Minister advises Tipperary clubs on Sports Capital grants during visit to county

Tipperary sports clubs planning upgrades to their facilities were urged to get working on applications for next year’s round of Sports Capital grants during a visit by the Minister for Sport to Clonmel, Cashel and Clerihan last week.

Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O’Donovan did a whistle stop tour of four sports clubs and facilities in these south Tipperary towns and village on Tuesday, November 11.

Minister Patrick O'Donovan with local politicians and Cashel Rugby Club members during his visit to the club's new gym

He visited Cashel Rugby Club where he was shown the club’s new gym and new clubhouse elevators, which were funded with the help of Sports Capital grant aid.

The Fine Gael minister also called to Tipperary senior hurling stars Oisin O’Donoghue’s and Eoghan Connolly’s home club Cashel King Cormacs and Clerihan Community Field to view their facilities and plans for future developments.

In Clonmel, the Limerick based minister dropped into Clonmel Rowing Club, which produced Olympic bronze medallist Daire Lynch and World Under 23 gold medallist Donnacha Keeley.

Minister Patrick O'Donovan pictured at Clonmel Rowing Club with club members and local politicians

Clonmel TD Michael Murphy said he invited Minister O’Donovan to south Tipperary to give him a taste of its sport clubs across a number of sporting codes and to see their facilities.

He said the Minister gave the clubs advice on applying for the next round of Sports Capital grants which is due to be announced in March next year.

“The message we want to get out to sports clubs is that now is the time to get applications for Sports Capital grants ready.

“There could be in the region of €300m available for the scheme and, like all sports grants schemes, it will be significantly oversubscribed.

Speaking to the media during his visit to Cashel Rugby Club, Minister O’Donovan paid tribute to the volunteers of sports clubs around the county who give up massive amounts of their time to develop plans and secure planning permission for upgrades of their clubs’ facilities and to fundraise for them to make better communities for young people.

He said Cashel Rugby Club had done a fantastic job in developing its gym and improving its function room to make it more accessible for people with reduced mobility.

Minister O’Donovan advised sports clubs that in next year’s round of Sports Capital grants he will be putting “a large emphasis on inclusion of women and people with physical and intellectual disabilities” in sports.

“That has been a message I have been driving home for any sports organisation since I became minister.

“That message has really been well received here (in Cashel) and they have given me loads of examples how they hare already well ahead in terms of their plans to progress as a sporting community in Cashel.”

Minister Patrick O'Donovan (centre) pictured at Clerihan Community Field with from left: Senator Garret Ahearn, Cllr John Fitzgerald, Cllr Siobhán Ambrose, Michael Murphy TD and Cllr Tom Acheson

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