THE fireworks, pomp and pageantry that have marked the celebrations in this special year for the GAA won't leave even the faintest speck on the association's history screen -- but Donal Og Cusack will.

In fact, the GAA's 125th anniversary year will, in times to come, be recalled as much for Cusack's dramatic presentation of a reality that remained hidden for so long as for anything that happened on the playing fields in 2009.

By announcing that he is gay, Cusack has taken on a unique role in Irish sport, a trail-blazer on a path that everybody knew existed but that remained unexplored, publicly at least.

It was always implausible that nobody of the gay persuasion ever managed to reach the top level in any sport in Ireland but it wasn't something that merited much consideration.

People watched their sports and commented on the performers but never thought about the sexual orientation of those involved. The public didn't see it as their concern, much less their business.

Sure, there have been rumours about various individuals over the years -- including, it must be said, about Cusack -- but they remained no more than that.

International sport has been surprisingly reticent to identify gay athletes, which made it all the more interesting that a GAA player should buck the trend.

Music and drama have felt no such need to hide their gay communities, but for reasons probably linked to the macho image attached to physical endeavour, sport has generally presented its heroes in very straight lines. The gay world may exist but best ignore it. Besides, if gay sportspeople wanted to keep their private lives to themselves, how dare anybody interfere?

And since that was -- and still is -- the international lead, it was scarcely surprising that the gay issue hardly registered at all in the GAA, which, for a great many years, was seen as an extension of a conservative Ireland taking directions from the Catholic Church. The notion of a GAA player declaring himself gay just couldn't exist in that regime.

Much has changed over the past 30 years, a period in which the GAA has prospered like never before. The confidence it displayed in proceeding with the redevelopment of Croke Park while the IRFU and FAI waited to have their hands held by the Government typified an organisation that was leading rather than reacting to emerging trends.

Now, in his own way, Donal Og Cusack has taken it in a new direction by becoming the first top Irish sportsperson to publicly declare himself gay. There was a time when the GAA community would be scandalised by such an announcement, but not any more.

Yes, his public 'outing' -- amid blazing headlines and fairly graphic details -- has been the talk of the Irish sports scene since last Sunday but the reaction is a whole lot different to what it would have been some years ago.

Then, it would have been regarded as a scandal to be spoken of in hushed voices only. Now it is seen as being of its time, a man declaring who he is and making it clear that he doesn't give a damn what the public thinks.

Quite why he felt the need to share such personal information with the world is something only he can rationalise.

He has given no indication that he intends to retire from hurling and, at the age of 32, still has quite a few years left if he opts to continue.

Cusack has had to endure some vicious barbs from rival supporters over the years and since goalkeepers spend their playing days within a few yards of the public he can expect a small, but vocal, minority to attempt to make his life a misery.

However, by publicly declaring that he is gay, they really can't get to him anymore. He was brave enough to tell the world exactly who he was so a few lager-filled loudmouths are unlikely to bother him. In a sense, he has empowered himself to a level where he can't be got at.

Presumably that was the reason he decided to make his announcement last weekend. Whatever the motivation, it must have been a difficult decision. He was, after all, going where no other Irish sportsman had travelled before.

Not only that but he was doing it during his career rather than at the end of it. That took real courage.

Unquestionably, it's a seminal moment not just for the GAA but right across Irish sport. Will Cusack's lead make it easier for others of a similar persuasion to openly declare themselves gay if they believe it's right for them? How will the broad sporting public react to Cusack's story?

Will he be the butt of puerile jokes from anonymous loudmouths or will his disclosures be simply nine-day wonders in a country that has a whole lot more with which to occupy itself than the sexual leanings of a Cork hurler?

For all that, there's no doubt that Cusack has opened a window to a world that has always existed in sport but was ignored because no one quite knew how to deal with it.

For now, there's no way of knowing if Cusack's decision to go public on a very private issue will actually serve any purpose but even if it doesn't, he deserves credit for his honesty.

That, in its own way, is quite a contribution to the GAA as it prepares to celebrate the 125th anniversary of its founding on November 1.

- Martin Breheny

Irish Independent