Latest news with #TomParsons
The 42
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The 42
Delegates should survey members before voting - GPA chief Tom Parsons
GPA CHIEF EXECUTIVE Tom Parsons says one of the lesson from the skorts controversy is that delegates 'make decisions at Congress' and they 'should be surveying their members' before voting. Parsons added: 'And what was different this time was, they did that, and a raft of counties publicly stated the results of their consultation.' Camogie players are now allowed to wear shorts in matches after a motion passed at Special Congress last night at Croke Park. The motion — which needed a two-thirds majority in order to be passed — succeeded after receiving an overwhelming 98% of the votes from delegates. A motion before the 2024 Camogie Congress to allow players to wear shorts fell well short of the 66% support required to pass as just 45% voted in favour. 'In Congress, every decision is a blind vote,' said Parsons. 'And over the years, these very important motions have come up. And, you know, players don't know how their county voted. They don't publicly say how they voted. And is it good enough that delegates might make a decision on preference, or might not have had the time to consult and might make a decision on the day? 'I really do think we need transparency on how counties vote because it will keep them accountable to their members, their delegates.' Parsons acknowledged the efforts from delegates to be present for the vote last night, and praised them for taking on board players' wishes. Advertisement 'The delegates had to drive all over the country yesterday, to press a button and vote,' he said. 'That was a big sacrifice on the delegates who had to do that. Thank you to them for actually listening to the players.' The GPA CEO said certain policy, though, should not be left for Congress. 'There's decisions that should be made in rule. And then there's decisions that's about human rights and athletes' rights. If there's any decisions that, or any elements of the game that impact player welfare, for example, and there's policy that says this is the duty of care for players to provide this level of care, that shouldn't come down to a rule or a constitution. 'That should be an obligation on the governing body to protect the rights of players. We've got this very ancient Constitution and Congress and Central Councils. It's great to protect tradition but we have to move with the times and not everything should be a vote. 'Not everything should have to wait for Congress to be voted on. When we put out that report (on skorts) and we actually put research behind how players are feeling mentally, the anxiety it causes, it was like a rocket.' Parsons added: 'Fair play to camogie players for standing tall. For taking this fight on. And this is really all on them. The GPA are just proud. And I'm proud just to have their backs really, in all of it. They put themselves in a very vulnerable position. 'You know, there's enough pressures on very young women to be playing at this level, and then to be under the public eye as such to make change. 'We have players who have ultimately sacrificed a Munster Championship which will hopefully be replayed.' Media pundit and four-time All-Ireland winner with Wexford, Ursula Jacob, said the result shows the delegates canvassed players this time. '98% last night versus 45% last year just shows that when delegates went back to clubs and asked the players, the result speaks for itself,' Jacob said. She said the result comes with 'a huge sense of relief'. Ursula Jacob. Tom Maher / INPHO Tom Maher / INPHO / INPHO Jacob added: 'Really proud of the players for standing strong the last number of weeks. It hasn't been easy and it's been far from ideal with preparation for championship. But I think in the long run, it's been really worth it. 'The players' voice was the driving force behind it all. It was fantastic to see such a resounding result last night. It was an accurate reflection of how the players have been feeling. 'It'll have a huge impact on the modern game but also for future players coming into the game. It's just removing that barrier or the reason why certain girls decided to give up. Anything to remove barriers is a positive.' Jacob said some players will likely continue to wear skorts. 'If they feel good about wearing the skorts, they shouldn't be criticised for that either.' Jacob hopes the sport will make headlines for more positive reasons in the coming weeks, and that the public who have followed this debate will consider attending games as the season moves up a gear. 'It's a frustration that the camogie has been thrown into such a negative light in the last number of weeks,' she said. 'I just hope now we can move on and move forward and talk about the game for all the right reasons. We have a fantastic championship to look forward to and now more than ever, we need to get the support for those girls out on the pitch.'
Irish Daily Mirror
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
No reason why players can't do media on game week - GPA chief Tom Parsons
GPA chief executive Tom Parsons says that media bans on game weeks are outdated in the split season era. With more inter-county fixtures packed into a tighter timeframe, promoting the games has become a bigger challenge, particularly in an environment where team managers have long been wary of allowing players to engage in media interviews. The GPA passed a motion supporting a more structured media framework and greater engagement at its AGM on Monday night and Parsons sees benefits for the players in this. He said: 'College sports in America are amateur but players actually get commercial deals and they build a profile out of their personality and that can all help professionally and it's all opportunity. 'The stance on a lot of teams is that this media ban the week of a game, it's not promoting the game in the split season. 'You see publicly people are saying we're not promoting our games. We still have seven months of inter-county activity. I think the NFL season (in America) is like six months. I think it's a short season and it's bang. 'Can we not promote the inter-county game over seven months really, really well? Of course we can. And can there be opportunities for players? 'So look, it's something we're going to explore.' The former Mayo footballer said that anecdotal evidence suggests that players don't have any great hang-ups with giving interviews days before a game. 'I think if you have a management team that's supportive of media, they don't see it as a distraction. An awful lot of players are really active on social media. 'This week-long media ban in the current structure needs to go back down to two days or three days. 'And that's fair enough - the night before a game, you probably don't want to be on the Late Late Show talking about the game the next day. But for sure, I think there's road in it. 'I think the GAA probably have missed a trick too, not bringing back the All Star tours, the International Rules. These are opportunities where the top players get to really engage with journalists who promote our games and build that relationship and build trust. 'So look, that's definitely going to be a policy that we'll work on and there's probably loads of ways to skin that cat, but we'll tackle into it now that we have a motion passed.'
Extra.ie
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Extra.ie
Protests planned for Leinster camogie finals this weekend
Gaelic Players Association (GPA) CEO Tom Parsons says the Camogie Association's rule on skorts is 'not fit for purpose' and claims it does not stand up to Irish or European sports policy. In the light of player protest over existing playing attire, the Camogie Association has called a Special Congress on May 22 to debate the question of whether players should be allowed the choice of wearing shorts. But after a similar motion failed last year, Parsons said players won't be forced to go against prevailing player welfare concerns. Speaking on Wednesday at a briefing on the GPA's AGM which took place on Monday, he spoke strongly on the topic that has generated international headlines after Dublin and Kilkenny players were made to change out of shorts to let their Leinster semi-final go ahead. Gaelic Players Association (GPA) CEO Tom Parsons. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile 'On the basis of player welfare and policy and Sport Ireland's policy and European policy and the engagements we've had with the European athletes, there's a player welfare issue here,' said Parsons. 'So you can't force players to wear a garment that is causing anxiety amongst a cohort of players. Why do we have rules? It's to serve the membership. We have a rule that's not fit for purpose. 'I just hope, for the sake of the Camogie Association, and there's fantastic people in the Camogie Association, that they really read the GPA paper. Because this isn't about skorts or shorts, it's about choice and it's about player welfare. And if you have one player that leaves the game because of the attire they're forced to wear, it's just not good enough.' The Camogie Association has called a Special Congress on May 22 to debate the question of whether players should be allowed the choice of wearing shorts. Pic: INPHO/Tom Maher The Munster final between Cork and Waterford was postponed at the 11th hour after both teams announced that they intended to wear shorts on the day, rather than the traditional skort — shorts with a panel of fabric that makes them have the appearance of a skirt. 'This was a player welfare issue,' added Parsons. 'Players are feeling anxious. Numerous players talked to us about ringing photographers at the game to say, can I check those photos? 'The rule should have been suspended if it's a player welfare concern.' Meanwhile, the GPA issued a statement on Wednesday outlining planned protests for this Saturday's Leinster camogie finals. Players plan to wear shorts as an act of protest against the skorts rules but are willing to change into skorts to avoid the games being called off. The GPA issued a statement on Wednesday outlining planned protests for this Saturday's Leinster camogie finals. Pic: INPHO/Laszlo Geczo That statement, issued on behalf of senior finalists Wexford and Kilkenny, and intermediate finalists Carlow and Laois said: 'Today, we come together, united, to make an almost impossible choice because camogie authorities refuse to do so. We will be togged out in shorts at Cullen Park on Saturday and we want our choice to be respected. 'However, if the current outdated rule is enforced, we will change into skorts, solely to ensure the games are not abandoned. We will play the games under protest.'
Irish Daily Mirror
15-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Daily Mirror
Group led by Mary McAleese told that 'finances shouldn't be the focus'
The Steering Group on Integration (SGI) has been accused of 'missing a trick' by not engaging with the GPA. The SGI, which is headed up by former President of Ireland Mary McAleese, is charged with bringing the GAA, LGFA and CA under one umbrella and has set a target of 2027 for the merger to be completed. The GPA says efforts to engage in the process have effectively been rebuffed, with chief executive Tom Parsons saying they were 'at a bit of a wit's end' after a letter to the SGI requesting a meeting was apparently met with a response that 'it's not an appropriate time'. Former Tyrone footballer Gemma Begley, the GPA's equality, diversity and inclusion manager, pointed to how the players' body went through its own merger with its female wing in 2020. She said: 'We went through a really positive integration process. Our finances didn't double overnight. We went from 2,200 members to 4,000 members and we realigned things internally. 'We completely streamlined, leaned things out and now we look after all our members equally and made it work.' She added: 'Finances shouldn't be the focus. If there's a will there's a way and it's the right thing to do and let's all get on the pitch together and make it happen and make it a massive success. That's our approach to it but we're just not being afforded the opportunity.' Parsons said that the SGI sidelining the GPA is 'not a tenable position'. 'If the integration committee does all this work over three years and we get to 2027 and players then see that, well, it's the same old governance structures that doesn't carry the player's voice through, then that's just not going to serve Gaelic games well,' said the former Mayo footballer. 'So they're missing a trick with not engaging with a big stakeholder, which is a collective voice of players who are also a collective voice of club players.'
Irish Daily Mirror
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
'I don't think in a million years that would have happened in the men's game.'
Tom Parsons has hit out at the decision to postpone the Munster camogie final, saying it would never have happened in the men's game. The ongoing skorts/shorts controversy deepened further last Friday night when the Munster Camogie made the decision to pull the decider between Cork and Waterford which was scheduled for the following afternoon after both sets of players had pledged to wear shorts. Feeling that the match officials couldn't be asked to turn a blind eye to the rule, which states that players must wear skorts, the provincial postponed the game until after a Special Congress called for May 22 to specifically deal with the issue. As things stand, the Kilkenny-Wexford Leinster camogie final is scheduled to take place on Saturday at Netwatch Cullen Park. GPA chief executive Parsons said: 'Moving the Congress to the 22nd of this month, of course, it was a positive intervention. But the intervention that was needed to quell this quickly was a suspension of the rule. 'And it's been hugely disappointing that a Munster final was postponed. I don't think in a million years that would have happened in the men's game. 'It would have been resolved - a Munster final, you can only imagine the preparation that goes in there. It's disappointing. 'Rules are there to serve the people. And when those rules hurt the people they're meant to serve, you need to address them immediately. 'It's not the other way around. Why do we have rules? It's to serve the membership. We have a rule that's not fit for purpose. The choice is really important,' said Parsons, who was speaking at a press briefing after the players' body held its AGM on Monday night. A motion at the upcoming Special Congress will ask delegates to vote on whether players should have the choice to wear shorts or skorts, though a similar motion was defeated at Congress last year, with 64% voting against it. A 67% majority would be required for the latest motion to pass though Parsons said that he didn't think 'there's any position where players are going to be mandated to wear skorts after Special Congress'. Dublin captain Aisling Maher, who is co-chair of the GPA's National Executive Committee, was part of the protest taken by her teammates and Kilkenny players earlier this month ahead of their Leinster semi-final which ignited the whole controversy, isn't viewing the Special Congress vote as a fait accompli. She said: 'Obviously, there's a certain scepticism as players until that vote actually happens and obviously, we'll be hopeful that the vote will go across, but it's very difficult to know, it's very difficult to say. 'Obviously you can't get around the fact that it's the same delegates voting again that voted last year and unfortunately that vote came up short. I think we had 45% on that vote last year and that needs to get to 67% for it to pass. 'So it is a significant jump that's required and I think it's important that we remember when we're looking at this that we're not looking to replace the skort, we're not looking to get rid of the skort, it is just the opportunity for choice for the player. 'It's as simple as that and I would hope that delegates see that and are reminded of that and that that is the underlying message for them going in, is that all that we're asking is for them to give the choice back to the player.'
