Paraic Duffy has lambasted Dublin and Armagh for not officially naming the player who inflicted facial injuries on Davy Byrne last summer.

The Dublin player had to be hospitalised after sustaining the injuries when struck prior to throw-in for an intercounty challenge game last July but the silence from both camps was deafening afterwards, leaving the Association's top brass powerless to punish the perpetrator:

"Even though the name of the player alleged to have been responsible for Davy Byrne's injury was in general circulation, no assistance was forthcoming from the counties in bringing the player to account," Duffy comments in his Annual Report to Congress.

"Given the unwillingness of either county to co-operate in identifying any of the guilty parties, the only option available to CCCC was the proposal of a fine, a penalty that was subsequently imposed at a hearing.

"It will probably be considered naïve on my part to criticise the position taken by the counties, but the misguided loyalty that protects players who engage in violent behaviour on the pitch can only be seen, by those concerned with the good of the game, as a failure of leadership.

"Group solidarity is one thing; a code of silence that condones violence is quite another. We have all witnessed how elite professional sport has lost much of its integrity through a loss of genuine sporting values. Codes of silence and cover-ups remind us that Gaelic games are not immune to such damage."

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