Connacht GAA secretary John Prenty has claimed the Gaelic Players Association lacks consistency when it comes to player welfare concerns after the cancellation of pre-season competitions this year.
Prenty has referenced the challenge matches taking place during the winter, as well as a return to training for inter-county panels, but feels GPA chief executive Tom Parsons telling media outlets that players would love to see the return of the International Rules indicates it isn't always a factor for the body.
He said it showed "consistency is futile".
Prenty would like to see the return of pre-season competitions in 2026.
The GAA's Central Council recently opted to pause pre-season tournaments on a trial basis.
It will be decided at a later date if the move should be made permanent.
Without the FBD League this season, Connacht GAA has already lost in the region of €100,000 through gate receipts and sponsorship.
While winter weather and pitches have frequently upset pre-season fare, it hasn’t been an issue for Connacht GAA with their Air Dome thriving and in full use at their Centre of Excellence in Bekan in recent years.
And the Connacht secretary took aim at the GPA for pushing for the cancellation of those competitions.
In his annual report to the Connacht convention, Prenty wrote: "The GPA are not fans of the pre-season competitions and have called for their demise in the past.
"Unfortunately, they have got their way for 2025 when in tandem with Ard Chomhairle they have succeeded in having all pre-season competitions discontinued for one year.
"Their theory is based on the fact that pre-season competitions are having a detrimental effect on player welfare. Maybe when next they conduct a survey with the players they might find out how many times inter-county teams have trained pre the return to train date and particularly how many challenge games have been played in December.
"The irony of the GPA concerns about player welfare has been the recent kite they flew around the return of the International Rules. Consistency is futile.
"With the recent Special Congress decision to approve all of the Football Review Committee motions surely the pre-season competitions had a valuable role to bring everybody, players, managements, referees and supporters up to speed with the new rules in a less competitive environment. It has been an opportunity lost."
The GPA has stated that if pre-season competitions were reintroduced on 2 January, the return-to-training date would need to be moved from 7 December to as early as 16 November.
A GPA statement said that: "Sports science recommends at least a six-week preparation period to ensure that players are physically ready for competitive matches like the McKenna Cup. This adjustment would violate the 'No Contact November' policy, which 78% of players supported, emphasising the need for adequate recovery time to prevent burnout, injury and allow players a guaranteed window to holiday with family, partners and friends."
The players association pointed out that larger panels would then be needed to be introduced to support these pre-season games, ensuring that high-load players who have already faced heavy demands at the club level are not required to take part.
Meanwhile, in his wide-ranging annual report, Prenty once more voiced his concerns on the demands placed on emerging young players.
Following up on his 2023 report comments, he added: "An issue of concern at minor level and indeed at academy level is the amount of training and S&C that the players are currently being exposed to.
"We must remember that those players are in essence children and as an association we must ensure that they are not expected to adhere to adult norms.
"Even though it is widely denied, I have no doubt that many children at U17 and academy level are being silently discouraged to fully commit to their school or club underage teams and that the only game in town is at the county level.
"The reality is that less than 2% of our players will ever participate at inter-county level. All of our underage players must be allowed give full commitment at schools and club level. Anything else is a bonus which may or may not happen."
The Connacht supremo also feels the Football Review Committee's new rules will result in forward thinking from coaches and high-scoring games that people will want to attend.
