The following business shall be transacted at the Annual General Meeting:

(a) Adoption of Standing Orders.

(b) Minutes of previous Annual General Meeting.

(c) Consideration of the Annual Report submitted by the Secretary.

(d) Consideration of the Financial Statements including the Report of the Accountant(s) or Auditor(s).

(e) The Chairperson’s Address.

(f) Election of Officers and Members of the Executive Committee.

(g) Notices of Motion.

(h) Any Other Business

So we will proceed with the agenda and there will be a little bit of a change in the running order to the agenda, we unfortunately, and due to some circumstances that have risen are not in a position to elect a new chairperson of the club tonight. 

There are no valid nominations at present, we've been in communication with Dublin County Board all week and before that in fact and the decision has been taken that we will adjourn the election of officers to another date and meeting. So that's why we're running “any other business” before the election of officers. 

We have big crowd here tonight, so I'm going to be very strict on time keeping.

The meeting will start 

(A)   adoption of standing orders.

·       The Proposer of a Motion or of an Amendment may speak for 3 minutes, but no more than 3 minutes.

·       A delegate speaking to a Resolution or of an Amendment must not exceed 3 minutes.

·       The Proposer of a Resolution or an Amendment may speak a second time for 5 minutes before a vote is taken, but no other delegate may speak a second time to the same Resolution or Amendment.

·       The Chairman may at any time he considers a matter has been sufficiently discussed call on the proposer for a reply, and when that has been given a vote must be taken.

·       A delegate may, with the consent of the Chairman, move “that the question be now put”, after which when the proposer has spoken, a vote must be taken.

·       Where the AGM considers it appropriate, a vote may be by secret ballot.

·       A speaker to the Annual Report or to any other general discussion shall not exceed 3  minutes to any one topic.

·       Any motion seeking additions or amendments to the Constitution or Rules must have a majority equal to two‐thirds of those present, entitled to vote and voting.

·       Standing Orders shall not be suspended for the purpose of considering any matter on the Agenda except by the consent of a majority equal to two‐thirds of those present, entitled to vote and voting.

·       The Chairman may change the order of items on the agenda with the support of a simple majority of those present, entitled to vote and voting.

 

(B)    Minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting

Proposer Darren Chambers and seconded by Anthony O’Connor

 

(c) Consideration of the Annual Report submitted by the Secretary.

Mr Chairman 2023 has been another challenging year for all of us both on field and off field.  

As on field activities returned to normal we found ourselves looking for more pitches and training space, we have secured the Good Shepherd School for at least another year until the builders move in, we used Three Rock Rovers Hockey grounds until winter evening training ruled that out, we made an offer for a long lease with an option to buy the land from Three Rock Rovers but this was rejected.

We maintain training on the all-weather pitches with the addition of upgraded lights on the main all weather pitch which have proven to be successful now they are controlled by an App.

We used rechargeable floodlights at Broadford and Loreto to help out with evening training,

We added nets behind the goals in Marlay and repaired the pitch drainage on Pitch 2 which were visible following the long hot summer of 2022, we filled pitch holes in Loreto and replaced damaged goalposts at Broadford.

With nearly four thousand members we are now among the largest clubs in the Country which is phenomenal growth in the short years of the clubs existence. With that we will always have the need for pitches especially when DLRCC call off the pitches due to bad weather and the scramble for pitch space begins, Pitch 2 in Marlay has become a treasured asset when all pitches are off,we can still use it but must protect it from over use. I commend previous executives on their vision to invest in the creation of this sand based pitch. We will look again at the options available for Pitch 1

We carried out a safety audit of the clubhouse and carpark facility following a fall by an elderly person on the clubhouse grounds, we installed new ramps and disable parking bays as well as reserved referee parking bays. We upgraded the access path from the clubhouse grounds to Marlay Park to avoid the risk of pedestrians clashing with cars.

We are currently upgrading the ladies bathroom on the ground floor and have painted the dressing rooms in club colours.  

We upgraded our fire exits, the fire alarm system and the CCTV will be upgrade as well.

We have placed an order for a fully fitted mobile coffee trailer and which will be placed at our pitch entrance to Marlay Park.

We will also replace and upgrade the cooling system for the bar and function room which has served us well over the years.

We purchased a barbecue and club branded Gazebos for the summer family fun day and summer camps which have been a hugh success.

The executive have a set agenda each Month and review registrations, child welfare, treasurer updates Health and Wellbeing, Bar and team updates. In addition we review and address many other issues that arise throughout the year. Health and wellbeing was a major concern with injuries being notified and claims being dealt with by Nick O’ Connor.

Garda vetting and safeguarding  courses continue to be organised and I thank Cliodhna Purdue for her hard work over the year.

Our pitch committee are working well in conjunction with our groundskeeper Derek Oman keeping the pitches lined and cut. The pitch committee do their best to facilitate every team I’d ask for all mentors to be patient when dealing with our volunteers.

 

Our shop continues to trade successfully requiring the addition of more storage space, a new container has been located in the carpark to facilitate shop stock storage, the shop also went online in October and was very successful.  

We have met with and will be hiring two new part time staff one a GPO and the second a Strength and Conditioning Coach, the locals schools are always asking for more help with training pupils and our teams will benefit greatly from in house S&C training. We provided the players with recovery facilities during the latter end of the championship, we had to close off a changing room for several weeks to facilitate this , this facility was very successful but didn’t help us win the championship. Speaking to players afterwards about how necessary this facility was we have put together pans to upgrade two of the changing rooms in the Aras in Broadford to a team meeting room and recovery facility.

The bar is open every night with Monday night bingo and Thursday night lotto being popular as well as post match events being popular with younger members.

I cannot mention the bar without mentioning our dear friend and Colleague Francie Maguire who passed away in December, and Eddie Byrne who lost both parents Sheila and Liam in such a short time recently, 

Ar Dheis De go raimh a n-anamacha.

The Marlay Concerts were very well supported by club members this year bringing in much needed funds to help run the club, I thank all volunteers who gave their time to help direct concert goers in and out of our parish.

The one message I must impress upon all is the need for volunteers throughout the club and at all levels on all committees. We can provide training where necessary but we need people to volunteer throughout the club.

We need referees , the referee situation is at crisis level in the County and clubs may be asked to have at least one referee for every two teams. Training is given for all referees and Ballinteer St Johns have offered to host training courses. Please volunteer.

As 2023 draws to a close I want to thank all members for putting up with my constant demands, emails and requests for action, if you lifted a hand to help out this year I commend you, without you this club would not function. Thanks to all of my colleagues on the club executive and in particular those members of the executive that are stepping away this year.

Anthony O’Connor our Chairman has led us through some trying times, Anne Keane has served diligently as Treasurer for five years and will continue to provide backup to our new treasurer, Gill Buckley has served five years and was instrumental in bringing our registration online, Gill will continue to help with the implementation of a card access system. James Aherne has served as our Culture and Irish language officer for five years. Belen Swords has served as our players representative and I wish her well with her studies. Trish Mc Grath has kept us all informed of matches and club activities on social media, Trish will step down from her PRO role after five years.

Darren Chambers as chairman led the club through Covid and will take up a role with Dublin County Board. 

I would like to thank a few other people who provided me with backup this year, as I found myself in court representing the club in July related to an incident which happened at a child’s birthday party in 2009, Cian Duffy provided support to me and the club and we secured a satisfactory outcome protecting the good name of this club.

Mairead Scanlon deserves special mention for her dealings with DLRCC and BCS dealing with hurling wall, all weather pitch issues as well as Capital Grant applications.

Rose Murphy and Peter Byrne deserve credit for running the clubhouse, Maurice O’Connell and his Bingo team run a very efficient weekly event with membership growing.

Eamonn Naughton has worked tirelessly on the Club Lotto and is striving to get everyone in the club to support it, I ask you all to sign up online to support our club.

 

Thank you.

Enda Nolan

Runai Naomh Eoin Baile an Tsaoir  November 2023

Proposer: Darren Chambers 

Seconder: Anne Keane

 

 

The Treasurer presented the audited accounts, copies were shared with the members and collected after her presentation.

Questions were taken from the floor;

Michael Hand asked how were team expenses and funds raised by teams accounted for;

The treasurer replied that funds raised for example the Golf Classic and team fundraising is controlled by the club executive and do not appear in these accounts, MH suggested the monies should be reflected in the club accounts as it is a potential weakness.

Jim Gillick asked that each sponsor be named in the accounts, The Chairman stated that he mentions the sponsors in his address, that there is sensitivity stating the monies provided by each sponsor but no problem naming the sponsors.

Jim Gillick asked why there was such a large jump in the monies being paid as coach expenses, The Chairman stated that we are now employing a Coaching Officer and 2 part time development officers.

Kieran Duffy asked a question about CRH’s Sponsorship and commended the club on raising €290k but stated we are missing infrastructure we don’t own a blade of grass so should continue to fund raise. We ae 1 of 6 out of the 16 senior clubs that does not own a pitch, we will need to up our game and start fundraising. Kieran stated there should not be a five month gap between the financial year end and the AGM, The Chairman commended Kieran on his call to arms on fundraising.

Kieran Brennan asked for an explanation of what happened to the employee he had in the club Mark Kenny from FAS stating he had been abused by the club, The Chairman addressed this by stating Mark Kenny had resigned from his position twice, he was not aware of any abuse directed to Mark Kenny, stating he(AOC) had received abuse from MK two weeks previously. AOC requested KB provide any instances of abuse received by MK and he would investigate them. AOC stated he had not received a complaint from MK but had received several abusive emails himself and if MK wanted to issue a complaint to do so by email.

JJ Duffy stated it was unfortunate that it took almost a year for this case to be investigated.

A question from Denis Ward questioned why the club accounts were not issued to members seven days in advance of the AGM, AOC stated that it was not standard practice for the club to issue the accounts.

Elaine Dolan stated that this is not common practice in clubs with commercial sensitivities.

Dermot Nutty quoted from the Club Constitution 

 

A chairde,

 

Next year will be our 43rd summer of games and surely there is much upon which to reflect and give thanks. I am honoured to address you this evening, following in the footsteps of so many great Gaels from Maurice through to Darren and all those names up on the board outside, and how privileged we are to have so many of them in the toom tonight.  I wish tonight to play particular tribute to every single man and woman, boy and girl from under 8 Go Games to Senior Adult who wore our colours in 2023 and every single player who has represented us with such distinction for the last 42 summers. We treasure you equally and know that you do not take lightly that honour that is bestowed on you to represent your people. You have earned our respect and gratitude.

I spoke to you last year about the three legs of the stool that is our club. Participation, high-performance, and being a good neighbour. I will update you now on the progress, slow at times, but definite nonetheless on those three fronts.

 

Participation is the core of what we do so I will begin with this. As chairperson I tried to adopt a very simple approach. The mission of the club is to facilitate as many people as possible, to play Gaelic Games, for as long as possible, as well as possible. That’s all there is. Everything else that comes across the radar of a club executive must be treated with caution as a potential distraction from that core goal. It is in participation that we have had our greatest success this year. We now have 3607 members of our club, with 2091 registered players spread across 165 teams. I invite you to remember this the next time you see a game on in the Park or one of our other pitches, that what you are seeing, all the preparation that goes into it, all the effort out in by players, mentors, parents etc is being replicated 165 times that weekend and every weekend. 

 

As a feat of administration alone this is astronomical and all undertaken by dedicated volunteers. The registration team, led by Gillian Buckley are the unsung heroes of the club and I pay particular tribute to Gill as she steps down from the club executive and am very sure and thankful that Kyra who has worked closely with her will maintain this excellent work. The county Coiste na nÓg report published last week should gladden the hearts of everyone in the room. At CCC1 level our football activity has increased by 183% since 2008, the 8th biggest increase in the county, of our peers with over 2000 members only St Jude’s had a bigger increase. In hurling, the story is even rosier with a 384% increase in activity, the 4th biggest increase in the county and among clubs with more than 2000 members by far the biggest increase. In figures provided last week by the camogie board, we are now the 6th biggest club in the county and closing in fast on Clontarf in 5th. While the LGFA figures are still awaited, they are likely to tell the same stories of exponential growth. None of this happens by accident, it happens because we make it happen. On this front I wish to pay thanks to our fantastic juvenile chairs Niamh Minogue Jones and Mick Óg Wren. It has been a joy to work with you both. Your commitment to the boys and girls of the area is remarkable and as club chair and more importantly a parent the underage section you and your predecessors have built and maintain is a safe and inclusive place of joy and fun that is the heartbeat of our community bringing young and old together. In particular seeing grandparents who built our club bringing small children to games gladdens all our hearts and to see family traits breaking through again. Up at the tree planting this year two little fellas were zooming around the place like dervishes. You didn’t need chatgpt or any artificial intelligence software to know you were looking at a couple of Gillicks.

 

Our vibrant underage section sends a message to us all that we need to prepare for what is coming down the tracks. Our pitches team led by the indefatigable Darren Hedden work miracles every day sourcing and maintaining land for those 165 teams. There is however no reason why the club will not continue to grow in numbers and unfortunately our footprint is barely big enough to maintain what we have. That footprint is under threat. We will soon lose Good Shepherd as this has been sold for private development. We no longer have access to Three Rock Rovers. The future of DLS may be uncertain, and most worryingly of all the community school have repeatedly indicated over the last 18 months that they wish to redefine the relationship and access the club enjoys to the BCS all weather facilities in a manner that may be disadvantageous to us. Regardless of how we feel about that, it is a fact and the reality is that this club executive and all of those executives to come after us have to deal with the world as it is today, rather than how we think or wish it should be, or how it has been in the past. 

 

We will continue to pursue the interests of our players and teams vigorously but difficult challenges lie ahead around how we are going to accommodate the army of players that we will endeavour to keep playing our games for as long as possible. Much work is underway. Our challenges are not unique and we punch above our weight, but playing space will be the biggest headache of the next decade. We need sharp elbows and creative thinking in a crowded space. Every patch of green in the parish is being looked at. I warn you tonight members, if you leave your Christmas tree outside your house for 10 minutes Darren Hedden will come along and try to line it and hang nets. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

 

A report commissioned by DCB and conducted by Whitebarn Consulting estimated the social value of Na Fianna GAA, a club almost identical in size and footprint to our own as having been 50 million euros over the period from 2017 to 2018. The report estimated that every one euro invested in the club yields a social return of fifteen euros. In this room last week I addressed a group of local politicians and hammered this point home to them. There will be a local election and in all likelihood a general election before we gather here again for our next AGM. My friends I plead with each and every one of you to ask anybody who asks you for their vote to ask them what their commitment to Ballinteer is by asking them what their commitment is to ensuring the children and young people of Ballinteer have somewhere to play our national sports. It is clear from our conversations with these representatives that some other sporting organisations are rarely shy to impress upon them the relative riches they perceive the GAA to have in terms of playing facilities compared to their own. While the club promotes and enjoys good relations with sporting organisations of all codes in the locality, if our club has a bigger pitch footprint than others perhaps it is because we are a single united organism, proud to be the only sports club in the locality to bear the name Ballinteer rather than one of multiple clubs of the same code in the parish. 

 

We are a club that keeps subscriptions very low, and never turns a child away or makes one take a trial and that is not afraid to inconvenience even it’s own flagship teams in order to do so, an inconvenience those teams in turn bear in good grace because they know the unique DNA of this club as it now weaves into it’s third generation that Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na ndaoine, we all live in the shadow of each other.

 

Equity matters to me. We pride ourselves on having a team for everyone, and being a place for everyone. No one person no matter how great their achievements or accomplishments, and we are blessed with so many wonderful sportspeople of all ages, is bigger than the club. Co-ordinated by our dynamic and innovative PRO Trish McGrath, the club made a huge impact this year with our IWD campaign based on a theme of Embracing Equity. An athlete from each one of our female teams from the nursery and allstars to mothers and others and all points in between was featured in a stunning set of profile photographs taken by our wonderful friend and colleague Paul Lundy. This year for the first time ever we flew the pride flag over our clubhouse in June. We accept all our members as they are and visibly want them to know that. Even Cork fellas. We take special pride in our Allstars mixed ability team and when the call went out this year for volunteer coaches for them we received way more applications than we could cope with. A special club, a special place, the most special of our teams. Thanks must go for all of this work to our foundation Equality, Diversion and Inclusion Officer Louise Hayes, a child of the club and a finer ambassador for it you will never find. Our nursery is leading the way in inclusion but there is still so much to do to make the club inclusive of all of Ballinteer. A look around the room tonight shows we do not have the diversity in the club that exists in the wider community, for a great many reasons It must be said, but it is most incumbent on us to address it. 

 

We all saw the dreadful scenes in this city this night last week. Our sports are in my opinion the greatest engine for social mixing in Irish life. I grew up playing with a few young men with a different skin tone and odd accents from Fiji in the South Pacific. They all went on to play for Cork and one of them became hurler of the year. We have a duty as a club and a wider association to reflect the Ireland we live in today.

 

I am pained by the fact that in spite of the best efforts of a great many people, I am not here tonight celebrating the construction of a games wall, and the last 12 months have been a time of great frustration in that regard. We value enormously our partnership with the council and park authorities but the Marlay Wall has been delayed and delayed and our young players cannot wait forever. It is with that in mind that I am delighted to inform you that hot off the presses this week the club will be commencing negotiations with Scoil Naithi around the construction of a games wall in that school, which has been such an integral part of the fabric of the club over the last 4 decades. There will be a road to travel yet but the first important step has been taken, and with good will and mutual respect and understanding there is no obstacle we can’t overcome. And we will continue to pressure the council into the installation of the Marlay Wall as well.

 

Investment in our infrastructure is something the club is firmly committed to, and the ring fencing of monies raised from club stewarding at the concerts emphasised this. Over the summer we installed LED lights on our All-Weather Pitch which are working very well and reducing the clubs carbon footprint and light pollution while providing an excellent illumination for games. The large All-Weather Pitch surface is a source of concern and is becoming a player safety issue. The number of soft tissue injuries sustained by players on the large AWP this year was alarming. Unfortunately the community school were unable at this time to allow us to apply for sports capital funding to relay the pitch. As our current agreement is a 30-year license rather than a lease (which we are halfway through) we were unable to proceed with our application without them. I call upon all members to continue to advocate within the community for us to be allowed to undertake this work which is of critical importance. 

Many of you will have noticed the wonderful improvements in the environment here in the clubhouse. The dressing rooms have been beautifully revamped, the toilets renovated, the gateway into the pitches has been improved and the railings and pathways now make for a much safer environment for the players, coaches and supporters who use the facility. The credit for this must go to Sarah Davis, my vice-chairperson and Sean Lane, vice-secretary who have worked tirelessly on this building over the last 12 months. 

 

There is still more to do and all help is most welcome. I must also pay tribute to our groundsman Derek Oman, who seems to work 24/7 on our pitches and facilities. I know this is greatly appreciated by our teams. Thank you Derek. Derek as you know is an accomplished veteran referee and without referees there are no games. Here I again want to thank all of our players and mentors. In the last 6 months there has not been one single incident of bad behaviour to a referee that has been notified to the club. Considering we are fielding 165 teams every week I am extremely proud of that. We have been quick to criticise this behaviour in the past, we should be just as quick to praise the improvement. However we could do with more referees to share the workload with Derek and his colleagues. We are very much on the naughty step with the county board for not providing enough referees. I would urge all members to consider training as a referee. It is a really good source of income and a vital role for our games. Not to mention a wonderful opportunity to broaden your vocabulary and see the true milk of human kindness as Elaine Dolan will attest to from the county CCCC.

 

The second leg of our BSJ stool is high performance in everything we do. It is crucial from the earliest possible age that our players are exposed to the very best coaching practices to ensure they develop as players and their potential maximised. The appointment of Paraic McDonald in the newly formed role of Director of Coaching and Player Development has revolutionised our offering in this regard and the exciting programme of coaching education events is the envy of clubs all over the country. I am delighted to inform the AGM that we have appointed two new coaches to work alongside Paraic this year. Jack Morris will come on board next week as part time schools coach. It is extremely difficult across the county to recruit GDOs and since Donal left us a few years ago it has been very difficult for us to get into the schools and the schools haven’t been shy about letting us know this and at one point nursery numbers were taking a hit. The schools are vital to us and I am absolutely delighted that we can support them with this. 

 

The second new coach, Eoin Moran has already started, and comes to us with a phenomenal CV including ports of call as diverse as Chelsea FC, Leinster rugby, the Lory Meaghar Cup winning Louth hurlers and the back to back leinster ladies football champions Kilmacud Crokes. It’s funny he has worked with Chelsea and Crokes as since the American billionaire Todd Boehly bought Chelsea both clubs now have approximately 3,000 players. Eoin will work with our four flagship teams as part of a top down approach to Strength and Conditioning, and will work with Paraic and our underage coaches to build a bottom up strategy too. As many of you have been kind enough to point out, my own shape has changed over the last year and if any of you want to lose a load of weight quickly just run a club. I’m getting out now while I still have my hair. 

 

I think it is widely accepted that the mini All-irelands this year were the best we have ever run. Paraic took them from being a good event to a great one. The weather helped, but the colour and the atmosphere this year was truly memorable. He will do the same with our standards of player and coach development on the field if we continue back him. It is with that in mind that I want to tell you about our next big project and that is the redevelopment of the Aras na nÓg building on Stonemason’s Way into a Coach and Player development centre. This building is so much more than a set of dressing rooms. It is the oldest standing expression of our identity as a club, a monument to what can be achieved by co-operation, unity of purpose and sheer graft. In the modern era though, four dressing rooms are no longer necessary, this fine facility in the heart of Ballinteer is hardly used. What our teams are crying out for is a space to meet and prepare for the sporting challenges they face and recover from hard battles on the field. It will consist of a recovery room with ice baths, a classroom environment kitted out with state of the art AV equipment for video analysis and tactical work, and two dressing rooms shall remain. 

 

It will also serve as the hub for our coach education programme as we churn out the mentors who will lead our players to be the best sporting versions of themselves that they can be. I am enormously proud of the function our clubhouse serves in the community for various socially and culturally aligned groups and enterprises, but this will be a place purely for players and coaches, honouring the legacy of those who built it all those years ago. It has been designed for players, by players and I pay tribute to players like Orlagh Nolan, Aoife Kelly, Belen Swords and Eoin Fitzpatrick who helped us enormously with this and other strategic projects this year. Our players are the best of us, the best of our community. It has been a joy to serve you. It seems a good point now to point out this year that we had an unprecedented 8 BSJ players on senior Dublin panels for championship 2023. Orlagh Nolan quarterbacked a superb Dublin ladies team to another all-Ireland picking up her second allstar in the process. Everyone knows this of course. What many people won’t know is that Orlagh actually had to be asked by the security guards to leave the Croke Park pitch after the final. She was one of a small number of players who came out with the cup to meet the supporters. Orlagh being Orlagh she was not leaving until every child had whatever autographs and photos they needed from her. Even in her moment of greatest triumph her thoughts were of service and selflessness. She is quite simply the greatest athlete we have produced in our club’s history and she is nowhere near finished yet. 

 

She was joined this year on the panel by Grace Dent who will carry the legacy passed onto Orlagh from Angie McNally and I’m sure will ensure the BSJ colours will fly high on the highest stage of ladies football. We took almost 500 people to the ladies final this year and the passion and colour of our supporters on that glorious day was something I will never forget.

Two weeks previously we took another trip to Dublin 3 to see Ben Millist and Liam Smith climb the steps of the Hogan Stand and lift the Sam Maguire. The way the boys conducted themselves all season, especially on the day of the final was exemplary. They were coaching kids at the cul camp all week before playing their part in one of the jewels in the crown of the Irish sporting calendar. Their achievements were only matched by Eddie Byrne’s in getting us the most amount of tickets we ever had. I don’t know how he manages it but Eddie if you have any in with Taylor Swift I have a little girl at home who’d love to meet you. It is surely only a matter of time before Ben and Liam, along with Luke and Jack who also spent the first part of the year in with the boys in blue graduate to the starting 15 for Dublin. We all had lumps in our throats seeing them raise Sam and I’d make a safe bet it won’t be the last time either. In addition we had four representatives on the Dublin senior camogie panel this year. 

 

Grace and Louise O’Shea became the third set of twins since Ann and Angela Downey and the Bolgers of Wexford to both score in a Leinster camogie final this year and the first set of twins in any provincial final full-stop since Ben and Jerry O’Connor of Cork (no relation) in 2006. Emily Adderley and Amy Burke also made the panel. In hurling, Glenn Whelan and Iain O hEithir were on the scoresheet for the Dubs in the preseason hurling competitions. They will both be back.

 

Managing the finances responsibly of a club like Ballinteer St Johns is an enormously challenging one. Anne Keane has carried out this at times thankless task with efficiency and good humour for the last 4 years now. I can’t thank Anne enough for everything she has done. The professionalism of the accounts that are submitted to this meeting every year is beyond reproach and the patience she shows is exemplary. Nobody in this club is more worthy of people’s respect and admiration than she is and the health of our financial position is testament to her efforts. You will see from the accounts that by far the biggest expense and increase in spending this year is in the area of preparing teams for games. I make no apologies for this. This is why the club exists. The spending on coaching, playing and training and recovery facilities will make us best in class. 

 

The money we do raise from sponsors, donors and subscriptions needs to be very carefully stewarded. It is completely unacceptable to me to see large amounts of money being spent on alcohol as has been the case in the past and to that end we have introduced new team finance arrangements. While nobody objects to the odd bit of team bonding it sets a terrible example to players coming into adult teams to see drinking cultures embedded where three or four drink vouchers are given out after regular matches. I urge you as a parent and as a medical doctor to not allow the club to backslide to those days. In fact, there are some home truths we need to face up to as a club about our relationship with alcohol which is not always a happy one. And if we think alcohol is the only substance being abused in the clubhouse we are sorely mistaken. It is rare for a month to go by without one or two examples of grown men misbehaving in the bar. I must admit this is a singular annoyance for me. As you will see the bar is extremely well run and for a bar with no food offering to be able to operate as well as it does while keeping the lowest prices in the area is testament to that. Sarah White and Paul Nolan are doing a tremendous job and the extended opening hours this year have been great to see. 

 

I wish to point out to you that the staff of the bar are our players, our neighbours and our children. To me it is totally unacceptable that grown men, middle aged men (and it usually is men) seem to think that in our own club bar they have carte blanche to behave in a manner that would have them barred from any other pub in the city. Please respect the staff. I want to thank Sarah and her team in the bar for their professionalism and hard work.

 

Our club costs about €1100 a day to run. This figure is likely to increase again this year with inflation, insurance costs and energy prices ongoing war in Europe and instability in the middle east. Each night when I turn on the news and see the horrors in Gaza I remember the young children from there that visited us in the club a few years ago and hope they are safe tonight. This does though lead us to the vexed issue of fundraising. It is my opinion that we leave funds behind us on this front and that more should be done. We could start by getting behind Eamon Naughton and the lotto. We now rarely do set piece fundraisers such as race days and maximising these opportunities should be a priority for the club. Surely after a hard winter the parish deserves to see Darren Hedden doing strictly come dancing. Enda Nolan doing a lip sync battle dressed as Beyonce. The club relies hugely on the wonderful community effort in fundraising around community stewarding for the Marlay Park concerts. Here I wish to thank the small but dedicated group of people who enable this. Special thanks to Darren Chambers and Niall Joye, Joe with his IT skills and above all else to the one and only Mary Devereux. I saw an item on the six one news last year about a GAA club inking a big sponsorship deal with a private company, introduced by Marty Morrissey with hype and balloons and streamers. Here at BSJ we don’t need that because we can make more through Mary Devereux just getting on with it with her laptop and a hundred hi viz jackets. Thanks to each and every one of the volunteers who came out to help with community stewarding over the six nights of the Marlay Park concerts this year.7 concerts this year was unprecedented and I am glad to say there won’t be 7 next year, there will be 8. No pressure. 

 

The valuable connections and networks established by this has opened up other revenue streams via ticket scanning and bag checking for the Marlay Park and other concerts. I pay special tribute to Brian Sutton for this. As chair I ringfenced those funds for funding team expenses, strength and conditioning training and the Coach and Player Development Centre at Aras na nÓg. We pursue a policy of not having a single headline sponsor for the club in order to give individual teams back the control to find jersey sponsors. It has been disappointing this year to encounter situations where individual teams have been reluctant to lodge funds raised with the Treasury team. The Croke park document of October 2022 could not have been clearer that all funds raised on behalf of a club are the sole responsibility of the Executive Officers of that club. The club for it’s part retains a small 10% of funds raised, far less than other comparable clubs to contribute towards the coaching and training facilities that every team uses and disperses 90% back to the team that raised the funds. It is not a case of the club keeping 10%, it is the club giving 90%. 

 

Sadly, we lost some of our members during the year, and as we reflect on the year past in particular, we remember Francie Maguire, Michael Cleary, Sheila Byrne and her husband Liam, parents of Eddie, and Evelyn Byrne we thank them and their families for their contribution. While these are sad occasions in our clubhouse they are also among the most heartwarming at times with friends and relatives reminiscing across generations about what matters to us and the role the club plays in it. I am proud that the club is a hub for our community in good times and bad. May they all rest in peace.      

 

No AGM could be complete without a long list of thank-you to those club members that go above and beyond. Before I begin this, I wish to thank everyone who plays a role in keeping our club running daily. 

·                                         The Club Executive have the often-thankless task of managing the day to day running of the club. I wish to thank each and every person I have served with this year.  My sincere thanks to each of them for their many & varied contributions. 

·                                         Our children’s officer Cliodhna Purdue has handled situations of enormous sensitivity with professionalism and compassion. She is a massive asset to the club and the work that goes on in child protection is stunning.

·                                         To Rose and Derek who with Peter, Sean, Adam and Ray keep our clubhouse and grounds in such great shape. Kieran Brennan retired over the summer. Congratulations and well-done Kieran.    

·                                         To all our mentors, coaches, co-ordinators, referees and FLO’s, thank-you really doesn’t cover it this year – your work was incredible.  I am in awe of the level of effort put in to keep our children playing, and our adults competing.  Well done to each one of you.  

·                                         Eamon Naughton does a superb job with the Lotto, week in and week out as do Maurice O’Connell and the bingo team. Sincere thanks to each and every one of you.

·                                         To all our county board delegates who give up so much time to represent the club at important county board committees. In particular Elaine Dolan who this year was vice-chairperson of the Dublin CCC.  

·                                         Our club shop has done very well this year and is one of the success stories of the last few years. Led by Barbara Chambers with Anne Keane, Roisin and Irene they have set fashion trends from Barton Road to Marlay Grange this year. Thanks folks.   

·                                         To our senior camogie manager Karl O’Keeffe who all stepped away after two years of massive highs with the team. 

 

•      To Brian O’Rourke – Your acumen as a clinician and good humour is a huge asset to our teams.  

•      To Ronan Kelly for his professional grade video work.

To all our sponsors, old and new. This year we welcomed aboard Meagher’s Pharmacy, Cahill’s Centra, Capital Credit Union and Nissan Ireland along our usual old reliables such as Lisney SIR and so many others. We are truly grateful to each and every one of you. John Gillick and AIG in recent years have been massive supporters and we owe John a massive depth of gratitude for his support and generosity. I am very pleased he will be joining the executive bringing his vast skill and experience to the table.

I have often felt that if someone came in from outside and tried to identify the next club to make a breakthrough at senior 1 level in the county, then looking at the profile, demographics and infrastructure it would not take them long to identify our club as the one most likely to do so, although at times that difficult breakthrough feels like a long way off. In spite of continued massive effort from players and coaches alike, there was disappointment on the field of play this year with none of the four teams progressed to knockout stages this year and we were successful in just 4 of our 13 championship games. I do not believe for one second that the effort, hard work, dedication and skills of our players and coaches are in any way inferior to our competitors, but more that we as an organisation need to redouble our efforts to help our elite athletes achieve their unlimited potential on the field of play. We need to set these teams up to win. Give them the platform their talent and hard work deserves. Send them into the biggest games expecting rather than hoping to win. The plans I have outlined to you this evening around improving our coaching offering across the board, and the construction of a dedicated player-led centre for development will ensure our athletes have the best chance possible to succeed.

 

In spite of this, all four codes gave us great moments this year. Our senior camogie team led by Karl O’Keeffe maintained their hard won senior status with a stirring home victory over Castleknock in championship, and enjoyed a four match winning run in the senior 1 league en route to a very respectable 5th place finish. Our minor camogie team led by Paraic O hEithir, Neil Leslie and Colm O’Callaghan strolled to a second successive county championship and we know that conveyor belt of talent will stand us in good stead in years to come.

 

Our men’s senior football team narrowly missed out the knockout stages of the senior 1 Championship. A thrilling win against TSS was followed up by two narrow defeats to recent champions Ballyboden and Ballymun. The league campaign was very encouraging too and perhaps of most satisfaction was the fact that led by new manager Kevin Murphy, assisted by Chris Grady, Kevin Davis and Colm Duffy the team went the full year unbeaten at home in Fortress Marlay. There is so much to be excited about in this team. Congratulations also to Collie O’Donnell’s inters who secured promotion. 

 

Our senior hurling team led by Emmet Carroll had an excellent league run before coming out the wrong side of a few close calls in the championship with a team comprised of scintillating young talent and grizzled veterans. There is more to come from them and we look forward to watching their development. The juniors had a great run to a county final under Seamus Lane’s watch. Underage hurling at CCC2 level has been extremely competitive and our minor men’s hurlers under the watchful eye of Sean Lane had a fantastic run before coming up short in an away QF against an extremely strong Lucan team that cruised to the championship.

 

Ladies football blooded a vast array of young talent and showed flashes in each of their championship games of what could lie ahead. While results went against us for free-scoring attacking entertaining football this team were a joy to watch. Led by Michael Ryan and with a super minor team moulded by Liam O’Baoghaill supplying reinforcements it’s no exaggeration to say this is the team to watch in the coming years. 

Finally, before signing off I just wanted to mention a few personal thanks.  

I have been blessed to Sarah Davis as my vice chair. It is my passionate belief that she should be taking over the baton as chair tonight. Her work on the clubhouse committee alone was fantastic. She is a woman who sees the good in everyone and from the first day she came down with her sons had absolutely no agenda other than helping the club and it’s players to grow. She should have made history tonight as the first woman to chair the club, however she felt she was put in a position where she could not do this. I know she will continue to serve the underage section with distinction.

 

One of the biggest challenges that gaelic sports will face in the coming years will be the long-awaited integration of the GAA, LGFA and CA. I have tried in my time on the executive to promote equity. I have not achieved all I set out to and I am not satisfied that this is a club where for all the progress we have made, that women feel as safe, welcome and comfortable in this building as men. There is a tolerance of attitudes and comments that one could kindly say belong to another era but in reality were the hallmark of the eejit even then too. We need to go beyond eye-rolling and start to loudly and visibly call out misogyny whenever and wherever we see it. What we permit, we promote.

 

My predecessor Darren Chambers has become a friend, mentor and wise counsel. What he has continued to do for the club is unbelievable. It’s no exaggeration to say he keeps the lights on. Darren has recently been appointed club development officer of DCB. He will be a huge appointment in the promotion and propagation of Gaelic Games across the county. What he did in the bar alone this year is more than 99% of GAA members around the country, but it is only a small part of his contribution. He is a great man that it has been my pleasure to get to know along with his delightful family. If I may make special mention of his son Finan. Finan on one Saturday this year trained the under 13s in the morning, played for the senior footballers in the afternoon and when the bar was short staffed left his home at 10 that night to go and help out. You often hear fellas described as “his father’s son” and in this case that is definitely true.

Tá tabhacht faoi leith ag baint leis an Ghaeilge sa chlub seo, agus fe stiuir James o hEachathairn ta an teanga curtha chun cinn go mormhor sa chlub le bliainta anuas anois. Bhain an chlub amach gradam McNamee anuraidh agus taim fior bhroidiuil as ucht sin. Taim bhuioch go mbeidh Fiona O’Fiaich ag leanuint ar aghaidh leis an dea oibre seo.

Enda Nolan was so much more than a secretary. Nobody does more for the club. He is truly a remarkable man who would do anything for anyone in the club. Thanks Enda, again I’m proud to call you a colleague and a friend. When a pitch needs lining, a grant needs to be applied for, a broken part fixed or even on one memorable occasion a fire needs to be extinguished, Enda was there with good humour and his sleeves rolled up. Regrettably he found himself on the end of the treatment he outlined in his address throughout the year. I saw it close up and it was dark. Those who did this, those who orchestrated it, and perpetrated it should reflect on their actions and move on together and give this man your most earnest support because as a volunteer he is simply one of a kind. 

I would like to thank all our members for their support, guidance, friendship, and advice over the years

I would give specific mention here to Colm O’Callaghan, Karl O’Keeffe, Neil Leslie, Ken Aherne, Dermot Nutty, Lorna Doran, Niamh Sweeney, Ken Sheehan, Seamus Lane, Brian Sutton, Chris Grady, Johnny Meaghar, Dr. Mary Burke, Dr. Eric Roche, Paul Leahy, Fiona O’Fiaich, Tom Hayes, Peter Leonard, Stephen O’Mahony, Mairead Scanlon and so many more.   

I wish to give particular thanks to Paraic McDonald and Sean Lane, two of the greatest gaels I know who were so generous with their time whenever I sought advice or opinion from them on matters on and off the field. People for whom the games and the players are the things that matter.   

 

Finally, and most importantly I want to say a massive thanks to my family to my wife Deirdre. I came here because of you, to the place you grew up in and where you always felt happy and safe. Some of what you and your family had to witness and hear said this year about me in the place made you not feel like that and for that I am sorry. I did the job because I believe in the club and what it does as a force for good in our community and I do now more than ever. This club at it’s best turns our home place from a standard suburb into a vibrant village and it’s best days are ahead. To my children Donnacha and Elodie of the under 10 boys and girls. You wear these colours every weekend with pride. I love all our players but you two are my favourite players, possibly even more than Jack Lundy and Amy Burke. If Paul or Alan ever get bored with those two I’ll adopt them. No matter what I do I’ll never have that honour of pulling on the tangerine and black but I can say I did the next best thing. We talk a lot on car journeys to matches about winning counties and All Ireland club championships together when you’re older and they’re my happiest sporting moments. The work goes on, the cause endures and those dreams of yours and mine will never die. 

It has become impossible for me to combine my duties as club chair with my work commitments. I was warned about that and I should have listened. It is not my intention to let anyone down and this has been an amazing honour but I think part of leadership is knowing when it's time to move on and allow someone better placed to have a go. That is an underrated attribute. I made several mistakes in my time and for that I am sorry. I tried my best to lead the club in line with it’s values and I thank you for the patience and forebearance you afforded me when I did get it wrong and fell short. I hope I was quick to apologise. I also wish to thank those members who showed me kindness and goodwill during my time as Chairperson. I go back to being a supporter and coach with renewed enthusiasm and heart. BSJ Abu.

 

Kieran Duffy spoke stating it was unfortunate that nominations couldn’t be completed tonight and stated when he was involved the accounts would not have been sent out to members but were discussed at the AGM,

Kieran also stated there are two breaches to the constitution stating the notifications had not gone out in line with the Constitution, the Secretary corrected him stating posters had been placed in the clubhouse , and had gone out on social media fourteen days in advance in compliance with the constitution.

 

Ken Sheehan asked were the new Nominations at the reconvened AGM likely to reflect the diversity and male / female numbers we had in the club, the Chairman stated he hoped so and would do what he could to encourage more female members to take up a role on the executive.

 

The Chairman stated we had the support of Dublin County Board and the GAA to take a break a break and 

Elaine Dolan spoke about difficulties – John Costelloe supported her throught the clubs difficulties and thanked Kieran Brennan and John Gillick for their efforts and apologised to Sarah Davis for feeling she was not able to stand as Chairperson and asked that she reconsider. Elaine urged younger people to get involved.

 

Kieran Duffy spoke stating he had withdrawn his nomination and hoped Sarah could reconsider and he hoped we as a club could get the issues resolved.

 

 

The Chairman explained at the opening of the meeting that there would be a change in the running order of the meeting stating “we unfortunately, and due to some circumstances that have risen are not in a position to elect a new chairperson of the club tonight.” 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In accordance with Club Constitution Executive Rule 7.2 the following motion is proposed for the consideration at AGM.

A position of Assistant Treasurer be added to the Executive Committee with immediate effect.

Proposer: Michael Hand

Seconder: Denis Ward

The Chairman asked could the term be edited to “A position of Assistant Treasurer be added to the Executive Committee as soon as possible”

Michael Hand spoke on the Motion mentioning governance and the risk to sponsors, Michael also mentioned the dangers of changing the use of the Aras and loosing changing rooms.

Elaine Dolan spoke about the structures of all county boards which were discussed at a recent conference and a Finance Committee has been recommended to all clubs, which takes the pressure off all individual treasurers.

Frank Clabby spoke abut historically the club had an assistant treasurer and is there a need for the motion, The Chairman stated it’s a good motion and a Finance Committee is a good idea,

Michael Hand stated a Finance Committee is a good idea when clubs are seeking capital grants and the work load would be too much for one person.

The Motion was rephrased as “A Finance Committee be set up to assist the treasurer” a show of hands was called for. 

The Motion was carried.

The Chairman spoke to address several issues raised by Michael Hand regarding the Aras, stating it was in a state of disrepair, the chairman and secretary had cleared two skips of rubbish out of the Aras. The teams using the pitches don’t get full use of the dressing rooms as the younger groups arrive kitted out. He states the need comes from the need for meeting space with dancing bingo and a lot of other revenue creating events taking place in the club on a daily basis, meeting space is a requirement. Player meetings video analysis, recovery area needed. The difficulty is with the deeds of the building that we don’t change the use of the building, the council have issued a letter of consent. A strategic review committee has been active in preparing drawings.

 

JJ Duffy spoke about the history of the Aras and how it was built for juveniles. It’s his joy to see the nursery used the pitches. He agrees the guttering is in poor repair. Drawings have been prepared for the clubhouse extension has this been shelved.

The chairman said there are no plans to extend the clubhouse at this moment, and meeting space for coach training is necessary.

 

Dermot Quinn stated a facility is needed for coach training in the evenings, the children can use it at weekends and during the summer, he also mentioned that to get sports grants to we need to have 40% female participation and would Sarah Davis reconsider.

 

The Chairman stated it’s a warning to us to encourage female participation and the club had applied for four capital grants the big one being the AWP at BCS, but the school were showing some resistance to it at this time.

The chairman stated we had tried to remove the graffiti from the Aras and extending it would be difficult.

David Deveraux stated that the players need a facility as a centre of excellence for minors and underage teams, we want to beat the top of our game, why not improve it.

 

Elaine Dolan asked Michael Hand to speak about the importance of the Spawell Development,

Michael stated he sits on a committee that developed the Cluster facility at The Spawell, the land has been rezoned and a planning application has been submitted on 10th November. Three new pitches to be built , with a few issues surrounding Bats, there are indoor facilities and standing room for one thousand people, there is also another facility planned for Huntstown, it would be a great opportunity for the club.

We fought to get a full sized awp in marlay and we should use it more.

Derek Oman spoke about the Aras and the lack of facilities at Loreto, the awp we need to look after our players. I want to see athletes we could lose all facilities. 

Derek we need to maintain our facilities stating we need to cut the grass.

We should buy a ride on mower.

The Chairman stated we have upgraded the clubhouse with toilets and ramps, an application for a ride on mower has been submitted.

The Chairman requested we need more volunteers to take on roles in the club from maintenance, linemarking pitches.

 

Several members raised the issue of an incident that occurred in the clubhouse earlier in the year.

 

The Chairman adjourned the meeting and confirmed he would make no decisions within the next six weeks when the AGM would reconvene.

 

 

(f) Election of Officers and Members of the Executive Committee.

A second motion was received by the Secretary, as well as four recommendations;

Additional full members to serve on executive in accordance with club constitution executive committee rule 7.2

Proposed by: Tony Gillick       Seconded by: Eamonn Hession

Proposed by: Denis Ward      Seconded by: Brian Monahan 

This Motion was carried by show of hands

Can a fund be set up to fund the upgrade of clubhouse equipment and facilities. 

Proposed by: Sarah Davis

Seconded by: Enda Nolan

Pitch 3 is 130m long x 90mwide and has juvenile goalposts, I recommend we upgrade the goalposts to full size enabling CCC2 matches to be played on it. 

Proposed by: Eoin Walsh 

Seconded by: Paul Mc Donnell

Can the club take Supplementary control of the grass cutting in Marlay, Loreto & Broadford and remove the grass cuttings before matches.

Proposed by: Tony Dillon

Seconded by: William Lawless

That club undertake to develop new Strategic plan for the 2024 -2029 with in the Calendar year 2024 that adherences to GAA principles and Culture.

The plan incorporates:

1.         Coaching and Games Development.

2.         Finance and Fundraising

3.         Facilities and Development

4.         Culture and Communication

Proposed : Conor Dolan.

Seconded : Peadar O Shea.