Tom Ryan says that the GAA has shed its conservative image aftera “remarkable amount of change” in 2019.
The GAA’s director general issued his second annual report at Croke Park today, almost two years after succeeding Paraic Duffy in the role.
He said: “Sometimes we give out about ourselves and say we’re very conservative and slow to change.
“From where I sit that doesn’t appear to be the case at all. It’s been a year of a remarkable amount of change in terms of playing rules, in terms of the Championships and there’s more change ahead.
“But the key thing I think to re-emphasise to people is all that change is undertaken in a very, very methodical well thought-out way and in a way that will stand us in good stead for the future I think.
“From a personal perspective, it was a very, very enjoyable year. I continue to find my feet and learn an awful lot about the various moving parts in the organisation and it’s been an absolute privilege.”
One of the main challenges of the past year or so has been nailing down the cost of the Pairc Ui Chaoimh project, which Ryan set at around €96m in his report with a €20m debt hanging over Cork county board as a result, though he insisted that that shouldn’t impact beyond Cork as long as they meet their targets.
However, with other stadium projects in the pipeline, Ryan insisted that the lessons of Pairc Ui Chaoimh, which was initially estimated to cost just €70m.
Writing in his report, he said: “Future projects must be controlled centrally with appropriate oversight.
“We must engage professional project management expertise. Central Council funding must only be issued proportionately with progress, rather than up front.
“Projects can only be permitted to start when all the funding is in place, and not proceed
contingent upon future income.
“These measures, and more, are pertinent today as we contemplate improvements to a number of other grounds around the country.”
