GAA County Board Takes All the Sweets

An agenda item from a recent GAA County Board meeting in the Clan Na Gaels sounds like something from the Sopranos.

There was much heated discussion over the fact that the Dowdallshill club received very little money for staging the three Pat's versus Cooley matches at their grounds, St. Brigid's Park.

It transpires that the club received €100 for each game while the County Board walked off, drove off, or ran off, with a total of €54,000 from the events.

The Dowdallshill club were insisting, quite rightly, that their token payments wouldn't cover the preparations necessary for each game.

Changing the arrangements was put to a vote but the very thought of any such change, involving the County Board having to allow the club retain any reasonable amount of the gate money, was defeated by the strength of the County Board members, leaving the Dowdallshill members very disgruntled.

It conjures up visions of the 'Mob' turning up when the game is over, and demanding the proceeds as protection money.

It doesn't seem like reasonable treatment for the hosting club, and one would like to think that the subject should be raised again in the not too distant future. Badabadaboom !

Assets Recovery Agency For The Chop

It is widely rumoured that the Assets Recovery Agency in Northern Ireland is to get the chop. It is also rumoured that this move is part of an agreement between the authorities and Sinn Fein in an effort to secure their cooperation with the PSNI.

However be that as it may, it is also known that the agency in the North had only managed to recover about £8 million since it was set up in 2003, but the actual cost of running the group, since then, totalled over £60 million.

Charlie Bird Going To The Toilet

Let's face it. Charlie Bird, RTE's intrepid chief newshound isn't a 'funnyman' by any stretch of the imagination, and is never seen on the screen when there's good news being handed out.

However in the promo for his documentary-travel program on the Amazon Rainforest, which aires on RTE tomorrow (Thursday) night, he inadvertantly brings a wry smile to your face.

In the promotional video piece, he is to be seen in a dugout canoe on the Amazon, and in his spiel he say's ( with a straight face...typical Charlie) "It's no fun going to the toilet in the Amazon jungle", which surely begs the question as to what kind of fun he gets up to when going to the toilet anywhere else.