The new Head of GAAGO, Noel Quinn says it’s a fact of life with subscription services that some big Championship games will go behind a paywall.
Quinn believes the GAA have got the balance right between matches on GAAGO and RTE - and has asked people not to make a judgement after two weekends.
The Donegal man - also the GAA's Head of Marketing - was reacting to the major public outcry over the Cork/Tipperary and Limerick/Clare Munster hurling games featuring on the GAA’s pay per view channel rather than RTE.
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Sunday Game pundit Donal Og Cusack said the GAA had “failed hurling” and “it looks as if they’re actually shrinking the game.”
The Táinaiste, Michéal Martin waded into the debate yesterday claiming older people and the GAA are both missing out by not having major hurling fixtures on free to air television.
There is also speculation that the GAA and RTE may be called before the Dáil Communications Committee to discuss the pay per view situation.
“Everyone is entitled to their opinion and we'd be foolish not to listen to it,” said Quinn. “We're not trying to hoodwink anyone here.
“Some of the information probably around Munster hurling championship matches has been lost in translation - a little bit of a vacuum - and it's helpful for me probably to put a few things straight.
“The Limerick Clare one was a massive one. I was at that. It was amazing. The game itself - that was originally a Sunday slot.
“It was offered to RTE and taken by RTE. The ‘Great Limerick Run’ came in that weekend and the match was moved to the Saturday (by GAA fixtures makers).
“So rather than it not being broadcast, naturally GAAGO picked it up and we were more than happy to pick it up.
“Last weekend, the Cork-Tipp one, with the Munster (football) final on the Sunday, they (Munster Council) weren't going to play Cork-Tipp on a Sunday.
“Look, admittedly there will be some big games that go on GAAGO and not on free to air.
“And that's just a fact of life. That's just how subscription services go sometimes.”
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