8 hours ago
GAA fans outraged after footage shows GAA stars urinating on pitch after game
Donegal stormed into the All-Ireland quarter-finals after a commanding home win over Louth on Sunday in Ballybofey.
Jim McGuinness and his players were applauded off as they head for Croke Park next, and the knockout stages.
However, some fans have shared their anger at members of the squad on social media after footage surfaced which appears to show players urinating on the pitch in the middle of a team huddle.
"Love Donegal but this is disgusting as well as disrespectful," said one fan online. "That's an absolute disgrace," said another.
"Surely a public order offence occurring right there," said one Twitter/X user.
There were some quick to defend the behaviour, saying it is commonplace on sports grounds when players are unable to get in to the toilet and have taken so much fluid on board.
Just last year, a Peruvian footballer, Sebastian Munoz, was sent off for urinating on the pitch during a match in Peru's third tier.
In 2017, Salford keeper Max Crocombe was sent off for urinating during a National League North match against Bradford.
In 2009, Stuttgart goalkeeper and former Arsenal star Jens Lehmann jumped over the advertising hoardings behind the goal to relieve himself, before he was interrupted when Unirea Urziceni went on a counter-attack and he had to rush back in goal.
Gary Lineker famously pooed on the pitch while leading the line for England against Republic of Ireland at World Cup '90. Heading into the game with an upset stomach, Lineker was forced to wipe his shorts on the turf in a moment he would rather forget.
In the 2005 London Marathon, Paula Radcliffe was suffering from severe stomach cramps and diarrohea, leading her to stop and relieve herself on the side of the road, in full view of the crowd and live television cameras.
She went on to win the race with a time of 2:17:42, a record at the time for a women's only race. Radcliffe later said she had been looking for a toilet, but couldn't find one suitable.
