A proposal by Galwegians Rugby Football Club to sell their Crowley Park ground for €15 million has been rejected after members were told that another bidder was prepared to pay €20 million for the nine-acre property.
News of the higher bid came just before members were about to vote at the end of a three-hour special general meeting of the club on Thursday night.
Management of the club had decided to sell the Crowley Park site at Glenina on the east side of the city - its home since 1963 - and move to a 12-hectare (30- acre) greenfield site close to Galway airport at Carnmore.
The club had agreed to pay a property developer €6.525 million for the new site, but the deal was subject to planning permission and the sale of Crowley Park.
The proposed sale of Crowley Park and interlinked purchase of the greenfield site had come at the end of protracted negotiations. A two-thirds majority was required at the special general meeting for the proposal to go ahead. However, the motion was carried by only 78-65 and was thereby defeated.
Club chairman MacDara Hosty said he was disappointed with the outcome as considerable work had gone into the proposed sale and the planned purchase of the new site.
"The board of management will now have to meet and reassess the position and establish the best course of action for the club," he said.
Those opposed to the sale voiced a number of reasons for their stance, including their belief that a better price could be achieved for the current site.
Shortly before the vote was taken, Galway auctioneer Colm O'Donnellan, himself a former player with the club, announced that he had earlier that day received a bid of €20 million for the property.
"I received instructions to make the bid for the property on behalf of a Galway property developer who is willing to pay €20 million for the property. That bid is now on the table, and it is up to the club to accept or reject it," Mr O'Donnellan said. He added that it was a straight sale and did not involve finding an alternative site for Galwegians RFC.
The club was founded in 1922. It developed the facility at Glenina in 1963 and named it Crowley Park in the mid-1980s in honour of their main driving force over the years, the late Chris Crowley, one of six Galwegians RFC members who served as president of the IRFU.