Moffatt and McNicholas elected to Connacht Council
Newly-elected Mayo GAA Connacht Council delegates Liam Moffatt and Paddy McNicholas with newly-installed Mayo GAA Communications Officer, Paul Cunnane, at the Mayo GAA County Board annual convention at St. John’s Centre, Knock, last Sunday. Picture: David Farrell Photography
A number of motions up for discussion at last Sunday’s Mayo GAA County Convention are set to be referred back to the county’s Competition Controls Committee.
Two of these motions came from Westport GAA Club. The first being that calls for any club that has more than 75 registered adult playing members to be permitted, with the approval of the Mayo County Board, to enter an additional (second) team in the Intermediate Championship, provided that the club’s first team competes in the Senior Championship. The second called for clubs to submit to the County Board a list of players - the number of which shall be determined by the County Board – designated as their senior squad following the conclusion of the league competitions. These players shall be ineligible to participate with the club’s intermediate team under any circumstances for the duration of that year’s championship.
Westport delegate Willie McDonagh said the purpose of this motion is for the ’40 or so men who after August 1, 2025, were not in a position to play competitive football’ in the county.
“What we’re looking for is meaningful football for these young men at the same time as footballers in the county are afforded this opportunity.” His comments were supported by Knockmore delegate Philip Breslin, who said that while he did not agree with the 75-player stipulation, it would be a move in the right direction to allow some clubs with a lot of players to push their players into better competition.
Kiltimagh delegate Paddy McNicholas said if the motion is accepted, the whole structure of the championship will have to change as two teams will have to be relegated from intermediate down to junior, adding that it could also have a big bearing on the last round of the intermediate championship group stage as B teams cannot be relegated or promoted.
Mayo GAA chairman Seamus Tuohy said some issues will need clarification and the CCC will set up a sub-committee in the New Year to see what alternative options there is for B footballers for Knockmore, Westport and other clubs it affects.
Crossmolina’s motion for playing the Premier Junior Championships on alternate weekends than the main Mayo Club Championships has also been referred to the CCC, as well Aghamore’s motion introduction of preliminary quarter-finals for the Mayo Senior and Intermediate Championships, a review of the structure of the Junior Championships, as well as a possible competition for players who have not played Senior, Intermediate or Exclusive Junior Championships in 2026. Both these motions came from Kiltimagh.
Another motion from Westport allowing clubs to record their own games up to an including the county final regardless of whether the match is being broadcast live or recorded by a commercial entity (such as RTÉ, Mayo GAA TV or TG4) will have clarification sought by Croke Park on GDPR grounds, while a motion from Davitts that GAA Central Council conduct a comprehensive review of the Injury Benefit Fund, as the current maximum payout of €5,500 no longer reflects the true cost of treating serious injuries, will await an outcome from a GAA Ard Chomhairle review.
The only election on the day was the contest for the two positions as Connacht GAA Council delegates.
Crossmolina’s Liam Moffatt and Kiltimagh’s Paddy McNicholas were elected, defeating Cill Chomáin’s John Walker, who’s own five-term as Mayo GAA Communications Officer has come to end. Succeeding him is Paul Cunnane of Davitts, who previously served as Communications Officer, or PRO as it was then, from 2015 to 2020. All other County Board officers were elected in block for 2026.
