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Kilkenny’s loss is Fingal’s gain

The recent announcement of the financial difficulties of Kilkenny City and that club’s decision to stand down from League of Ireland soccer has opened the way for Sporting Fingal to take its place in Division One of the League of Ireland. Originally the new club was looking to come in at a level lower than this but the FAI has now asked the club to step directly up to Division One status to take Kilkenny’s place.

Reacting to the decision of Kilkenny City to resign from the Eircom League of Ireland, Director Fran Gavin, said: “Kilkenny City’s decision to resign is based on practicalities. They do not have sufficient people on board to meet the demands now being placed on clubs in an effort to raise standards throughout the league. Liam Buckley

“When the FAI took over the running of the League we said that there would be a realignment as the demands on clubs to adhere to higher standards increased and this is an example of this.

“Kilkenny City were a well run club. They had very good facilities at Buckley Park and managed their finances prudently but they had reached a crossroads. After a period of reflection they decided that they didn’t want to push on to the next level and I fully understand that and compliment them for their honesty.

“The objective of the Football Association of Ireland is to create a League of Ireland that contains well run clubs, living within their means and offering the best possible facilities to players, officials, spectators, sponsors and media. I have no doubt that other clubs will arrive at the same crossroads as Kilkenny and face the same questions and I hope they answer them as honestly as Kilkenny have.

“The vacancy that now exists in the Eircom League of Ireland First Division will be offered to the highest placed team in the recent IAG process for the A Championship which is Sporting Fingal.”

Earlier this year Fingal County Council announced big plans in the area of soccer which included but also went beyond helping the local clubs. At that stage it lodged an application with the FAI for a licence to have a club in the Eircom League of Ireland as soon as the 2008 season starts.

In the first instance it was planned that the proposed club would operate in a new ‘A’ division which would feed into the current First Division for promotion purposes. The application obviously impressed the FAI but has unexpectedly opened up an attractive and exciting vista for the county.

Speaking to Community Voice at the time of that application, John O’Brien, Senior Executive Officer with Fingal County Council, said it was an obvious move for the Council. “We have an area of a quarter of a million people in the county of Fingal, and the population has a young profile so a major soccer club in the area seems an obvious requirement. It should be stressed that in the Council we are not in the business of running a club, but we will facilitate its creation.”

The question of where to play home fixtures for a club which would nominally represent an area from Balbriggan to Blanchardstown and beyond immediately raised its head. According to John O’Brien “our immediate plans would be to use Morton Stadium in Santry. It is not ideal as it is more suited as an athletics venue, and it is also on the very periphery of the county but it will certainly be suitable in the short-term.”

The initiative of the new club is but one part of Fingal County Council’s Football Development Plan which has been almost two years in the making and involves the close collaboration with former Irish International player, Liam Buckley, who is spearheading the Plan.

The final element of the Council’s proposed Plan would see a long-term plan being put forward to facilitate the construction of a small sports stadium which will preclude the need to go to Morton Stadium.

The Academy facility, estimated to cost over €10 million, will encompass indoor and outdoor all-weather facilities and will serve as a centre of learning for the 60 football clubs in the Fingal area. The complex will cater for all county clubs and act as a tool to increase participation levels across ages, genders and cultures in Fingal.

The Sporting Fingal Football Academy Complex will offer
- Free coaching for Fingal clubs,
- Training and education facilities for almost 1,000 coaches in Fingal
- Community-only time for other teams and other sports
- An invaluable resource to encourage further volunteers through the active involvement of parents and helpers of the County’s 10,000-plus young football players.

Specifically, the complex will be used to target more girls playing football and to promote strong and long-lasting community integration in Irelands fastest growing and most diverse county. The centre is also expected to serve as an FAI approved, ‘Regional Centre’ where the range of FAI approved coaching programmes can be delivered for Fingal footballers.

Commenting on the proposed development, John O’Brien, said the Academy complex is just one element of an integrated plan which has three interrelated elements but one central theme at its heart – Fingal’s community.

He said: "The Plan is founded on using sport as a vehicle for bringing our communities together, encouraging greater sporting activity and providing a workable means for real social integration within and across the 100 nationalities represented in Fingal.

"The Academy complex will be best in class in the country, a state-of-the-art venue which will provide the best facilities currently available for developing football in Ireland. It will also greatly complement the planned FAI National Academy Campus at Abbotstown."

Liam Buckley is naturally very supportive of the plans. "This concept is unique in Ireland and I hope that having experienced football and its effect on communities abroad, I can bring something different to the people of Fingal through the Council’s Football Plan.

“The key to successfully developing the community through this project in Fingal is to engage not just the children and young people, but adults, coaches, parents, and helpers.

He continued: "Given that we’re building from scratch, this plan presents us with a massive opportunity. We’re confident that by establishing the Academy complex and Sporting Fingal FC and, in particular, by working with the local clubs in Fingal, we can grasp that opportunity for the benefit of everyone in this unique county.”

It is not unreasonable for the county of Fingal, with a rapidly growing population now estimated at 250,000, to aspire to having a senior club in the League of Ireland. The aspiration that this club may provide a cohesive focus for a diverse county is to be lauded.

However, the dose of reality that has been dispensed to Kilkenny City after two decades in the League of Ireland and an awareness of the difficulties virtually all Irish clubs have in keeping heads above water in this sport suggests that there will be many a landmine along this narrow winding road ahead for Sporting Fingal.

Talking about creating a focus for the Fingal community is one thing. Achieving it in reality is an entirely more complex matter and the challenge should not be under-estimated however unexpected and welcome the initial progress has been.

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