The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
County minor football team manager Michael Neylon has presented some frightening statistics regarding the projected playing numbers in all clubs in the county in the coming decade.
Based on those figures, it is clear that many of the county’s clubs will not be able to compete without assistance from neighbouring parishes, he said at Bord na nÓg’s annual general meeting.
Working off the 2011 census, he presented a map of Clare to the delegates listing the number of males in the 0-3 age group in each parish in the county. There are a total of 3,632 males in this age group and the map clearly shows that over half of the clubs in the county will be unable to field teams at U-14 level in 10 years time based on those figures.
“All of North Clare together will hardly produce a team in three years time,” he told the gathering.
There are only three places in what is known as the traditional football area, Ennistymon, Miltown and Kilrush, that will have sufficient numbers. In many parts of the county, at least two or three areas will have to come together to produce a team.
“That’s the picture people must grasp to know where Clare football is going,” according to the county minor team manager.
Based on these numbers, Lisdoonvarna-Doolin that is the one parish, will have no trouble putting out teams but Ballyvaughan won’t be in the picture, and it’s the same for Michael Cusacks and Kilfenora. Groupings will have to become a feature of Clare football and Clare GAA.
“In hurling, there will be problems for Feakle, Killanena and Whitegate as the population is not there. Now is the time to start chewing the cud on this,” he said.
During his campaign to be elected as chairman of Clare GAA for a second term, Miltown’s Michael McDonagh repeatedly highlighted that falling numbers is one of the main problems facing Clare GAA and he stressed that this is an issue which must be tackled sooner rather than later.
