Kent calls for ‘accountability’ over GPA’s spending
A TOP GAA official believes money spent by the Gaelic Players Association (GPA) on ‘entertainment’ demands that the finances of the players’ body should be exposed to increased scrutiny.
With tensions between the players’ organisation and the GAA running high following last year’s protests organised by the GPA seeking to accelerate the integration process of the GAA, Ladies Gaelic Football Association and Camogie Association, Leinster Council chairman Derek Kent expressed his concern at how the GPA was spending money.
In his address to yesterday’s council convention, Kent said: Accountability also must come to the fore, as an Association we contributed over €3.4million to the GPA in 2022 at a time when we withheld funding to our clubs.
‘In return we had player protests, a refusal to promote our games, and the antagonistic language such as, and I quote, “will be organized and mobilised for protest action”.
‘I personally am not happy with aspects of how the GPA spend the precious resources allocated to them annually – a recent presentation to Ard Chomhairle on their accounts revealed a significant spend on items such as match day tickets, on entertainment in corporate boxes, and on donations at a cost of almost a quarter of a million euro, of our funds, to various other bodies.
‘All of this at a time when every county board seems to be flat out fundraising to sustain the county game, and when we have volunteer chairpersons having sleepless nights about their county’s finances, struggling to meet the demands of their teams and maintain their facilities,’ Kent told delegates.
The Wexford man’s comments come in the aftermath of Connacht CEO John Prenty, who accused the players’ body of not ‘giving respect’ to the GAA by staging protests.
Meanwhile, an experimental Dublin team powered their way into the O’Byrne Cup final with a 5-17 to 1-11 trouncing of Wexford at Wexford Park yesterday.
St Vincent’s forward Seán Lowry put up his hand up to remain in manager Dessie Farrell’s plans by grabbing a hat-trick of goals.
Yet somehow Lowry’s contribution was left in the shade by the impact of Niall Scully with the 29-year-old showing that he may have something to offer in the year ahead, providing Lowry with the assist for his first goal and netting late on himself.