‘Whipping boys’ of the GAA food chain get their say
The newly-formed Club Players Association (CPA) are in the process of formulating a template for the GAA calendar, which they will provide to Croke Park in the coming months, .
The Declan Brennan-led group will be officially launched Monday morning at the home of reigning All-Ireland senior football club champions Ballyboden St Enda’s.
Official recognition of the CPA is expected to follow next month when a Wexford motion goes in front of Congress in Croke Park.
GPA secretary Brennan, who will be joined by chairman Micheál Briody and the likes of former Cork captain Derek Kavanagh (Nemo Rangers) and ex-Meath skipper Anthony Moyles (St Pauls, Blackhall Gaels and St Oliver Plunketts/Eoghan Ruadh), will outline the CPA’s strategy. Hundreds of club players have already registered with the group and the number is anticipated to grow into the thousands in the next few weeks.
Designated periods in the GAA calendar are among the options being discussed by the CPA as they aim to improve playing conditions for club players.
The CPA have already released a strongly-worded recruitment document in which they state their ambition is to “fix the fixtures”. It opens: “I am the GAA club player. I am at the bottom of the food chain. I am the fella who must organise his whole life around the fixtures of an inter-county team I will never play for.
Call to action: Register now with the CPA at https://t.co/Do729XHVye We need your help! Please Retweet #FixTheFixtures #IAmTheMan #CPA pic.twitter.com/FSFhdSOteR
— ClubPlayersAssoc (@ClubPlayerAssoc) January 6, 2017
“I am constantly patted on the head by the authorities and the media but nobody really wants to do anything to improve my situation. I am the lifeblood of the association, so they say. Most of the time I feel like the whipping boy.”
It continues: “I am the man who watches his inter-county team play with mixed feelings. I want them to win because some of my club-mates are involved but I know if they lose, I will get to play. It’s the GAA club player’s strange dilemma. Are you that man? Let your voice be heard.”
