The Chairman of the Kerry County Board has moved swiftly and decisively to defend the Kerry players after a scurrilous post appeared on Twitter that appeared to make wild and unfounded suggestions of drug use in a video clip widely circulated online after their All-Ireland final victory.
Even though the camera-phone clip is of very poor quality, a number of Kerry players are identifiable and it shows them chanting and holding their credit cards in the air.
Those with any knowledge of Kerry football will know that their chant about ‘The Bag’ is a clear reference to County Board Chairman and Dr Crokes stalwart Patrick O’Sullivan who is affectionately known as ‘The Bag’ to club and county players.
When the shocking post alleging drug use appeared on Twitter, after somebody had carelessly misconstrued the meaning of the chant, Mr O’Sullivan promptly responded on the social media forum to explain that has been nicknamed The Bag since the 1980s.
The players were chanting his name because he had lost a game of card roulette which is understood to mean that the next round of drinks were on him and the players were just making light of the situation during the course of their celebrations. One of the party had shared the video clip on social media.
“It’s a joke to suggest the Kerry players are on drugs and (it) is unacceptable,” the board chairman said on Twitter.
In the bizarre Tweet that caused offence, which accompanied the clip of the Kerry players celebrating, the person that posted it said he couldn’t wait to see the backlash from all the counties and called for a drug test to be conducted.
Another Kerry GAA source has been quoted as saying that many of the people who spread such false rumours on Twitter operate false accounts.
It is further reported that the Kerry County Board is contemplating taking legal action on the matter.
Patrick O’Sullivan, the proprietor of the popular Tatler Jack bar and restaurant in Killarney, has been known as ‘The Bag’ for decades as, during his goalkeeping days with the Dr Crokes club, he had a very identifiable kitbag.
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