change forecasts since Sir Alex Ferguson left.
Even in the chaos which has seemingly engulfed the Eastlands club in recent weeks/months, they have still been showing others the way to deal with such crises.
Quite simply, by not panicking. Showing a bit of loyalty to a man (Pep Guardiola) who has taken devotees of the Blue Moon on journeys they were normally used to seeing their neighbours undertake such expeditions.
And, even since their slump has been ongoing, slowly but surely, the highly successful Spaniard has been inching his charges back towards normalcy.
Whether the process will go far enough to see them challenge the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest or Chelsea only time will tell. But you can be sure it won’t be for the want of trying.
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There’s a lesson there for people interested in or connected to several sporting arenas at present. Whether that be horse racing - where both Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott have seen steeds cast in the role of superstar now have their character questioned after setbacks or in other sports.
Mullins, in particular, was hit with a triple whammy as Lossiemouth (Champion Hurdle), Ballyburn (Arkle Chase) and reigning champion hurdler State Man all had their future credentials interrogated after setbacks.
Far from panicking, though, the truly gifted will recalibrate and adjust. With Mullins already mulling going out in trip with Ballyburn while Elliott now definitely has a genuine Champion Hurdle contender on his hands following the usurpation of State Man by Brighterdaysahead.
Good enough to tackle Henderson’s behemoth (Constitution Hill)? That remains to be seen, but as the old Northern Ireland tourism ad once said, you’ll never know unless you go!