O’Donovan raises rural club fears

The closure of garda stations and the loss of other traditional services will have a serious impact on the GAA as it makes rural areas less attractive and players will move elsewhere, delegates at the Munster Council GAA club forum in Killarney have been warned.

Cork Games Development Administrator, Kevin O’Donovan fears that a generation is being lost to emigration but there is very little clubs can do to counter the problems of recession and urbanisation.

“You can only treat the effects,” he admitted. “We need to maximise participation at underage level and get quality coaching because if you’re good at it then you’ll stay at it longer.”

O’Donovan said there was a significant dip in the player base aged between 15-35 and many clubs struggle to field teams. He estimated up to 35,000 people aged 15-24 have left the country.

The Cork official said amalgamation was an option for clubs that are struggling but he warned of the danger of the smaller club being “sucked up” in such arrangements.

“If it picks up again players will stay with the bigger club because it has better structures,” O’Donovan stated.

He said the GAA can help counter the player drain by promoting its activities and by holding regular tournaments to keep available players involved. “Always be ready for the good times to come back when we are out of recession. Don’t go out of business. It’s vital to keep your club identity and try to stay positive,” he argued.