The Disputes Resolution Authority (DRA) will tomorrow evening hear the challenge taken against the player grants scheme as recently approved by the GAA's Central Council. Their decision could prove pivotal in the campaign to have the grants scheme scrapped on the basis that it infringes the GAA rule on amateur status. Ian O'Riordanreports.

Of One Belief, the group opposed to the scheme, earlier this month requested the DRA to rule on Central Council's approval in principle of the agreement between the GAA, the Gaelic Players Association (GPA) and the Government.

Initially it was felt the challenge couldn't be heard as the GAA's legal representatives argued any such hearing wouldn't be suitable for arbitration, as no binding decision had yet been taken on the subject of the grants.

However, the DRA, which was set up by the GAA as the independent body to hear all such legal matters, have since agreed to consider that challenge, on the basis that it was in order. Tomorrow's hearing, which is set for a Dublin hotel, will therefore hear from the Of One Belief group, and representatives of the GAA.

According to Mark Conway, one of the founding members of the group, the challenge is based solely on their interpreted infringement of Rule 11, which refers to the GAA's amateur status: "Rule 11 seems black and white to me. It says that no players can receive payments for playing Gaelic games."

The challenge is to be heard by the Disputes Resolution Committee (DRC), the specific tribunal put in place to hear individual cases for the DRA, although the members of that committee are not yet confirmed. The GAA merely confirmed that the DRA hearing was taking place and that they would be represented.

For now, however, it seems unlikely the challenge will be successful, given that Central Council have yet to make their decision binding. When approving the grants scheme in December, it was also agreed to review the mechanism for distributing the funds, as well as finalise the amounts to which players would be entitled.

According to GAA press officer Feargal McGill, that review is not yet completed: "The mechanism for distributing the grants is still to be agreed between the interest parties," he said - namely the GAA, the GPA and the Government.

Central Council are due to meet on Saturday morning, ahead of the special congress in Croke Park, which is addressing the report on burnout. "The grants scheme will not be discussed at the meeting," said McGill. "The only order of business for that Central Council is the special congress. What Central Council in fact decided last month was to revisit the matter at their February meeting, to give time for that mechanism to be finalised."

In the meantime several counties, including Dublin, have mandated their Central Council representative to bring certain concerns about the grants scheme to the next meeting, but it now appears as if those concerns won't be raised on Saturday.

When initially agreeing to hear the challenge of the Of One Belief group, DRA secretary Liam Keane explained that it would be open to the parties to make their case before the tribunal, adding that the GAA could pursue their argument on the basis that the Central Council agreement was not yet binding, should they wish.

It is also now considered likely that the GAA's annual congress in April will debate the subject of the grants scheme, although no such motions have yet been confirmed as in order by Croke Park.

The GAA have also announced details of their forthcoming club forum, to be held in Croke Park on February 9th. The forum will involve representatives from around 300 clubs and is intended as one of a series of initiatives that will contribute to the development of a National Strategic Plan for the association, to be launched later in the year by the incoming director general, Paraic Duffy.

Also announced were plans for a range of activities in 2009 to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the founding of the GAA in 1884. A committee under the chairmanship of former Armagh footballer Jarlath Burns will organise and co-ordinate the events.