The heated issue of
whether to make Croke Park available for international rugby and soccer
came to an end on Saturday, with an historic victory for the
pro-amendment lobby in a vote at the GAA Congress.
A 227-97 result in the secret ballot was enough to secure the
required two-thirds majority necessary to succeed. It was expected to
be a tight result, so the 11-vote margin was slightly larger than could
have been hoped for by the 'yes' lobby.
Although it probably will be 2007 before any rugby or soccer
internationals will be played, the next big hurdle for the GAA is to
decide how much they will charge.
Niall Murphy, assistant secretary in St Enda's GAC on the Hightown
Road in Glengormley said the club, alongside the majority of other
Northern counties and the deep Gaelic heartlands of Cork were deeply
opposed to the development.
"The benefits and disadvantages were debated in full at committee
and it was the democratic consensus of the club to keep Rule 42," Niall
Murphy said. "There were a million reasons – political, cultural,
financial, practical, and at the end of the day we overwhelming agreed
it should be kept."
The St Enda's man explained that the decision to allow other
sports to utilise the stadium at Croke, could be the start of a
slippery slope leading to other clubs and pitches being used.
"There was a fear that Croke Park, could be the thin part of the wedge. We could find Casement or Clones being asked for.
"At the moment there is a lot of conjecture running alongside high emotions.
"People are wondering if God Save the Queen will be played at
Croke at soccer matches. They're worried that the pitch will be
spoiled, particularly through the sport of rugby. People know that at
the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff the pitch is always cut up. This is
on top of growing concerns about the current state of the pitch of
Croke already.
"There are other factors as well. Ireland has been to three world
cups in the past ten years, and they haven't reinvested its resources
into the game, but Gaelic has. It's interesting that the IRFU and FAI
haven't come in for any criticism during this debate.
"We have had to search our souls again in the public eye whether or not to prostitute our main asset.
"And we have had to debate whether we should afford other games the
opportunity to showcase their assets, attract more youth and their
talent in our arena.
"GAA is the only sport which has a club in every parish in Ireland. It is 32-county.
"The FAI isn't. It is 26 counties. Children aspire to play in Croke
Park, it's a dream for them. To see this decision is very
disappointing."
