Ahead Of The Game

GAA: A round-up of today's other stories in brief

Tickets: Counties’ cut is up

TICKETS FOR Sunday’s final may be as murderously hard as ever to secure, but if it’s any consolation, about 45 per cent of the available tickets are allocated to the competing counties. That compares favourably with the proportions made available to competing counties in 1993, the last year of the old Croke Park before re-development.

Back then, 8,000 stand tickets were allocated, comprising 25 per cent of the available seats. Terrace allocations for the Hill and Canal End weren’t documented in old annual reports, but a typical share-out for the 1990s still amounted to little more than 25 per cent when all of the tickets were taken into account.

Although for some reason the GAA’s annual reports no longer make the distinction between overall county allocations and those for competing counties, it has been confirmed that next Sunday’s initial ticket release to Cork and Down comprises roughly 32,000 – 18,000 for Cork and 14,000 for Down, the differential based on Cork’s greater number of clubs as well as the county’s presence in the minor final.

The figures from both years were subject to slight increases, as a second allocation was passed on to the competing counties.

Percentages are based on a total availability of 71,772 last year (not counting 10,528 premium level tickets) and 64,500 in 1993.

According to Croke Park sources, the distribution system will be reviewed after this year with a view to basing county allocations more on membership than on numbers of clubs.

Boo boys: Down take them on

DOWN’S commendable initiative to campaign against poor sportsmanship at matches comes complete with a mission statement plus poster.

“Down GAA believe booing and heckling free-takers in particular is creeping into Gaelic games too much and we would like to be proactive in discouraging this behaviour as much as possible.”

The accompanying poster shows a distinguished-looking gentleman in Down blazer and tie standing in his tastefully leathered study, lined with books and a couple of discreet pictures of red-and-black clad football activity.

Regrettably in this, the golden jubilee of the county’s first All-Ireland in 1960, Ahead of the Game was unable to identify the Down grandee whose restrained example supporters are asked to follow.

County PRO Ronan McMahon cheerfully cleared up any uncertainty: “That’s just some random picture I Photoshopped for the poster”.

He won’t be the only one.

The county’s footballers declined to pose for the traditional All-Ireland headshots so for those media outlets that like to run the miniature images there will be much cutting and lifting activity before the weekend, deconstructing action shots and team pictures.

• Armagh's Kieran McGeeney has confirmed he will be staying on as the Kildare manager for the next three years.