The GAA must realise that a lot of its income-generating activities are done on the back of the players. Those backs are now breaking and it is time the GAA faced up to its responsibilities, argues Dublin footballer Dessie Farrell, who plays in the football quarter-final replay this evening
Another "golden weekend" of Gaelic football and hurling is upon us and by the end of it, an estimated 150,000 people from all over Ireland will have attended the three games taking place and more than a million more will have watched the action unfold on television.
My team, Dublin, take on Donegal in the first All-Ireland football quarter-final replay this evening.
Naturally, I'm hoping it will be a Saturday night of celebrations for us "Dubs" and our thousands of supporters but I'm sure Donegal, the county where my mother was born, will have other ideas.
Sunday afternoon sees Tipperary and Kilkenny doing battle in the All-Ireland hurling semi-final and later in the evening, Sligo take on Armagh in the second football quarter-final replay to crown a weekend of top-class action.
In all, well over 100 players will be providing this weekend's entertainment, between first-team members and substitutes. You can be guaranteed they will all push themselves to the very limits of their endurance in an effort to achieve victory for their respective counties.
AS A player who has been involved in inter-county football for Dublin for more than 10 years, I know about the sacrifices that have been made to reach this stage of the All-Ireland hurling and football championships.
Most players have trained three or four nights a week, played games at the weekend and attended physio sessions, weight sessions and consultations with dieticians and sports psychologists as well. It's become a case of amateurs, with work and family commitments, undertaking the preparation of thorough professionals.
Huge sacrifices have been made and, remember, only two out of the more than 60 county panels that started the championships will experience the glory of ultimate All-Ireland victory in September.
For the bulk of players, the summer ends in terrible disappointment.
As each year passes, I know many are asking themselves is it worth it and not even an All-Ireland winners' medal can prevent some from seriously considering a less frantic life in which work and family don't take a back seat.
Inter-county footballers and hurlers are experiencing the same sort of pressures at work as everyone else, except they are expected to achieve the status of supremely skilled athletes in their ever-diminishing spare time.
It also means they have to forego opportunities to earn extra income, through over-time, shift-work and bonuses.
It is these growing demands on players that led to the formation of the Gaelic Players Association three years ago - and which now see us campaigning for a modest weekly allowance of €127 to each player.
The GPA is by no means one-dimensional - and schemes to provide scholarships to young players and to assist others who have fallen on hard times are among the services we provide.
Our main aim is to get the GAA to recognise that players can no longer provide this super-human level of performance week in, week out during the championships unless they are compensated properly. I will make one thing clear - the Gaelic Players Association is not looking to make hurling and football professional and "pay for play" is not on our agenda.
We do believe, however, that players should not be out of pocket as a result of their passionate pursuit of sporting excellence.
The GAA is now a big commercial player, generating income of €57 million last year alone. The payment of an allowance to the players will not eat into that revenue if the GAA takes some common-sense steps, such as ending the monopoly on the licensing and merchandising of sports gear.
Indeed, if it is prepared to work hand in hand with players, we believe the flow of funds into the association can increase significantly.
The GAA deserves praise for its foresight in developing and funding the fantastic new stadium that is Croke Park. But it must realise that a lot of its income-generating activities today are done on the back of the players.
Those backs are now breaking and it is time the GAA faced up to its responsibilities. Failure to do so means we as players will have to force its hand through some means or other.
There are some encouraging signs. This week, Danny Harkin, the chairman of the Donegal County Board, became the first administrator in the GAA to break ranks and come out in support of our campaign for a weekly allowance. In fact, he even suggested the sum we were looking for was too low.
This week, the GPA also secured six-figure sponsorship from car manufacturers, SEAT, to accompany the financial support we already receive from Carphone Warehouse.
It puts the association on a firmer footing and should be all the evidence the GAA needs to show that we mean business and will not capitulate on the just causes we are pursuing.
Back in 1908, the secretary of Dungourney Hurling Club, James Kelleher, wrote a letter which shows that the GPA's argument is far from being a new one.
Kelleher wrote: "I have seen to my disgust the players draw the crowds, make the money and lose their sweat at many a hard hour's game, while those gentlemen at the head of affairs take charge of the bag and jump in their cars again before the match is over - off to their hotel to count the coin made by the rank and file."
THE Dungourney man goes on to lambast an official for not providing an injured hurler who was forced to miss five weeks of work with some form of compensation.
He contrasts the player who "risked life and limb" with the official who "never caught a hurley in his hand, never felt the sting of the ash on the shin-bone".
This weekend, you will see players from six counties also risking life and limb and doubtless players from both Kilkenny and Tipperary will feel the "sting of the ash" at different stages on Sunday afternoon.
However, the GPA is determined that, unlike 1908, officialdom in the GAA will on this occasion sit up and take notice and recognise the efforts of those who have made the games of Gaelic football and hurling the marvellous spectacles they are today.
Meanwhile, may the best teams win this weekend - and up the "Dubs".
Dessie Farrell is chief executive of the Gaelic Players Association.
See previews in SportsSaturday