Senan Kilbride in action for Roscommon at the Hyde.

Positive news for roscommons dr hyde park


Although Sunday’s Allianz Football League game against Meath - which was set for Dr Hyde Park - fell victim to the snow, there was some good news for the ground over the weekend, as the county and stadium received positive remarks from GAA Ard Stiúrthóir Páraic Duffy at Congress.

Responding to a series of comments and questions on his report, which was published in the lead up to the meeting, Mr Duffy congratulated Roscommon GAA on bringing the Dr Hyde Park ownership issue to a conclusion.

He paid tribute to the officers involved, on all sides, and to present Chairperson Michael Fahey and Central Council Delegate Michael McGuire for the role they played in the process. He also indicated that work could now proceed, in consultation with Croke Park, and that Dr Hyde Park will get its dues.

Sunday’s game in Dr Hyde Park was due to be an historic occasion, as it would have marked the first game at the venue which was played under the control of the County Committee. Roscommon Gaels signed an agreement with the County Board last December and, last week the final pieces in the jigsaw were put in place with representatives of the Connacht Council and Croke Park signing the agreement.

Writing in Sunday’s programme, County Chairperson Michael Fahey said: “This agreement is a huge milestone in the history of Hyde Park as the County Committee has the opportunity to begin the planning of a greatly improved Dr Hyde Park. As a Committee, Roscommon are well aware of the need for significant investment in Dr Hyde Park to get the stadium up to modern standards”.

A Stadium work group was established after the agreement was signed and they have been busy working on plans for the improvement of the stadium and plan to present their findings to the County Executive in the near future, after which time the county will seek permission from Croke Park to proceed with a planning application and a parallel financial plan to fund the development.

He went on to say that the working group overseeing the planning and development process are anxious to try and complete the development in an efficient manner and are aiming for a completed process by 2017, and asked for supporters to be patient during the development of the upgraded stadium.

He concluded by taking the opportunity to thank the many members of the outgoing Dr Hyde Park Committee and Roscommon Gaels, who have had control of Dr Hyde Park for over 40 years.

“The work done by these people over the years deserve great credit. They had the foresight to purchase this property in the late 1960s and then commence the development of the ground and for over 30 years Dr Hyde Park was among the premier grounds in the country. However, changing ownership and funding criteria and greatly increased demands to meet health and safety demands meant that control had to pass on to the County Committee. The recently completed agreement with Roscommon Gaels should be beneficial to all parties and I look forward to continuing to work with Roscommon Gaels through the newly reconstituted Dr Hyde Park Committee”.

Roscommon GAA will keep supporters updated on developments and hope to see a large crowd visit to the Stadium for the upcoming Allianz League game against Galway on March 29, and the rescheduled game against Meath, on March 22 at 2pm.