A FORMER president and secretary of the GAA who is regarded as a pioneer behind Croke Park stadium will be honoured this weekend at one of the oldest festivals in the country.
Tributes will be paid to Frank Dineen by leading GAA figures and commentator Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh at a special conference organised by the GAA club Mr Dineen founded in Limerick.
The Birth of Croke Park in the Ballyhoura Mountains has been organised as part of the Ballylanders Pattern festival, which dates back to the late 17th century.
Traditionally, the festival celebrated the saving of the crops. In latter years, it has been promoted mainly by the local GAA club.
Dineen founded Ballylanders Shamrocks GAA club in southeast Limerick in 1886. He is the only man to have held the distinction of serving as both president (1895-1898) and secretary (1889-1901) of the GAA.
He is best remembered for his purchase of the Jones’s Road site in 1908 before it was acquired by the GAA in 1913. The site has developed into the organisation’s headquarters and, with a capacity of over 82,000, Croke Park is now by far the country’s largest stadium.
During this weekend’s conference, which begins today, historians will recall Dineen and his input into the GAA, while a specially commissioned plaque in his honour will be unveiled by GAA president Christy Cooney.