Paraic Duffy to Stand Down

Started by AZOffaly, October 11, 2017, 01:51:42 PM

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AZOffaly

#15
Quote from: Eamonnca1 on October 11, 2017, 05:20:41 PM
He was a steady hand at the wheel, a good administrator, and much maligned. I don't agree that the GAA under his watch has been focused on the money; this "Grab All Association" stuff is a load of BS. The association reinvests all its surplus revenue in the grassroots. "Greed" has nothing to do with it. If it were all about the money then Croke Park would be staging  more concerts than football and you wouldn't have lower-grade competitions playing their all-Ireland finals in CP in front of mostly empty stands. The GAA does a lot of things that other sports bodies do not in the interests of supporting its grass roots.

And before anyone goes off on the usual Sky deal controversy, they tried to give the games away for free to UK-based networks but nobody would take them. Sky offered to take them and to pay for them, as well as offering slightly (but not much) more than the previous Setanta deal. The Sky deal was about increased exposure and getting the games onto more mainstream media outside of Ireland, a step that was badly needed and which the international grass roots have been crying out for for years. The Sky deal was about listening to the grass roots, not ignoring them. The backlash was about the GAA media in Ireland ignoring and dismissing the GAA grassroots outside of Ireland.

The games might be under pressure to turn professional eventually but that has more to do with market forces than anything Duffy or any of the other leadership has done. A lot of the people bent out of shape about the presence of big corporate money in the GAA are the same people who are happy to sit and bask in the opulent surroundings of Croke Park that would never have been built without big corporate money.

Eamonn, who said anything about 'Greed', or the Grab All Association? If that's aimed at me you are missing my point entirely. I understand and love the fact that the money generated is all ploughed back in.

What I'm saying is that for some time now, in my opinion, decisions are based on maximising the revenue (which gets reinvested) but at the expense of competition/games. I believe a lot of decisions are made on the basis of 'what will this return for the GAA financially' rather than 'what does this do to our competitions/clubs/games'.

You need money to run the GAA, absolutely. But the money should be a means to an end (growing the game). Too often it feels as if generating more money is the end, and the games are the means.

Zulu

Quote from: AZOffaly on October 11, 2017, 01:51:42 PM
http://gaeliclife.com/2017/10/paraic-duffy-stand-director-general/

My thoughts on Paraic is he seems to be a strong, clever man, but was too focused on the revenue generation and bottom line implications of the Business, with a capital B, of the GAA. We need the GAA ran well, to provide money to reinvest to keep the games strong all over the country. At times I felt the games were seen as a vehicle to provide more money. More money was the aim, rather than the games themselves.

Don't often disagree with you AZ but I do here. Duffy was a very capable, fair and innovate administrator and has brought the GAA forward. I don't see any evidence that the GAA has put money ahead of the games. I think the growth of Dublin GAA has skewed people's views of things and the GAA were right to do things like moving the grades to U17 and U20. As more changes are made the club player will benefit and only someone who doesn't know Duffy could claim he isn't a genuine grassroots GAA man.

AZOffaly


Syferus

Quote from: Zulu on October 11, 2017, 06:03:30 PM
Quote from: AZOffaly on October 11, 2017, 01:51:42 PM
http://gaeliclife.com/2017/10/paraic-duffy-stand-director-general/

My thoughts on Paraic is he seems to be a strong, clever man, but was too focused on the revenue generation and bottom line implications of the Business, with a capital B, of the GAA. We need the GAA ran well, to provide money to reinvest to keep the games strong all over the country. At times I felt the games were seen as a vehicle to provide more money. More money was the aim, rather than the games themselves.

Don't often disagree with you AZ but I do here. Duffy was a very capable, fair and innovate administrator and has brought the GAA forward. I don't see any evidence that the GAA has put money ahead of the games. I think the growth of Dublin GAA has skewed people's views of things and the GAA were right to do things like moving the grades to U17 and U20. As more changes are made the club player will benefit and only someone who doesn't know Duffy could claim he isn't a genuine grassroots GAA man.

You disagree with everyone who mentions the elephant in the room, Paraic.

mrhardyannual

I would imagine that a consultancy firm would be used by the GAA to fill the position. I'd be very surprised if the next DG was already working in Croke Park. Peter Kenna, Pat Daly, Fergal McGill and PRO Milton would all have good attributes but an "outsider" would bring a new focus. Expect to see someone with a strong GAA background from the world of business or management be employed.

Blowitupref

Quote from: Zulu on October 11, 2017, 06:03:30 PM
Quote from: AZOffaly on October 11, 2017, 01:51:42 PM
http://gaeliclife.com/2017/10/paraic-duffy-stand-director-general/

My thoughts on Paraic is he seems to be a strong, clever man, but was too focused on the revenue generation and bottom line implications of the Business, with a capital B, of the GAA. We need the GAA ran well, to provide money to reinvest to keep the games strong all over the country. At times I felt the games were seen as a vehicle to provide more money. More money was the aim, rather than the games themselves.

Don't often disagree with you AZ but I do here. Duffy was a very capable, fair and innovate administrator and has brought the GAA forward. I don't see any evidence that the GAA has put money ahead of the games. I think the growth of Dublin GAA has skewed people's views of things and the GAA were right to do things like moving the grades to U17 and U20. As more changes are made the club player will benefit and only someone who doesn't know Duffy could claim he isn't a genuine grassroots GAA man.

U17 I'd with agreed as the early rounds clashes with the leaving cert exams. I don't believe the GAA under the strong voice of Paraic Duffy was right to get rid of the U21 football championship. On club football April is meant to be left free for counties to start their club championships next year but as Liam Kearns recently said  with the AI championship starting in the first week of May. How many are seriously going to release county players to the clubs for the whole of April? and then play the first round of the inter county championship in May?
Is the ref going to finally blow his whistle?... No, he's going to blow his nose

sligoman2

Personally I think he has done a great job but maybe that's because I believe in making progress and not wanting to stay in the dark ages.

I know the naysayers will say that most of the money is going to Dublin and some old farmer in Offaly can't see every game on Rte.  what you won't say is that Dublin has the biggest population and there are now more games on RTÉ and Tg4 than ever before. People all over the world can now watch gaa games, the growth overseas is huge.  The super 8's will be a success, the gaa is in a good place, are any counties getting less now than they were 10 years ago? Are we a more progressive organization who support a rugby World Cup bid(as we should)? Do more counties have centers of excellence funded in part by the gaa, and the same for club facilities.

Good job Pauric, fcuk the begruders..
I used to be indecisive but now I'm not too sure.

Eamonnca1

Quote from: AZOffaly on October 11, 2017, 05:59:38 PM
Quote from: Eamonnca1 on October 11, 2017, 05:20:41 PM
He was a steady hand at the wheel, a good administrator, and much maligned. I don't agree that the GAA under his watch has been focused on the money; this "Grab All Association" stuff is a load of BS. The association reinvests all its surplus revenue in the grassroots. "Greed" has nothing to do with it. If it were all about the money then Croke Park would be staging  more concerts than football and you wouldn't have lower-grade competitions playing their all-Ireland finals in CP in front of mostly empty stands. The GAA does a lot of things that other sports bodies do not in the interests of supporting its grass roots.

And before anyone goes off on the usual Sky deal controversy, they tried to give the games away for free to UK-based networks but nobody would take them. Sky offered to take them and to pay for them, as well as offering slightly (but not much) more than the previous Setanta deal. The Sky deal was about increased exposure and getting the games onto more mainstream media outside of Ireland, a step that was badly needed and which the international grass roots have been crying out for for years. The Sky deal was about listening to the grass roots, not ignoring them. The backlash was about the GAA media in Ireland ignoring and dismissing the GAA grassroots outside of Ireland.

The games might be under pressure to turn professional eventually but that has more to do with market forces than anything Duffy or any of the other leadership has done. A lot of the people bent out of shape about the presence of big corporate money in the GAA are the same people who are happy to sit and bask in the opulent surroundings of Croke Park that would never have been built without big corporate money.

Eamonn, who said anything about 'Greed', or the Grab All Association?
I've heard it numerous times from various people.

Quote
If that's aimed at me you are missing my point entirely. I understand and love the fact that the money generated is all ploughed back in.

What I'm saying is that for some time now, in my opinion, decisions are based on maximising the revenue (which gets reinvested) but at the expense of competition/games. I believe a lot of decisions are made on the basis of 'what will this return for the GAA financially' rather than 'what does this do to our competitions/clubs/games'.

You need money to run the GAA, absolutely. But the money should be a means to an end (growing the game). Too often it feels as if generating more money is the end, and the games are the means.

Not aimed at you, it's a general point about the kind of criticism he has gotten over the years.

Don't worry, if I'm disagreeing with you specifically I'll let you know! :p

Eamonnca1

Quote from: sligoman2 on October 11, 2017, 06:32:38 PM
Personally I think he has done a great job but maybe that's because I believe in making progress and not wanting to stay in the dark ages.

I know the naysayers will say that most of the money is going to Dublin and some old farmer in Offaly can't see every game on Rte.  what you won't say is that Dublin has the biggest population and there are now more games on RTÉ and Tg4 than ever before. People all over the world can now watch gaa games, the growth overseas is huge.  The super 8's will be a success, the gaa is in a good place, are any counties getting less now than they were 10 years ago? Are we a more progressive organization who support a rugby World Cup bid(as we should)? Do more counties have centers of excellence funded in part by the gaa, and the same for club facilities.

Good job Pauric, fcuk the begruders..

Hear hear.

Rossfan

Quote from: sligoman2 on October 11, 2017, 06:32:38 PM
Personally I think he has done a great job but maybe that's because I believe in making progress and not wanting to stay in the dark ages.

I know the naysayers will say that most of the money is going to Dublin and some old farmer in Offaly can't see every game on Rte.  what you won't say is that Dublin has the biggest population and there are now more games on RTÉ and Tg4 than ever before. People all over the world can now watch gaa games, the growth overseas is huge.  The super 8's will be a success, the gaa is in a good place, are any counties getting less now than they were 10 years ago? Are we a more progressive organization who support a rugby World Cup bid(as we should)? Do more counties have centers of excellence funded in part by the gaa, and the same for club facilities.

Good job Pauric, fcuk the begruders..

But but but... Syferus said  he's  bad....
Davy's given us a dream to cling to
We're going to bring home the SAM

Syferus

Quote from: Rossfan on October 11, 2017, 07:12:26 PM
Quote from: sligoman2 on October 11, 2017, 06:32:38 PM
Personally I think he has done a great job but maybe that's because I believe in making progress and not wanting to stay in the dark ages.

I know the naysayers will say that most of the money is going to Dublin and some old farmer in Offaly can't see every game on Rte.  what you won't say is that Dublin has the biggest population and there are now more games on RTÉ and Tg4 than ever before. People all over the world can now watch gaa games, the growth overseas is huge.  The super 8's will be a success, the gaa is in a good place, are any counties getting less now than they were 10 years ago? Are we a more progressive organization who support a rugby World Cup bid(as we should)? Do more counties have centers of excellence funded in part by the gaa, and the same for club facilities.

Good job Pauric, fcuk the begruders..

But but but... Syferus said  he's  bad....

And proved it too. People are always too quick to lionise the retiring and dead, so the amount of praise here is no surprise. Give it a few years.

Zulu

Quote from: Syferus on October 11, 2017, 06:13:06 PM
Quote from: Zulu on October 11, 2017, 06:03:30 PM
Quote from: AZOffaly on October 11, 2017, 01:51:42 PM
http://gaeliclife.com/2017/10/paraic-duffy-stand-director-general/

My thoughts on Paraic is he seems to be a strong, clever man, but was too focused on the revenue generation and bottom line implications of the Business, with a capital B, of the GAA. We need the GAA ran well, to provide money to reinvest to keep the games strong all over the country. At times I felt the games were seen as a vehicle to provide more money. More money was the aim, rather than the games themselves.

Don't often disagree with you AZ but I do here. Duffy was a very capable, fair and innovate administrator and has brought the GAA forward. I don't see any evidence that the GAA has put money ahead of the games. I think the growth of Dublin GAA has skewed people's views of things and the GAA were right to do things like moving the grades to U17 and U20. As more changes are made the club player will benefit and only someone who doesn't know Duffy could claim he isn't a genuine grassroots GAA man.

You disagree with everyone who mentions the elephant in the room, Paraic.

Your juvenile musings bring nothing to any conversation.

Zulu

Quote from: Blowitupref on October 11, 2017, 06:29:46 PM
Quote from: Zulu on October 11, 2017, 06:03:30 PM
Quote from: AZOffaly on October 11, 2017, 01:51:42 PM
http://gaeliclife.com/2017/10/paraic-duffy-stand-director-general/

My thoughts on Paraic is he seems to be a strong, clever man, but was too focused on the revenue generation and bottom line implications of the Business, with a capital B, of the GAA. We need the GAA ran well, to provide money to reinvest to keep the games strong all over the country. At times I felt the games were seen as a vehicle to provide more money. More money was the aim, rather than the games themselves.

Don't often disagree with you AZ but I do here. Duffy was a very capable, fair and innovate administrator and has brought the GAA forward. I don't see any evidence that the GAA has put money ahead of the games. I think the growth of Dublin GAA has skewed people's views of things and the GAA were right to do things like moving the grades to U17 and U20. As more changes are made the club player will benefit and only someone who doesn't know Duffy could claim he isn't a genuine grassroots GAA man.

U17 I'd with agreed as the early rounds clashes with the leaving cert exams. I don't believe the GAA under the strong voice of Paraic Duffy was right to get rid of the U21 football championship. On club football April is meant to be left free for counties to start their club championships next year but as Liam Kearns recently said  with the AI championship starting in the first week of May. How many are seriously going to release county players to the clubs for the whole of April? and then play the first round of the inter county championship in May?

I think moving to U20 is one of the best decisions the GAA has made. It clashed with Sigerson where it was and many U21's were on senior league teams so some lads were playing Wednesday and then again on the weekend both of which could have involved significant journeys. Now you can't play senior and U20 and there's no clash with Sigerson.

Blowitupref

Quote from: Zulu on October 11, 2017, 08:00:10 PM
Quote from: Blowitupref on October 11, 2017, 06:29:46 PM
Quote from: Zulu on October 11, 2017, 06:03:30 PM
Quote from: AZOffaly on October 11, 2017, 01:51:42 PM
http://gaeliclife.com/2017/10/paraic-duffy-stand-director-general/

My thoughts on Paraic is he seems to be a strong, clever man, but was too focused on the revenue generation and bottom line implications of the Business, with a capital B, of the GAA. We need the GAA ran well, to provide money to reinvest to keep the games strong all over the country. At times I felt the games were seen as a vehicle to provide more money. More money was the aim, rather than the games themselves.

Don't often disagree with you AZ but I do here. Duffy was a very capable, fair and innovate administrator and has brought the GAA forward. I don't see any evidence that the GAA has put money ahead of the games. I think the growth of Dublin GAA has skewed people's views of things and the GAA were right to do things like moving the grades to U17 and U20. As more changes are made the club player will benefit and only someone who doesn't know Duffy could claim he isn't a genuine grassroots GAA man.

U17 I'd with agreed as the early rounds clashes with the leaving cert exams. I don't believe the GAA under the strong voice of Paraic Duffy was right to get rid of the U21 football championship. On club football April is meant to be left free for counties to start their club championships next year but as Liam Kearns recently said  with the AI championship starting in the first week of May. How many are seriously going to release county players to the clubs for the whole of April? and then play the first round of the inter county championship in May?

I think moving to U20 is one of the best decisions the GAA has made. It clashed with Sigerson where it was and many U21's were on senior league teams so some lads were playing Wednesday and then again on the weekend both of which could have involved significant journeys. Now you can't play senior and U20 and there's no clash with Sigerson.
A simple change could have avoided such of a clash.  U20s from what i know can still play in the NFL for their seniors and for their college teams in February. Come the summer time its decided which panel is best for a U20 and those U20s might only warm the bench seeing no game time for the county seniors this summer missing out on the U20 AI championship.  One of the best decisions the GAA has made i think not.
Is the ref going to finally blow his whistle?... No, he's going to blow his nose

omaghjoe

Im slightly torn on this. On the one hand I think he has done a pretty good job he has left the association in good nick financially and there seems to be growth nationally and internationally.
On the other Im a bit peeved about the increased commercialisation and inequality esp crap about the Sky deal and the Dublin behemoth. And I know he's not directly responsible for it all however he is the man at them helm.

With that said tho the increased exposure we get from the Sky deal and the increased presence of the GAA in Dublin is probably worth it. The commercialization is part of the world we live and to get things done its is just one of those things we will have to swallow unfortunately. There is fine line with it tho before you sell your soul hopefully we can tread on the right side of it.

So with all that considered I will have to say well done Pauric decent job done enjoy your retirement.

Anyone know is pension BTW? or  how does that work for GAA admin staff?