The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
GAA CLUB NEEDS A NEW PITCH AFTER POPULATION SURGE
POPULATION OF MILLTOWN SOARED OVER 500 PER CENT IN JUST 10 YEARS
WHILE many communities across the county have been decimated by emigration Milltown is suffering from the opposite problem.
Milltown experienced unprecedented growth during the boom when its population increased five-fold, 10 times faster than the rest of Kerry and two-and-a-half times faster than anywhere else in the State.
While it is Kerry’s fastest growing town this has brought its own problems as the area’s infrastructure struggles to keep pace with the surging population.
This is particularly well illustrated by the plight of Milltown Castlemaine GAA Club which – unlike many other rural clubs – now has too many players for its facilities.
As a result the mid Kerry club has just launched an appeal for land or sites in the area so it can expand.
Milltown-Castlemaine GAA Club says it needs to either source additional adjacent facilities or to relocate to a new and larger site to cater for the increased membership, particularly at under-age level.
The club is inviting anyone with suitable sites in the greater Milltown-Castlemaine area to contact them.
Between 2002 and 2011, the population of Milltown increased by over 60 percent and Castlemaine also saw a significant growth in population.
The local GAA club is now catering for up to 300 young people from under six to minor level and the existing facility in Milltown is struggling to cater for the unprecedented demand.
“At the moment, a lot of rural GAA clubs are struggling to field teams because of depopulation. With us, it’s precisely the opposite,” said club chairman, Podge Leane.
“The growth in the club at under-age level in recent years has been enormous. On an average Thursday night, there can be up to 150 children using or looking to use the field and going forward we simply won’t be able to accommodate those kinds of numbers with just one field for the obvious reasons of health and safety,” he said.
“We are trying to juggle things all the time to accommodate everyone – including the local schools – and that is becoming more and more difficult. We hope that a situation won’t arise in which we will not be able to accommodate all young people but to avoid that we need to expand, and quickly,” said Mr Leane.
The club – which won the All-Ireland Intermediate Club Championship in 2012 and has produced many inter-county stars – has been based at the Paddy Burke Memorial Park between Milltown and Castlemaine since the early 1960s.
It has served the club well but it doesn’t have a second pitch for games and training. And given its central location in the county, the pitch is often used for other inter-club league and championship matches, adding further pressure.
“For a lot of young families who moved to Milltown and Castlemaine during the boom, their children are growing up now and beginning to play football and we want to be able to cater for them. Gaelic Games give young people a great social outlet, help to build self-esteem and are a source of good physical and mental health,” said Podge Leane.
The club executive are seeking landowners in the greater Milltown-Castlemaine area who might have suitable sites for the development of up to two fields and club facilities and has been working since its most recent AGM – where the matter was discussed – to advance the issue.
“We would obviously be very sorry to leave what has been the club’s home for so many decades and which has served us incredibly well but any GAA club must look to the future.”
“We urgently require extra land either adjacent to the current pitch or within a short radius to allow us to cater for the stars of tomorrow. Anybody interested should contact any club officer and we would be happy to discuss any ideas with anyone,” said the club.