Kilkenny TD dons jersey and shows off hurling skills in Croke Park visit
Fianna Fail TD Peter ‘Chap' Cleere, no stranger to the Kilkenny jersey from his own playing days, pucked a few sliotars and showed he’s still got it
Local TD Peter ‘Chap’ Cleere donned Kilkenny colours and showed off some of his hurling prowess as a historic first meeting of an Oireachtas Committee was held last week in Croke Park.
Members of the Sports Committee gathered to receive a briefing on the GAA’s landmark Demographic Report. Members, who were led by Cathaoirleach Alan Kelly TD, engaged in an extensive three-hour site visit to GAA HQ. It marked a key moment of engagement between the Oireachtas and the GAA on the issue of Demographics and Facilities and the findings of this report.
As a result of this meeting a total of four Oireachtas committees (Sport, Housing, Infrastructure and Rural Affairs) will now examine the contributions of their respective members and produce a cross-committee report examining ways in which actions can be taken around the key areas of concern.
Events at Croke Park began with Uachtarán Jarlath Burns, Ard Stiúrthóir Tom Ryan, LGFA CEO Lyn Savage and Camogie CEO Karen Dessain-Gelinet welcoming the delegation to Croke Park at the Michael Cusack statue.
There was a very special moment prior to the meeting when Uachtarán Jarlath Burns presented each member with a jersey from their respective county in the Cusack Stand dressing room.
Fianna Fail TD Peter ‘Chap' Cleere, no stranger to the Kilkenny jersey from his own playing days, pucked a few sliotars toward the Hill 16 end.
"What a fantastic day today where the sports committee held our weekly meeting in Croke Park,” said Deputy Cleere afterward. “Lots of challenges ahead for GAA , Camogie and LGFA , but as an organisation we are in a great place.”
And after a pep talk from the Uachtarán, the Sport Committee members burst out on to the pitch via the Cusack Stand tunnel where they got a team photo at the Hill 16 end along with the Sam Maguire and Liam MacCarthy trophies.
Support
The GAA is extremely conscious of the significant support offered by the Oireachtas Sport Committee to its work across a whole range of areas.
Receiving its support, and the support of its sister committees, in the vital areas of demographics and facility provision is crucial as our country grapples with the challenges posed by both urbanisation along the east coast and population decline in rural areas.
Demographics National Committee Chairman Benny Hurl offered his view that the meeting can pave the way for some concrete actions towards addressing the concerns raised.
“It was truly fantastic to have the Oireachtas Sports Committee here today in Croke Park for this historic meeting and I feel that we have taken some positive decisions today that will help address our concerns around demographics and facilities,” remarked Mr Hurl.
Cathaoirleach of the Oireachtas Sport Committee Alan Kelly TD offered his support for the work and was delighted that he and his committee members had made the journey from Kildare Street to Jones’ Road.