Dublin Ladies Football manager Mick Bohan says he does not accept a drop in standards for ladies football and will fight for every bit of fairness for his players.
The Dublin LFGA manager signed up for another All-Ireland campaign in January, boosting their bid for a five-in-a-row. Bohan began his second stint as Dublin manager in 2016, leading the side to All-Ireland final wins against Mayo, Galway and Cork twice.
Bohan had previously led the Dublin women to an All-Ireland defeat to Mayo in 2003 and has worked as a coach at the Dublin men’s senior, minor and U-21 sides.
Speaking on OTBAM on Tuesday, Bohan said he will fight for his team, whether they are male or female.
"I back them and fight for them the exact same way as if they were a fella’s team," he explained. "I don’t see them as a women’s team; I genuinely see them as [just] a football team. I couldn’t care whether they’re girls or boys."
Bohan added that his unacceptance of dropping standards will advertently improve the women’s game across the country.
"That includes standards around the country," he clarified, "when I go into grounds, and someone thinks that it’s ok that you could be delayed by twenty minutes, or you don’t have access to two changing rooms, where a lads team would have.
"I don’t accept that, not because I’m fighting the cause for girls football, but because there’s a standard that we should be adhering to all of the time, regardless of whether it’s male or female.
"Indirectly then, you’re obviously raising the standard for your group."
The multiple All-Ireland winner also explained how the pandemic led to developments in his own player-management skills.
As lockdown rules intensified last year, Bohan decided against cutting his panel as he saw the intercounty game as the only outlet for his players.
"With the climate, I just didn’t think it was the right thing to do," he stated. "It certainly wasn’t a humane thing to do.
"We weren’t aware of everyone’s journey; some people struggled; other people needed the group environment to be in a good place.
"Without trying to make ourselves out to be Padre Pio, we were genuinely doing a service to our community, to our city, by facilitating that. I think the group really appreciated it.
"You’re not just telling someone they’re not with you; you’re telling their family and their friends and the hopes that built up around it.
"This was the end of; nothing. So their outlet was gone. Genuinely, on a humane front, it was the wrong thing to do."
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