KELLY TELLS GPA TO COOL IT OVER FIXTURE CHAOS —
‘The GAA is facing a dilemma, people should understand that rather than issue ultimatums’
FORMER GAA president Seán Kelly warned the GPA yesterday that this was no time for ‘ultimatums’. The inter-county players’ body informed Croke Park on Sunday night that they were backing a number of county panels who had objected to the rescheduling of matches to yesterday due to the adverse weather conditions at the weekend.
In what constituted a veiled threat of strike action, the GPA informed GAA bosses that it would be ‘supporting a number of squads who have outlined their commitment not to fulfil their fixtures tomorrow due to player unavailability.
‘We have this evening (Sunday) contacted the GAA outlining our support for these squads and requesting that the CCCC (Central Competitions Control Committee) find an alternative arrangement for these games,’ they added in the statement that was made public yesterday.
Although four matches scheduled for yesterday did not take place — the Division 2A hurling final between Westmeath and Carlow, Division 2 FL LouthMeath relegation clash, and the Waterford-Leitrim and WicklowLimerick meetings — it is understood that the decisions to call off those games were informed by failed pitch inspections yesterday morning.
But the fact that the GPA has taken such an aggressive stance against the rescheduling of these fixtures is understood to have angered GAA chiefs already engaged in a losing battle to preserve the month of April exclusively for club action.
And Fine Gael MEP Kelly, who served as GAA president from 2003 to 2006, claimed yesterday that the players’ body was offside in taking such a hard-line stance.
‘Finding the opportunity to reschedule these games was always going to be difficult, especially after the commitment given at Congress that April would be free for clubs.
‘The GAA is facing a dilemma and people should understand that.
‘They have to get the games played. It is a catch22 situation and it would be better for people to understand that rather than issuing ultimatums of one kind or another,’ declared the former GAA president. The GPA claimed that players had been angered by not being consulted prior to the announcement of the rescheduling of games, but Kelly believes it would not have been practical or wise of the GAA to engage in such a process. ‘Unfortunately, and I don’t mean this in a disrespectful manner, when it comes to making emergency calls the less people involved in making that call the easier it is to do. ‘The more people you consult, the less likely you are to get a consensus. In fact, you won’t get a consensus on an issue like this. ‘Someone has to grab the thing by the scruff of the neck and say this is the situation and this is the best solution to make it work as best they can.’ GAA chiefs are likely to view the GPA’s threat as an effort by the players’ body to air their grievance over the fixture schedule in general, something they also referenced in their statement.
‘In 2017, over 70 per cent of inter-county football squads voted against the revised fixture schedule, which was subsequently passed at GAA Congress.
‘This condensed calendar season has little or no contingency for adverse weather conditions or suitable periods for rest and recovery of our amateur players. In the interests of welfare of our members, the GPA feels this is something that the GAA needs to review,’ stated the players’ body.
But Kelly claimed that the GPA should respect the decision taken at Congress, pointing out that when Championship formats are reviewed in two years’ time, there will be another opportunity to address the issue.
‘Okay, the GPA was not in favour of the rescheduling, but it is in place for a period of time.
‘The majority felt that was the way to go and the experience of the next number of years will prove whether that is right or wrong.
‘You have to accept the democratic process, at the end of the day, otherwise there is no point having a debate and a vote at Congress. You have to have a bit of goodwill across the board. I understand the frustration and there is a lot of pressure on players at the moment.
‘But the alternative is that there would be more chaos and that would be worse,’ added Kelly.
Meanwhile, the CCCC will today publish its revamped fixture schedule, which is expect to confirm that the Allianz Hurling League final has been pushed back to the weekend of April 7/8.
The final was originally scheduled to take place on March 24, but is facing a second postponement inside three weeks as a result of adverse weather wreaking havoc with its schedule.
The CCCC must also decide whether to postpone the final round of Division 2 in the Football League, due to take place this weekend, by a week to allow the Down-Tipperary and LouthMeath games — both of which have the potential to impact the promotion and relegation permutations — to be played.
Either way, the Division 2 final is set to be postponed and is now likely to be played as a doubleheader with the already postponed Division 4 final on the weekend of April 7/8.