It’s crazy that Cork still don’t have a training base – Morgan

CORK football legend Billy Morgan believes the Rebels missed a trick when opting to redevelop Páirc Uí Chaoimh rather than build a new centre of excellence.

Numerous counties around the country have opted to build a training base for their county teams but Cork remain without such a centre.

Morgan believes that some of the money spent on the revamp could have been held back to develop a base for the county.

“Cork still have no place to train,” Morgan said.

“You look at most counties now, they have centres of excellence. I thought Cork would have developed some place with a few pitches. Like, in my time, we were going cap in hand to clubs and looking for some place to train and it’s the same at the moment, which is crazy.

“My own feeling on it was that maybe don’t spend as much money on the stadium and develop some place with four or five pitches for your inter-county teams. We don’t have that.

“I think it’s very disappointing. You have to have a home – all the other counties...Kerry have developed a very good one, Limerick... you know, most of the counties have a home to train in.”

He pointed out that the county could have acquired a plot of land on the edge of Cork city.

“There was an area on the outskirts of Cork city that was available and UCC have actually bought it now.

“Cork didn’t go for it. They said it was too much money. I didn’t think so at the time.

“Where, in the years to come, where are you going to get another area similar to that? I don’t know. It’s disappointing.”