Council has a part to play in stadium development plans
DUNDALK’S ‘home’ European games in Dublin each took on the welcome guise of family reunions.
Each instalment seemed to collect more and more participants, to such an extent that last Thursday night’s game against AZ Alkmaar became an exclusive ‘all-Dundalk family affair’. ‘Outsiders’ were excluded by the fact that almost all of the 5,000 tickets made available to home fans were purchased in Dundalk by fans travelling to the game or for use by family members.
Sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, cousins and Dundalk people working and living outside of the town delighted in the opportunity to meet and mingle with fellow townspeople who had travelled to Tallaght.
Indeed there were more Dundalk people sampling the prematch food, drink and banter and renewing old friendships in the Maldron Hotel across the road from the stadium than in a normal Christmas Eve in Dundalk’s hostelries.
Belatedly, the management of the Maldron Hotel woke up to the revenue bonanza that Dundalk games brought, laying on a better service for the latter games, but stubbornly refusing to replace the colours in their bars of the permanent tenants in Tallaght Stadium, Shamrock Rovers, with a few black and white colours.
Of course the good fortune that the Maldron and the owners of Tallaght Stadium, Dublin Council, experienced because of Dundalk’s European adventure led to the inevitable question about the loss of that revenue to bars, restaurants, hotels, guesthouses and taxi drivers in Dundalk because the club had to play all but one of their six ‘home’ European games in Dublin due to the Oriel Park ground failing to meet UEFA standards.
Naturally it would have meant that the family reunions would have had to take place in Dundalk, for no doubt the sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and cousins would have travelled home for the European matches once they became converts to Stephen Kenny’s exciting brand of football.
The prospect has been enhanced now that the deeply frustrating matter of the lease over Oriel Park has been sorted, allowing Oriel Park to be upgraded to stage all of Dundalk’s European matches in the future.
It had taken longer that many anticipated and for one party to the negotiations, Louth County Council, to realise that they, as an integral part of the community with a responsibility to all townspeople, must be active participants in the development of sports facilities in the town, and become much more pro-active in events - like Dundalk’s European adventure - that promote the status of the town.
A reminder of this obligation on local authorities came recently at the book launch by Glenmuir FC to celebrate their 40th year. For years after their foundation the club was struggling for a permanent home until the County Manager of the time, John Quinlivan, intervened and eased the path to enable the club to purchase a plot of ground on terms that the club could manage and on which they have built one of the best sporting facilities in the town.
It is that kind of vision that is needed now to provide Dundalk with the ground of which townspeople can be proud and in which we can stage all our European matches.
Unfortunately last Thursday’s ‘reunion’ didn’t go as expected, for the team, nervous and lacking sharpness, started sluggishly, conceded a bad early goal and never really recovered.
Still, all is not lost and if Kenny can work the oracle again - why should we doubt him? - we can conceive our own miracle, appropriately in the Holy Land on a special feast day, December 8th.
Could it be our own immaculate conception? Let’s hope so, for the magical journey for this talented group of Dundalk players does not deserve to end.