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Colm O'Rourke's article today re the GPA.

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Surprised nobody has started a thread on this. If anyone wants to post the link please do so. ,I expect that what he says is 100% accurate. Going on the figures presented on the GPA's own report, it sounds as if it is a lucrative business for some. PoolSturgeon (Galway) - Posts: 1903 - 12/11/2017 20:08:32 2061916 Link
It's an excellent article and he raises some excellent questions. It's scandolous if true that wages for 12 GPA are over 900k a year a third of their budget. I have long suspected that Gaa finance is like water in Ireland most of it is leaked before it get to source. There is a growing trend of greed in GAA at the highest level, the advent of testimonials, multiple fundraisers across the pond and the sale rise of the GPA. I think if there was an an all Ireland audit county by county similar things would be found. Yet that's whats required the GAA needs an independent audit of anyone or body in receipt of funds, or the method in regard to how funds are raised. I think some rotten practices are in place throughout the country, TheUsername (Dublin) - Posts: 4445 - 12/11/2017 20:47:25 2061928 Link
Would not take a genius to work out that this is a failed idea. Year in year out they let the likes of Carlow and Leitrim play against the big boys. Until they are honest with these counties and tell these counties to enter into a two/three tier competition it's a waste of time. The CPA very hard to take seriously too when they have men on the top table who's expenses?? would be questionable. Like gpa hierarchy some of the cpa have lined their pockets. Greensheen (Meath) - Posts: 51 - 12/11/2017 21:01:18 2061936 Link
Replying To Greensheen: "Would not take a genius to work out that this is a failed idea. Year in year out they let the likes of Carlow and Leitrim play against the big boys. Until they are honest with these counties and tell these counties to enter into a two/three tier competition it's a waste of time. The CPA very hard to take seriously too when they have men on the top table who's expenses?? would be questionable. Like gpa hierarchy some of the cpa have lined their pockets." Carlow are probably as strong as Meath at the moment. Gave Dubs a better game this year than ye did last year. easil (Antrim) - Posts: 4 - 12/11/2017 21:22:48 2061944 Link
Replying To PoolSturgeon: "Surprised nobody has started a thread on this. If anyone wants to post the link please do so. ,I expect that what he says is 100% accurate. Going on the figures presented on the GPA's own report, it sounds as if it is a lucrative business for some." https://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/article36311178.ece GDL (Galway) - Posts: 721 - 12/11/2017 22:36:31 2061961 Link
Replying To easil: "Carlow are probably as strong as Meath at the moment. Gave Dubs a better game this year than ye did last year." There did seem to be a lot of dubs on gpa scholarships down through the years. gahfan (Wexford) - Posts: 636 - 12/11/2017 22:37:58 2061962 Link
Replying To easil: "Carlow are probably as strong as Meath at the moment. Gave Dubs a better game this year than ye did last year." Definitely put Meath in tier two at the minute myself. The amount of lads making themselves unavailable for the county here in Meath at the minute tells me this panel do not believe they will get rewarded in any shape or form for hard work. Greensheen (Meath) - Posts: 51 - 13/11/2017 08:38:57 2061991 Link
Replying To Greensheen: "Definitely put Meath in tier two at the minute myself. The amount of lads making themselves unavailable for the county here in Meath at the minute tells me this panel do not believe they will get rewarded in any shape or form for hard work." Would you prefer to have a squad of players dedicated to the cause, no matter how the season finishes, rather than wait and see if some players will quit because they think they haven't much prospects of glory rather than get in there and try and make things happen? GreenandRed (Mayo) - Posts: 7343 - 13/11/2017 09:24:34 2062001 Link
Shameful stuff. Colm O Rourke is spot on about them and he had it right from the get go !!! Jason Sherlock being approached by his friend and former team mate about taking up a scholarship is blatent cronyism. Bad enough the government was run like this for generations but keep it out of our GAA. As O Rourke said, GAA has always been about contribution and community. This poison will do damage if not curtailed immediately. StopTheLights (Galway) - Posts: 343 - 13/11/2017 12:04:47 2062047 Link
Replying To TheUsername: "It's an excellent article and he raises some excellent questions. It's scandolous if true that wages for 12 GPA are over 900k a year a third of their budget. I have long suspected that Gaa finance is like water in Ireland most of it is leaked before it get to source. There is a growing trend of greed in GAA at the highest level, the advent of testimonials, multiple fundraisers across the pond and the sale rise of the GPA. I think if there was an an all Ireland audit county by county similar things would be found. Yet that's whats required the GAA needs an independent audit of anyone or body in receipt of funds, or the method in regard to how funds are raised. I think some rotten practices are in place throughout the country," I don't always agree with you username but I do in this case , absolutely I'd love to see auditors brought into every county and even every club, I'd say we'd all get a massive eye opener. KingdomBoy1 (Kerry) - Posts: 14092 - 13/11/2017 12:52:52 2062062 Link
Replying To GreenandRed: "Would you prefer to have a squad of players dedicated to the cause, no matter how the season finishes, rather than wait and see if some players will quit because they think they haven't much prospects of glory rather than get in there and try and make things happen?" No matter what level gaa you play you have to be dedicated. You also have to be realistic. If you are playing in div 3 or 4 you have little chance of winning an all Ireland. My club would love to play senior but we are junior. GPA will tell you Leitrim wants to play in the championship proper but will they tell you how many refuse a county invitation because the realistic footballer knows they have no chance. Greensheen (Meath) - Posts: 51 - 13/11/2017 17:00:25 2062122 Link
Replying To Greensheen: "No matter what level gaa you play you have to be dedicated. You also have to be realistic. If you are playing in div 3 or 4 you have little chance of winning an all Ireland. My club would love to play senior but we are junior. GPA will tell you Leitrim wants to play in the championship proper but will they tell you how many refuse a county invitation because the realistic footballer knows they have no chance." I think intercounty is different to club. It's a bit like international soccer in that it's the representative level of the game. To have weaker counties not getting the odd high profile game could be bad for promoting the game in that county. You look at this years runs for Down, Armagh, Carlow. They'll have brought more fans to watch their teams than they could ever hope to get in a second tier competition. An Ulster championship game every year is important for the likes of Antrim to maintain sponsorship levels. I think if you go about tiering the championship you end up having the weakest falling behind permanently. Getting to a Provincial final or All Ireland quarterfinal are huge games for any county. Practically every county has played in one of these big games since the introduction of the qualifiers. I think it's fine for there to be no tiering. There are only 3 teams that can win the All Ireland right now. So tiering to 16 or 12 teams is almost as pointless. Whammo86 (Antrim) - Posts: 4217 - 13/11/2017 17:42:16 2062131 Link
This conversation is about the exhorbitant wages of the gpa.As an association we surely need to address that. jobber (Westmeath) - Posts: 1455 - 13/11/2017 18:27:50 2062141 Link
What happened between O'Rourke and the GPA? Dermoot (Tyrone) - Posts: 46 - 13/11/2017 20:35:28 2062153 Link
Replying To Greensheen: "No matter what level gaa you play you have to be dedicated. You also have to be realistic. If you are playing in div 3 or 4 you have little chance of winning an all Ireland. My club would love to play senior but we are junior. GPA will tell you Leitrim wants to play in the championship proper but will they tell you how many refuse a county invitation because the realistic footballer knows they have no chance." This might be an old-fashioned view but if your dedicated to playing for your county you don't think 'we won't win anything so I won't bother, you show you're dedication and strive to do better. Roscommon are an excellent example, written of by many, not full strength, due to injuries, studies, family illness, leaving for political reasons. But they got the most from those they had and did brilliantly. Quitting when times aren't so good is not something I'd associate with Meath football. McEntee is better off with men with stomach for a fight rather than snowflakes you can't depend on. GreenandRed (Mayo) - Posts: 7343 - 13/11/2017 22:05:03 2062169 Link
Replying To GreenandRed: "This might be an old-fashioned view but if your dedicated to playing for your county you don't think 'we won't win anything so I won't bother, you show you're dedication and strive to do better. Roscommon are an excellent example, written of by many, not full strength, due to injuries, studies, family illness, leaving for political reasons. But they got the most from those they had and did brilliantly. Quitting when times aren't so good is not something I'd associate with Meath football. McEntee is better off with men with stomach for a fight rather than snowflakes you can't depend on." I'd agree with that. It's not about being the best, it's about being the best you can be. Hardtimes (Cavan) - Posts: 1056 - 13/11/2017 22:12:50 2062172 Link
Replying To easil: "Carlow are probably as strong as Meath at the moment. Gave Dubs a better game this year than ye did last year." Are you serious? royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 13/11/2017 22:49:49 2062183 Link
Replying To GreenandRed: "This might be an old-fashioned view but if your dedicated to playing for your county you don't think 'we won't win anything so I won't bother, you show you're dedication and strive to do better. Roscommon are an excellent example, written of by many, not full strength, due to injuries, studies, family illness, leaving for political reasons. But they got the most from those they had and did brilliantly. Quitting when times aren't so good is not something I'd associate with Meath football. McEntee is better off with men with stomach for a fight rather than snowflakes you can't depend on." Well said royaldunne (Meath) - Posts: 19449 - 13/11/2017 22:53:35 2062184 Link
The thread is about finances and the GPA, which appears worthy of discussion. (If posters wish to discuss a different topic, they should open a separate thread on it.) The facts presented in the GPA report are very disturbing, as are the comments re scholarships in Jason's book. It is time that we had more accountability, at all levels, about the 'money flows' in the GAA. The thread is about finances and the GPA, a topic that seems to merit discussion neverright (Roscommon) - Posts: 1648 - 13/11/2017 23:19:08 2062190 Link
Croke Park will not offend the GPA and likewise they won't annoy HQ too much. It's a win win situation where the gravy continues to flow and there is very little transparency as to where actual funding goes. There are a lot of people earning a good living out of the Association and it has become quite a nice wee comfortable cartel. However it's modern Ireland where the same two political parties who bankrupted the country to share power and the masses continue to vote for them. Change must come from the grassroots but sadly I don't think the Irish mindset is prepared to do that; people seem quite content to be controlled and told what to do while those in power roar with laughter and 'whatever you're having yourself Mick'. Ulsterman (Antrim) - Posts: 9701 - 13/11/2017 23:58:45 2062196 Link