Croker ‘open-door’ supporters must wait for news of debate

SUPPORTERS of the ‘open door’ policy in relation to the use of Croke Park for rugby and soccer, and specifically the ten counties which are reported to have submitted motions calling for a radical overhaul of Rule 42, will have to wait another week at least before knowing if there will be a debate at Congress.

The deadline for receipt of motions and in the case of these and other counties for re-submitting those found to have been flawed passed yesterday without any formal comment from Croke Park.

The official line was that it is 'part of a process' which will be taken further when the vetting committee runs the rule over all motions on February 15.

Concern was expressed earlier in the week when it became known that Rule 42 motions were found to be out of order for the second year running.

However, as a result of a decision taken at the Special Congress last November resulting from the expressed wish of Association President Sean Kelly to improve on what he described as 'a convoluted system' counties were given a second chance to put them in order and send them back for ratification.

Details have been emerging about flaws found in motions submitted for this year's Congress, to be held in Croke Park in mid-April.

It appears that, in a few cases, no rule (which would need to be amended as a result of changing Rule 42) was quoted. In at least one other instance, just one additional rule was incorporated in the motion, making it similar to ones rejected last year.

In response to criticism that sufficient time wasn't been allowed to have corrected motions re-submitted, it was pointed out yesterday that this decision had been taken by the Central Council at a recent meeting and the decision had been unanimous.

While the focus has understandably been on motions on Rule 42, sources indicate that up to 30 other motions dealing with unrelated matters had also been found to be flawed.

Former president Joe McDonagh pointed out after last year's controversy that the motions committee had 'essentially judged' what came before them, but he felt there was a lesson to be learned from the way in which motions on the Croke Park issue had been dealt with when they were not in order but were still discussed.

"Perhaps it would have much better to have taken a stricter line in relation to those motions that came before Congress prior to this," he said.

The Croke Park issue was last debated at the 2002 Congress, when delegates rejected a Clare motion proposing a transfer of authority for deciding on the use of the stadium for other sports to the Central Council. The vote was 197/106 against.

This represented a shift of about 100 votes from the previous Congress, when delegates voted in 176 to 89 in favour of a similar motion from Roscommon.

The motion failed because it fell short by a fraction of a vote of the necessary two-thirds majority.