THERE have been several instances in recent months of a flaw in the fabric of the seamless coat of the GAA. The reference here is to the transfer of players from one club to another, with the Paul Bealin case being the exception.

The Dublin midfielder, it will be remembered, switched in mid season from St Kevin's to Ballyboden St Enda's, where he played in the Dublin senior final in which Ballyboden beat Erin's Isle after a replay.

His move to Ballyboden did not go down too well in some sectors. There was a lot of midnight oil burned as the whys and wherefores of the relevant rules were thrashed out.

The problem which arises in this sort of a situation may not, on the face of it, be all that serious, but it has implications for the GAA as a whole.

The problem is epitomised in a dispute which has arisen in camogie circles, where two young women from the Brian Dillon's club in Cork have expressed a wish to join Glen Rovers, but cannot do so without the permission of the Dillon's club. This is not forthcoming.

The club's attitude is understandable. "We are a small club and we want to hold on to two of our best players. If we agree to transfer our best players we would soon be out of business," a spokesman said. The father of one of the players, Declan Hannon, believes that the club is wrong. "They want to hold on to the players, but the players don't want to play," he told the Cork Examiner.

In the camogie world, apparently, transfers from one club to another cannot be ratified without the signature of the officials of the transferring club. If the signatures are not forthcoming, the player involved must wait two years from the date of her last match before she can transfer without signatures being necessary.

The two women involved, Jill Hannon and Laura Holland, have played at minor and junior county level for Cork and, presumably, they want to join a stronger club where their chances of playing at senior level would be enhanced. It seems hard on them to prevent them from playing for two years, but it is also a serious matter for their club. A Solomon would be hard put to find a solution in the best interests of all.

There is a much wider principle at stake, however, and that is the future of games like football, hurling and camogie which have similar if not identical roots, aims and ambitions. The games are mainly based on the idea of the parish, and much of their success arises from the rivalry and pride which the parish engenders.

This is epitomised this weekend in the All Ireland club football semi finals between Corofin from Galway and Laune Rangers from Kerry, in Ennis, and between Mullaghbawn (Armagh) and Eire Og (Carlow) in Navan. The honour of the little village is a big event and even in the sprawling urban areas there is more and more of an emphasis on the community spirit and identity.

While that spirit persists the GAA will prosper. Recently I attended the annual dinner of my own parish club, Coolera in Sligo. They were celebrating their most successful year ever, but there were many of us these who were racking our brains trying to remember if we had ever won a cup or a medal of any kind.

Yet that parish has a great pride in itself which has never been diminished by failure on the field. There was always the belief that some day the tide would turn. The people of Coolera kept the faith and the tide has indeed started to turn. The faith has been rewarded.

This is being replicated in parishes all over, the country and it is what keeps the GAA alive and thriving. Anything which might damage it must be avoided and damage would certainly be done if the strong and the muscular were to be allowed to have an open door through which, they could recruit, without let or hindrance, players from the weak and the vulnerable.

The camogie situation in Cork is certainly rather sad. The two players have been associated with the Brian Dillon's club since they were 11. Clearly they are talented players who show great promise, and it is only natural that they would wish to go to a bigger club to increase their chances of further honours.

From the club's point of view their loss would be a serious blow to their hopes of building a stronger club. They would surely fear that whenever they produce a good player they will lose her in a similar way.

The GAA and the camogie people must try to find a way to protect the weaker clubs and counties while, at the same time, dealing sympathetically with players who, for one reason or another, want to move on, it is not a simple task, but it must be addressed for the good of the games.