GAA President Christy Cooney said the organisation is behind NSW GAA's plans to find a permanent home. (Pic: Darryl Kennedy)

Gaelic Games in New South Wales has received a massive boost with a very clear indication from the head of the GAA that the association will back plans to find a permanent home in Sydney.

President of the GAA Christy Cooney has declared that establishing a permanent home for the New South Wales GAA is now a top priority for the association.

Mr Cooney, in Australia for the International Rules Series, told the Irish Echo that the GAA would be prepared to partner with the NSW GAA and, he hoped, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in Dublin, to purchase a new home for Gaelic games in Sydney.

It was, he said, “an absolute necessity” to secure a home facility.

“It is a priority for the association to support our clubs and the board to acquire a facility that would be suitable for playing Gaelic games. We’ll be very supportive of plans that the board have to move that forward.”

He referred to the recent development in New York’s Rockland County as a possible template for what may occur.

In that scenario, the local clubs and GAA came up with a third of the cost, Croke Park delivered a third and the Irish Government donated the rest.

Mr Cooney added that the funding structure would only work if  “the plans were authentic and deliverable” and that “the clubs and the board themselves are capable of delivering them.”

But, he said, “we will not be found wanting in our support, all things being equal.”

“There are so many young Irish people now in the Sydney area, we have a responsibility to support whatever project is put in place.”

The Corkman was due to meet both the NSW GAA board and representatives of the clubs in Sydney on Sunday but flight disruption caused by the Qantas industrial dispute forced the cancellation of the meeting that had been planned.

He will meet with some representatives of the association on the Gold Coast at the weekend.

The NSW GAA has been the subject of criticism in some quarters after losing its playing grounds in Sydney’s west.

Only last week, they secured a deal with Rockdale Rugby Club to share facilities, narrowly avoiding the humiliation of having no ground at all for 2012.

Reports in this newspaper and on television in Ireland highlighting the lack of training and playing facilities in Sydney led to the issues being discussed at Croke Park.

Australia’s GAA affiliates have received little funding from Croke Park in recent years but, according to Mr Cooney, in the time of his presidency, no application for funding had been received.

The GAA chief travelled to Gaelic Park in Melbourne to meet with Victorian GAA officials and was due to visit the Queensland GAA’s home in Willawong after our conversation.

The GAA President paid tribute to the local leadership but added that it was important to have renewal and encouraged young club administrators to come forward and apply for the top roles.

“In any association, you need the fresh impetus of new blood. I understand there are some very good young people who are inclined to move the process on very strongly at club level and we would welcome that,” he said.

He paid tribute to Australasian GAA President Seamus Sullivan and Secretary Gerard Roe, who have been in charge of the local association for almost 25 years.

“They have done an outstanding job for our association but they aren’t going to last forever. We need people to come in behind them and work with them and be prepared to take those roles in the future. It’s very important and I’ll be encouraging clubs and officials to do so.”

Mr Cooney said he was very supportive of Irish players coming to Australia to try their luck at Australian Rules and he paid tribute to the efforts of the expat players in the first test.

Asked whether he was concerned about the GAA losing players to the Australian code he was unequivocal.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “You could count on the fingers of two hands the amount of Irish players who are here playing Aussie Rules.

“If the players are good enough, and they want to play professional sport, I don’t believe we have any right to stand in their way.

“Players who have played GAA at a very early age have gone and played soccer and other sports so why should it be any different for AFL?

“It’s an opportunity for them to play professional football and I would wish them all the best.

“Some have been very successful at it; some have not been as successful and have had to come home.”

Mr Cooney, seen as a reforming president of the association, said he wanted to explore ways in which the local GAA and the AFL could work more closely together.

“There may be ways that the AFL can assist us in establishing where grounds may or may not be available and how we can deal with that.”

He said he was satisfied that the current series had been well promoted by the AFL. A major downpour in Melbourne just ahead of the first test had impacted on the attendances, which was a disappointing 23,000, he said.

He added that he was confident about the future of the series. “Our players want to play it; our association is very supportive of it. Our fans come to see it very strongly in Ireland. I don’t see any reason why it should not continue.”

While seen as a reformer, on the issue of amateurism, he is a traditionalist.

“[Players getting paid] will not happen,” he said bluntly.

“We have an agreement with our Gaelic Players Association (GPA) that there is a recognition that pay for play is not on the agenda,” he said.