Squareball, gaa shop, gaa gear, gaa tshirts, clothing, merchandise.

The current economic situation has led many athletes to pull in their horn spending-wise. We’ve seen this week the Government say, basically that you can’t take the knickers off a bare ass, that they haven’t enough money to buy their round, so the GPA and the rest of us can swing for it.

Nowadays you have shady characters in limos pulling up at county training sessions dishin’ out free boots and free gear; you have free bets if you’re in the Derry squad, the fill of a tank of oil if you’re from Armagh, free burgers from Supermacs from Galway and if you’re a Cork hurler a free O2 phone that no-one rings you on because you’ve no friends anymore.

We’ve cast our mind back to the good ole days, when fellas couldn’t afford new gloves and boots for every other game. When no-one had heard of swapping jerseys in them days, unless you nicked one from the other team’s bag when no-one was looking. Back then, any player worth his salt relaxed before a big game by getting his leather all lubed up and loosened with a liberal application of Dubbin.

The general aroma in the changing room was bad enough with wintergreen, farts, smelly socks, BO – no showers at home in the them days, just the yearly bath whether you needed it or not – and Dubbin. You knew the fella that was rubbin his leather before the game by the smell off his bag. It kept things nice and supple and allowed for a much better touch and sensation.

The well organized player maybe had the wife or girlfriend to do the needful the night before the game, although many experts reckoned for the best performance the job was best done a day or two in advance.

Anyway, here’s to the good old days, a slice of orange at half time, odd socks, headbands, a fry for breakfast and steak and chips for the pre-match meal. That, and a liberal application of Dubbin’ before every game.