Players may strike as GPA and GAA rift widens

THE festering conflict between the GAA and GPA over proposals from the players’ body to introduce Government grants for inter-county players deepened yesterday.

Both released prickly statements defending increasingly polarised stances yesterday with the threat of a players strike moving a step closer after the GPA’s decision to call an EGM for April 1 over what it regards as the GAA’s ‘non-co-operation’.

The GPA also referred to disgruntlement with the GAA over other player welfare issues, but it is was Croke Park’s failure to send a representative to a meeting between the players’ body and Sports Minister John O’Donoghue last week that is chiefly responsible for bringing the matter to a head.

“The GPA does not accept the slow rate of progress on the grants proposal,” it claimed. “Despite a number of supportive statements by GAA officials and endorsement by Central Council over a year ago, the GAA has failed subsequently to engage with the players on this issue culminating in last week’s failure to attend a critical meeting with the sports minister.”

The GAA responded by claiming they had no prior knowledge of the meeting with Mr O’Donoghue until the morning it was scheduled to take place. However, President Sean Kelly said on Monday that he was planning to attend the meeting until “Nicky Brennan as incoming President said he would like an opportunity to discuss the matter with the GPA before we made any moves of that nature”.

While the GPA claimed it had the backing of Central Council to proceed with the grants scheme, Croke Park officials pointed to that body’s last meeting on February 25, where they said a very different approach was decided upon.

“At that meeting delegates expressed the need to have the matter discussed in detail at their County Boards so that they could return with their respective boards views and mandate,” Croke Park’s statement read.

“On that basis, it was the unanimous decision of Central Council that consideration of the sports grants proposal should be deferred until after April’s Congress and Dessie Farrell, a member of Central Council, withdrew the players motion “to support the introduction of Government funded sports grants for senior inter-county players. The matter had never previously been endorsed by Central Council as stated in the GPA statement.”

The GPA’s EGM will take place in Portlaoise, where the last meeting of its kind took place four years ago. On that occasion, its membership passed two motions regarding negotiation and the possibility of strike action.

How hard line a stance the players’ body decides to take on the current impasse remains to be seen until April 1.