Offaly GAA chairman highlights challenge county faces with changing demographics

THE changing demographics of rural Ireland formed the centre-piece of chairman Tom Parlon in his address to Offaly GAA Convention on Wednesday evening.

Speaking after being elected for a second year as chairman, the Coolderry man focused on the challenge that clubs face in the coming years, pointing out that Offaly is one of just nine counties nationwide and four in Leinster, along with Laois, Carlow and Longford, whose birthrate has plummeted to over 1,000 a year.

He remarked: “That brings its own issues. Someone made a reference to squeezing a tea bag. We all know if tea bags are scarce, you have to give them an extra squeeze and that is what the smaller counties are having to do. Squeeze the tea bag to get the maximum. There is a suggestion that you can get a 70% rate of kids in your area to play GAA. That is fine if you have 70 people to deal with but if you only have 30 or 40 and you can pull 70%, you are in a difficulty.

“There is no question about it. That is going to bring challenges, it is going to bring extra pressure on clubs. Already we have seen some amalgamations. Lots of clubs are having difficulty turning out underage teams.

“There is a very strong population drift to the east,” he noted, referring to a school register that the Drumcullen officers brought in to a discussion on demographics. It listed all children from before 1900 up to the 1960s and there were years when there were 15/20 in a class in the long closed Drumcullen school and other years when there were only two or three. “That rise and fall in population isn't new but there is a very strong trend there now,” Mr Parlon commented.

He said the challenge the GAA was that 25% of the playing population was across the eastern part of the country but 75% of clubs are in rural Ireland. He referred to Naas's population rising by 79% over the past number of years, Celbridge by over 100%. “Some of those towns on the perimeter of Dublin have had massive increases whereas some of our towns are just about holding their own. That is where the rural clubs are.”

He told Offaly clubs: “You have a tough time of it keeping everything going”.

He gave pride of place to the win in the Leinster Minor Football Championship this year, lauding the fighting spirit of the team. “From the point of view of demographics, we shouldn't be winning championships. It didn't stop us in the past. In terms of football and hurling All-Ireland's, we are the least populated county to win each of them. We have the history of winning.”

Mr Parlon spoke with infectious passion about the GAA and his pride in becoming Offaly chairman. Referring to a function earlier in the evening where the descendants of Lar Molloy from Drumcullen, an Offaly GAA chairman whose term ended in 1925, presented a framed picture to the board, he talked about the great footsteps he was following in.

He referred to the long service of some, including a fellow Coolderry man, Fr Edmund Vaughan, who served for fourteen years and “ruled” his parish with an “iron fist”, Durrow's Brendan Ward who also served a lengthy term.

“It is a great list of honour to be on and I very much appreciate that,” Mr Parlon smiled. Stating that he had been involved in farm politics, national politics and the construction industry as an advocate, he said his first love was the GAA, whether Offaly or Coolderry, hurling or football. “It is just great to be in this situation,” he said, paying tribute to the volunteer-ism in the GAA and the role GAA plays in physical and mental health.

“We are all trying to do our best and a very high standard was set by the previous team. Myself and my fellow officers are striving to keep that high standard and keep things going into the future,” he went on.

Mr Parlon said he was “flabbergasted” by the work done by volunteers and the way they turn out week in week out.

He said he had been in football grounds he had never been in before in the past year and he referred to the pride clubs had in their facilities.

He saluted players for their commitment, referring to Offaly getting promotion in football and hurling leagues. “We have worked hard to put the proper management teams in place and leave no stone unturned. It is getting that balance now between being conscious of the cost and what is needed to get there.”

He thanked companies for their support, noting that they don't have big corporate firms but have huge indigenous support from great companies.

Mr Parlon talked about the good club championships and the way the new rules have improved football as a spectacle while he congratulated Offaly camogie on their All-Ireland intermediate championship win.

He was critical of people who abuse referees and urged referees to use the rules at their disposal to help cut this out as well. “Giving good example is so important for mentors and people on the sideline. If there are cases, we have to clamp down on it and saying we don't do this.”

Mr Parlon referred to an allowance of €210,000 in the Offaly GAA accounts to meet a tax liability for over payment of expenses to managements and back up staff. “The finances was a difficult year. It wasn't something that I expected was going to happen but clearly some counties other than ourselves drew attention to themselves by some of the business they did and the Revenue moved in. Eventually there was an agreement between Croke Park and Revenue for all counties to come clean. What we signed eventually was an unprompted qualified disclosure and we more or less said we have examined all our affairs and have discovered we didn't fully comply in all tax issues. That has resulted in the amount of money we are due to pay. It is tough and I know people have said the Revenue shouldn't be doing this to a voluntary group but that is the life we live in. We all have to live with the Revenue.

“I saw the tax defaulters list today and I am sure there are some awfully decent people on it but some of them are stuck for a million quid and so on. I saw a firm of highly reputable architects that were winning all sort of awards and they owe about €800,000. That is the life we are living in.”

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He thanked all his club officers with a special word for his predecessor, Michael Duignan for his support. He praised Brendan Minnock, who stepped down as secretary and lavished praise on Operations Manager, John Hackett as well as thanking the administrator, Carina Carroll and all coaches.

Mr Parlon went on to thank all the volunteers who manage games in O'Connor Park.