RISK ANALYSIS AND THE CLUB
A recent County Board meeting devoted a lot of time to the necessary evil of Insurance for player and property. The presentation by a Croke Park official was helpful in clarifying many issues. The difference between running a club today and thirty years ago is the staggering amount of money that Clubs must gather every year to meet their commitments. Most of these costs relate to insuring that the Club, County and the Association in general is adequately covered for the many risks that are part and parcel of everyday life for the gaelic player and administrator.
Most Clubs have a vehicle of some sort for grass cutting duties. The humble Ferguson 20 or ride on lawn mower languishes in a shed literally waiting for its day in the sun. It will probably come as a surprise to most that these mechanically propelled units are subject to the road traffic acts even in the private club car park. Insuring these units would cost very little but it is something that would not occur to most Clubs especially when they are never taken on the public road.
There was some dismay during the 125 celebrations when it was discovered that “bouncy castles” are not covered under the GAA scheme. Again as in the case of our humble grass cutting machine everything is not as simple as it looks. Insurance for “Bouncy Castles” can be acquired but only if the area is supervised so that children of a similar age play on the device at the same time. The insurers feel that older bigger children using the device at the same time as younger kids constitutes an unacceptable risk. This has been borne out by claims made against private individuals following accidents at birthday parties. One claim involved permanent brain damage so the seriousness of the situation should be evident to all.
Mobile goal posts are the cause of accidents every year. Several claims involve the loss of a finger. These posts should be in a secure area out of the reach of children especially. Adults should be aware of the danger of wearing rings when moving the posts. Again they look very harmless when left on the grounds somewhere when not in use but the evidence is that some thought should be put into their movement and storage.
Some things are outside our control of course and the arson attacks on Clubs in Northern Counties have resulted in substantial claims.
The PLAYER INJURY SCHEME is not an insurance scheme but a fund administered on behalf of the GAA. Under rule the injury must be reported within 60 days of the event. This requires the filling out of the first two pages of the claim form. There is no requirement to identify the amount of the claim at this stage but it must be reported. The scheme endeavours to make up for lost income and medical expenses. The player will be compensated for loss of earnings, that is money that would have been earned on top of sick pay and other insurance entitlements. The advice for self employed people is to have cover of their own as back up. Physiotherapy will only be covered from now on where the Doctor prescribes it. In Sligo this service is free of charge when the patient is referred by the GP.
The scheme is funded by the registration fee plus 6% of gate receipts. The claims history of a county as well as the number of clubs in that County is taken into account when assessing the cost to be borne by each Coiste Chontae.
125 YEAR
There are several initiatives progressing to mark this very special milestone in the GAA’s calendar. In 1984 a book was published which traced the progress of the Association in Sligo over the previous 100 years. The 125 Committee are hoping to produce a book in the Autumn which would cover the last 125 years. This would mean that the original ’84 publication will now be saved electronically as part of the new book.
The records of the last 25 yrs. have been amassed by sifting through Sligo Champion newspaper reports and with reference to the records of Tommy Kilcoyne who was secretary for most of that time. This painstaking work has been carried out in the main by Rory O’Beirne, Jonathan Davey and John Mc Tiernan, the editor of the ’84 publication. The toil of these scribes will now be pulled together by the committee in order to produce the 125 book.
A series of interviews are being aired on Ocean FM on Sunday evenings after six o’clock. These 20 minute broadcasts cover every aspect of the Association’s work throughout the County with players from every code, administrators and characters giving their unique spin on what it means to them to be part of it all.
It is intended that Club Final day will form a big part of the County’s 125 celebrations. A special programme will be produced for that day with a mention of all clubs and activities. We would welcome any ideas that you may have that would help to mark the day. Pro.sligo@gaa.ie
MAYO PROGRESS
Mayo were worthy Connacht champions this year after their defeat of Galway in the final. It could have all gone wrong for O’Mahoney’s men however when they indulged themselves in a pass the ball routine in order to play down the clock. These antics are not often seen in gaelic football and after Mayo lost possession and Galway’s Nicky Joyce got through for a goal to level things it is doubtful if they will form part of Mayo’s game plan from now on. It took a last minute Gardiner point to save our neighbours blushes.