PDs play down ‘Bertie Bowl’ win

BERTIE AHERN will attempt to gloss over the embarrassing scrapping of his pet project stadium as the Cabinet back the redevelopment of Lansdowne Road.

However, Mary Harney will not engage in triumphalism over the Taoiseach’s climbdown on his €1 billion ‘Bertie Bowl’ plans, as the PDs will play down their latest victory over their coalition partners.

The announcement of Government support for the €250 million joint IRFU-FAI Lansdowne Road 50,000 seat stadium will mark the final nail in the coffin for Abbotstown - famously derided as a “Ceaucescu-era project” by Michael McDowell. The PDs’ consistently trenchant opposition to the €1 billion plan halted the development of the ‘Bertie Bowl’.