Opinion: Camogie coin-gate has failed every single woman playing sport in this country

The more you think about how a national sporting body thought it fit to decide their premier national competition by a coin toss, the more baffling it becomes.

The whole thing reminds me of the scene in Only Fools and Horses when, after a poker game, Del Boy offers Boycie a chance to win back some of his money. Of course, Del has a two headed coin so he's sure that, despite his apparent kind gesture, he'll still be a winner. Unfortunately, his brother calls tails instead of heads and the lads lose out on a possible windfall over one of their closest friends/enemies. Mange tout, Rodney. But perhaps another French phrase should be used in connection with how the Camogie Association has treated Clare and Dublin, and not forgetting Wexford either. Farce. The statements from both the Clare and Dublin county boards should make the Camogie Association and everyone else in Croke Park ashamed of the position they have put 30 plus women and the backroom teams in over the past week. The apparent compromise, on Wednesday afternoon, that a play-off will be organised on Saturday with the winner then facing Wexford on Monday has the feel of someone putting icing sugar on a burnt cake. It may look OK but scrape away the top and all you're left with is a bitter taste. https://twitter.com/OfficialCamogie/status/626445942707855360 How did the association manage to concoct a play-off situation today but that never crossed their minds over the last 10 days? Where did this magical solution come from when, on Tuesday, the association threw out the appeals by both counties as to the unfairness of the rule on separating teams level on points? Who saw the light? And how did Ard Chomhairle find it in their heart to offer the game when it couldn't offer the most obvious solution last week? The strongest word that emerged from either statement by the Clare and Dublin county boards this morning was 'betrayal' and it's hard to argue with that feeling. But every single girl or woman in this country that plays sport should feel betrayed. Those who are meant to be looking out for the players and are tasked with promotion, protecting and policing women's sport have failed in the most basic of their duties. Already this season we've seen Cork Ladies footballers being asked to play two games in the space of a few hours, and how many times do you hear of women having to train or play in the worst field available or not even have proper facilities to change in? Clare manager, Colm Honan, spoke at the weekend saying that his side had been preparing since before Christmas for this year's championship, while the Dublin squad are looking to establish themselves among the big four of Cork, Galway, Kilkenny and Wexford. The Camogie Association rejected both sides' appeals not to go ahead with the coin toss on Tuesday by using some typical Irish logic of the decision that was made: Ye all signed up to it, and why didn't ye object when it was being debated originally? It was almost like telling both counties that ye are the turkeys, and it's not our fault that ye voted for December 25th. It was a typical GAA-line of putting the administrative balls-up back on the people who have absolutely nothing to do with it. And then to have the gall to ask the winner of the play-off to play again 48 hours later to try and reach an All-Ireland semi final. If Clare, Dublin or Wexford had sense, they would not fulfill the play-off and cause even more embarrassment for the association. https://twitter.com/offtheball/status/626464320067641345 Clare senior hurler Brendan Bugler also voiced the feeling that the silence from other counties was deafening. Where was the outcry from Cork, Kilkenny, Galway or even Wexford? Nowhere, because the Camogie Association would never try and dump some of their most marketable sides out of the championship via heads or tails. https://twitter.com/brendanbugler/status/626108795681415168 The WGPA, which is meant to represent the players on both panels, was also meek in the face of their members being faced with a ridiculous situation. This was an opportunity for the WGPA to really prove it was a voice for players, and perhaps they felt diplomacy was more important than going on the offensive. However, the GPA had to wage several battles before being accepted by the mandarins at Croke Park. They won and are now on the inside doing more for players than they ever could from the outside. A crisis is an opportunity for leadership and the women's body was found sorely lacking. The long-lasting damage from this controversy won't just be felt by those who play camogie. Ladies football is also fighting for coverage and support while Stephanie Roche is the best known women's football player in Ireland, but can you name any of her colleagues? The Irish women's rugby side has been our most successful over the last five years yet their level of recognition is well below what it should be. Even ask yourself, could you name three players from Dublin or Clare's camogie teams? The fall off for women involved in sport after leaving school is massive. Girls join different societies in college, they can't get home for training and other things take over. How would a player on either panel feel this week having travelled from college to training probably a few times a week only to have their season ended by a toss of a coin? Women's sport gets pitiful coverage in this country as it is but it certainly didn't need the negativity that has surrounded the premier female indigenous sport in this country. Not every girl who plays sport when they're a child expects to be an All-Ireland winner or run out at the Aviva, but that hope should be there. The opportunity to know that the structures are right and the set-up is correct so that the only thing that will stop your progress to the very top is yourself. Talent is an awful thing to waste but to see it squandered and killed by those who are meant to be protecting and growing women's sport in this country is all the more frustrating. At least Only Fools and Horses was played for laughs and always delivered its punchline. Sadly, after this attempt at a tragedy, no-one will be left smiling.