Colm O'Rourke vs. the GPA

[johnneycool]

Qualifiers came in in 2001.
When was the GPA founded?
Are you proposing an A,B,C,D Championship?

2003 or 2004 time cause I paid my subscription to somewhere on the Drumcondra road, got a nice training top at the time..

[Rossfan]

Qualifiers came in in 2001.
When was the GPA founded?
Are you proposing an A,B,C,D Championship?

2003 or 2004 time cause I paid my subscription to somewhere on the Drumcondra road, got a nice training top at the time..

So another urban myth bites the dust

[Kickham csc]

Qualifiers came in in 2001.
When was the GPA founded?
Are you proposing an A,B,C,D Championship?

2003 or 2004 time cause I paid my subscription to somewhere on the Drumcondra road, got a nice training top at the time..

So another urban myth bites the dust

The GPA was first formed in '99 lead by Donal O'Neill. First meeting was to start it was in 96ish, in the Welly Park. First demands talked about in 96 gear, mileage and more games. This was the start of pressure applied to GAA to improve the county players lot

[Main Street]

So people want a better structure to the season but still want the provincial championships and have them linked to the All Ireland!! Many also want dual IC players and lads able to play U21 and senior IC. A perfect example of the 'club man' being the biggest problem.

Where are you drawing the conclusion for the second part from?

Someone in HQ should show leadership and present options for a condensed IC season, options where if you play U21, you don't play Senior or Sigerson until the conclusion of your involvement in that competition.

IC teams go back training in the autumn because in a lot of cases there is an outside manager getting paid by the week who would get less money in a shorter season so he's calling the shots.

The IC season is far too long and gaps between matches are too long.

Offer examples over the whole season  where the gaps can be reduced.
Once the championship starts, probably not something which bothers Dublin so much, but most teams have a game every 2 weeks in the qualifiers until they are eliminated. Some gaps in the championship scheduling can be reduced but once the qualifiers start, there is not that much room for schedule flexibility.
One change which wouldn't hurt is to have ET in all championship games,  in the event of a draw of course.

[Lar Naparka]

Qualifiers came in in 2001.
When was the GPA founded?
Are you proposing an A,B,C,D Championship?

2003 or 2004 time cause I paid my subscription to somewhere on the Drumcondra road, got a nice training top at the time..

So another urban myth bites the dust

The GPA was first formed in '99 lead by Donal O'Neill. First meeting was to start it was in 96ish, in the Welly Park. First demands talked about in 96 gear, mileage and more games. This was the start of pressure applied to GAA to improve the county players lot

It was '99 alright. (I take it the Welly Park is the Wellington Park Hotel in Belfast.) I think it was  DJ Carey's treatment by stewards after the Leinster final (96?) that kickstarted the GPA's foundation.
DJ had been injured in that game and could only walk with difficulty but when he tried to use a lift in order to go upstairs to a post-match reception he was stopped by a couple of stewards who told him that the lift was reserved for VIPs only!
The story was reported in the media and it led to a lot of players airing their gripes and the demand for their needs to be addressed took off from this.
I don't really understand why the GPA is getting so much stick on this board and elsewhere. Sure it doesn't cater for club players but it was set up to represent county players needs. The real scandal is that any sector of players should need a pressure group of any sort to speak for them. I'd like to see a club players' association with a branch in every county but that's an issue for another day. I really don't know enough about the GPA to condone or condemn it but a few facts stand out; IMO at any rate.
If it has 2,100 members then it has to be taken seriously. After all, it's the county players who bring the the paying public through the turnstiles and they do it for nothing other than their love of the game and they get sweet fa iin return.
I can't recall hearing that a single county player left the association or openly criticised it in any way. I may be wrong but I don't think so. If the most prominent players in the country have issues with the GAA, they should be listened to.
Furthermore, if the financial affairs of the GPA are audited every quarter by the GAA, I don't see how anyone could spend any money that can't be accounted for. If anyone is living in the lap of luxury with money provided by the GPA , he's a rare bird indeed.

And I don't buy the line that the county players' needs prevent the club players getting fair treatment. As long as clubs (and some counties also) spend every cent they can lay their hands on in hiring professionals and providing state of the art facilities for their (amatuer) players.It's the desire to win at all costs that drives them on to push players beyond their physical and mental limits.
The GAA needs a big shakeup alright but it wasn't the GPA that landed it in the mess it's in at the moment.
Rant over!

[Rossfan]

Good gasùn Lairìn 

[heffo]

So people want a better structure to the season but still want the provincial championships and have them linked to the All Ireland!! Many also want dual IC players and lads able to play U21 and senior IC. A perfect example of the 'club man' being the biggest problem.

Where are you drawing the conclusion for the second part from?

Someone in HQ should show leadership and present options for a condensed IC season, options where if you play U21, you don't play Senior or Sigerson until the conclusion of your involvement in that competition.

IC teams go back training in the autumn because in a lot of cases there is an outside manager getting paid by the week who would get less money in a shorter season so he's calling the shots.

The IC season is far too long and gaps between matches are too long.

Offer examples over the whole season  where the gaps can be reduced.
Once the championship starts, probably not something which bothers Dublin so much, but most teams have a game every 2 weeks in the qualifiers until they are eliminated. Some gaps in the championship scheduling can be reduced but once the qualifiers start, there is not that much room for schedule flexibility.
One change which wouldn't hurt is to have ET in all championship games,  in the event of a draw of course.

Get rid of pre-season competitions, start the league later and condense it.

Have better harmony between provincial councils in terms of timing of games - there is no need for them to be so spread out.

Play ET in all championship games aside from the AI final.

Play AI final in August.

[johnneycool]

Qualifiers came in in 2001.
When was the GPA founded?
Are you proposing an A,B,C,D Championship?

2003 or 2004 time cause I paid my subscription to somewhere on the Drumcondra road, got a nice training top at the time..

So another urban myth bites the dust

The GPA was first formed in '99 lead by Donal O'Neill. First meeting was to start it was in 96ish, in the Welly Park. First demands talked about in 96 gear, mileage and more games. This was the start of pressure applied to GAA to improve the county players lot

Maybe they only got round to rolling the GPA out to the lesser counties in 2003/2004  .

At the start their aims were admirable, increased mileage rate (IIRC it was 25 cent for players, but 50 cent for administrators at the time), meals for players after games and training, training gear and a helmet to be provided for hurlers (this still isn't the case in some counties).

I remember the first strike was to be a 5 minute delay in all National league games, can't even remember what exactly what it was for though!

[AZOffaly]

I think it was a 15 minute delay. I was a game in Birr between Offaly and Cork, I think, and the delay was on. Something to do with recognition I think?

[Croí na hÉireann]

Yep it was 15 minutes, was in Cusack Park that day, can't remember what shower of heathens we were playing though. Yeah, they wanted recognition IIRC and it was really a show of strength without an all out strike.

[Lar Naparka]

That was in April 2006 and Mayo played Tyrone that day in Castlebar. The team stayed in the dressing room for 15 minutes. I'm not sure about the Tyrone players' attitude. I know at least some of them appeared but didn't run out onto the field. They stood on the sideline talking to their officials and amongst themselves .
IIRC, no one knew for sure what was going to happen at any of the games that day. Some counties took va bullish approach in advance and Mayo was one of them. The players announced well before the date that they'd observe the 15 minute delay.

[Jinxy]

Looking at Rob Hennelly's remarks from the other day it seems pretty clear to me most GPA members don't read the actual articles they're supposed to be up in arms about.
I supposed another text must have gone around from the head honchos to rally the troops.
Most of whom completely missed the point.

[Owenmoresider]

I see Colm has resumed hostilities in yesterday's paper. The details included are interesting to say the least:
https://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/colm-orourke-what-really-intrigued-me-from-the-gpa-financial-report-was-the-wage-bill-36311178.html

[Orchard park]

on this issue I would be in agreement with O'Rourkes article of yesterday

[Farrandeelin]

I see Colm has resumed hostilities in yesterday's paper. The details included are interesting to say the least:
https://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/colm-orourke-what-really-intrigued-me-from-the-gpa-financial-report-was-the-wage-bill-36311178.html

Rossfan will defend them. Seanie won't. Etc. Fwiw, O'Rourke is bang on with this one.