Croke Park redevelopment The issue of rising GAA debts in relation to Croke Park will take on new importance at this weekend's Congress in Belfast, with confirmation yesterday that the association won't be receiving any further Government funding towards the redevelopment work at the stadium for at least the remainder of this year.

Speaking yesterday - and ironically at Croke Park for the launch of the Irish Sports Council strategy - the Minister for Sport, John O'Donoghue, announced that any re-application from the GAA for a Government grant could not be met under the current capital spending.

"I can make it clear now that, in terms of the capital spending which I have for this year," he said, "I have no provision whatsoever for the type of expenditure that would be required by the GAA for Croke Park. The money which I have is for far smaller concepts and projects than that."

On the eve of Congress two years ago, the Government announced a grant of €76 million to the GAA, but so far has only delivered on half that amount. Yesterday the Minister reiterated how that funding was originally linked to the Stadium Ireland project, but added that no additional funds could be delivered in the year ahead.

"There is no surplus now, and under current budgetary restraints we don't have funding within the Department of Sport at the present time to enable us to do what we would like to do for the GAA and Croke Park.

"Right now there are a whole host of projects right across the country which are going to have to be funded within the same restraints."

Earlier this year, out-going GAA president Seán McCague warned that the association was facing "crippling debt" if the Government continued to withhold the grants of €38 million. "Our overdraft will be up to €70 million and we still have work to do," he said.

Relying on the funds, the GAA fast-tracked the redevelopment of Croke Park and now faces mounting debt in the absence of public money. The northern end of the ground remains to be redeveloped, but work on that is now certain to be deferred.

In relation to the opening of Croke Park to other sports, the Minister maintained that only the GAA themselves can make any progress on the matter.

"It was only once, last year, when I asked the GAA for the use of Croke Park for one specific purpose, and that was the European soccer championships in 2008.

"The GAA subsequently decided that they wouldn't make any special recommendation to their Congress. Now they've decided not to even have it discussed at their Congress. My only proposal was for Croke Park to be opened on a one-off basis. But at no point did I ask them to open up for the use of the FAI or the IRFU. I was just taking about 2008, and that was refused.

"The fact is that it's a matter for the associations themselves now as to what they are going to do. And if either the FAI or IRFU want to make a request to the GAA for the use of their stadium then that's a matter for them."

In addressing the revisiting of Abbotstown as a proposed site for a new national stadium, the Minister confirmed that the Dublin location, originally marked as home for the "Bertie Bowl" project, remains one of four separate locations to be considered in the weeks ahead in light of pending reports from the IRFU and the FAI.

So far the indications are that the IRFU favour a redevelopment at Lansdowne Road, using the existing site. In conjunction with the FAI, they could be willing to provide some €100 million towards the project, or around a third of its overall cost. The Government is expected to provide a further €200 million in funding.

"Abbotstown has never been excluded from the equation," said O'Donoghue, "and I want to make that perfectly clear. There have been four sites at all times. There was the whole issue of Lansdowne Road. There was the question of the Glass Bottle site in Ringsend. There was Newland's Cross. And there was Abbotstown. So there were always four separate candidates.

"All I'm waiting for now is a report from the IRFU and the FAI in relation to what their preferences are, and in particular their proposals in relations to funding for a new stadium. When I have that report then I'll bring it to the Government."