By Ciaran Woods

c.woods@gaeliclife.com

A STUDY of club finances in Ulster conducted by Gaelic Life has raised serious issues regarding the financial stability of clubs across the province, with over 75 per cent of all clubs polled describing themselves as being in debt.

With the flow of funds from the Sports Council, once used as an avenue by clubs to gain development funds, reduced to little more than a trickle because of the 2012 Olympics in London, it seems that many GAA clubs are facing a bleak outlook.

The comprehensive survey took in clubs from each of the nine counties, across all divisions, and the results have raised clear concerns as to the current state of club finances in Ulster. Some clubs admitted owing up to half a million pounds in banks loans, and with the gloomy economic outlook that is certainly not a happy position to be in.

One city club reported that they had made the decision to get rid of their club minibus, describing it as, "a luxury we simply could not afford," with the same club also saying that they had disposed of the services of their full-time groundsman for the same reason. Their club treasurer candidly admitted, "It does keep me up nights, sitting thinking about it and worrying about how to make ends meet."

The survey found that there were basically two types of clubs; those who had carried out extensive development work and those who intended to do so in the future.

Those who had carried out development work all found a marked increase in their running costs, rising by up to 40 per cent per year. They have of course already paid out vast amounts of money to carry out the initial work, much of which was grant-assisted, but of course they paid over the odds for the work to be completed as the construction industry was booming at that time.

On the other hand, those who have not yet carried out the work will pay lower building costs, but will find it much more difficult to raise the necessary funds to complete the project.

A club in the east of the province revealed that at the start of this year they had spent £54,000 on fencing around the perimeter of their pitches, a massive amount of money by any standards. However, their research had shown that within two months of completing the work, the cost of steel had risen by a whopping 47 per cent, meaning the same job eight weeks later would have cost in the region of £80,000.

Another club chairman said that despite the current financial uncertainty, his club would still push on with development plans because they, "have no other choice."

"Of course it all depends on the funding we can secure, but we have to go though with it. We're struggling, we have some of the worst facilities in the county, we have to do something about it, but it's a gamble we have to take."

Clubs also identified the need for thinking outside the box when it came to raising funds, as there is a growing sense that the public at large are becoming fed up with almost constant ticket-selling drives.

Clonduff are one of 13 sports clubs across the North who are awaiting funding from the Sports Council. Club chairman Brian McGreevy admitted that it had been a long wait which involved a lot of spade work on the part of the club, but he hopes that the matter is nearing a conclusion.

"Sports Council funding is important to us due to the development of a third pitch to accommodate our 26 teams. We have lobbied strongly over the past months, and hopefully things are now moving in the right direction with that."

He said that his club were not currently in debt, and that Clonduff are currently in a better financial position than they were five years ago prior to the commencement of their development programme. The chairman said that his club had identified physio costs as accounting for a large share of Clonduff's annual expenditure, and said that as a preventative measure a conscious effort was being made to keep their playing surfaces in as good condition as possible in a bid to reduce the risk of injury. That, he said, meant a higher than usual rate of investment in the pitches, but the club hopes to reap the rewards through fewer injuries and in turn lower physio bills.

Transport costs were also a concern for the Clonduff chairman, as he said that it would become clear over the coming months just how much of an increase the private bus companies they use will hike their prices as a result of the ever-rising fuel prices. Despite those anticipated extra costs, McGreevy says that he is fully confident about the future financial security of the Clonduff club.

Despite the problems, the vast majority of clubs spoken to said that they remained confident about the future financial security of their clubs.