Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the distinguished guests, Deputies and councillors to the Gallery, and I very much welcome Mr. Horan. Cuirim fáilte mhór go dtí an tSeanaid inniu roimhe. Is onóir mhór dom a bheith ag labhairt leis. I am delighted to be addressing the House today, and on behalf of the Fianna Fáil group I congratulate Mr. Horan on his election. His commitment to Dublin GAA over the decades, from volunteering at club level at Na Fianna and selecting at county level and managing county level teams has paid huge dividends for him, the GAA community and the whole of the Dublin supporting community, of which I am part. We are very fortunate to have been very successful - I can see a smirk on Mr. Horan's face - over the last four years. I have attended all of those finals, thankfully and very gratefully, and they are such proud days and create such great memories for Dublin fans. I congratulate Mr. Horan, and I am very glad that, after all the work he put into Dublin and his team and community, that he had the honour of presenting the Sam Maguire Cup to the Dublin team. That must have been a major highlight, and something of which many people would be very envious. He has given so much joy to fans and to clubs and communities. My late father and I used to try to get to as many matches as possible. It was something he really enjoyed. He went not as a politician but as a spectator. We would go to Croke Park and try to get tickets. I have great memories of attending matches with him, and I continue to attend with friends and fellow supporters within the organisation.

The GAA dominates many households in this country. My father-in-law was the captain of the Donegal team in the 1970s, so I cannot escape it. It is a major organisation, and with that fact comes a large amount of responsibility, including responsibility for communities. Communities come together around the GAA, as we have seen over the last day in the context of the tragic road accident in Donegal. I understand all four of the victims were proud supporters of their local GAA clubs. All the GAA clubs came out and rallied and made statements about the tragedy. It shows how much the GAA means to communities and how much communities mean to the GAA.

I echo the comments made about women's football. Some 50,000 people attended the women's football final, which was a huge success for Dublin. It shows how the sport has grown over the years, and I hope that this success leads to more success. I thank Mr. Horan, and wish him very well over the next few years.