Presidents push to secure NY stadium

GAA presidents, past, present and future will enter a final round of talks in New York today in a bid to finally secure a self-owned stadium project for the local board.

The Randall's Island project for a 10,000-seater GAA stadium, playing fields, cultural centre and banqueting facilities on a 25-acre site in the heart of New York City has failed to get off the ground following its launch at the end of 2003. Originally planned to open by the end of this year, the scheme is still on the drawing board, despite the New York GAA being donated the site next to Upper Manhattan by the City of New York.

Investors have been slow to get on board with a $2 million (€1.6 million) grant from Croke Park the only significant contribution to date, and GAA president Sean Kelly, past president Peter Quinn and president-elect Nicky Brennan all flew into the Big Apple on Saturday to meet the Randall's Island Gaelic Sports (RIGS) group - a separate entity from the New York GAA, which is overseeing the project - to break the impasse.

RIGS was given the right to go into contract by the City of New York last January but still the money was slow to come in to the scheme, and in July, Kelly and Quinn flew into the US to try and revive the project. The men formed an advisory committee, with Quinn as chairman, to investigate its viability, and with Brennan accompanying them, they have returned to thrash out a deal which will finally jump-start the Randall's Island plan.

Meanwhile senior inter-county and Fitzgibbon Cup teams from Munster are to play their own winter championship next month and the clash of Waterford and Limerick was the most interesting game thrown up in last night's draw.

All-Ireland champions Cork have opted not to play in the Waterford Crystal Cup, set up to give games to teams in the build-up to the NHL and the Fitzgibbon Cup.

The knock-out competition starts on January 15, when the preliminary round sees University of Limerick play Cork Institute of Technology and Waterford take on Limerick.

The winners will play Limerick Institute of Technology and Tipperary respectively, while Clare versus University College Cork and Waterford Institute of Technology versus Kerry make up the first round draw.

Teams who lose in the early stages will be admitted into the Shield competition, thereby guaranteeing all sides a minimum of two games. To ensure the competition does not impinge on the fixture list, extra-time will be played until a result is achieved.

"Players who play for their college in the competition shall not subsequently play with their county team, in the event that their college team is knocked out of the competition," said a Munster Council spokesperson.

Meanwhile, Galway and Mayo players dominate the Connacht schools' Gaelic football team which will travel to Boston and New York in April to play a number of challenge games.

Waterford Crystal Cup fixtures: Preliminary round (January 15): University of Limerick v Cork Institute of Technology; Waterford v Limerick; First round (January 22): Winners Waterford/Limerick v Tipperary; Clare v University College, Cork; Waterford Institute of Technology v Kerry; Limerick Institute of Technology v winners University of Limerick/Cork Institute of Technology.