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Peace in our time........

The Ulster Council official who asked me to post the press release informed me that Ulster GAA will be running 9 mini-conferences in every County from January to March, attendance at these events will cover now cover Club Maith requirements as there was such a demand for the Provincial conference that they had make arrangements to facilitate those Clubs who missed out..... apparently they had to turn away over 150 people seeking access to the conference after they reached the maximum number of 500. 

[Irish News Ulster GAA Conference Sold Out]

Irish News Ulster GAA Conference Sold Out

Over 500 Club delegates will attend the Irish News Ulster GAA Club and Volunteer Conference in Armagh City tomorrow. The theme of the conference is self sustainability at Club level in the GAA a theme which has particular relevance as Ireland moves into a difficult economic period. GAA President Christy Cooney and Ulster GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghail are expected to address the delegates with both speeches focusing on the importance of GAA Club's moving to a strong self sufficient model in terms of governance, finance and coaching.
The Conference has become a highlight in the non-games GAA calendar and has once again attracted a high calibre of speakers including the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport Mary Hanafin T.D and the Minister for Social Development Alex Attwood MLA.

Mary  Hanafin T.D., Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport said  "the GAA's role  as  a  community  organisation  is  obviously at the heart of today's conference.  This  organisation  has  touched  the  lives of most people in Ireland  and  it  is  an  organisation  which  continues  to contribute and positively  influence communities across the country and further afield.  I
want to particularly offer the Government's congratulations and support for the    Ulster    Council's    work   on   inclusion,   reconciliation   and anti-sectarianism.  It  is  an  essential  contribution to building a truly shared future on our island".


Chairman of the One Small Step Campaign and former Ireland Rugby International player Trevor Ringland will also be a keynote speaker; this will be his first public event since his resignation from the Ulster Unionist Party. His keynote is expected to focus on Good relations and anti-sectarianism two areas that Ulster GAA has invested significant time and effort into over past four years.
Tyrone Senior Manager and Irish News Columnist Mickey Harte will also be present to endorse the Ulster GAA "Live to Play" campaign in December 2009 Harte strongly lobbied the GAA to launch a road safety campaign. In January 2010 the Ulster GAA Live to Play campaign was launched at the McKenna Cup final and has already been rolled out to 5 Ulster Counties with the remainder coming on board before the end of 2010. 

A raft of well known GAA officials will also present to host workshops including former GAA President Nickey Brennan who is now Chairman of the GAA ICT Committee will give an overview of new GAA ICT initiatives and future plans in this area, while former Ulster GAA President Tom Daly will facilitate a workshop on Club Facility Development and Project Management. Jarlath Burns who is Chairman of the GAA Presentations Committee will also be hosting a workshop with Ulster GAA Director of Games Dr.  Eugene Young on Club Governance, highlighting the importance of good Administrative and Financial structures at Club level. Mark Conway the founder of Club Tyrone and Ulster GAA honorary Strategic Advisor will also be hosting a workshop on fundraising which will strongly endorse the self-sufficient Club model using the Club Tyrone model at Club level.

John Devaney the Chair of the Ulster GAA Irish and Cultural Committee will also present a keynote in the importance of putting the "Gaelic" in to the GAA, highlighting the need for more promotion of the Irish language, Scor and Cultural activities at Club level.
The Conference will draw on the experiences of a range of active Club level GAA volunteers who have had success in the private sector and Ulster GAA are delighted that well known Down GAA official Feargal McCormack who is an Accountant and leading Economic advisor will be giving an overview of his experiences as PRO of St. Peter GAA Warrenpoint while well-known Strategic consultant John O'Neill will give an overview of success of strategic planning in his Club St. Patrick's GAA Donaghmore.

A new venture this year will involve interactive voting by the delegates on a range of topics relevant to Club Development and the ongoing progress of the GAA in Ulster. Delegates will get to vote on issues and topics they deem relevant to the ongoing success of the GAA in the Province. In his first public event since his retirement legendary Commentator Michael O'Muircheartaigh will close proceedings with an address on his view on the future of the GAA.
Ulster GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghail said: "I am really looking forward to the Conference, we have an excellent line up of speakers and workshops and I am confident that it will be another successful day which also provides a very good networking opportunity for our volunteer Club officials. The conference will assist clubs to approach their activities with renewed vigour"
Over 20 private companies will be present at the event in specific an exhibition zone to promote their products and services to the GAA club delegates.

The Organisers have asked that individuals who have not pre-booked do not to turn up on the day seeking entry to the event as the conference in now completely full to capacity.

Ulster Finals in Clones in  2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 were all sell outs at 35,000 full capacity and there was demand for more tickets, the Ulster Final in 2006 in Croke Park had 50,000 attending, 2005 was 60,000 and 2004 had 68,000 attending.

[what i would ask is what message is going back to the "other side"?]

Says a lot about Elliot when you have Jackie McDonald in today's Irish News saying how much he enjoyed attending last weeks All Ireland and how young loyalists could learn a lot from it

It is just wrong that someone like Jackie McDonald is in Croke park at an AIF

If he paid his money then fine but if he got in free so someone would see what a lovely gesture it is then balls to it.  And im not saying that "true gaels" should be in front of the queue, one mans 70 euro is as good as the next but when club members can't get a ticket because they are being given away for this nonsense does my head in.

Which club is Trevor Ringland a member of that he can get tickets so handy?

He was in a corporate box so he wouldn't have been paying €70 anyway, nor would he have been taking a ticket away from a club member. I think it's no harm for a couple of tickets to be used in this way, especially if a positive message goes back to 'the other side'. It also shows up the likes of Elliott for the bigots they are.

when i posted i didn't know he was in a corporate box so fair enough nobody missed out on a ticket.  what i would ask is what message is going back to the "other side"? i'm all for people from the non GAA community watching our games and seeing what they mean. I take a great sense of pride in it.  But what good is puting Jackie McDonald in a corporate box doing for community relations?  I see no difference in him than i do in Martin McGuiness.  Two men who held a certain point of view and then took up another one because it suited them.

I don't have it to hand but it was positive.

I have yesterdays IN here. A few select quotes from Jackie:

"It was a great day. The stadium is 5 star and the event was 5 star. We really appreciate the hospitality that was shown to us...it made me think about Windsor Park and the need for a new stadium there. We need something we can be proud of"

"There was a time when I thought the game was sectarian (but some tasty grants from Aras soon changed that) but the GAA changing the ruling on security forces changed that." I may have added a bit to that...

"...if our kids are to grow up together...we need to appreciate each others culture".

"It might even come as a bit of a culture shock to say to young loyalists to play GAA but it is a very physical and challenging game".

"

As an association I think we are confident enough to let anyone who wishes to engage with us regardless of their political view or religious background do so. The GAA plays a key role in Irish Society, there are 1 million Unionists on this island and if the Association can play a part in outreaching to them and as a result build strong community relations then this is something to be commended. There is a whole generation of loyalist children who are being forgotten about, loyalist working class areas have the highest rates of illiteracy, teenage pregnancy, drug and alcohol abuse....as Irish men and women we have a duty to do something and assist that section of our community, finally the President or her office does not give out grants, she has non-executive role and in my view has done an outstanding job building bridges during her term of office.

It is my understanding after talking to an employee of the RCN that Mark Conway was asked to attend the event in his professional capacity as a Consultant on rural issues and the media focused on his GAA background, while the event was held in an orange hall it was not organised by the Orange order, it was coordinated by the Rural Community Network as part of an EU funding programme. I heard him speak on Radio Ulster and I think his comments were very good, I was particularly pleased to hear him highlight that the GAA has the confidence and the foresight to talk to anyone about anything. I also know that Conway is very close to Ulster GAA, however he was not at this event as their representative or talking to anyone on behalf of the Association.

The Ulster Council has been involved in meeting Loyalist Community Groups, Unionist Representatives and other "non traditional" GAA people for years now, they employ someone full time to undertake this work and are rightly praised for it. I think we are all starting to move beyond issues like this.

This Company did five for us great job and good price; www.hassons.com.

Disgraceful! The beginning of the end......

There is a Child Protection Workshop at the Irish News Club and Volunteer Awards this Saturday in the Armagh City Hotel for more information www.ulster.gaa.ie

Wander...load of crap again, Ulster GAA has assisted over 50 clubs in securing grant funding. The consultants you refer to are voluntary associates of Ulster GAA. No other body has done more to secure public funding for the GAA. Outline your so called personal experience. In both 2008 and 2009 the Ulster Council ran three (six in total) full day 9am-11pm clinics to assist clubs in the the Application process, I was at the one in Donaghmore and it was excellent, my club secured £245,000 for a new pitch. So in my experience I would have nothing but praise of the Ulster Council staff who have been supporting the clubs. Go to the Ulster Conference in Aramgh on Saturday and you will see how many clubs will be there again getting advise and support from the Ulster Council. 

Cornafean...no they have included a workshop on promoting Scor at Club level.

Ulster GAA Irish News Club & Volunteer Conference

The third Irish News Ulster GAA Club and Volunteer conference will take place on Saturday 14th November in the Armagh City Hotel. The Irish News will once again act as Conference Partner in Ulster GAA's flagship non-games event which is focused at supporting club, volunteer and community development right across Ulster's nine Counties. The Ulster Council now supports over 250,000 volunteers working in 580 constituent GAA clubs and approximately 600 constituent educational units across the Province. The theme of this year's conference is
"Stronger Clubs, Better Communities; the legacy of the GAA's 125th Anniversary Year"

The event is the third of its kind following the outstanding success of the 2007 and 2008 Conferences. The conference will include a range of workshops, keynotes and discussion forums facilitated by leading GAA officials. Keynote speakers attending will be GAA President, Christy Cooney, Ulster GAA President Tom Daly and former GAA President and Community Leader Peter Quinn. This year the master of ceremonies is BBC Championship presenter Austin O'Callaghan.

There will be nine conference workshops this year, including:

Physical Development in the GAA Club
Structured Giving - Self Fundraising in the Club
Child Protection in the GAA
Insurance in the Club
Enhancing Scor and Club Cultural Activities
ICT in the GAA - E-mail and new Membership system
The GAA Development Plan
Communicating the GAA message at Club level
National GAA Volunteer Programme
The Conference will also see the launch of a new Confederation of Ulster Council's which will formally link the Ulster GAA with Ulster Councils for Ladies Gaelic Football, Camogie, Handball and Rounders in order to promote a holistic approach the development of Gaelic Games Community.

Ulster GAA President Tom Daly highlighted the significance of the conference:
"The success of our last two conferences highlighted the need for this event on annual basis as the Ulster Council is committed to supporting clubs in all areas of their development, the Community Development Staff support both the Clubs, Counties and Ulster Council in doing that. I am looking forward to seeing many of our club officials present at the conference and I confident that all present will benefit from the day. I would also highlight the important role of our conference partner the Irish News, I am grateful for their ongoing support in a range of matters and I am grateful for their continued outstanding coverage of Gaelic Games."

Irish News editor Noel Doran said:
"This is a significant initiative at a number of levels, and the agenda strongly reflects the progressive nature of the GAA in Ulster. The level of support which the last two conferences received was truly impressive, as was the commitment and enthusiasm of all the participants. The Irish News is delighted to endorse the event, and we look forward to another successful day on November 14."

Should you have any queries regarding this event, please contact Maura Kelly on 028 (048) 3751 7180 or maura.kelly.ulster@gaa.ie

The Ulster council has far more staff than the other three provinces and has more staff working for it than Croke park - paid for by grants from Mrs Windsor.

Wrong! The Ulster Council doesn't have more staff than Croke Park and secondly it is the tax payers in the six counties that pays for any grants (many of whom are GAA members and supporters) that GAA receive in the north, typical blue shirt anti northern mentality....if there is northern success in the GAA there has to be some underhand reason for it. The GAA in the north get's what it is entitled to after nearly 50 years of being discriminated against by the northern administration and forgotten about by some of the so called patriots in the south. Curran should be ashamed of himself for making such disgraceful comments.

I stopped reading after the exclamation mark.

My post is factual.

If you post if factual then post your evidence!

The Ulster council has far more staff than the other three provinces and has more staff working for it than Croke park - paid for by grants from Mrs Windsor.

Wrong! The Ulster Council doesn't have more staff than Croke Park and secondly it is the tax payers in the six counties that pays for any grants (many of whom are GAA members and supporters) that GAA receive in the north, typical blue shirt anti northern mentality....if there is northern success in the GAA there has to be some underhand reason for it. The GAA in the north get's what it is entitled to after nearly 50 years of being discriminated against by the northern administration and forgotten about by some of the so called patriots in the south. Curran should be ashamed of himself for making such disgraceful comments.