Time has come for GPA to stop asking GAA for more

Paddy Heaney of the Irish News has had enough of Dessie's rants. (The full article is posted on GAAboard.com)

While I don't agree with everything he has to say, he makes some good points. 

If, as Dessie claims, it was all about the elite players--"Without them there is nothing" to quote from his speech at the GPA dinner on Friday-- then as Paddy says, why is the Railway Cup not a roaring success? Fair point.

And while Paddy acknowledges that the GAA hasn't always treated players so well, he explains how Alan Simpson, the Linfield goalkeeping coach, who was part of Ross Carr's backroom team for Down, was "overwhelmed by how well Down's county footballers were treated and hugely impressed by the way no expense was spared in meeting their needs". This echoes Babs Keating's comments that the Tipperary squad of 2007 weren't "left for anything" with the County Board spending €870,000--that's a lot of money--training teams with no success to show for it. 

And that's the part Dessie doesn't mention. He focuses on the empty part of the glass all the time. 

The GAA currently allocates nearly 50% of its income on expenses that are directly related to inter-county teams: 14%  on match and competition costs; 18% payments to counties (we know from the comments above how most of that is spent); and 14% on player welfare. (Source is GAA Annual Report 2008) 

Dessie states that the GAA is going to have to fund the GPA--and pay Dessie's salary!

If the GAA, ultimately, does end up having to fund the GPA then another part of the Association is going to have to pay--that will mean a reduction in funding for facilities, or funding for coaching and games development. 

Then the real losers will be the clubs and volunteers who work so hard to train and coach future generations of inter-county players.

GAA out, GPA in

Just as Croke Park is distancing itself (that shouldn't be too hard with most of them Down Under right now!) from the now annual feud in Cork, the GPA, has the Speedos and goggles on, and wants to dive in at the deep end.

Dessie reckons the GPA has a role to represent the players in the dispute and that likewise, Croke Park, could represent the County Board. And hey presto, we could avoid this type of situation. Dessie's using the quarrel, once again, as an opportunity to call on the GAA to recognise the GPA. Is Donal Og in cohoots with Dessie and engineering the whole thing so this could happen? 

That's a bit far fetched even for the biggest conspiracy theory fans, but it is jarring to see Dessie jump in and claim that the players are free to walk away "as ultimately it is volunteering and done on an amateur ethos". That's totally out of kilter with Dessie's usual spin that the county players are enslaved on the county teams and therefore deserving of money to compensate them for being so badly exploited. 

How long can the GAA hold out?

Mark Simpson shows his shallow knowledge of Gaelic games (Gaelic stars do it for pride not cash). He forgot to mention the biggest threat of all: the one from within and am not talking about the GPA, but also the GAA's growing obsession with increasing its revenue. 

GAA Clubs need a Voice

Some think that Of One Belief lost at Congress, others believe the GAA did. No matter.

No, wait! Before you depart, I'm not going to get into grants, or expenses, or whatever we should call it.

Of One Belief may be no more, but their brief existence taught us an important lesson. Although vilified and pillorised by some, with Martin Breheny leading the lynch mob, Mark Conway and Of One Belief were a critical counterbalance to the money-driven and elitist GPA in the "grants" "debate".

Without Of One Belief there was no other point of view than the GPA's. Croke Park and the GAA hierarchy were easily cowed by the GPA threats and did their utmost to whisper through an agreement with them. Nicky and the suits certainly made no effort to inform the GAA members of the details of the agreement and what the potential consequences were. wasn't until Of One Belief was formed that some semblance of a debate began and the pro's and con's of the agreement were properly aired. 

Now that the GPA have got what they wanted they have firmly established themselves as an important and acknowledged constituency within the GAA, the next step will be to recognise them as the inter-county (always important to make that distinction) players official union. Talks to do so are already under way. Not before its time, some would say, and that's a fair point. 

Official recognition will give the GPA a place at the top table and an even greater influence on the future direction of the GAA. Ordinary GAA members, in contrast, who make up the vast majority of the GAA's numbers, are increasingly disenfranchised from GAA decision-making. The GAA prides itself on being a democratic organisation, but the clubs are too far removed from decision-making at Congress and Central Council to have any real say. With the exception of the "important questions" like the Ban, Rule 42 etc., the clubs are not consulted on the running of the GAA and have little, if no, impact. The Club Forum is a good start, but it's not enough.

With the GPA's emergence as a force in GAA decision-making we can expect that the frequency of occasions when what's good for the GPA is not necessarily good for the rest of the association to increase. The problem is that there will be no voice for the majority of the GAA's members to put their point of view across. If the media wants a quote it needs someone to go to. Without a spokesperson or focal point for the majority of the GAA's members the GPA will once again have free reign in the national media for their bullyboy tactics.

But, the clubs don't have direct representation, despite desperately needing it. There's a whole range of problems, from fixtures (some go weeks and even months without matches during the summer freeze) to volunteering, which are neglected because Croke Park and the County Boards' give more weighting to the inter-county scene. 

The weight of representation is against the clubs. With so many diverse interests in the game the GAA cannot continue to speak for them all. That needs to change.

GPA: Donal and Dessie

An insider reveals who the real genius is...

Self-righteous GPA

The self-righteousness of the GPA knows no bounds.

Less than a week ago Dessie Farrell lashed out at the Of One Belief group for insinuating  that Farrell and the GPA privately harbour long-term aims to create professional Gaelic games. Dessie took umbrage at these remarks claiming that the GPA's "bona fides" on preserving the amateur status are recognised by the GAA. How dare that "rump of malcontents" cast suspicions over the GPA's good word!

Although he later admitted he "probably" did make the comments referred to by Of One Belief in 2002, he insisted the remarks were written in a much different climate of relations. He neglected, however, to disclaim the sections of his book, written in 2005,  that advocate semi-professionalism, and, where- in a fit of egalitarianism rarely seen in peak Celtic Tiger Ireland- he put forward the concept of every player receiving the same amount of money. That didn't last long either, then, did it?

I dislike the label "flip flopper" and don't believe that a change of mind should handicap anyone. But, reacting with such pique and indignation, as if question marks over the GPA's commitment to amateur status were some slur on Dessie's and the GPA's character is downright petulant. Even worse, it's sanctimonious. 

 

It seems, however, the GPA doesn't know any other way. Their support today for Antrim's request to change in throw-in time for Sunday's Allianz Hurling League tie against Waterford in Dungarvan betrays this characteristic again. Bringing forward the throw-in time so that the Antrim players could make their way back to north Antrim - over 450 km and 6 hours drive - is perfectly reasonable, justifying additional GPA pressure on the GAA to accede to Antrim's petition. But, in doing so, why do they always have to be so prickly?

Why do they need "point out just how (my emphasis) accommodating players have been in recent years where fixture scheduling has taken place to facilitate television, Saturday ties and midweek games". Is there an implicit threat that they may not be so accommodating in the future? Even if not, their haste to always claim the moral high ground is priggish, and, more often than not, unfounded. Remember the GPA player's hankering to get on television with their Club Energise drinks in 2005? The GPA needs television as much as the GAA, if not more, especially if their ambitions to get their grubby hands on some of the TV revenue are fulfilled. So why bring that into it?

It's time for the GPA to stop thinking its above the GAA. We've had enough of the holier-than-thou attitude.  

Secret footage of GAA Ruling Elite quelling GPA Strike

Liam Horan, former Irish Independent GAA correspondent, and now author of the Horan Stand column, which appears in many regional newspapers, has unearthed "Secret footage of the GAA Ruling Elite quelling the GPA Strike" and has posted it to his blog.

Ok, so I've been a bit slow spotting it - it dates from 12 November. But, it's still amusing.

Liam is also behind The Coach, a weekly colum in the Galway Independent, which provides some great tips on training and coaching for Gaelic games. For those still playing or involved with teams it's well worth subscribing to the RSS feed to recieve it each week.

This week, The Coach looks at how backs can defend against players like Kieran Donaghy under a high ball.

Dessie and the GPA

Eason bookshop. The 28th December. The sales.


And there it was.

Dessie. Tangled Up in Blue.

On sale at .99 cent!

Even though they were basically giving the book away for free, I still had to think twice . But then I thought to myself, less than one Euro to discover why Dessie is so bitter towards the GAA, maybe it's a price worth paying. So, I splashed out.

What did I learn? Noting new. Yes, the GPA has some rationale for existing and has done great work in terms of ensuring better welfare for players. Improvements in expenses, training and medical facilities, insurance and injury schemes for players and ensuring their medical bills are paid were warranted. The GPA deserves credit for provoking the GAA into action on these matters. It also seems that the GPA advanced the cause of the state of play for many of the weaker hurling counties. Again, a worthy cause and the GPA should be praised for advancing their case.

But, what is clear from the book, and is largely unexplained - save for the Maoist attitude of some county board officials, which Dessie has experienced, and one that the majority of GAA members are well aware of and have suffered themselves - is the reason for Dessie's spite towards officials and the GAA.  Ultimately, it seems, his hostility stems from his opposition to where power lies in the GAA - in the committees, county boards and councils.

Dessie makes it clear; he wants that to change. If you've no inter-county experience, in Dessie's opinion, your view doesn't count. Inter-county is the be-all and end-all. Nevermind the rest of us. We don't matter, because we didn't play at the highest level.

Dessie wants the GAA should turn its sporting pyramid on its head and build from the top. (Luckily for the Egyptian tourist industry the pharaoh's construction supervisors didn't think likewise). 

"I maintain that the inter-county teams remain the ideal and, if well attended to, will nurture all levels beneath it, inspiring young players to persevere with the game".

If you get the 1% right, hey presto, the other 99% will fall into place. Simple. Because, once the inter-county stars are well looked-after, the rest of the GAA can run on aspiration and inspiration. Just like football in England perhaps?

The Premier League, where the best and highest paid footballers in the world strut their stuff every week. Yet, this in the country where the national team can't even qualify for the European Championships and as David Conn, explains in the "The Beautiful Game? Searching for the Soul of Football", English football is sharply polarised between rich and poor, and has lost its soul.

The reason is that Dessie doesn't consider the inter-county players on the same terms as other members of the GAA. Because the inter-county players are making a greater contribution than all other members, they should be getting something "more tangible" for their efforts. Kudos and adulation is not enough.

"For years, I had listened to players sitting on bar stools over the winter complaining about how they were treated. They didn't really buy into the traditional GAA line, certainly not the one that highlighted our ethereal rewards - honour, adulation, camaraderie, recognition - they wanted something more tangible."

Does anyone really believe the GPA when they say they don't want professionalism in GAA?

"No matter how many times they were told that they were just another part of the Association, many inter-county players knew they weren't. Who, after all, was filling the coffers of the GAA, allowing all the myth-makers to wax lyrical about how wonderful an organisation it was?"

Could it be ordinary GAA people? The ones who contribute at the bottom - through volunteering, coaching etc - and at the top of the organisation - by paying to watch the games. And unlike the soccer grassroots, who watch the Premier League every week in England, paying outrageous money to see the games in the stadia and on TV, and buy the jerseys, the GAA grassroots can sleep comfortably knowing that their hard earned cash has not gone directly to some chav footballer (Noel Gallagher's words, not mine) who has been in an orgy, at a 4,000 pound a man Christmas party. The GAA's grassroots know that they get value for their money, because what they spend in Croke Park gets reinvested in the game, not porn sites (Shaun Wright Philips), nor fast cars, nor bling bling.

And with the GPA here to stay - as Dessie keenly empahsizes in the penultimate chapter - it's going to be hard to keep it that way.

GAA: for the love of the game

Listening to Dessie Farrell and Donal Og Cusack talking about the "modern" players' commitment to playing GAA you would think that GAA players before their time, had simply nothing better to do, but turn-up from time to time without much training to play a game.

Leafing through some match programmes I have at home, a nice anecdote caught my eye, which shows that in those days it wasn't all that straightforward to represent your county.

In 1975 Gerry Delaney, of the legendary Stradbally clan from Laois was working as a Garda in Ashbourne county Meath, but continued to play with Stradbally and the Laois U-21 team. Having defeated Kildare in the opening round of the Leinster Championship, Laois faced Meath in the quarter-final in Newbridge.

Living in Meath Gerry had to travel down to the game and the best way of doing so was to get a lift with the Meath lads. Joey Tormey, a member of the local Donaghmore club arranged for him to travel with "Scupps" White, Phil Smyth and Eamon O'Brien. As Gerry recounts "It was faily quiet on the way down...just a small bit of banter".

Against a side which included six Meath seniors Laois played exceptionally well, defeating Meath by 5-5 to 3-9, with Gerry Delaney scoring four of Laois's goals!

Gerry recalls the aftermath "having had something to eat with the Laois team after game, my lift back to Ashbourne with the Laois management didn't materialise so I had to ask the Meath lads if they would oblige. They were happy to do so but only after threatening to leave me stranded in Naas! It wasn't the same mini-bus that I went to the game in and the craic wasn't any better...understandably!"

They dropped him in Dunshaughlin and Gerry had to thumb home to Ashbourne.

Gerry didn't feel abandonned by the GAA. Since then he's given 30 years of service, first as a player and now as a club official -serving as chairman for no fewer than three separate terms- with his adopted club of Donaghmore/Ashbourne.

Latest from Oppposition to Grants Campaign

Black Saturday
Despite the clear opportunity to defer and go out for consultation, Central Council went ahead and approved pay-for-play on Saturday. Having just driven a horse and cart through Rule 11, it was a wee bit rich of them to then tell the rest of us to go away and examine our consciences about breaches of amateur status at club and county level. Nonetheless there’s something in what they say. This cancer has been eating away at the insides of the GAA for a while. But just because you’ve a cancer in one place is no reason to start injecting yourself with botulism somewhere else!

Doire Abu!
Derry’s County Convention today unanimously passed a motion opposing grants/pay-for-play. They join Mayo as counties fully opposed to where the GAA is being brought to. Conventions are now coming thick and fast. Try to go to yours and make the case against the implementation of what Central Council passed on Saturday.

“Questions and Answers”There may be a bit of coverage of pay-for-play on RTE’s Q&A tonight (Monday). Watch it and see … and get others to do likewise!

Not Our Style
Some of today’s media coverage was not good for our President, Nickey Brennan. We took no pleasure in it. Nickey’s our President, put there by us. In opposing pay-for-play we’re not about rubbishing anybody. What we are about is upholding a core GAA value.

What’s Next?
Some “malcontents” (by the way as of 10.00pm last night there’s 407 of you registered here) in the midlands and south of the country want to hold meetings along the lines of the Elk/Toome event. It’s not yet clear if the meetings will be held before or after Christmas … but as soon as anything’s organised we’ll let you know.

Why you should oppose the GPA strike - Reason No. 1

In the GAA world there are three major groupings, the players, the elected officers and the supporters. We know where the other two stand on this issue. But, what about the supporters-who after all make up 98% of the GAA? Ordinary clubmen and supporters need to stand up and make their voice heard on the GPA and their ultimate agenda. A lot of people are opposed to the strike but their voice is dissipated across the Internet and barely mentioned by the media. We need to change this by coming together to demonstrate our opposition. I'm trying to take this initiative by announcing a call to action. As a first step Declare for your County by signing the petition.

There are also those out there who say, "Why not? Why shouldn't they get a few bob?" They need to be educated on the Pandora's Box of pain and trouble that paying a grant to the players will open up. I'll try to this over over the coming weeks.

The GPA is a Trojan Horse for pay for play. No amount of denial on their behalf can deny this. The payment of the grant to players will establish a principle that cannot be reversed. It will forevermore form a link between playing for the county and financial compensation. There will be no turning back. From this point on it becomes a question of (a) how much pay? and (b) who pays? Nickey Brennan and the Croke Park officials are right not to get involved in the mechanics of distributing the government grant. It is the government's money therefore, it should be up to the Government to find a mechanism to pay the players. There is no guarantee that the money will be granted every year by the government. In that case the GPA will undoubtedly continue to demand their grant directly from the GAA. They won't care about the source, they'll just want their money. If the GPA get €5m this year, what will they want in two years time? They tell us now that the payment of the grant is an "acknowledgement of their status as inter-county players". Undoubtedly, in a few years they will tell us that €2,500 is too small, that it is an "insult to their status as inter-county players" and that the GAA should come up with more.

How do know this? It's an inevitable process that has already been demonstrated by the short history of the GPA. The GPA agenda has changed considerably since the organisation's foundation. For nearly a decade now the GPA has improved conditions for inter-county players, and fair play to them for doing so-it was needed. When they first started out they increased the measly 12p-a-mile expense allowance and ensured that all players received hot meals after training and received free gear. But increasingly, they have sounded like workers in a sweatshop. They talk of exploitation, the absence of compensation and benefits, poor conditions, denial of rights and emotional humiliation (because they look at the rugby and soccer players and can't help feeling that they are being taken for a ride). Before welfare meant player representation and better conditions. Less than ten years later it now means money in their back pockets. If the GPA's current demands are met, then they will look for more. They are already speaking in those terms. Just this week Donal O'Neill spoke of the GPA getting a percentage of any new television deal negotiated by Croke Park. If this isn't moving the GAA to pay for play, what is? It is clear that their longterm aim is a move towards professionalism in some form or other, and no amount of denying it can hide this fact.

The GPA's Status Anxiety

Philosopher and author Alain de Botton believes there's something the vast majority of people desire even more than money. Whatever their background or social class, whatever their age or country of origin, what they desperately crave is status". With regard to the Greedy Players' Association it seems he's right.

The organisation fulfills his hypothesis perfectly. The GPA representatives Dessie Farrell, Chief Executive, and Donal Og Cusack, Chairman, whine and moan relentlessly in the newspapers and on the radio that the GAA, or more specifically, the administrators who they refer to as Croke Park, have a complete lack of respect for the players. In line with de Botton's thesis, the motivation driving the creation of the GPA was the desire to be treated with respect. The aim of the formation of the GPA, we were told at the time, was to improve the players' representation and conditions.

Except now, eight years on, the arguments have evolved, the goalposts have changed. Respect is no longer about conditions and representation. When the GPA complains that Croke Park does not value the players properly, it is no longer talking in terms of gear, facilities and mileage expenses. It's now about the money made "off their backs". Respect now means "Show us the money".

The evolution is such that GPA players now equate the resolution of the grant issue, i.e. money in their pockets, as "an acknowledgement of their status as county players". Now they judge their status in terms of financial achievement. A sense of being cared for and thought valuable culturally is not enough. The honour, the 'goodies', the flattery, and the attention earned from being a county player no longer conform to their ideals of dignity and respect. It seems their sense of self-worth and self-esteem has been diminished, because unlike the rugby and soccer players, who they meet at promotions and awards, they are not being financially compensated for participation in their sport.

And they're behaving like "spoilt children" to get their way. Their attitude demonstrates their lack of appreciation for the position they are in and that they have lost touch with the grassroots. Some within their ranks know this and have spoken out. These dissenters know that fans and supporters are fundamentally opposed to strike action (see An Fear Rua) and resent the way the GPA representatives are behaving.

The grassroots want to be inspired not held to ransom. The GPA it seems don't care. They want what Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr.) in the movie Jerry Maguire, called "the Kwan". "Kwan means love, respect, community... and the dollars too".

Through their fixation on the latter, however, they're fast losing the rest of the package.

GAA and the money game

The GPA, Greedy Players Association, reminded us again this week (Farrell admits strike action is being considered, Hoganstand.com, 4 October) that strike action is being considered and that feelings are running high within the organisation. Donal Og Cusack, Chairman of the GPA, outlined why (Patience wearing Thin) in a self-serving whinge that should rankle with every genuine GAA fan.

In the piece, Cusack bemoans the lack of progress on the issue of compensation for players and whines against the injustices inflicted on our inter-county stars. He believes GAA players are the "laughing stock of the sporting world" and are not respected by the GAA. His attitude and tone reflect the self-interest of the organisation, showing no consideration whatsoever for the repercussions these measures could have for the future of our traditional games.

But, these arguments aren't new. This is old ground which will no doubt be turned over again and again until the Greedy Players get their way. In response I've dug out a more thoughtful perspective from the letters to the Editor of the Irish Times, in August 2005, which responds to Cusack's gripes.

Madam - ...

"Any proposed change of GAA policy should surely pass two basic tests: Will it help or hinder the long-term survival of our indigenous games? Will it help or hinder the survival of the GAA as a community-based organisation?

Arguments for monetary player compensation-an entirely separate issue from player welfare- fail both tests. Firstly, to simply survive in the face of the media-driven and sponsor-driven saturation promotion of international sports, Gaelic games at club and community "seed-bed" level need every euro the GAA can afford for coaching, promotion and development. GAA revenues really do get redistributed the the grass-roots-no fat cats get a cut. [my comments - but not if the Greedy Players get their way!]

Secondly, and more fundamentally, paying inter-county players would subvert the values and motives that make the GAA work so uniquely at community level. Parish, community and club allegiances are the very heartbeat of the GAA. They would be the first casualties of any monetary compensation regime. Why? Because human nature in any quasi-business regime is very predictable.

Over time, more and more players will change allegiance to follow the best-paying options (probably determined by the deepest sponsor pockets)...

As players begin to change their clubs and counties, the irreplaceable community heartbeat of the GAA will weaken progressively, and resuscitation will not be an option...

What about the "excessive demands" on players' time? The number of games for top players is not the problem - it's the new-era of training regimes. If the GPA and Croke Park make common cause, they can find a way to curtail the vicious circles of excessive training regimes for inter-county players and restoring a better balance between the club and county activity. [my comments - the GPA hasn't shown the slightest interest in this. Why? Player welfare is not their objective, player compensation is.] Real player welfare can be ensured by restructuring and regulation but monetary compensation is never a valid alternative, even from a thinking player's perspective.

Former Derry star Joe Brolly has forcefully made the often overlooked point that "it is the county players who get the most out of the games - the status, the excitement, the glory, the spin-offs". They do serve an important "shop-window" purpose for the games but the requirements of its shop-window should always be secondary to the objectives of an organisation.

The compensation lobby should be faced down with the basic question: where lies the greater long-term good - for the games, for the players of the future and for Irish community life?

Yours, etc, Joe Tuohy

I'm with Joe on this one.

The GPA has cried wolf too often

The Gaelic Players' Association (GPA) is threatening anew to hold our national games to ransom. Disgruntled with the lack of progress over how to distribute the €5 million put aside by the previous Minister for Sport, John O'Donoghue, the GPA Chief Executive, Dessie Farrell, has once again hinted at strike action (see Irish Times, 5th September 2007, GPA suggest strike action on €5 million) if the issue isn't quickly resolved. The Greedy Players' Association is impatient. They want to get their hands on the money and they want it now.

This is crying wolf one time too many (see An Fear Rua, Are the GPA like the boy who cried wolf?). It's time that the vast majority of the GAA-the volunteers, players of all levels, and supporters-stand up  to these ultimatums and let the GPA know that strike action will not be tolerated.

Sure, the GPA has some legitimate grievances, and pressure from the organization has improved the GAA's attitude to players' well being. The appointment of Paraic Duffy, a player welfare officer, by the GAA, is an example of progress, a direct result of the influence the GPA has brought to bear on GAA headquarters. Improvements in other areas on the GPA's campaign list, such as improving the insurance/injury scheme for all club and county players and taking action to solve the fixture crisis, would also be welcome improvements to our games for all players and supporters.

However, the fundamental problem with the GPA, despite their protestations to the contrary, is that they are pushing the GAA toward 'pay-for-play'. Although they say they realize this is not feasible (see for example this interview with Dessie Farrell in DCU's alumni magazine), whether be design or direct consequence, their actions are driving this dangerous momentum. 

It's hard to trust the GPA on 'pay-for-play' when one of their objectives is a collective bargaining agreement with the GAA. Do they really consider their situation is akin to negotiations between a union and employers? Read their website and the statements they make. The speak about themselves as if they were exploited workers in a sweatshop. The fix they want is easy though. Compensation can relieve their "plight". Their newly designed logo also displays their avarice, as it's a blatant rip-off of the NBA (National Basketball Association) and MLB (Major League Baseball) logos, both professional sports organizations. 

It's only very recently that the GPA has created an Associate Membership scheme to "enable all GAA players, club members, supporters/fans and officials to become part of the GPA network". The aim is to strengthen the bond between club and county. Whey has it taken them eight years? At least they can take credit for realizing that such a bond exists. Once again however, the true intention of this scheme is not clear-cut. GPA Associate  members will not have voting rights and will have no influence on the organization. What's the interest so? Well, the associate membership fee of €50 allows access to a wide range of offers and services from the GPA, not to mention, a polo shirt with the GPA logo. While a good deal on car insurance may be welcome the GPA will no doubt, use their new "grassroots" members to further legitimate their organization and in future claim that the GPA represents a broad spectrum of the GAA, top to bottom, and not just inter-county players. Watch to see how they spin this in the future and look to leverage a broader membership base in negotiations with the GAA. Or maybe that's too cynical and Dessie wants a salary to match his lofty title.

The common good of the GAA is threatened by the GPA's self-interest in pursuit of compensation. The GPA is constantly reminding us of how much financially they loose through their commitment and dedication to playing Gaelic games. Their lack of concern with reports that county boards are digging themselves into a financial black hole of debt, brought about by the increased cost of player travel, catering and medical expenses that is stretching their budgets to the limit. According to the Irish Independent, Westmeath's debt has climbed to €641,000 (see Irish Independent, August 10th 2007, Westmeath football on the brink of financial crisis) and the county board is facing a financial crisis. If you think this is an isolated case of mismanaged finances, think again. In an interview with the Sunday Independent on 10 June 2007,  Tipperary Manager, Babs Keating, revealed that the Tipperary County Board had spent €870,000 training the inter-county teams in 2006, with no success to show for it, or indeed, to pay for it. As Babs said, in his time "the players togged out under a galvanised sheet with only a lantern to light them and after training you'd just have a cup of tea and a sandwich. But the present squad aren't left for anything". If the figures are like that now what would they be like of the players are receiving payment directly? 

At a time when the GAA is coming under such financial pressure, and facing serious competition for players and members from rugby and soccer, the focus of all within the organization should be on putting money back into the game: improving competitive structures for players at all levels and working to encourage more volunteers to help out with the running of clubs and the coaching of players. 

So it's time to say enough is enough to the self-interested GPA. As TV3's 6-part documentary series, "Grass Roots of the GAA", rightly points out, the volunteers of the organization who give their time-at no cost-to coach, administer, look after grounds, coordinate fundraising, drive youngsters to games, and wash the dirty jerseys, are the real heroes of the GAA. It's their work and passion behind the scenes that is fundamental to the success of the GAA. The spotlight has been on the inter-county players for too long. They are the tip of the iceberg. It's time to talk about the unsung heroes and time the GPA stopped crying wolf, their credibility is wearing thin.