The Government has reiterated its offer of making an additional €5 million available to the GAA to improve player welfare. Speaking yesterday, Minister for Sport John O'Donoghue said such funding was still available for the coming year provided the GAA and the Gaelic Players Association (GPA) could agree on how it should be best used.

The offer first materialised last November on the back on the GPA's long-running request for individual player grants, similar to those handed out under the elite athlete carding scheme. As various obstacles appeared in the way of that idea, it was suggested that extra funding could be made available to the GAA, thus allowing other revenue to be diverted towards improving player welfare.

"I have been in correspondence with both the GAA and the GPA in relation to this," said the Minister, "and as I understand the present situation the GAA and the GPA themselves are in talks with one another.

"My door is open to both of them to come and see me, and finalise the arrangements. I have been very clear that I am prepared to make that €5 million available, and that remains on the table, including for the year 2007."

However, O'Donoghue also made it clear that individual player's grants would not be facilitated because of the conflicts with the GAA's amateur status: "Well, I've been consistent on this all along, in that I'm not getting involved in pay for play. Personally I'm against it, but the whole question of amateurism is a matter for the GAA itself, and no more than I would tell them what they should do with Croke Park, I would not tell them what they should do with their players. I do have my own view, which is I believe the amateur status of the GAA is paramount to its continued success."

As the relationship between the GAA and the GPA continues to become more formalised, it seems likely that agreement can be reached on how these funds can be allocated. The GPA were initially looking for individual player grants, set to average less than €2,000 per player per year, involving around 2,000 players, and therefore with an annual cost of around €3.6 million to the Exchequer.

The GPA's chief executive, Dessie Farrell, has already given approval to the Government's offer, stating that the "bottom line in all of this was to get some sort of Government recognition for input and effort of the players, and this still achieves that".

Discussions between the GAA and the GPA continue, following the announcement before Christmas that a framework had been agreed to facilitate formal recognition of the players' body. Included in those discussions is the GAA's player welfare manager, Páraic Duffy, the former head of the GAC who took up his new position on January 1st. Duffy, in fact, met Farrell before Christmas, with another meeting set for next week.

"I've been communicating with Dessie Farrell on a few different issues," said Duffy, "and that will be ongoing. The formal recognition of the GPA is not new, as they already agreed that talks would begin on that, with another meeting set for next week. I will be involved with that, but obviously Nickey Brennan and Liam Mulvihill are the key people there."

Duffy's priority during his first few weeks in office will be to open clear communication lines with intercounty players and their county boards: "The biggest thing I've been doing is establishing communication links with the players, county boards, and so on, and getting that data base established so that we can all communicate easier."

"It's still a quiet time because the main playing season hasn't fully started yet, so it's a chance to put some structures in place. And I'm also preparing a document at the moment on club fixtures."

His suggestion, however, that the under-21 grade and the junior and intermediate championships be abandoned, was, he said, not new: "I do think it's something we need to look at. Even at the moment, and this whole issue of college players. Really, the point I was making was that the under-21 players get no rest. They finish their normal season, and instead of getting the usual break in November and December they're involved in the challenge matches and then straight into the under-21 competitions."