GAA clampdown to end ‘raw deal’ for club players

The GAA’s provincial councils are planning to finally tackle the club fixture programmes to end the raw deal being endured by the ordinary player.

Central Council have ordered the four provincial bodies, as per rule 3.32, to examine club fixture schedules for the season ahead, taking action where necessary to ensure club players no longer stand idle for much of the summer.

Provincial chiefs were in unanimous agreement when contacted by the Irish Examiner yesterday that club players have received a raw deal for many years.

Leinster chairman Martin Skelly said the treatment of some club players by their boards was tantamount to abuse.

“Counties and county managers will sometimes take it to the extreme and it is the extremes that really have to be curtailed,” he said.

“We have to be more vigilant. Very few counties will announce publicly that a full round of games is being postponed during the summer. It is then hard to detect this kind of stuff and most of the time when we learn of it, it is too late.

“There are few counties that would come out and announce what Donegal did, declaring there would be no championship action until they are knocked out of the All-Ireland championship. Not to single out Dublin, but for the St Vincent’s players to have to play a county semi-final on a Sunday, the final the following Sunday, the replay on the Wednesday and then a Leinster quarter-final on the following Sunday — that is just horrendous abuse of club players.

“The perception is that the county manager dictates all. That is not the case. Clubs have to start to play ball. It is the clubs who don’t want to play without a player and that holds up a round of games.”

Skelly also advocated the scrapping of the 13-day rule to allow more club games during the inter-county season, calling for club players to be given precedence over dual operators at inter-county level.

“We need to ask is it right to hold up 200 players and a full round of fixtures because there are two players involved at inter-county level in a different code.”

Ulster chairman Martin McAviney said they will inspect the Donegal fixtures programme in March and if it comes to pass that no club action has been scheduled until after their exit from the All-Ireland series, corrective action will have to be taken.

“The bye-laws are there for us to tell a county that their fixtures programme is either compliant or not. Simple as that,” he said.

“Before what happened was counties were submitting their plan, but not including championship fixtures so you couldn’t do them if they broke from their championship programme. If a county renege on their plan this summer there are financial penalties.”

Munster Council CEO Simon Moroney said it was regrettable that both the Cratloe footballers and Whitegate hurlers were forced into provincial action just 24 hours after capturing their respective county titles last November, warning that the four month break which occurred during last year’s Clare championship cannot be repeated.

“It is not at all a desirable situation where you have club players idle for a couple of months during the summer.

“Equally, there is an element of crystal ball gazing. You couldn’t have foreseen the success that would befall Clare this year in both senior and U21. They played eight games overall during the summer and taking into account the 13-day rule there aren’t gaps there.

Connacht Council secretary John Prenty said the club fixtures problem is evident across the country and it is high-time a solution achieved.

“Improvements can be made, not just in Connacht. Club players are getting a raw deal.”