Tom Molloy, aged 26 and a former player on the Westmeath county panel, participated in an excessive altercation during a club football match which resulted in another player suffering a shattered eye socket and a serious vision impairment. The incident took place off the ball at an away challenge match on 24th February 2019, between Molloy’s team, Shandonagh, and their local rivals, Maryland. The victim, wing forward Liam Reilly, felt extreme discomfort and sought treatment by specialists at St James’s and the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospitals in Dublin, receiving consistent care for a span of 12 months.
Molloy, a self-employed electrician of Rathcolman, Mullingar, Co Westmeath, testified at Mullingar Circuit Criminal Court that he had used too much force owing to a preceding clash in the game. With no prior criminal record, Molloy received a two-and-a-half-year sentence, which was suspended for good behaviour over the following four years on the premise he committed no further offences.
Judge Keenan Johnson categorised the occurrence as a gross infraction, and designed a guiding sentence of four years, but lessened it due to the existence of extenuating circumstances. Molloy was also ordered to compensate Liam Reilly with €20,000 within a year. However, the judge clarified it is not a case of Molloy paying his way clear of consequences but feeling the impact of earning €20,000 as a small aid towards Reilly’s recovery.
Johnson commented that confinement wasn’t suitable in a case such as Molloy’s. He attributed the extraordinary level of aggression in Molloy’s actions to the heightened competitive spirit of the event, straying from its original purpose as a sporting match. As a consequence, Reilly has been discouraged from future activity in Gaelic football.
The magistrate expressed concern about the diminishing levels of sportsmanship within the GAA, due in part to the fierce competition and rapid expansion of recent years. He felt that good sportsmanship should form an essential part of all sports activities. Molloy, who had been sanctioned with a 24-week ban by the GAA disciplinary panel, expressed his regret in court for the unfortunate accident he caused to Mr. Reilly during an intense moment of the game. He also conveyed his well-wishes for Mr. Reilly’s swift recovery.