Best of luck Liam O’Neill

[laoislad]

Laois man Liam O'Neill's position as the president-elect of the GAA was confirmed this evening as the association's annual congress got underway in Mullingar. O'Neill was put forward uncontested after all of the other candidates pulled out of the presidential race.

The formal withdrawal of Leinster chair Sheamus Howlin followed a similar move by Ulster chair Tom Daly and GAA management committee member Con Hogan, from Tipperary leaving O'Neill as the only candidate for the GAA's top job. He will succeed Christy Cooney when his three-year term begins next April.

The Laois man, a school teacher from Trumera in Laois, will become the second Leinster president in three terms, after Nickey Brennan who served in 2006-09, and will be just the second Laois person to hold the office.

In keeping with modern tradition, the new president-elect lost the previous election in 2008, but attracted 112 votes in the process. In the meantime, he has been busy as chair of the Coaching and Games Development Committee.

He was also the driver of two contentious reform projects, the disciplinary proposals that were backed at the 2009 congress, but not by the required, weighted majority and the Go Games initiative for developing juvenile participation in games, which was approved last year.

"I said the day before the election in Sligo that I didn't like elections and wished we'd a better way of selecting a leader," he told a press conference yesterday evening. "I didn't think when I made that statement that the GAA would take it so much to heart that they would elect me unopposed the next time. If all of my requests in the future are met with the same positivity I'll be a very happy president."

[Shamrock Shore]

Wish him well. Haven't met him personally but I am sure he'll be a good representative of all of us.

I trust Laois people. Wouldn't want a dodgy electrician wiring your house, would you?

[laoislad]

I trust Laois people.

That's your first mistake.

[Aaron Boone]

Good luck Liam, your term should be longer btw.
It only seems like yersterday when Christy/Nickey/Sean K assumed the mantle.

[laoisgaa]

That was one of my best days ever as a Laoisman - proud to call Liam a friend, a colleague and a gentleman - he will do great work for the GAA - a man very much with the grassroots at heart - one of the things he said in the press conference tonight when I asked him was how he will aim to get rid of the perceived chasm between the GAA member at grassroots level and those in Croke Park - if he achieves to break that barrier and nothing else during his presidency it will have been a successful one.

He won't cost a fraction of what Christy did either!

Here is Liam's full address to Congress tonight:

A Uachtaráin. Ard Stiúrthoir, Iar Uachtaráin, Muintir Uí Néill, Muintir Thromaire, is a dhaoine uaisle...

Is cúis áthais agus onora domsa bheith roghnaithe anseo anocht mar uachtarán Tofa chumann Luthchleas Gael. Tuigim go rí mhaith céard tá i ndán dom sna ceithre bliana atá romham agus táim ag súil go mór leis na dushláin ar fad a bheidh le sárú agus mé sa phost deonach is deise ar domhain

Táim thar a bheith buíoch dóibh siúd a chabhraigh liom ar an aistear fada ó Thromaire go Páirc an Chrochaigh agus don pointe seo I mo shaol

A chairde normally this president elect speech is delivered in an emotionally charged setting – often by a person who reaches into his pocket for one of two prepared speeches in the hope that he has pulled out the correct one but thankfully tonight you and indeed I have been spared that and I am delighted to accept your unanimous approval as president Elect of the Association I have served for the past 36 years. Not many people who have stood where I am now have been as confident that the Association would listen carefully to his requests but I am happy to remind you that on the day of my previous attempt to be elected

to this position a National newspaper carried a quote from me. That quote expressed my dislike of elections. I said that I wished we could find a better way of electing a President. I honestly didn't expect that you would go the route of dispensing with a vote in favour of a Single "Unity" candidate but Míle Buiochas for doing just that. If every request I make is met as positively I will indeed be a happy man.

On a serious note I do wish to acknowledge that three other fine candidates were nominated to contest this election with me and tonight I wish to take this opportunity to wish Con Hogan, Tom Daly and Seamus Howlin all the best in whatever route their personal or their gaa lives might take them.

I want to thank my club Trumera and my county Laois for nominating me for this position. It is a source of great pride to us in Trumera that I was formally proposed by the Laois Cathaoirleach who is also a Trumera man.

I don't intend to nor would it be right to deal with policy matters here tonight. Whats important to me is my family my club My school and my community and I

want to share with you how these impact on me in my personal life and my GAA life.

The family is where it all begins and ends for us all and I would like to acknowledge the part my families have played in bringing me to this point tonight.

My wife Áine is probably the best known partner of a GAAPresidential Candidate. I have been involved in GAA administration for 36 six years and Áine and I go back 37 years. We met in first year in UCD and she has been with me in every game I played and every administrative involvement I have had in this organisation starting with being Secretary of UCD hurling club. She brings her own unique perspective to our games and it took her son Ciarán a long time to get her to understand that Mid-Field in most people's view was across the field. Aine always saw it as down the centre. Being a "Down the centre" type of man myself I knew where she was coming from.

As I have mentioned our son Ciarán is a hurler. Caoimhe is still a camogie player and Clíodhna very early in life opted for the role of "Hurler on the ditch" or Supporter as she might view it. The support of all four has been central to all I have done in my adult life

and I can never thank them enough for their inspiration and love.

I was raised in a family of twelve. I grew up with 7 sisters and four brothers. The three siblings above me and below me were girls and that probably explains why I find ease in the company of females. I never got a word in edgeways as a child. That is not entirely the fault of the girls however. At dinner time when all 14 were together it was difficult to get your views heard as you can imagine ---Most County managements are smaller than that--- If you wanted to make a contribution it had to be brief and relevant and that might go to explain the brevity and directness of my verbal contributions.

I owe my love of our Cluichí Náisiúnta and Ár dteanga Náisiúnta to my late father Liam Ó Néill whose love of both and whose love of History and poetry and stories greatly enriched all our lives.

My dad was narrowly beaten for Chairmanship of the Leinster Council in 1948 and would have been very pleased by events here tonight.

He was an accomplished hurler and gave his sons great support in our modest hurling careers.

All five boys in our family played for Knockbeg College and because it was a relatively small school we couldn't always be sure of success in our games. What we could be sure of however was that at some stage in our games we could look to the sideline and know that the man wearing the hat and smoking the pipe had come to support us. Somehow when he was there results never mattered.

My mother thankfully is still with us and central to all we do as she looks forward to her 89th birthday later this year. She is still as bright and vibrant as ever and takes a great interest in all that her children do. She follows GAA business only because of my involvement but she knows what makes people tick and her advice has often guided me in the right direction. She would love to be here but normally she would be on her way to bed at this time so sensibly she is at home in Trumera tonight. She watched the proceedings in Sligo on the web and is listening to this via a mobile phone connection.

I get great support from my brothers and sisters and indeed from my nephews and nieces. I'm delighted that so many of my extended family are with me here

tonight as they were indeed in Sligo on a more difficult day.

I am as proud of them as they are of me

My club Trumera has always been a very central part of my adult life. I was 15 when it was formed and I am delighted that so many of the members have come along here tonight to celebrate with me as have some friends from neighbouring clubs. Thank you all for your loyalty and support. Like in so many small communities I was reared with, and by my community. We are based in a small townsland with 50 houses and a population of less than 150 people. Almost all of the males have at one time or another played for Trumera. We have to make teams from players other clubs would waste. One year with only 35 players at our disposal we fielded three teams at Intermediate and junior C level in Hurling and at Junior C Football team. We won the intermediate and junior football competitions. In that same year I had to stand in goal for the second team just two weeks after a hernia operation. I have never attended a second team game since.

I hope you can now see why I have an affinity with the smaller units in our Association and understand their unique challenges.

Few people know where Trumera is but any of you who have taken a train journey to the south have passed by us. Our Hurling Field is visible from the train as indeed it is from the new motorway. It is a source of amusement to many of us that motorists have to pay to travel through our townsland. Those going south enter Trumera via the Toll Bridge and exit it when they pass the GAA grounds. The toll bridge is situated in a place where pheasant and woodcock sought refuge from gunmen in the past.

Our Primary School Gaelscoil Thromaire is central to all that matters in my life and in the lives of the community of Trumera. My mother started there in the late 1920s. The Aunt who reared her started in Tromaire in 1911 and retired in 1955. My father taught there from 1941 to 1981 and I have been there since 1981. Three of us have taught there for 100 years. My mother was taught by her Aunt. I was taught by my father. I was fortunate enough to teach my children and now it's my privilege to teach my nephew and niece. The children have enjoyed the media interest

over the last two weeks and have learned much about how the media work.

I mention this to indicate the importance of my school and my community to me.

I have lived my adult life "Idir Dhá Shaol" between two worlds and indeed between two lives. In the GAA world I have been seen as a Teacher whilst amongst teachers I have been seen as a GAA man. I am in GAA administration 36 years and a primary teacher for 34 years. Tonight is a big night for me personally because it is the night I firmly and willingly step over to my GAA side.

I know that I will retain the support of my community in the years ahead. I come from a strong and united family, I was brought up in a wonderful community. I'm fortunate to work in a building that houses so many intimate family memories. I come from a place I love and would be loathe to leave. Each of these has given me a quiet inner confidence which I hope to bring with me to the leadership of Cumann Lúthchleas Gael. I salute all who have gone before me and helped me on my way. Included in that group are, the people of Trumera and

the people of Laois, Michael Delaney Michael Reynolds and all my friends in The Leinster Council and the many personal friends who have backed me in good times and in the not so good times.

I wish Christy Cooney well as he faces his final year as president. I look forward to working alongside Paraic Duffy and his wonderful team in Croke Park.

Some people have expressed the view that it might be bad for me or for the Association that I have been elected unopposed. (I do think myself that the word "unanimously" has a better ring to it than has the word unopposed.) If the role I'm taking on was viewed by me as a right to govern then the matter of a mandate might be relevant. I view this role as a role of service to a wonderful Association. Service needs no mandate and I will be pleased to serve you all happy in the knowledge that I have your support.

We are facing into interesting times. I hope we can remain strong in our support of the values we hold dear. I spent some time yesterday with representatives of our GAA units from around the world and it was great to hear the term "The Global GAA" being coined. In a time when others speak of doom and gloom it was refreshing to hear people talk confidently of development and expansion.

I want to help to facilitate that optimism. At times lately we have begun to take things too seriously at the expense of the fun side of being involved in the GAA. I want to do the important things well but I want people to enjoy being part of our wonderful organisation.

I know some of you are thinking that its odd that a person with a reputation for seriousness should be saying this but I put it to you that if a person who loathes elections could be elected without an election then it's not beyond the bounds that a former serious person could help put a smile on the faces of others.

I thank you for your support. I intend to enjoy serving you all as Uachtarán Tofa and ultimately as Uachtarán.

[Rossfan]

Sat beside him at a game once and had a good chat with him.
He seemed a sensible down to earth sort of chap.
Mind you he moved away a bit when my mate starting calling the ref a "f***in w**ker" 

Best of luck to him as Uachtarán CLCG.

[laoisgaa]

And the GAA Congress is in Laois next year too - just five miles from my house happy days

[SLIGONIAN]

I wish him well but will judge him on his actions rather than his words. I thought cooney was a disaster and i didnt like kelly either so hopefully he'll do better, but tbh i wont be holding my breath on that either.

[Gaffer]

I wish him well but will judge him on his actions rather than his words. I thought cooney was a disaster and i didnt like kelly either so hopefully he'll do better, but tbh i wont be holding my breath on that either.

I liked Kelly alright.  He handed us 2 All Irelands.

[orangeman]

Does it really matter who the president is ? All they do is go round the ocuntry, come out with the same old soundbites, the only difference is the accent. Policy has already been decided by others and the corporate guys who run GAA Limited are the real power holders.

But good luck to him anyway.

[laoisgaa]

The way I know Liam there will be no soundbites - he is a man who will mean business as President. Don't forget we have 12 months of the most expensive GAA President ever to endure first

[laoisgaa]

Nickey and Sean achieved something - Christy has still one year to go. Safe to say Liam is no Christy! By the way over the three years if anyone here has any ideas they want to put to Liam - I'll gladly help be the conduit

[SLIGONIAN]

The way I know Liam there will be no soundbites - he is a man who will mean business as President. Don't forget we have 12 months of the most expensive GAA President ever to endure first

Why is the GAA presidents wage going to change? Shouldnt it be the same no matter who is the president. Im guessing the GAA have matched there day to day wage jobs in past but i think that is wrong..

[laoisgaa]

Yes that's exactly it - matched the day to day wage. Actually someone really needs to put a motion before Congress on this and make sure everyone is paid the same