Tyrone's Sean Cavanagh has addressed the introduction of anti-doping blood tests for GAA players by saying that he expects players to be tested positive, be it intentionally or unintentionally.
Speaking candidly at the launch of the 2016 EirGrid All-Ireland Under-21 Football Championship, Cavanagh says he would not be surprised if a number of players test positive, but claims that these results would likely stem from a lack of education surrounding the various supplements players take to aid performance:
I suppose there’s that much available in terms of supplements now, and a lot of guys just aren’t educated enough to know what they can and can’t take. It’s a complete minefield at the moment.
I’m not all that into it. I’m still stuck in the Tracker bar and Jaffa Cake era 10 years ago. But look, some guys are hugely into it nowadays, so I’d say there probably is a chance, whether purposely or not purposely, there probably are guys that are playing that have something in the system that shouldn’t be there. That’s just a fact of life.
A lack of education around supplements has previously been highlighted on this site by Longford's Michael Quinn.
While welcoming the introduction of the tests, Cavanagh did contend that given the amateur status of players, the scheduled timing of the tests is something that can be difficult to come to terms with.
You have to accept that you do want that level playing field. There are so many supplements out there, so many guys into strength and conditioning, stuff being used, it is right enough that players nowadays are tested.
So I wouldn’t have a problem with the blood testing as such. It’s the time and way in which it is done that sometimes can be very frustrating. But if you were to tell me that the blood testing could be done instead of the urine testing, and it could be done in 10 seconds, I’d say most players would be happy enough to do that.
It’s the timing, sometimes, that can cause an issue. We’ve seen it at training on a Tuesday night, an hour from home, and guys are sitting at a quarter-to-twelve at night waiting to give their sample, when they have to get up for work the next morning at seven o’clock.
The issue of the introduction of blood testing in an amateur sport has caused much debate, with Cavanagh one of the few to support the introduction of tests.
The GAA confirmed in December that intercounty players would be subject to blood and urine tests from January 1 in an attempt to curb doping in the sport.
Bernard Brogan believes the blood tests are unnecessary in the sport, saying they are "too intrusive" and that the testing to be antithetical to the unique nature of the GAA:
Like any sport . . . obviously to win an All-Ireland is an amazing thing and people will do anything to get there . . . Do I think there’s a need to go into blood testing? No. We’re amateur footballers, we’re very proud of what we do,” said Brogan.
“Do I think there’s going to be any abuse of that? I’d be very surprised. To get blood tested is a bit aggressive, I think. But, as I say, we’ll just kind of get on with whatever we do. We have nothing to hide. No one has anything to hide in the GAA.
“We’re a special sport. If that’s what they need to do to make themselves feel as if the sport is pure, that’s what has to be done. It’s not something I think is the right route. To go in and take blood out of someone to prove that they’re not cheating is a strange one.
Elsewhere, Paul Kimmage has admitted that he has sympathy for Brogan's view but believes the blood testing is a worthy sacrifice to protect the sport's integrity. Kimmage spoke about the issue in December on Newstalk's Lunchtime programme:
Unfortunately, as we've seen across the board in most sports. We wouldn't be doing blood testing if urine testing did suffice. Blood testing is a far better means of detection.
I do understand the reservations and why Bernard Brogan isn't welcoming it. It isn't nice to sit there after a game and have someone stick a syringe in your arm. That's the price that has to be paid and it's a price worth paying for the integrity of the sport.
