GAA ‘let down’ by council’s refusal to license Garth gigs

The GAA has said that it felt “let down” by Dublin City Council’s decision to refuse licensing for all five Garth Brooks concerts that were due to take place in Croke Park last summer, and that the cancellation of the shows cost it €5m.

In his annual report, GAA director general Páraic Duffy said he is “anxious to restore the good relations the association has had with Dublin City Council” but described the local authority’s decision not to grant licences for the five concerts as “incomprehensible”.

Páraic Duffy, Ard Stiúrthóir of the GAA, released his Annual Report for 2014 at Croke Park earlier today: http://t.co/B9PkiaecXC #GAA

— The GAA (@officialgaa) January 27, 2015

Brooks was granted licences for three Croke Park concerts, and responded by issuing an all-or-nothing ultimatum that eventually saw the country music star cancelling all five shows.

In his report, Mr Duffy said that DCC had created a “legitimate expectation” that all five shows would get the go-ahead if the GAA ensured that no issues emerged from the three One Direction concerts held in Croke Park last May, and that the concerns of residents were addressed.

Páraic Duffy also addresses last years decision to play the All-Ireland SFC S-Final replay in Limerick & the cancelled Garth Brooks concerts

— The GAA (@officialgaa) January 27, 2015

Mr Duffy said that only three complaints were lodged over the nights of the One Direction concerts, and that Croke Park engaged in a number of “Community Gain” initiatives with local residents.

He claimed, however, that “many of the submissions received by DCC that objected to the holding of five concerts and that undoubtedly swayed DCC not to grant a licence for the five concerts, were found to be fraudulent”.

“Alerted to this fraud a full three weeks before reaching the decision to grant a licence for three concerts only, DCC should have taken the time to cast a more rigorously sceptical eye on both the nature and extent of the opposition to the five concerts. Had it done so, it might well have reached a different decision,” the GAA’s annual report states.

“One is left genuinely puzzled how DCC can admit that ‘so many submissions may now be called into question’, how it can find this ‘disturbing’, then conclude that this did not interfere with the ‘integrity’ of their decision.

“It is a sorry conclusion to have to reach that fraud was allowed to exercise such a vital influence on the decision not to allow the five concerts to go ahead.”

Mr Duffy also rejected the contention that allowing five Garth Brooks concerts would have led to an “over-intensification” of the use of Croke Park.

“We did not hear anything about over-intensification of use of Croke Park during the redevelopment of Lansdowne Road, when Croke Park was needed to host international soccer and rugby internationals... in addition to Croke Park’s own schedule of match days and concerts,” Mr Duffy said, adding that the use of Croke Park will be included in Ireland’s Rugby World Cup bid.

“Is there anyone who seriously imagines that an argument about over-intensification of use of Croke Park will be allowed to interfere with these seven Rugby World Cup matches in Croke Park?” he asked.