A hectic year for Westmeath fixtures secretaries
Undoubtedly one of the most stressful roles in Westmeath GAA is that of the fixtures secretary and current incumbent Keith Quinn had to deal with approximately 600 matches over the course of the season. His underage counterpart Peter Collins oversaw 1,300 underage games during the 2024 season.
Between appointing referees, sourcing venues and dealing with the demanding area of discipline, the workload of the secretaries is considerable. County Secretary Brendan Shaw acknowledged this in his report to County Convention.
Mr Shaw called for an earlier finish to the club championships in 2025 to help avoid inclement weather and a repeat of the scenario whereby the senior hurling final had to be abandoned. A more prudent use of the county grounds, TEG Cusack Park, is also called for.
“The CCC (Competitions Control Committee) led by secretary Keith Quinn completed in the region of 600 fixtures in 2024 and for this they deserve huge credit. I would like to thank all members of management and CCC for all their help scanning tickets at all the various venues throughout the year. As an observation this year, I would be recommending that our championships finish earlier so as the finals are played in better weather,” penned Mr Shaw.
“This may prove a challenge for 2025, but I would strongly urge the CCC to consider an earlier finish for championships. Also, the CCC should also consider hosting more games outside of TEG Cusack Park, this would alleviate the pressure on TEG Cusack Park.”
The CCC’s chairman is Frank Mescall and it is one of the busiest committees in the whole organisation.
Meanwhile, Peter Collins, who resigned from the position of Coiste na nÓg Secretray, oversaw an extremely busy underage fixtures programme that included over 1,000 fixtures.
Mr Collins acknowledged the support of the adult CCC in getting competitions completed.
"Thanks to Keith Quinn and all on the County CCC, for your co-operation regarding co-ordination of fixture and referee’s during a very busy schedule. Thanks for all the support and advice. To run near 1,300 fixtures while also trying to work around Senior fixtures would not be possible without the work involved with Keith, so on a personal level, thank you," he wrote in his annual report to County Convention.