Fanning sees off Dignam for Leinster role

FINTAN FANNING was appointed as Wicklow GAA’s Leinster Council Rep at the recent County Board meeting in Balinakill after a two-horse race between himself and Rathnew’s Bobby Dignam.

The role had been vacant since the resignation of Avondale’s Billy Byrne earlier in the year who departed in protest after John Evans had stepped down as Wicklow county football manager.

Avondale’s Victor O’Shaughnessy asked how long it had been since Billy Byrne had resigned and he was informed by County chairman Martin Fitzgerald that it had been in August.

O’Shaughnessy asked if the appointment could not have been made sooner but Martin Fitzgerald informed him that they had hoped that Billy Byrne would reconsider his decision. The Avondale delegate said that ‘there was never any question of Billy reconsidering’.

Martin Fitzgerald refuted that suggestion, but

O’Shaughnessy said that he knew it to be the case.

‘You know that, but everybody else didn’t,’ said Fitzgerald.

O’Shaughnessy then probed the Chairman as to who was nominated for the position at the timeof the deadline for nominations, 5pm on November 1. ‘Both candidates,’ replied Martin Fitzgerald. County secretary Chris O’Connor interjected at this point to explain that one nomination was received on October 24 and the other on October 30.

‘So why then did we go for an extension,’ asked O’Shaughnessy.

‘We didn’t,’ replied O’Connor, ‘that was just an error. I thought the two of them were the eighth (December 8). I didn’t look back on the other one being the first, but there was definitely no extension.’

‘Both nominations were in before November 1,’ said Martin Fitzgerald.

After the vote was taken and counted it was announced that Fintan Fanning had won the vote by 34 votes to 11