DONEGAL GAA’s finances are in a healthy state after Treasurer Cieran Kelly reported a cool €87,513 profit for the year gone by.
Mr Kelly, delivering his third annual financial report to County Convention, outlined an increase in both income and expenditure.
Confirmation that Donegal GAA is now a big bucks business is laid bare in the bottom lines of the financial figures with turnover shooting beyond €1.4million in the last year.
Income showed a 17 per cent rise with €1,402,522 passing through the books this year while Donegal GAA’s expenditure rose 10.4 per cent to €1,191,409 for the same period.
Gate receipts accounted for a massive jump in income this year, up almost €50,000 for the last 12 months.
Gate receipts for 2016 were €195,240 – climbing from €147,498 in the previous year.
Mr Kelly put the sharp increase down to the partnerships with the new competitions sponsors – All Sports and Michael Murphy Sports & Leisure.
The gate receipts for the 2016 Donegal SFC final between Glenswilly and Kilcar were up by €11,000 and the figure was ‘one of the biggest on record’, Mr Kelly reported.
Commercial income was up by €50,000, with new sponsorship deals with KN and MCR Group contributing to that, while fundraising ventures raised over €100,000 in 2016.
Termon delegate Grace Boyle, herself a former County Treasurer, asked for a breakdown of the fundraising, something which will be furnished to clubs at the January meeting of the County Committee.
Team administration expenses rose by €135,000 – an increase of some 17 per cent.
“We had an overseas training camp this year and there was also an increase in travel expenses for players – we have more players outside the county now and we have more players to look after,” Mr Kelly explained.
Former Donegal footballer and All-Ireland winner Matt Gallagher, acting as the Naomh Bríd delegate, queried the figures for team expenses, with items like catering (€155,316), overnights and holiday (€118,939), sports gear and laundry (€168,464) all rising.
Mr Kelly responded: “A lot of teams come with a big wish list but they leave with something that is a lot less. We are doing our best to keep costs under control.”
County Chairman Sean Dunnion further clarified that there will not be an overseas training camp for the Donegal senior football team in 2017.
Spending on the area of coaching and games development was up by around €40,000, while admin expenses showed a big decrease, dropping from €125,000 to €82,000.
Two new faces were elected onto the Donegal County Executive this afternoon and it’s largely a case of ‘as you were’ at the top table.
St Mary’s Convoy clubman Conor McDermott takes over as Coaching Officer while St Michael’s man Liam McElhinney was elected as one of the Ulster Council delegates.
McDermott is the new Coaching Officer as he succeeds from Anthony Harkin, who completed a five-year term in the position at this afternoon’s County Convention.
McDermott was elected unopposed to the post after Mick McGrath and Pauric Harvey withdrew their names from the race.
McElhinney returns to the top table again as he was successful in the election for Ulster Council posts.
Killybegs’ Pat Conaghan – first elected to the Donegal GAA Management Committee in 1971, some 45 years ago – completed his term as an Ulster Council delegate and vacated the role.
PJ McGowan was comfortably elected on the first count to retain his Ulster Council delegate position, taking 78 first preferences, easily exceeding the quota of 54.
McElhinney, Brendan Kelly (St Mary’s Convoy) and Denis Ellis (Naomh Columba) were left vying for the other seat.
Ellis was eliminated on the second count, having claimed 12 first preference votes and, in the end, McElhinney (53) defeated Kelly (48) by five votes and was deemed elected without having reached the quota.
Sean Dunnion was elected to get a fifth – and final – year as Donegal GAA Chairman.
Frankie Doherty (Vice Chairman), Aideen Gillen (Secretary), Declan Martin (Assistant Secretary), Cieran Kelly (Treasurer), Paddy Tinney (Assistant Treasurer), Ed Byrne (PRO), Seamus Ó Domhnaill (Central Council Delegate) David McLoone (Development Officer) and Fergus Mac Aoidh (Oifigeach Gaeilge agus Cultúir) all retained their portfolios without opposition.
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