GAA player recruitment 'top of the agenda' in AFL talks

Oliver Greeves of the Hawks is tackled by Kerryman Cillian Burke of the Cats during the 2026 VFL Grand Final. Pic: Craig Dooley/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Jarlath Burns said discussing the recruitment of GAA players by Aussie rules clubs will be the main priority when the association meets with the AFL at the end of the month.

The GAA is currently in talks with the AFL regarding possible measures to limit the numbers of players moving from Ireland to Australia. One suggestion is that Irish players would be signed as category A rookies rather than category B, which is currently the norm. Signing players under Category B status is a low-risk move for clubs. 

"We are in talks with the AFL around putting some sort of a protocol on it, possibly changing the category of player that goes from category B, a rookie, to category A, and that might self-regulate it, but certainly we are meeting the AFL before the end of the month and that's going to be top of the agenda," Burns told RTÉ.

In a report on RTÉ's Nine O'Clock News, Kerry GAA chairperson Patrick O'Sullivan said: "Policies need to be put in place as a matter of urgency for the association here in Ireland."

Four of 14 Irish players at AFL clubs are from Kerry. Mark O'Connor and Cillian Burke are with Geelong while Rob Monahan is at Carlton and Ben Murphy is with Brisbane while Kingdom U20 All-Ireland winner Evan Boyle is set to go on trial with Richmond. There are also 46 Irish players with AFLW clubs. 

"In Kerry, we have players who would have had gift packs at an early age with Australian footballs and asking them to learn how to kick the ball," O'Sullivan added.

"They were tracking them from 16 years of age all the way to 22."