Alan Mulholland believes the GAA can learn a lot from rugby when it comes to promoting its games.

The Galway manager has seen firsthand how the Connacht rugby team - which is coached by his former Galway minor team-mate Eric Elwood - has captured the public's imagination in the West in recent years thanks to positive publicity and a lot of promotion.

"Just like rugby, you have got to build your support in the GAA. I think in Connacht they recognise that it is about entertainment too. They are getting 5,000 people up there (at the Showgrounds) and Eric himself would be the first to admit that their win/loss ratio is not what they want," Mulholland explained to The Irish Times.

"In the GAA, you get support when you win. And when teams lose, they revert into a shell and won't talk to the media. But in rugby, there is this professional attitude where they promote themselves whether they win or lose. I don't believe that the press is the reason that any team ever loses a game. There is this complacency in Galway that: hey, we are the home of the three-in-a-row team. But it doesn't keep happening automatically.

"I have spoken with Eric about this and know him well. I am fascinated by the way Connacht actively promotes itself and the team. The GAA is different. Tell them nothing! Circle the wagons! And there is this attitude that the media is something to be fought a lot of the time. Maybe I am naïve! I am only five months in the job. But I want young players chomping at the bit to get into the Galway senior football panel." Tweet

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