Antrim Hurling

[Na Glinntí Glasa]

Whoever gets parachuted in will need to meet the criteria....

Must be in the Knights of St Columbanus.

the Knights who say Neeeee would be more apt for our county board 

[blueblood]

Well if things continue to go on they'll need a white one on a horse, irrespective of the wee man and his mis-guided aspirations, the Dunsilly debacle needs to be outted and who has made the cluster feck of that project, some serious questions need to be asked at the AGM.

Who appointed the consultants?
By what process where they appointed?
Who ajudicated over this process and how open and transparent was it?
Where the clubs informed or consulted?
Was the advice given by said consultants actioned by CC and in due course the clubs?
Now the cluster feck has been identified i.e Access, Translink etc who will compensate/pay for not highlighting these issues along with others that will eventually cost the clubs/volunteers.
Who is accountable/responsible for the issues that have arisen or do we know?Or are the clubs asking questions?
Ultimately who will pay?

These are some of the issues i would be keen to know and if someone or some entity has made fundemental mistakes and are culpable then what are the actions arising from this?

[cfclg]

Its been a while since I heard anything on Dunsilly. In a nutshell, can someone describe what is stopping progress/completion?

[btdtgtt]

Its been a while since I heard anything on Dunsilly. In a nutshell, can someone describe what is stopping progress/completion?

There's a dead end with planning / access, and money.

Blueblood has already raised the most pertinent questions.

How in hell this has got this far is beyond me - if this ocurred in any business there'd be people collecting P45's long ago.
Its bad enought the top table has too much unfettered power, but when that is mixed with incompetence then the effects will be felt for generations to come.

Throw in the Casement debacle and it the entire set-up beggars belief - except in Antrim.

[Na Glinntí Glasa]

most people you speak to just generally accept that we are playing in ballycastle and ahoghill for the long term.

I actually forgot all about dunsilly if im honest. that's how bad its got now, the fact that we don't even care anymore about it.

who ever made a balls up of this is def hiding it pretty well

[cfclg]

most people you speak to just generally accept that we are playing in ballycastle and ahoghill for the long term.

I actually forgot all about dunsilly if im honest. that's how bad its got now, the fact that we don't even care anymore about it.

who ever made a balls up of this is def hiding it pretty well

Totally agree with this, most people have forgotten about it. This project kicked off when J McSparran was in charge and looked to be all under control. Its such a shame when you look at the excellent job that Derry have done with Owenbeg and compare that to the mess we are in.

[Na Glinntí Glasa]

def, ownebeg is brilliant. the parking is grand and your into the match, good seats and dry and the games over the your out and through dungiven in mins.

was it problems over that railway bridge and planning issues or did it just run out of money?

[aontroim]

Think the last update at a county meeting ages ago mentioned that planning was being sought for the changing rooms (road side of the railway line) and that there were also offices and car parking as a separate phase depending on money.

The whole thing has been a cluster fcuk from the day St. Comgalls talked County exec into joining forces to create this monster!  They should have stuck to their guns with the green-field site that was bought (and still owned?) at Ballygrooby during McSparrans time, that would have been a straight forward construction project with little or no issues concerning access / archaeological digs etc. (hear that one cost the guts of £1m!)

Pitches at Dunsilly were sowed out and ready a few years ago and then left to ruin as nobody was maintaining them - so they had to be re-sown costing more money! 

Money is the main problem with progress at Dunsilly.

[Na Glinntí Glasa]

I don't understand how in gods name the current board has the balls to actually stand for re-election based on the utter messes that have been made this past year or so.

its embarrassing now. no wait, its beyond that now. I know personally the amount of work that goes into our club to maintain what we have from good hard working people who do it for the love of it and not any reward. if we had of made them sort of mistakes that the county have they wouldn't be in their positions nor would we have a club as good as it is.

there was a good article in the Irish News last week where in the column section at the back (was it Philip Jordan?) and he talked about counties appointing new managers. the Antrim one was mentioned in it. the fact our county turned down a 5 year development plan to penny pinch it seemed along with the current county board was criticised.

[johnneycool]

Do you not feel since the inception of the full time county secretaries funded by the Ulster Council that organisationally things have got better, slicker, no?

[getevennotcross]

Ya see, its all part of the weil west mentality and who is going to be in control!

Suggestion, whilst simplistic, move on with the entire Casement Development at the Dunsilly site?  No problems with height, parking, residents etc. etc.  Antrim GAA stadium in ANTRIM town, just off M2 slip road  Sell the Casement lands to the Shinners or who ever bids enough for it, and let them build houses, medical centres, CABs, Sinn Fein Cuman's or pubs on it???

Appoint a County Chief Executive, draw up a 5 year Antrim Development plan, dispose of all the rest of the hangers on i.e.(current county Exec), make the Antrim CEO responsible and accountable to All county Antrim Clubs, appraise the CEO and the progress of the Antrim Development plan on an annual basis.  If the plan and the CEO are not stacking up, just shaft the CEO and get someone else more competent and adept?

Progress and accountability at last, me thinks  .

May sound a little RADICAL & EXTREME to some, but accountability means everything in my book.  In the grand scale of things, our County Exec has never been accountable to the clubs.  Everything starts and finishes with the clubs at the end of the day, not with individuals, Knights, Shinners etc. but with accountable, adept and visionary individuals, who have the defined aspiration and desire of leading our county out of the utter shambles it is currently in.  Now, all get you tenners out and sign up to Club Aontroma  .

[Saffrongael]

Do you not feel since the inception of the full time county secretaries funded by the Ulster Council that organisationally things have got better, slicker, no?

Things have got better for the full time secretaries, that's about it

[btdtgtt]

This is one of those threads you find yourself nodding in agreement with many comments from other posters!

[theskull1]

Do you not feel since the inception of the full time county secretaries funded by the Ulster Council that organisationally things have got better, slicker, no?

All its brought is more subservience AFAICS.

[johnneycool]

Do you not feel since the inception of the full time county secretaries funded by the Ulster Council that organisationally things have got better, slicker, no?

All its brought is more subservience AFAICS.

I'd be in agreement there as our full time secretary did absolutely SFA when the Ulster council insisted that our hurlers play two days in a row due to a load of bungling in setting a date for a Ulster hurling final last/this year.
So,
  if we lost the services of these paid servants would we be any worse off?

FWIW,
     I have not seen any great improvement in the standards of hurling even with these full time coaches floating around.