Kerry's Darran O'Sullivan has sought to clarify his position after apparently saying that he had quit his job in order to focus on recovering from a hip injury.
O'Sullivan left his post with a bank two months ago, and told reporters yesterday that he had "left Ulster Bank in November, to concentrate on keeping the body right.
"It just wasn't suiting me. I was there seven years, had a great time, and learned a lot, but I just couldn't see my future there. And it just wasn't ideal for getting my body right. I knew I needed to focus more time on it, to rehab.
However, in a series of tweets today, O’Sullivan said that people were misunderstanding the newspaper headlines.
“I left the bank to work as an athlete mentor, as it was a job I wanted to do and it would give me a more flexible timetable that would allow me to rehab my injury properly.”
Reports that O’Sullivan had left his job had added to the debate over the welfare of GAA players and the demands on amateur players.
"I found it very hard because everything about the GAA now is professional, bar the status, O'Sullivan said yesterday. "I can't say it's not manageable, because some fellas can manage and do it fine.
"But personally, I'm looking at my football career, I'm 28 now, there aren't too many years left, so I just wanted to get the most out of it.”
However, O’Sullivan stressed today that he did not see his GAA career as a professional alternative to his role with the bank.
“I’m definitely not going to be a professional GAA player,” he said. “I don’t think I’d survive on travel expenses!”
GAA Director General Paraic Duffy confirmed in his annual report yesterday that the association would look to address problems relating to the playing calendar and what was being asked of players.
