*PJ McGuane, Michael O’Connor and Anne Hayes. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
A FORMER Vice Chairman of Clare GAA hurled criticism at the County Board’s top table for their communication skills, delegates lamented the use of the word skillset and an interim PRO was appointed at Monday’s meeting.
Held at Caherlohan, there was debate over the minutes from the August meeting while clarification was also provided that a communications did exist in the past.
The minutes of the August meeting of Clare GAA, circulated to the clubs ahead of this week’s September meeting, were amended after chairman Kieran Keating told the delegates he was happy to make a change following receipt of a letter from Anne Hayes who stepped down from her role as PRO at the August meeting.
The minutes had stated that Anne Hayes has resigned but she pointed out that she had told the meeting that she had retired. “We are happy to make that correction. She also asked me to clarify comments that I made which I am also happy to do. The minutes, as ye know, are not a line by line report of a meeting. They are a record of what decisions are made”.
The chairman went on to read a transcript of the meeting and the discussion that had taken place at the time, specifically comments made by P.J McGuane in relation to the appointment of the PR and Marketing committee. Replying to the Cooraclare delegate on the night with regard to the appointment of a PR and Marketing committee the chairman said “Anne is included in the committee as PRO but she is not chairing it as we wanted someone to concentrate on chairing it and not do six other tasks. We wanted somebody to lead it who is good at marketing. I don’t believe that is in Anne’s skillset. I know that Anne wasn’t happy with that part of the meeting that I said she didn’t have skillsets.
“My wording maybe wasn’t exactly right. I did try to explain it. It doesn’t mean my judgement as to what skillsets anybody has is valid or not. As chairman I have to appoint committees and appoint chair of committees who are best skilled to do the job and we try to put into committees’ people with the best skills that will enhance our marketing in this case. I did try to explain that to Anne afterwards. I am happy to say that I didn’t mean it to sound like I said Anne had no skillsets or skillsets for the PRO job. We weren’t talking about the PRO job, we were talking about chairing the PR and marketing committee. I certainly didn’t want to belittle anybody’s efforts. My judgement as to who has skillsets or not is only my judgement”, he said.
Asked by John Meade (Kildysart) if he was saying that he should not have used the work skillset, the chairman replied, “No, myself and Anne used the word skillset”. Meade added, “There are other officers that you said did not have the skillset, Sean Chambers and Cathy Hogan. Who has the right as an officer to tell anyone that they have too many irons in the fire”.
Keating replied, “At the last meeting Sean Chambers himself said he doesn’t have all the skills. I am not going to apologise for using the word”.
Referring to her comment at the August committee that Anne Hayes was involved in a number committees Head of Operations Deirdre Murphy said “I don’t think it is realistic and it would be very unfair to ask Anne to chair this committee as well. A slight was never intended. This committee and how it was going to work has come up several times at board meetings. To put any PRO across the country to chair that committee along with the work they do with programmes and communications is not realistic. Along with the roles Anne already fills, looking to be chair of that committee is, in my opinion, unrealistic. You are entitled to give your view as to who is entitled to do what. There was never a slight intended, nothing personal. It is nearly project teams that are required now. It’s about spreading the load now”.
Continuing, she said “Brian Fitzpatrick won’t do everything associated with treasury. I wouldn’t attempt to try and be the fixtures secretary. I don’t see an issue with that”.
Ruan’s Michael O’Regan said he was “surprised that you made that comment at the last meeting. It’s not your place to comment on the involvement of people in other organisations. It’s nobody else’ business who is involved with other organisations. Was Anne Hayes not doing her job as PRO”.
“I stand by my opinion, it was not realistic. There was no intention to offend. It was nothing to do with any particular person and particularly Anne Hayes,” Deirdre Murphy said. “The most disappointing thing is that this was brought up but we had to deal with what was brought up”, she added.
Cooraclare’s P.J. McGuane told the meeting that he had “a conversation with Deirdre Murphy the following day when I was a little taken aback when she asked me three times what was the purpose of my call. Communication or the lack thereof is the root of all this. I started my call by saying that I was disappointed and sorry about what had happened the previous night and I was. You made a comment to me Deirdre that I resented. You said I made a comment about the grassroots and I would have to withdraw it.
“Far from withdrawing it I will elaborate all you like on it. I was not aiming at anyone when I talked about grassroots. My humble opinion is that ye are appallingly bad communicators. For example when you decided to appoint an independent chair, whom did you consult. Did you consult Anne Hayes who was going to be working with this individual. This isn’t the first time this has happened. Was Cathy Hogan consulted and Michael Curtin who was here for eight years dealing with finance. Your communications are sadly lacking and you better take note of it”, the Cooraclare delegate said.
Later in the meeting letters were read from Kildysart and Ennistymon GAA clubs praising the work of Anne Hayes for Clare GAA over many years.
Replying to a query from Ruan delegate Michel O’Regan asking if the board had received correspondence from the Ruan club. Head of Operations Deirdre Murphy confirmed that they had before adding that it would have to go to the management committee first.
Chairman Kieran Keating later said he wanted “to thank Anne Hayes for her work as PRO, her work on programmes, selling of same, editing and presentation They were a great source of revenue for us. We appreciate and thank her for her work”.
Before the meeting concluded Lissycasey GAA chairman Eamonn Finnucane also paid tribute to Anne Hayes for her work as PRO. “She also does fabulous work with Bord na nÓg”, he said.
Interim PRO:
Cratloe clubman Aaron Carroll was appointed as Clare GAA’s interim PRO at the September meeting of the County Board on Tuesday night. He fills the vacant position following the retirement of Anne Hayes at the August meeting
Carroll’s appointment was proposed by Inagh/Kilnamona’s Paul Gannon and seconded by Cratloe chairman Kevin Browne.
On his appointment Carroll said “I was asked to give a hand with social media and I did that. I never asked to be assistant PRO”.
‘There was a communications committee’ – O’Reilly
Referring to the minutes of the August meeting at this week’s September County board meeting and his reference at that meeting to being on a communications committee some years earlier.
At the August meeting he had mentioned that both Michael O’Connor (board vice chairman) and Inagh/Kilnamona’s Paul Gannon were on the communications committee with him but neither told the meeting that they had no recollection of that.
Speaking this week, he told delegates “I now have papers work to prove that it did happen and I have provided that to Paul. We met with the club PROs. I want that clarified. It’s not my imagination”.
The Clondegad delegate then referred to a question he asked at that August meeting, if the match programme producers DBA had been paid. At this week’s meeting he again raised the issue asking “are there any further developments”.
Replying chairman Kieran Keating said “a week or so after the meeting we got a statement from DPA looking for payment for a programme from this summer. That was all, they were looking for. I went back to them and said that it was mentioned at our meeting that there were sums owed. They dug out three invoices from the past three years that they said weren’t paid but they weren’t on their statements We passed those on to the accountants to check”.
O’Reilly questioned, “You are saying they didn’t have them on their statement. Who were the programmes delivered to”. Keating replied, “I don’t know, I have no idea. I wouldn’t try to assign blame outside DBA’s accounts department”.
“There is also the €29,500 owed to the Munster council from 2022, paid in 2023, a year behind time. Where was that money? How did it not appear in the financial accounts,” the Clondegad clubman asked.
Holiday for All-Ireland champions:
A number of fundraising ventures will take place in the coming weeks to raise monies towards the cost of a ten=day holiday for the All-Ireland senior hurling champions. The players and management are being taken on a ten-day break from November 17, five days in Miami and five days in Nashville.
Giving details of the upcoming events, Head of operations Deirdre Murphy told the delegates, “we have to raise €200,000 to €250,000 ourselves”.
She went on to tell the meeting that a souvenir photograph of the team is on sale for €350 while a signed souvenir jersey will cost €125 for adults and €90 for children. Tickets for a poker classic and raffle on November 3 are available at €20 and there will be a game at Cusack Park earlier on November 3 when the Clare All-Ireland and league winning team will play a team selected from the Clare club championship and managed by Ger Loughnane, Anthony Daly, Terence Fahy and David Hoey.
A new Jack Daly Cup:
A new Jack Daly cup for the Clare senior football championship is on the way.
Éire Óg delegate Rory Hickey told this week’s meeting that following discussions with Shane Daly, agreement had been reached to provide a new cup which they expect will be presented “to whoever wins the title this year. This is a positive move. The cup does need to be replaced and this will be the third Jack Daly cup”, Hickey told the delegates.
Naomh Eoin celebrate:
Naomh Eoin founder Gabriel Keating told the meeting that “two thousand people attended a Páirc Eoin in Cross on Sunday for the club’s 50th anniversary celebrations.
He thanked All-Ireland winning hurlers Conor Cleary, David Fitzgerald, Paddy Donnellan, Mark Rodgers, Peter Duggan and Aidan McCarthy along with county board chairman and Naomh Eoin clubman Kieran Keating for their attendance. “We took the players on a boat trip which they enjoyed”, Keating, who is a sitting member of Clare County Council, told the delegates. On the day he unveiled a plaque to commemorate the club’s 50th anniversary.
Central Council matters:
Central Council delegate Robert Frost reported on the most recent meeting of that committee which decided to “end the pre-season tournaments for this season which will mean that it will be a month later before inter county teams will be allowed to return to training. A motion calling for All-Ireland finals that end in a draw to go to a replay will be put to congress while proposals that provincial finals also go to a replay if there is a draw is to be discussed but won’t come in until 2026 if carried”.
The O’Callaghans Mills man concluded his report by presenting a flag marking Clare’s All-Ireland win to board chairman Kieran Keating.
Parteen/Meelick objection:
Monday’s board meeting gave permission for the CCC (Competitions Control Committee) to deal with an objection from Parteen/Meelick who claim that players from their parish are playing with neighbouring club Cratloe.
Chairman Kieran Keating informed the delegates that as per rule, a county board meeting had to give such permission to the CCC to investigate the objecting club’s claim.
The permission was granted on the proposition of Central council delegate Robert Frost seconded by John Meade, Kildysart.
Handball matters:
Handball delegate Mike Kelly extended congratulations to the Tuamgraney club on winning the All-Ireland club title and he also congratulated Clare winners in the recent one wall championships.
Scór:
Irish officer Joe Garry told the meeting that “we are on track to have forty clubs compete in this year’s Scór competitions. The Scór na nÓg finals will take place on October 19 at Cois na hAbhna and competitors can only represent one club. The quiz will take place one week later”.
