Club’s four-year wait for hearing on parish rule

Almost four years on, Birr GAA club are still waiting to hear from the Disputes Resolution Authority about a fourth hearing concerning the legitimacy of the parish rule.

In correspondence received by Birr on May 20 2010, DRA secretary Matt Shaw, at the direction of the group stated both Birr and the Offaly County Board/GAA should meet in front of the tribunal again in relation to the club’s case.

In January 2003, a decision, which was reaffirmed two years later, was taken by the county executive to rearrange the boundaries within the parish, a division unknown to the Birr club. It left Birr with approximately 11% of the parish, comprising 400 acres around Birr Castle, the main shopping streets in the town and adjacent bogland.