A Gaelic footballer from Donegal, who had previously been given a suspended sentence due to inflicting an injury on a fellow player, has now had his conviction overturned. Michael Friel was initially convicted for the assault that led to Laurence McMullan being hurt during a Gaelic football game in Convoy in 2017, a ruling later reversed by the Letterkenny Circuit Court.
Judge Paul Kelly branded the incident as a mishandled and awkward maneuver, resulting in a seven-centimetre tear to McMullan’s scrotum requiring eight stitches. He described the injury as somewhat unexpected and he was convinced that Friel did not intend to cause harm.
Friel, in March 2023, was originally issued a suspended sentence lasting three months following the assault on McMullan. The unfortunate event occurred during a match on the 18th of August, 2017 at Pairc Naomh Mhuire in Convoy, where Fel was representing Naomh Colmcille and McMullan was playing for St Mary’s.
Friel, a 27-year-old resident of Keshends, Newtowncunningham admitted to causing the injury but made it clear that it was unintentional. He was represented by barrister Peter Nolan and had returned from Germany to attend the appeal hearing.
Friel described the match as intense, challenging, fast, and physical. He admitted tackling McMullan heedlessly and acknowledged being on the wrong side when McMullan took possession of the ball. Asserting his intention, he informed Judge Kelly that he never meant to cause harm to any adversary on the field. He also sent a message to McMullan next day asserting his accident claim.
McMullan, speaking to state solicitor for Donegal, Kieran Dillon, confirmed that there was significant tension during the game. He remembered retrieving a stray ball and feeling the rough tackle around his waist, followed by Friel’s hand moving down and tugging on his scrotum.
He relayed his experience of feeling a “sharp pain” but decided to continue playing given the significance of the match. He reported that he noticed blood after the game and needed his clubmates’ help before being taken to the Letterkenny University Hospital. There, he received five injections for pain relief and had eight stitches put in to mend a seven-centimetre-long cut.
McMullan described the event as “extremely traumatic,” and said the injury took more than a month to fully recover. Mr Nolan suggested that McMullan only reached out to the police because he was not satisfied with the level of inquiry undertaken by the Donegal GAA County Board.
“I was left with severe injuries and someone has to be responsible,” stated McMullan. He explained to Mr Nolan that he considered various options before deciding to contact the police, adding, “I wasn’t in a mental state to discuss my injury. The thought of discussing my ruptured testicles was too overwhelming.”
Judge Kelly inferred that the case emerged from a “tense and fiercely contested Gaelic football match”, characterising the injury as “highly unusual”. He stated that while contact to the genital region happens frequently in Gaelic football and other contact sports, the consequences are rarely as serious as in this case.
He also expressed his opinion that executing a tackle that’s within the rules of Gaelic football is “not easy” and it’s common for players to be yanked, tripped or dragged. According to Judge Kelly, Friel gave sincere and truthful evidence, admitting to unlawfully grabbing McMullan’s shorts, which is against the rules.
He acknowledged Mr Dillon’s argument that Friel’s action was “careless”, considering the result, and this led to criminal accountability. However, Judge Kelly dismissed the charge, expressing his satisfaction that the incident was a result of a “misjudged, clumsy tackle”.