Kelly lauds Arklow club for novel Croker proposal

Sean Kelly yesterday commended the Arklow club for their groundbreaking approach in looking for a solution to the problem of opening up Croke Park.

The club’s proposal, which goes before the Wicklow county convention this weekend, proposes that the Government be allowed to lease the Stadium from the GAA for five events a year.

Rule 42 promises to be a topic of some debate in many conventions across the country this weekend, and although Kelly said it would be undesirable for him to opine on the proposal, he believed Arklow deserved praise for their suggestion.

“It is certainly a different way of looking at it,” Kelly said yesterday, “and it looks an easier option than what has been looked at in the past. Some people in the Association feel that opening up Croke Park would have a knock-on effect of opening up every ground around the country.

“People will need some guarantee that this doesn’t go beyond Croke Park and this option may make the way clear for that. The Arklow club have to be commended for a novel way of approaching a delicate situation.”

Mr Kelly also welcomed the fact that many clubs around the country are bringing motions forward about issues they feel strongly about.

“I have encouraged clubs all around the country to look at all issues, not just Croke Park, and to put forward motions they feel strongly about.

Delegates at the Wicklow county convention will have to weigh up the pros and cons of this motion and if it passes, it will then go to Congress in Killarney in April.”

Under the motion, this agreement would be reviewed in five years.

Meanwhile, the Limerick County Board has posted a loss of 10,207 on the season’s workings, a substantial improvement on the 150,339 deficit incurred in the previous 12 months.

Their decision to protect their image rights brought in 31,000 in royalties on sale of jerseys. Income for the year was at an all-time high of 1,056,252, and expenditure came in at 1,066,459. According to board chairman Pat Fitzgerald, they are in a healthy financial position on the day-to-day running of their affairs.

Treasurer Paddy Quilligan will inform delegates at next Tuesday’s Convention that expenses for all county teams amounted to a record 522,846, up 4,000 from 2002.

The senior footballers, who had extended runs in both the League and Championship, were the highest spenders, at 214,000, almost 50,000 above the senior hurlers.