Delaney & FAI ‘give 2 fingers to everyone’
Kerr blasts ‘farce’ of an appearance
JOHN Delaney and FAI bigwigs were accused of giving “two fingers to everybody” at an Oireachtas Committee yesterday.
Fianna Fail TD Robert
Troy also claimed there was a public perception of the board being “a cartel”.
It emerged FAI treasurer Eddie Murray was kept in the dark for two years about Mr Delaney’s controversial €100,000 loan.
Committee chair Fergus O’dowd TD called on FAI board members to step down and said a “forensic audit of all of the activities” was now required.
FORMER Ireland manager Brian Kerr has described John Delaney’s appearance before the Oireachtas Committee hearing as “farcical”.
He told Virgin Media News the FAI missed its chance to set the record straight and win back the public’s confidence.
He said: “I think they completely missed an opportunity to inform the public and give them some clarity... some truth and some transparency as to what has been going on.
“They completely missed the beat on that one as far as I’m concerned.
“And John Delaney coming in, making a statement and then basically saying he wasn’t prepared to answer any questions about his time as
CEO .... that was farcical.
“I think the Irish public and the football people will look at that with a jaundiced eye.
“I think the limitations on the group restricted the tone of the questions, the type of the questions.”
Kerr said Mr Delaney needs to go now, adding: “I think that’s been obvious for a while, they’ve moved him sideways and today was about justifying that move.
“Today they’ve acted like ‘we know we’ve been a little bit of a bold boy, but we haven’t really been too bold and somewhere along the line we’re going to be better’ but people have been waiting for them to be much better for years and years... ever since the Genesis Report and they haven’t changed since then.
“So why should we believe they’ll change in the future with this particular group in charge?” JOHN Delaney was accused of “behaving disgracefully” at yesterday’s Oireachtas probe into the FAI’S financial affairs.
And the delegation was also charged with being “evasive, vague, non-committal, ambiguous and choosing to answer what you wish,” by Fianna Fail TD Robert Troy.
Politicians at the Oireachtas Committee said Mr Delaney and his FAI colleagues were “hiding behind the Grant Thornton and Mazars reports” in refusing to flesh out why he provided the association with a controversial €100,000 loan in 2017.
Committee chair Fergus O’dowd TD called on the board of the association to consider their positions following Sport Ireland’s decision to stop funding on Monday.
He said: “I would ask you to think about regime change. People want change and they want it now. The best thing you can do is move on. I think that is needed.”
Mr Delaney – the former FAI CEO and now executive vice president – told how he gave the loan to bridge a short-term cash flow problem as it was close to exceeding its €1.5million overdraft limit.
In his opening statement, he said: “I expressed serious concern and surprise at how the association could have arrived at this position.
“On legal advice I’m precluded from making any further comments at this hearing in relation to the finances of the association or my former role or the €100,000 payment either directly or indirectly.”
Sinn Fein TD Imelda Munster said: “John Delaney has behaved disgracefully today by refusing to answer questions.
“The only good thing is that the public out there have witnessed it. People are scarlet for you.”
FAI President Donal
Conway told the Oireachtas Committee the loan was given in “exceptional” circumstances because there was a “likelihood of insufficient funds” if cheques were cashed or presented all at the same time at the end of April 2017.
One creditor had made a demand for payment which they were “entitled to do”, according to Mr Conway, who said the Delaney cheque was subsequently lodged into an association bank account and honoured. Only three board members – honorary secretary Michael Cody, the then president Tony Fitzgerald and Mr Delaney himself – were aware he was issuing a sixfigure cheque to his employers. Remarkably, the rest of the board – including honorary treasurer Eddie Murray – were not made aware of the matter until March 4. The FAI delegation was unable to