*Kieran Keating. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
BRINGING back seeding to the Munster SFC has been labelled as “one of my lowlights of the year” by Clare GAA Chairman, Kieran Keating.
In his address to Clare GAA Convention, Keating who was returned unopposed for a fifth term criticised the move of Munster Council to reintroduce seeing to the provincial football championship.
He stated, “The decision to reintroduce seeding into the Munster Senior Football Championship is, I believe, a regressive and unnecessary move. We had extensive debate of the merits of the arguments put forward by the Council Executive to explain their rationale, and the arguments we proffered to resist the change so I won’t rehash those here. The recently voted delay in implementing for next year means that our advantage of two weeks additional break between league and championship will pertain for 2026, which of itself is welcome. But the decision itself remains one of my lowlights of the year”.
Looking back on the year, Keating noted, “This year of course didn’t match 2024 in terms of major success and silverware; nonetheless there were some small wins, and some not so small, on and off the fields of play in the past year”.
Peter Keane’s season as Clare senior football manager was not helped by the absence of the McGrath Cup which deprived them of a chance to adapt to the new rules, the Chairman said. “The absence of a Munster League warm-up was a disadvantage when we had a new coaching ticket and a raft of new rules to adapt to”.
Keating continued, “After the review of the season and meeting with the board and players, Peter Keane decided he wouldn’t be able to continue to travel to Clare and commit the time required by senior inter-county management. We moved quickly to appoint Paul Madden to the role, a job he has taken on with great enthusiasm as his team begins preparation for 2026”.
Preparation for the county’s hurlers was impacted by the success of winning the All-Ireland, the Naomh Eoin clubman stated. “Our senior hurlers had the joyous formalities that come in the aftermath of an All-Ireland success; the various functions and club events, the team holiday, the medals presentation night, all of which undoubtedly ate into preparation time for the current season. A hospital-ward worth of injuries added to the early-season challenges, and relegation to Division 2 for 2026 was the outcome”.
Well wishes were issued to Brian Lohan and his management following the extension of his term by a further three years.
One of Keating’s highlights for 2025 was the Munster semi-final win for Terence Fahy’s Clare U20 hurlers against Cork in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. “The Munster U20 Final against hot favourites Tipperary saw another rare occurrence, the black card penalty in hurling, which unfortunately for us appeared to be both harsh and significant. Our lads battled against the odds but couldn’t hold Tipp, going down by five points having led by three at the time of the sending off. This group have given us some great performances through their underage years with county teams and we are delighted that Terence will again take charge of our U20s in 2026”.
According to Keating, there was “notable achievements” off the field in 2025. “Planning permission was secured for the full development at Caherlohan, a major milestone in that project. The work required will take a couple of years and there are still some steps to complete before our Large Scale Sports Infrastructure Fund (LSSIF) funding can be drawn down, but the planning permission was a key element. In regard to Caherlohan, the first part to go to tender a few weeks ago was the full-sized 4G pitch which is supported by a Sports Capital grant of €489k plus substantial support from Munster Council. The balance of the funding required for that element will be taken from last year’s Win a House profits. That project element, plus some initial stages of the LSSIF should be delivered before next year’s Convention”.
Keating was “optimistic” the Cloister Car Park would be completed in 2026, two years on from the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with Clare County Council. The agreement of this deal for the Council to lease the car park from Clare GAA in February 2024 had intended for works to be finished by the end of 2024.
Bernard Keane’s departure from the County Executive after five years as Munster Council delegate was acknowledged by the Chairman. “Bernard is seeking election in the upcoming Munster GAA Convention in January, to the position of Munster PRO, and we need to seek support for Bernard in that contest from other counties that we may have influence in”.
Patrick O’Connor’s efforts as demographics officer while also managing family, work, farming and hurling commitments were also referenced by the Chairman.
Work commitments which involve frequent travel to Asia were among the factors for Brian Fitzgerald not seeking re-election as Treasurer, Keating said. “Thanks for all the work Brian and for reporting another strong year of revenue growth and substantial retained earnings for the Board”.
He continued, “Indeed much of the credit for the improved income and expenditure situation of Clare GAA must go to our soon-departing Head of Operations, Deirdre Murphy. Deirdre has done outstanding work on many fronts, including governance, human resources, commercialisation and revenue growth, cost control, grant qualification, CapEx, project management, and a range of other headings. She leaves Clare GAA in a much better and stronger place than she found it, and that is the measure we would all like to be able to claim when our time is done. Well done and thanks again Deirdre.
“Deirdre’s replacement will be Ann Marie Moran, from Corofin. Ann Marie was the last woman standing after a rigorous interview and selection process, and I look forward to working with you Ann Marie to further deliver the culture, commercial and strategic development that Clare GAA will need in the years ahead”.
