THE ever present threat of a players' strike in the National League this season has moved a significant step closer. This follows the PFAI's overwhelming vote in favour of such a course of action should the game's administrators not concede ground on the issue of the controversial new `multiplier' transfer system.

At their AGM in Dublin last Monday night, attended by 73 players, apparently there wasn't one dissenting hand raised when a vote was called giving their newly elected committee the mandate to call a strike if they saw fit.

PFAI secretary Tom Conway confirmed yesterday that his members' long standing complaints remain intact, namely "the hindering of the players' freedom of contract, the wildly excessive valuations placed on them and the decision to take away the PFAI's seat on the three man tribunal."

That the system is seriously flawed has been unwittingly admitted by the FAI National League in the only two test cases to apply under the `multiplier.' As a result of its inception the Monaghan player Noel Melvin was valued at a faintly ridiculous £13,000. Finn Harps could only pay £3,500 of this, and the League felt obliged to meet the balance. A similar intervention was called for when a fee of £3,000 was placed upon Paul Cashin following his move from Waterford to Kilkenny - the latter having mistakenly thought he was a free agent.

Under the multiplier, a player's annual earnings (signing on fees and bonuses as well as wages) are accumulated and then multiplied by a co efficient which is dependant upon his age - the younger the player, the higher the co efficient.