GAA boot deal - Player pay must be addressed

THE complex question of whether GAA players should be treated as amateurs or professionals is again mired in controversy.

Having survived the use of logos on hurleys and jerseys, the association is currently grappling with the legal quandary of sponsorship on boots.

Not for the first time, Cork players are in the eye of the storm after Niall McCarthy and Kieran Murphy wore boots bearing the logo of a well-known beer company in Sunday’s Guinness All-Ireland hurling quarter-final against Waterford.

With the GAA raking in millions, pressure is mounting to reward players who devote their time and energy to football and hurling.

The association’s adherence to a doctrine of amateurism is admirable, if somewhat anachronistic, in an age when players in other codes are well paid.

However, the money question is not going to go away.