It is quite clear that we have reached the stage where, in 2015, the Sunday Game is now the most controversial television programme in Ireland.
On Off the Ball last night, Joe Molloy and Colm Parkinson discussed the previous evening's Sunday Game. There is some dispute over who made the exact charge of 'bias' but they were highly critical of Whelo's performance as a pundit on the highlights programme.
The consensus was that his criticisms of Dublin after Sunday's fracas were at best mealy mouthed and at worst non-existent when set alongside his denunciation of Tyrone for similar on-field high jinks.
Word of their critique reached Whelan and he asked could he appear on the show this evening. The lads were happy to oblige.
Whelan admitted up front that the Sunday Game sometime arrange to have three neutrals on the panel or else they have one ex-player from each county and a neutral. He defended the practice against Molloy's contention that they should just install three neutrals on the panel.
We don't have ice flowing through us. We all have blood flowing through us. We're all loyal to our own counties whether we like it or not, that is a natural instinctive thing within us all. Now, I was critical of Dublin the other night and I've come under fire from some Dublin supporters who felt I didn't defend them enough and then we have the other end of the scale where people feel I went soft on them.
Whelo was accused of being too soft on Jonny Cooper in his post-match analysis when he contended that it wasn't in Cooper's nature.
It isn't in his nature. I've seen Jonny Cooper play minor, I've seen him play of Na Fianna and I've never seen him sent off. I could have sat back and said nothing and let one of the other lads take it. But I said it was a bad tackle, red card. But it wasn't in his nature. And I think it's fair and reasonable comment. What do people expect me to say? That Jonny is a really dirty player and he does it every week.
Whelan appeared to scoff at Parkinson's suggestion that Philly McMahon's dive was of the same order of Tiernan McCann's. He asserted that while McMahon's dive was unacceptable, the incidents should be treated separately, citing the fact that Darren Hughes was sent off following the McCann dive.
Whelan allowed that he may have been wrong to call for McCann to apologise following his dive, suggesting that might have been over-egging it, but he maintained he made the suggestion from the perspective of what would be best for McCann, when the player was at the centre of a firestorm.
To Whelan's credit, he remained calm and reasoned throughout and did not whine about the reaction to his comments. An all around interesting discussion.
Listen below from about 15 minutes in:
