County Chairman Diarmaid Devereux addressed a large gathering of Club delegates and officials in the Ferrycarrig Hotel on Wednesday evening. The only topic for discussion was the financial situation facing the County Board about which the Chairman wished to provide complete transparency.
The current situation
In his address, the County Chairman laid bare all the facts regarding how the figures were arrived at, providing great detail and breakdown of the numbers for members. He explained how the purchase and sale of land near Glenbrien, that had been earmarked for a Centre of Excellence for the county, had made a net loss of c.€350k. He went on to explain how the replacement of this project, the purchase of land at Ferns has left an outstanding sum owing of €2.3m. The development of this land as a Centre of Excellence has already begun, but the budgeted cost to complete ‘Phase 1’ of the project is €1.53. However there exists a gap in funding with the guaranteed income from Croke Park and the National Lottery only coming to a total of €1.2m.
In terms of efficiencies, the Chairman outlined how the management committee has targeted €200k cuts in expenditure annually and another €100k increase in income.
Delegates openly expressed their views and articulated their disappointment at the news received, they raised questions regarding the figures presented, querying how the county found itself in this situation.
‘Better and Stronger’
The Chairman stressed that we ‘are where we are’ and that there was a need now to go forward and deal with the situation. He expressed the view that at the meeting a line was being drawn in the sand and Wexford GAA would now move forward together. He said he believed that Wexford had been in bad situations before and had always emerged better and stronger and would do so once again.
Continued investment
The Chairman stressed that investment in games and coaching would not be affected by the cuts as it was vital that Wexford continue to invest in the future. Wexford are spending €750k each year in this area and Coaching and Games officer Andrew Egan is producing an ambitious plan that will revolutionise this area. A target of ten fully qualified coaches in each Club within two years has been set. This and other excellent projects are what the GAA is about and what we should according to the Chairman be focusing on at this time. He closed by stating his view that ‘we are an organisation of volunteers and it was now time to hand the power back to the Clubs of the county.’
The meeting responded very positively to being told the full story and there was an ovation for the Chairman when he concluded proceedings.
