Cork GPA row a cause of concern for Farrell

This week's fixtures Dessie Farrell, chief executive of the Gaelic Players Association (GPA), yesterday expressed his "disbelief" at claims from certain Cork hurlers that county board officials had discouraged younger players from joining the association, and that it would militate against team selection if they did.

In a series of revelations in recent days, current Cork goalkeeper Donal Óg Cusack and former captain Mark Landers outlined what they perceived to be poor treatment of players in Cork, and the warnings sent to younger players that joining the GPA would jeopardise their chances of playing with the senior team.

The information has been relayed to Farrell, and his first reaction was disbelief. "I'd be very disappointed that in this day and age people would still resort to using tactics like that," he said. "It's clear that what some people are saying in public is one thing, what they're saying in private another."

Cusack's claims came during a Cork local radio interview at the weekend, where he told of phone calls being made to younger players to discourage them from joining the GPA: "Publicly the County Board stated that they had no problem with us joining the GPA, but that was not the case, and behind the scenes other forces were at work".

Landers, who was All-Ireland-winning captain in 1999 and a member of the Cork panel at certain stages this year, supported the claims, and hinted too at the signs of a fall-out in Cork hurling. "People are still asking why we were so poor against Galway," he said, "and my answer to that is there was a complete breakdown between selectors and players during the year."

The notion of younger players being warned away from the GPA was of particular concern to Farrell. "I think there a lesson to be learned here," he said. "Players have their freedom of speech and they can't be stonewalled or railroaded like that any more. At the end of the day it doesn't pay."

According to Farrell, the relationship between the GPA and the Cork football and hurling panels has always been constructive. "The footballers were on board with the GPA from day one," he said. "A couple of the hurlers like Donal Óg and Brian Corcoran were there from the start as well, and then the whole hurling panel joined up earlier this year."

Farrell is aware of the possibility that similar tactics may have been going on in other counties: "I think there are other cases where managers had been warning players off the GPA. I think some of it was born out of ignorance, but I know there were one or two incidents where county boards attempted to scupper players' ideas of joining the GPA. Either way that's not acceptable."

The conflict in Cork between players and county officials appears to be deepening. So far the football panel have avoided public controversy, but the situation with the hurlers appears set to drag on. County board officials, including chairman Jim Cronin and hurling manager Bertie Óg Murphy, were quick to dismiss any suggestion of players being warned away from the GPA. The matter, however, was due to be discussed at a Cork County Board meeting last night.

In the long term, negotiations between the GPA and Croke Park, who have their own players' body chaired by Jarlath Burns, will intensify. Farrell admits that those negotiations are currently going through a "difficult" period, though the GPA remains intent on working closely with Croke Park.

The two sides have met three times since the GPA's e.g.m. in April, where it was decided among other things to mandate the group to seek a €127 weekly allowance for all inter-county players, and while they have agreed to meet again, little common ground has been found.

"At the moment those meetings are ongoing," said Farrell. "It has hit a difficult period, but as long as well feel there is a genuine intention to work with us, then we will continue to engage. At any point we feel they only have a spurious interest, then we will withdraw."

Today

Munster U-21 hurling final replay: Limerick v Tipperary, Thurles, 6.30.

Saturday

All-Ireland U-21 hurling semi-final: Galway v Wexford, Thurles, 3.30, G Harrington (Cork).

All-Ireland U-21 hurling B final: Carlow v Kerry, Thurles, 1.45, D Richardson (Limerick).

All-Ireland MH B semi-final: Meath v Mayo, Longford Slashers, 3.30, S Quinn (Tyrone).

Sunday

All-Ireland SFC semi-final: Kerry v Cork, Croke Park, 3.30, B White (Wexford).

All-Ireland MFC semi-final: Kerry v Meath, Croke Park, 2.0, S McGonigle (Donegal).

All-Ireland U-21 hurling semi-final: Antrim v Limerick/Tipperary, Parnell Park, 1.30, E Morris (Dublin).