McGee: Pay for play on the way

All-Ireland-winning manager Eugene McGee has predicted that some form of 'pay for play' will come into the GAA in the near future, and said that the vast majority of inter-county managers are being paid.

The Longford native famously led Offaly to Sam Maguire glory in 1982, denying Kerry their fifth title in a row with a late Seamus Darby goal.

And now the Gaelic football pundit says that because of the amount of money circulating in the association, it is only a matter of time before an element of paying players for playing games comes into force.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio as he discussed his book, The GAA In My Time, the chairman of the Football Review Committee said: "I'd say in about 10-15 years [they will be getting paid] because the GAA is now awash with money with sponsorship and all that sort of thing.

"And GAA attendances are keeping up and going stronger all the time so there's oodles of money in the GAA. The GPA are being given €1.8m a year to run their business so there's lots of other money flowing in.

"There's a lot of players getting a lot of money at the moment. The GAA loosened the rules about 10 years ago to allow players involved in commercial promotions, opening a shop or whatever, that they get paid.

"But that is expanded greatly. There'll be players making maybe €10,000 a year from that, no trouble at all.

"If you go to Croke Park to appear for a photograph for some promotion, it would be a bad day if you wouldn't get €1,000. It's big bucks. That's the thin edge of the wedge.

"I would say part-time payment could happen in 10 years' time because the public at large are getting a bit sensitive about this. They feel that a lot of players should get some recompense, they work so hard."

On the thorny subject of managers getting paid, the former UCD boss says that despite the GAA's ostensibly amateur codes, the vast majority of inter-county managers are earning a significant amount.

"Apart from Dublin and Kerry, I'd say the whole lot [are getting paid]," said McGee.

"I don't know about Tyrone, Mickey Harte, maybe not. But the vast majority are, that's been going on for years, it's going on for 15 years or more.

"I'd be surprised if the average isn't €40,000. [It's] probably more than that for a lot of them. It's in benefit and in kind: you get a free car, you might get two mobile phones.

"There's a whole lot of things like that that are thrown in. The GAA has tried to combat that but they have failed."

"It would be a bad day if you wouldn't get €1,000"

McGee also gave his view on the opinion-splitting Sunday Game panel of Pat Spillane, Joe Brolly and Colm O'Rourke.

He said: "You certainly can't have a clown without straight men. That's all good craic sure.

"People take The Sunday Game far too serious – it's three guys having a chat and that's it. You go down to the pub an hour later and you'll get the same chat."

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