Acknowledging that many of its members fought in the British army does not diminish the GAA’s contribution to Irish society or the fact that many others of its members fought in 1916 and in the War of Independence, writes Paul Rouse

UNUSUALLY for the GAA Congress which can often turn into a boring, long drawn-out affairs, the weekend gathering of delegates delivered the full gamut of emotions. They ranged from the frustration of opponents of the government grant scheme in losing the final battle, to the exultation of president-elect Christy Cooney on succeeding second time round with 60 votes to spare.