Duffy: GAA amateur status is safe

Duffy says defeat for the motion would leave the GAA with a problem

GAA director general Pauric Duffy has insisted that the revised document on grants to GAA players does not contravene the GAA's Amateur status.

Duffy has been assured that revisions to the draft document ratified by Central Council last December, will not change the ethos of the GAA.

"The final document will obviously try to cover all angles," said Duffy.

"Any agreement has to be in compliance with Rule 11, so that obviously covers all legislative issues around that."

Although supportive of the new motion which Central Council will bring to April's Congress in Sligo, the Monaghan native is keen that 'healthy debate' is generated and accepts that there is opposition to the motion.

"I would say that it is disruptive," he said.

"Originally the draft document was prepared, was presented to Central Council back in December.

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"It was supported by Central Council and we would have felt that once Central Council accepted it, that it would have been sufficient. Having said that we accept the rights of people to raise (these issues).

"That's what the GAA is about, and that's what Congress is about and anybody is free to put a motion on the agenda for Congress."

However Duffy concedes that should April's Congress not pass the grants motion, it will open up a host of problems for the organisation.

"Clearly if Congress doesn't pass the motion and says that we don't support this scheme, there is clearly a problem.

"Where it would move on from there is not for me to say, but there would be a lot of very unhappy players and that is stating the obvious. However it's not for me to say what will happen from there on."

Duffy has also urged the GPA to shout if they have any problems with the document that will be laid on the Central Council table on 17 March, although he says that they haven't expressed any major reservations just yet.

I would be surprised if County Board's made a decision on a document that they haven't seen Pauric Duffy

"The final document obviously won't differ very much from the original one and it's the final version, so therefore it is more definitive in places.

"But clearly it's the final document and if Central Council approved the first one, you would expect them to approve the final version of the same document because essentially it is the same."

According to Mark Conway of the 'Of One Belief' group, who are opposed to the grants, a DRA case is set to take place on 14 March, just three days before the Central Council meeting.

GPA chief executive Dessie Farrell may be asked to attend that meeting.

Duffy believes that county boards are acting prematurely to make a decision before the final document is produced.

"I would be surprised if county board's made a decision on a document that they haven't seen."