GAA and GPA don't share the same vision for fixtures reform

Yesterday the Examiner hinted how the GPA and the GAA are heading for confrontation on the proposals for fixtures reform and presented further evidence of this again today.

The GPA represented by Sean Potts, their head of communications, are insisting that their proposal for changes to the championship structure should be considered by Congress. Despite being contrary to the objectives of Pairic Duffy's reforms which aim to achieve less inter-county matches, the GPA want more. Almost 40 games more. And they're not shy about reminding us that as the inter-county bring in 80% of the funding of the GAA - according to Potts - they should be listened to.

However, in a separate piece the Examiner also reports on comments from Peter Twiss, the Kerry GAA Secretary who is in favour of the GAA's reforms: “If people really want something done about club fixtures then they should give these proposals serious consideration".

It's too early to judge whether Twiss' position is reflected in the County Boards in other counties. But it is clear that we're in for an interesting three months in the build-up to Congress in February. If club players really want to see the reforms voted through then they need to start making their voices heard.
 

There may be trouble ahead...

There are growing signs that the GAA and GPA are once again on collision course.

In today's Examiner John Fogarty suggests that the two could be at 'loggerheads' over their opposing plans for the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. The GPA want more inter-county games - with 31 out of 32 county panels in support of their proposals for more games per year - while the GAA want less games in order to rebalance county fixtures with club fixtures.

It's hard to see how the GPA will want to go along with a GAA administration that is advocating change in the direction of the clubs. 

"The bottom line is quite simple. This is about shifting the balance unashamedly, unapologetically from inter-county to club activity," says Aogán O Fearghail, GAA President, in an interview with Martin Breheny in Saturday's Indo.

Perhaps Donal Óg Cusack was hinting that more friction was on its way when he said that 'There always needs to be friction between players and administrators’. Afterall the five year protocol agreement signed in 2011 only continues another 10 months so it will be interesting to see if the GPA make reform of the football championship a central part of a new agreement with the GAA.

Will be interesting to see what happens in February at Congress as the GAA has a very big call to make.

Club Fixtures: Joe.ie calls it 'A Plaster for an Open Wound'

I'm with Kevin McGillicuddy. The proposals for the fixtures problem just don't go far enough.

The real problem lies in the summer when the provincial inter-county championships monopolise the fine weather and deny club players the best conditions to play the club championships.

And as Kevin points out, the County Boards are left in charge of this problem but their priority is not giving club players meaningful games it's chasing the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and doing anything and everything to ensure the county team's success. They are caught in the Catch-22 of pumping money into the preparation of county teams and dependent on the county team's success to recoup the money invested.