A replacement engine for the Dalkey Scubadivers dive boat, a new rough mower for Callan Golf Club. Not quite something for everyone in the audience, but still it feels like Christmas has come early for the 1,726 sporting clubs and organisations that got a slice of the Government’s almost €56 million in sports capital funding.
In fact everyone who put their hand up in time got something. Across 50 different sports, there were 2,320 applications in total, and while some 20 per cent of those were deemed invalid (mainly due to land title and/or financial statements), every valid application received some offer of assistance - that at least eliminating any accusations of bias based on ministerial constituency.
These range from just a few hundred euro to a maximum of €150,000, and not surprisingly the three major sporting organisations are the big winners: 533 GAA clubs have been allocated €23.47m, the FAI sees €7.25m directed towards 230 clubs, while the IRFU are cut a little further adrift with €3.1m going to 60 clubs.
While the original Government allocation was €30m, this was almost doubled in the recent budget to €56m, with a further €4m set aside for regional grants of up to €200,000 (these being announced before the end of the year).
Of the 26 counties, Dublin inevitably comes out on top with €12.76m, including 26 maximum allocations of €150,000 (and 208 allocations in total). Among those to benefit from that maximum amount was Arbour Hill Boxing Club, in north inner city Dublin, where Shane Ross, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, declared his understandable satisfaction with the allocations.
“It’s a great day for Irish sport,” he said, “and in some ways, it’s one of the greatest days for Irish sport. We often go these high-profile games and matches, but this is what it’s all about. What’s happening here is what we hope to do in our jobs, which is to encourage sport at this level.
“And this club is symbolic, and represents something very special in the sports grants, because it’s a club which has been working hard under extremely difficult circumstances, and desperately needs money. And we’re very happy you’re getting €150,000, we can see the refurbishment that’s necessary here, we can see the fantastic work that you’re doing, and we know how well deserved it is.”
That €150,000 will go towards re-roofing the club, founded in 1929, and an originally a schoolhouse for Collins Barracks. In total, 66 boxing clubs benefitted from an allocation of €951,506.
The other big winners were tennis (€2.64m going to 51 clubs), golf (€1.97m going to 66 clubs), sailing (€1.21m going to 36 clubs) rowing (€1.2m going to 58 clubs), and athletics (€987,245 going to 48 clubs); not that the so-called minority sports missed out, with diving/snorkelling getting €451,361 between 27 clubs, and gymnastics getting €270,500 between 14 clubs.
The Department had made the process more user-friendly (from 14 to six pages), and despite the still large number of invalid applications, it’s significantly reduced from the 2012 programme, when 48 per cent were invalid: this is the fourth round of programme funding following it’s reintroduction in 2012: €31 million was allocated in 2012, €40.5 million provided in 2014, and €41 million in 2015.
“We’re very fortunate in that we doubled the money, so had enough to go round,” added Ross. “And it means no-one is disappointed, who wasn’t eliminated at the early stages.
“And this is triumph for volunteerism, to say thank you, and for the young people of Ireland, to encourage their health, to occupy them, to encourage their mental health, and to give them a really good start in life.
“This is about grassroots, the future Olympians, who play soccer, or champions of GAA. And you have to put money in at this level, if you’re going to get to the top level as well. And to me, in some ways it’s more important to encourage people on the ground, because it has so many implications for the mental health of the nation, and the nation.”
After Dublin, Galway was the next most successful county, with €3,262,953 going to 114 club projects, with Kildare the next best (€2,803,304 going towards 73 projects); Leitrim received the smallest county allocation of €404,490 towards 18 projects.
Few complaints all round however: “This is a real boost for golf clubs in the Republic of Ireland,” said Redmond O’Donoghue, Chairman of the Confederation of Golf in Ireland. “The funding confirmed will directly benefit 64 member clubs and more than 20,000 golf club members. It also represents a six-fold increase on the supports provided to golf clubs in the last Sports Capital Programme.”
Four FAI clubs received the maximum: St Ita’s of Donabate, Leicester Celtic AFC of Rathfarnham, Tallaght Town AFC, and Crosshaven AFC: full details of all allocations on a county basis, see www.sportscapitalprogramme.ie
Sports Capital Programme
Allocations by Sport / Number of grants
American Football €43,228 / 7
Angling/Fishing €45,602 / 6
Archery €48,800 / 8
Athletics €987,245 / 48
Badminton €72,000 / 4
Baseball €12,800/ 2
Basketball €225,456 / 20
Billiards & Snooker €31,000 / 1
Bowls €116,153 / 9
Boxing €951,506 / 66
Camogie €173,279 / 14
Canoeing / Kayaking €178,944 / 17
Clay Pigeon Shooting €36,000 / 3
Community Games €124,300 / 6
Cricket €248,508 / 11
Cycling €67,250 / 12
Diving/Snorkelling €451,361 / 27
Equestrian Sports €96,600 / 15
Fencing €4,400 / 1
Gaelic Football €5,845,493 / 150
Gaelic Games €15,544,858 / 349
Golf €1,972,900 / 66
Gymnastics €270,500 / 14
Handball €484,320 / 14
Hillwalking €145,000 / 4
Hockey €211,662 / 5
Hurling €2,079,808 / 54
Judo €4,778 / 1
Ladies Gaelic Football €11,800 / 3
Martial Arts €116,231 / 12
Motorcycling €6,097 / 1
Mountaineering €11,800 /2
Multi-sport €8,708,417 / 250
Orienteering €1,000 / 1
Pitch and Putt €241,962 / 24
Rock Climbing €800 / 1
Rowing €1,204,901 / 58
Rugby €3,171,080 / 60
Sailing €1,215,685 / 36
Shooting Sports €45,729 / 2
Skateboarding €2,000 / 1
Skydiving €50,000 / 1
Soccer €7,259,919 / 230
Special Olympics €13,300 / 3
Squash €62,500 / 3
Surfing €5,500 / 1
Swimming €446,956 / 32
Taekwondo €43,307 / 2
Tennis €2,643,490 / 51
Triathlon €90,775 / 16
Tug of War €3,000 / 1
Weightlifting €1,000 / 1
Grand Total €55,831,000 / 1,726
Allocations by County
County / Value of Allocations / Number of Organisation
Carlow €717,768 / 27
Cavan €960,289 / 39
Clare €1,497,085 / 58
Cork €6,842,570 / 197
Donegal €2,003,505 / 71
Dublin €12,763,963 / 208
Galway €3,262,953 / 114
Kerry €1,862,147 / 79
Kildare €2,803,304 / 73
Kilkenny €1,250,879 / 51
Laois €1,069,327 / 51
Leitrim €403,490 / 18
Limerick €2,463,129 / 87
Longford €515,026 / 19
Louth €1,620,106 / 42
Mayo €1,645,977 / 68
Meath €2,460,188 / 77
Monaghan €773,272 / 38
Offaly €984,406 / 44
Roscommon €813,189 / 40
Sligo €824,812 / 29
Tipperary €2,024,781 / 79
Waterford €1,468,992 / 43
Westmeath €1,115,567 / 50
Wexford €1,888,031 / 64
Wicklow €1,796,244 / 60
Grand Total €55,831,000 / 1726
