Winning promotion will boost Galway's coffers, says John Hynes

Galway GAA secretary John Hynes says the county’s promotion to Division 1 of the Allianz FL will have a hugely positive impact on coffers.

The county were confined to Division 2 for the past six years and their recent promotion, according to Hynes, will lead to a doubling of attendance figures at Pearse Stadium.

Galway’s NL share came in at €97k in 2016 and €86k the year previous, but gate receipts in 2018, he predicts, will rise sharply owing to the visits of some of the top football teams.

This year’s NL share is also set to jump past the €100k mark by virtue of the footballers’ appearance in Sunday’s Division 2 decider against Kildare and the hurlers’ progression to the league semi-final on Sunday week.

Any additional income is welcomed given the concerns expressed over the state of the county’s finances at last December’s convention. There it was revealed the county board are paying €270,927 in annual loan repayments, €50,000 of which goes against the outstanding debt on the derelict Mountain South site. The loan repayments on the site which was to house the county’s centre of excellence will revert to €324,000 per annum from 2018 onwards. Promotion couldn’t have come a day sooner.

The meeting of Galway and Cork in Pearse Stadium on the opening weekend of the NFL attracted a crowd 3,387 to Salthill, while the visit of Clare drew a paltry 2,563. Last Sunday’s hurling and football double-header saw 12,800 spectators file through the gates - the largest league attendance at Pearse Stadium in eight years.