CPA (Club Players Association)

[The Trap]

I am delighted this has been set up, probably a few years too late but hopefully every club player joins and supports the CPA.
What I have found very interesting in recent years is that ex county players writing in various media outlets have spoken about how terribly club players are treated but that they only realised this when they retired from county and returned to play for the club. Are county players in that big of a bubble?
It is going to be very difficult to make meaningful change very quickly but I couldn't see things being passed in the future such as moving the under 21s to the summer, not allowing county minors to play for their clubs or reducing the age from 18 to 17.

[Jinxy]

Liam Griffin on Newstalk now.

[Jinxy]

Spoke brilliantly as usual.
He's just someone that instantly commands respect.
'Fix the Fixtures' is the perfect slogan.

[longballin]

Name the county players.

used players for their county profile - Aaron Kernan, McHugh and yer man from Roscommon does goals and makes the funny faces

[Rossfan]

Name the county players.

used players for their county profile - Aaron Kernan, McHugh and yer man from Roscommon does goals and makes the funny faces

Thought I saw Cake's head at the top table alright. While sticking well known faces out in front might be a good idea at the start - surely one genuine ordinary club player from each Province would be a far better long term more convincing public face.

[Syferus]

Name the county players.

used players for their county profile - Aaron Kernan, McHugh and yer man from Roscommon does goals and makes the funny faces

Thought I saw Cake's head at the top table alright. While sticking well known faces out in front might be a good idea at the start - surely one genuine ordinary club player from each Province would be a far better long term more convincing public face.

Christ give them a wet day at it before criticising their approach..

[Jinxy]

Name the county players.

used players for their county profile - Aaron Kernan, McHugh and yer man from Roscommon does goals and makes the funny faces

If you used to be a county player, but now you exclusively play club football, what are you?

[seafoid]

They want to finish club finals in the calendar year . I think it will be like Rome vs the Irish dioceses back in the day

at 41.15 Colm O'Rourke in a gaffer jacket
http://www.rte.ie/player/ch/show/rte-news-six-one-30003249/10671847/

[Croí na hÉireann]

CPA launch fronted by high profile county players in D4 club that signs up players on international scale... oops!

Ballyboden is not in D4. Those high profile county players are solely club players now.

[magpie seanie]

Name the county players.

Martin Mc Hugh still a club player?
It appears a rational fixtures calendar would sort out an awful lot of  club players' concerns.

And the problem will be that clubs and and club players will not be rational about the demands on County players to play club matches.

If the CPA is militant at all there's only two ways this can end up, a) the destruction of the county game as players will refuse to do both, or b) the complete resignation of County players from club football, as they'll be given no choice if they want to play county ball.

A bit ott there Wobbler. These issues can be solved through dialogue and they will be. The CPA will not be militant unlike the GPA who threatened and facilitated strikes etc until they got the money they craved.

It's unfortunate that this volunteer group has to be put in place to lobby for what should be basic common sense measures. However, I'm sure with calm heads and positive engagement solutions can be found that will vastly improve the fixtures crisis. No one can deny there's a crisis. No one can say it's acceptable. Anyone who sees the CPA as a threat confuses me to be honest.

[Jinxy]

Name the county players.

Martin Mc Hugh still a club player?
It appears a rational fixtures calendar would sort out an awful lot of  club players' concerns.

And the problem will be that clubs and and club players will not be rational about the demands on County players to play club matches.

If the CPA is militant at all there's only two ways this can end up, a) the destruction of the county game as players will refuse to do both, or b) the complete resignation of County players from club football, as they'll be given no choice if they want to play county ball.

One strike and I'm out - Liam Griffin on new Club Players Association

Griffin believes a few "sacred cows may have to be slaughtered" if a solution is to be found.

But players withdrawing their involvement is not something he would associate with, adding that he didn't imagine it would ever come to such an impasse.
"I want fellas to play games, I don't want to stop them playing games. I'm not a member of ASTI or a trade union or somebody saying 'the gates are locked and you can't go in'," he said.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/hurling/one-strike-and-im-out-liam-griffin-on-new-club-players-association-35355037.html

[Rossfan]

CPA launch fronted by high profile county players in D4 club that signs up players on international scale... oops!

Ballyboden is not in D4. Those high profile county players are solely club players now.

I think you'll find Cake, Máirtín Beag and Griffin would need a big EX before the word club.
A bit of dialogue can easily sort out the fixtures mess but will  the biggest stumbling block be the Provincial Councils?
Tightening up Inter Co calendars will impinge most on the present leisurely time frames of the Provincial Championships.

[Croí na hÉireann]

CPA launch fronted by high profile county players in D4 club that signs up players on international scale... oops!

Ballyboden is not in D4. Those high profile county players are solely club players now.

I think you'll find Cake, Máirtín Beag and Griffin would need a big EX before the word club.
A bit of dialogue can easily sort out the fixtures mess but will  the biggest stumbling block be the Provincial Councils?
Tightening up Inter Co calendars will impinge most on the present leisurely time frames of the Provincial Championships.

Niall Corcoran. Aaron Kernan. Kevin Nolan. Derek Kavanagh.

[Boycey]

Name the county players.

Martin Mc Hugh still a club player?
It appears a rational fixtures calendar would sort out an awful lot of  club players' concerns.

And the problem will be that clubs and and club players will not be rational about the demands on County players to play club matches.

If the CPA is militant at all there's only two ways this can end up, a) the destruction of the county game as players will refuse to do both, or b) the complete resignation of County players from club football, as they'll be given no choice if they want to play county ball.

A bit ott there Wobbler. These issues can be solved through dialogue and they will be. The CPA will not be militant unlike the GPA who threatened and facilitated strikes etc until they got the money they craved.

It's unfortunate that this volunteer group has to be put in place to lobby for what should be basic common sense measures. However, I'm sure with calm heads and positive engagement solutions can be found that will vastly improve the fixtures crisis. No one can deny there's a crisis. No one can say it's acceptable. Anyone who sees the CPA as a threat confuses me to be honest.

I wouldn't be sure they won't be militant Seanie, Declan Brennan who formed the CPA I know personally and I'd definitely count him as militant. I also read this the other day from Willie Coleman who, according to the article anyway is the provincial co-ordinator for Munster.

The question has been asked would the CPA ask the players to strike. It's not something that they would want to do, but if it has to be done it's not something that is going to be ruled out if it can help to achieve the overall objective.

Link to full piece - http://www.tipperarystar.ie/news/sport/229465/coleman-calls-on-tipperary-club-players-to-pledge-their-support-to-the-cpa.html

I thought it was a bit much to be mooting strike action before they had even got their agenda out there

[thewobbler]

Call it OTT Seanie, but in my experience the overarching reason for creating a union is to force the balance of power. That "force" might be achieved through negotiation but it's the overwhelming impact of what a union can do (or threaten to do) that changes the balance of power.

From my perspective personally i blame clubs much more for the current mess than I blame county boards, provincial boards or the GAA.

It is the clubs that refuse to fulfil fixtures without their County players, the clubs that refuse to play league games ahead of championship games, the clubs who seek a match postponement because a squad player's great aunt has died, it's the clubs who will ultimately try to split a player in two.

from what I can see, the CPA is going to continue to fight those corners, rather than find compromise.