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Cavan’s manager Mickey Graham isn’t sure it’s prudent for the GAA season to continue, but insists his team is ready to play if asked.
He saw his team lose to Kildare at Newbridge on Sunday, a result that leaves them in the strange position of a possible promotion with a win over Roscommon next weekend, but at the risk of relegation with a loss.
His counterpart at St Conleth’s Park, Jack O’Connor, said after the game that players would be devastated if the season came to a premature end.
But, speaking to RTÉ Sport, Graham said the government could have a big decision to make in the coming days.
“Whatever they decide GAA will respect,” he said. “I think the players and the management will respect (that decision).
“The moments in which we are is very difficult. Although football is great, and everyone hopes to see it, we must put people’s health first, that is before anything else.
“People still move, keep working. These guys are amateur players and they still have to go to work on a Monday morning.
“They can only control how they do things and social distancing, but they cannot control who they are in contact with in terms of who they play with and the people they have been in contact with.
“So it will be an interesting few days, but if this is the last game we play, so be it.”
Higher Education Minister Simon Harris told RTÉ on Sunday that the current restrictions were not having the desired effect on the number of viruses, which was seen as an indication that the decision to move the country to level 4 is imminent. .
While this, in theory, would not affect elite sport, Graham is not sure that the GAA should play the games just because they are allowed to.
“Is it worth traveling the length and breadth of the country putting people at risk?” He mused.
“You don’t know how this is conveyed. You could stop at a gas station walking up the street and have a coffee, and you’re standing there talking to someone … there are so many variables.
“We can only do what we can, but everyone’s safety and well-being is more important than sport. While sport plays a huge role in keeping people mentally well and giving them something to look forward to, players miss having one. crowd.
“Players miss the enthusiasm of the fans. If you ask any player what they enjoy most about intercountry football, it’s playing in front of a crowd.
“That’s what they dreamed of since they were a boy.
“That’s taken off now, has the intensity gone away because of that? It absolutely has. There isn’t the same bite as if there were a crowd.
“I’m definitely not depressed, I’d love for it to move on, nothing more, it keeps me away from home during the week. It keeps me busy, and the players also have something to look forward to.
“We are realistic. The government needs to clear up the uncertainty so that people can move on with their lives.”
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