Getty ImagesRory Gallagher has accused the GAA president Jarlath Burns of trying to sabotage his career after he intervened in his potential appointment at Naas GAA.
In a statement to BBC News NI, Mr Gallagher said Mr Burns’ actions were “unprecedented” and “misguided” and threatened legal action if the remarks were not retracted.
The former Derry county football manager was offered a coaching role with Naas but the offer was then withdrawn after details of the appointment were made public at the weekend.
It later emerged Mr Burns had contacted the club to express his concern at the proposed appointment.
Mr Gallagher stepped down as Derry manager in 2023 just weeks before the team played in the Ulster Senior Football Final.
It followed allegations of abuse made by his estranged wife Nicola Gallagher, which he denied.
When news of the appointment at Naas appeared in the media, the association’s president spoke to the Naas club chairman before sending an email which was then read at a meeting of party officers at which it was decided not to proceed with Mr Gallagher’s appointment.
In the email, which has been seen by the BBC, Mr Burns said he felt compelled to share his perspective given the “potential implications for Naas GAA and the wider association”.
He said decisions made by the club “reverberate far beyond your immediate community” and send a “message about the values we uphold and the standards we set for our members and supporters”.
He also warned of the implications for the GAA’s Game Changer Initiative which was launched in November to challenge the “social and cultural norms that contribute to domestic, sexual and gender based violence”.
After Mr Gallagher resigned as Derry manager, he was “temporarily debarred” by the GAA in September 2023 when an independent panel was asked to investigate the claims made by his estranged wife.
Mr Gallagher successfully challenged that debarment in February 2024 and a statement from his solicitors in September said there was no “legal impediment” to prevent him returning to a senior role in the game.
“I have engaged with every procedure available to me. The PPS have issued two separate decisions finding that I have no case to answer,” Mr Gallagher added in his statement to the BBC.
“Despite having engaged with due process and procedure, it seems clear that the president has now opted to take matters into his own hands.
“It seems that social media commentary and controversy now equates to a license for presidential intervention.”
In the email to Naas GAA, Mr Burns said the “appointment of Rory Gallagher given the allegations that have been made public, risks undermining the principles of the Game Changer Initiative and the positive work being done across the GAA”.
He added: “The controversy surrounding his personal life has created significant division and concern within the wider GAA community.
“Such a decision by Naas GAA could have far reaching consequences.”
Mr Burns added the appointment would likely “polarise opinion” and create unnecessary tension within the club and he questioned the “confusing message” it would send to younger members.
In conclusion the GAA president said he had “no authority to dictate club decisions” but he had a “responsibility to advocate” for what he believed was in the best interests of the association and its members.
“By choosing not to proceed with this appointment you will be making a statement about the principles that define Naas GAA,” he added.
Mr Gallagher has called on the GAA president to withdraw his remarks.
“I have never asked for sympathy or support. I do however ask that this action is formally withdrawn and the contents of the correspondence is retracted,” he said.
“The president should lead by example and accept when he has overstepped the mark.
“Absent such a retraction, I will have no other alternative but to take legal action to cure the irreparable damage done to me and my family in my ability to continue to work as a manger in the years ahead.
When approached the GAA said it acknowledged the receipt of queries from media organisations in “relation to coaching positions with the Naas senior football team”, but that it had no comment to make at this time.
