Clare GAA Warned That More Fundraising Efforts Must Be Made To Maintain Finances

Derrick Lynch

Clare GAA is being warned that efforts must be redoubled to fund raise additional monies other than gate receipts if the board are to maintain the current level of expenditure.

It comes as the financial report, which will be presented to delegates at the 2019 Convention this Thursday evening, shows a surplus of €257,277.  That figure represents an increase of almost €103,000 on the 2018 surplus with overall expenditure and income remaining largely unchanged. The outgoings for the year were a total of €2,009,993 (down €123,134 on 2018) with an income of €2,267,270 (down €20,119 on 2018).

In his summation, independent auditor Anthony Fitzpatrick commended the audit committee and team managements for working closely and efficiently in controlling costs in a very demanding and challenging environment. He noted a considerable drop off in fundraising and advised that this be addressed as a matter of urgency. The 2018 accounts showed a fundraising profit of €66,580 with that dropping to just €12,065 this year. That was the amount raised by the sole fundraising venture undertaken which was a race night at Limerick Greyhound Track.

Team expenses remained largely unchanged in 2019, with €862,258 being spent on county teams this year compared with €863,272 in 2018. The largest increase in costs came under the sports gear, equipment and laundry heading, with that figure increasing from €109,040 in 2018 to €157,795 in 2019. The largest decrease was in the Other heading, with costs of €20,986 in 2018 dropping to €6,328 this year.

Mr Fitzpatrick noted that this overall teams expenses figure has increased considerably since 2015 when it stood at €657,377, a jump of over €200,000 in that period. He outlined that the two main threats to the finances of the board are a difficulty with increasing costs along with the lack of surplus reserves to cushion any unanticipated spending or income decreases.

The largest increases in the income category came in gate receipts with takings of €606,447 this year marking an increase of over €55,000 on 2019 while National League shares went from €102,044 in 2018 to €136,927 in 2019.

On the debit side, there was a drop of over €100,000 in grants and promotional costs with this being attributed to the paying out of the JP McManus donations last year, while coaching and development costs dropped from €558,764 to €515,440. This was also noted by Mr Fitzpatrick who noted that there was a decrease in demand for summer camps and coaching.

Upkeep and maintenance of grounds cost just over €180,000 which was an increase of €32,000 on 12 months ago, while administration expenses fell from €204,337 to €179,960. The largest saving here came from the complimentary tickets account (€14,504 to €5,302) while depreciation costs were also down by almost €11,000.

The auditor also noted that the boards total assets stood at €7,381,935 at October 31 and is solvent.