Jim Gavin urges rivals to demand funding from Croke Park
Dublin benefited from €2.1m in GAA funding in 2015, but Gavin insisted the Dublin County Board have been clever in their use of the funds and have ploughed the cash into games’ development and into its young players. Gavin cited an example of Longford who have no Games’ Promotion Officers (GPO), and insisted that it was up to other counties to go in search of their own grants and match that funding on the ground.
“We have got Games Promotion Officers in most of our clubs.
The county board, with that funding, matches them, as in there is a 50-50 split, to provide those Games Promotion Officers.
“It’s no more different here in Castlebar than in Clondalkin. We need to get out there and invest in our people.
“I just think Dublin GAA have gone about it smartly. When I’m asked by other counties I encourage them to get onto Croke Park, make their business case for funding for people. Talking about Longford, I was up there presenting medals a few months back. The conversation over a cup of tea afterwards was about Games Promotion Officers – they don’t have any.
“I said the club chairman needs to put a business plan together, get on to county board officials, make the case to Croke Park and demand. There’s plenty of funding coming into Croke Park —we saw the big attendances that are there. They need to put their vision to Croke Park, get a Games Promotion Officer into Longford, into the clubs, and promote the game,” said the Dublin manager.
But Galvin insisted there has to be a solid volunteer base in clubs and counties to succeed too. “But the bedrock of the association is the volunteerism. I was out this morning with my young fella, at the U8s, the GPO was there. He was co-ordinating five coaches with the 20 kids that were there in the U8s.
“So myself and the other guys were all volunteering our time. You need somebody to co-ordinate it.”
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