The GAA has acknowledged it has no policy on how to handle members charged with sexual offences after it emerged a now convicted rapist had been officiating games for nearly two years while on bail awaiting trial.
Tadgh Lonergan, aged 28, from Kilsheelan, Tipperary, was last month jailed for seven years for raping a woman at a house party in June 2021.
A qualified referee, he continued to officiate matches in the county, including at minor or under-18 level until at least December 2023.
A GAA spokesperson said it does not have a requirement as part of its codes of behaviour that a member be obliged to disclose a serious charge they may be facing.
“Our process is that each case is dealt with on an individual basis with each member,” they said.
“The GAA is not in a position to comment on any individual cases.”
While both complainant and defendant in rape cases are entitled to anonymity while a trial is in progress, the defendant can waive that right during that time so long as the complainant’s identity is not compromised.
Lonergan had first been arrested in late June 2021 and was charged in March of the following year.
He was the subject of two trials. The first in February of this year, saw the jury deadlocked.
The second in June 2024 saw him convicted via majority decision.
His victim chose to maintain her anonymity when the conviction was handed down, but indicated that she had no objection to Lonergan being named.
As a referee of underage matches, Lonergan would have been obliged to undergo Garda vetting via the Munster Council as per GAA policy.
Such vetting is a ‘snapshot’ of a person’s life at a point in time, with that vetting lasting for three years.
The vetting process would be expected to highlight a charge of rape as a matter of routine.
It is unclear whether or not Lonergan had been vetted at the time of his offence, if he underwent the vetting process subsequent to that date, or if his vetting had lapsed.
The Munster Council, which had listed Lonergan on its official referees panel for both Gaelic football and hurling, did not respond to detailed queries regarding whether or not he had been vetted.
A spokesperson for Kilsheelan Kilcash, Lonergan’s club for whom he continued to play senior hurling until late 2023, said that as his trial had been held in camera “the club wasn’t privy to any information”.
They noted that by the time of his first trial in February 2024 the charge against him had become “public knowledge” in the locality.
They said that any refereeing Lonergan would have done “would belong” to the Munster Council, and that he had not been vetted at club level because he was not involved in underage coaching.
“We had no reason to vet him, he was only involved on the senior hurling side of things,” they said.
A club source said that Lonergan’s family “is highly respected in the community”.
They added that the locals had been left “gobsmacked” and “left in shock” when the news of the charge spread locally.
