Tyrone unveil brand new era
The 43-acre county GAA centre in Garvaghey is one of the most ambitious sporting and cultural projects undertaken in Ireland and will be the pride of the county when it is officially opened on September 28 – exactly 10 years to the day since Tyrone won their first All-Ireland senior football title.
Garvaghey has been delivered on time and to budget (£6.7m, €7.8m).
It boasts five sand-carpet pitches, one full-size 3G pitch and a smaller 3G pitch, as well as an impressive 30,000 square foot building which houses 10 dressing-rooms, a gym and a 200-seater auditorium.
Among the more progressive plans is the intended construction of a windmill on a four-acre environmental site which will provide around €58,000 to €87,000 worth of electricity per year.
As yet, the complex doesn’t have a name — but those behind its creation are adamant it will never be referred to as a centre of excellence.
“We will not and will refuse to use that term,” declared Club Tyrone founder and Garvaghey ‘foot-soldier’ Mark Conway.
“That is not what this place is. Our strapline is: for the ordinary, the less ordinary and the extraordinary.
“You could be the lowest talented child in Tyrone but if you’re interested in us, we’re interested in you, and this place is for you.”
The building is designed in the shape of a celtic ‘T’ and outside the main entrance an outdoor events/performance area with tiered seating is currently being built.
It is modelled on Tullyhogue Fort, the ancestral home of the O’Neill’s clan.
“From day one this was not just about the games, it’s about the culture and the heritage,” added Conway.
Every club and every school in Tyrone will have access to the new centre, but inevitably, the county senior team will be a priority.
“There will be conflicts of course, and there will have to be some kind of prioritising system in place,” Conway admitted.
“We will have demand exceeding supply, but that’s what you want. If the place was sitting half empty, that’s when you have a problem.
“For the amount of current GAA activity, not even allowing for any growth, we would need about 130 full size GAA pitches in Tyrone.
“Before Garvaghey we would have had about 75.
“Even with this place, we’re still well short of what we need. So the story’s not over yet.”
Senior inter-county football matches won’t be played on the site. Planning laws dictate that no more than 2,000 spectators can be catered for but a small stand may be built for the various competitions, such as MacRory Cup, vocational schools and Ulster minor league, which are anticipated to be hosted there.
Four of the dressing-rooms also have individual shower cubicles for girls and ladies’ games.
The centre will be home to the county’s administrators with offices, meeting rooms and a canteen.
Tyrone’s two-time All-Ireland senior team winning trainer Fergal McCann says that having all facilities in the one site is a big advantage.
“We’ve been here since mid-February and we do everything here now.”
“When we’re not doing a collective session (Tuesdays and Thursdays), the boys want to get in, do their gym session and get away early.
“They’re up here four nights a week and also do an individual recovery session on a Monday. They’re getting cryobaths in here soon too.”
Providing for all is a laudable agenda, but in having such outstanding facilities, expectations will rise. Success will be measured by many in terms of All-Irelands.
Tyrone chairman Ciarán McLaughlin accepts there will be “no excuses” for teams at all levels not bringing success back to the county.
“We are one of the top counties in Ireland in all that we do because we generally do things well,” he said.
“What we wanted to do was to have the facilities in place to ensure that all of our teams get the opportunity to train at the highest level and they have that now, so there’s no excuses anymore.
“We had issues over the years with the weather, and teams getting pitches – even our senior county team – but that’s all gone now.
“We have the facilities for our teams here to make sure that the preparation levels are as high as they can be.
“I wouldn’t be so brash as to say we expect to win All-Irelands. Hopefully we will have enough quality players coming through that we will have Sam again, that’s what we all want at the end of the day. But I would suggest that to ensure as many people as possible are playing our games is the best target of them all.”
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