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It has been a massive weekend for Silverbridge man Jarlath Burns, who was installed as the 41st Uachatarán Cumann Lúthchleas Gael at yesterday's 2024 GAA Congress in Newry. Following the two day congress he made a celebratory homecoming to his Silverbridge club last night and found time today to take in the Armagh Donegal Game at the Athletic Grounds. Just the start of three very busy years at the head of what is now a worldwide movement.
It was quite a coup for the Canal Court Hotel to host such a prestigious event but nowhere could have done it better. Speaking about owners John and Paddy McFarland in his opening speech Burns said "As good GAA men as you will ever find. They had the courage to build this hotel in this town at a time when Newry was seen by many as a wasteland with no jobs, no industry and no hope. Newry is now a thriving city in which we can all be proud; is it in Armagh, or is it in Down? To be honest, it doesn’t matter. It’s a super hotel in a great town and it is a dream come true for its owners that we are here this weekend."
The new President said "As I stand here in this town, my local town, many places which have formed me are very close by and close to my heart. One mile away, Coláiste Cholmain, the school where Michael Cusack himself once taught and where the great Dan McCartan taught me. Three miles out the road, St. Paul’s Bessbrook, where I have spent the last 34 years as teacher and principal and to be honest, is a place I will miss profoundly over the next three.
"Next door to the school is Craobh Rua hurling club which put a hurling stick into the hands of my sons and offered them the chance to play this magnificent game; an opportunity I never got myself and of course 10 miles away, Silverbridge, the place more than most which formed me, moulded me and created the person I have become."
Currently Burns is secretary of the club, a position he intends to remain (subject to the club agreeing at their agm!).
Armagh runs deep in his veins, playing for Armagh for 13 years and captaining his team to winning the Ulster Final in 1999 under the reins of Brian Canavan and Brian McAlinden. Burns has been Principal at St Paul's High School, Bessbrook since 2013, a role that he will have to forgo for the next three years. A school spokesperson said "We extend our heartfelt congratulations and best wishes to him as he assumes this prestigious and significant national leadership role. His dedication and passion have always inspired us, and we are proud to see him embark on this new journey."
Speaking of the changes that are coming in the GAA, with the women and men's association's due to be amalgamated by 2027 Burns said "We know that our Association faces challenges every day, change sometimes arrives at our door and for which we are unprepared and in other times, we anticipate change and create strategic plans to address what we think will happen in the future. In some respects, the current talks being led by Mary McAleese between the three Gaelic associations are a mixture of the two. Our clubs are largely ahead of us and a considerable number have been operating the one club model for many years.
"My own club has been transformed since females began playing a proper role in leadership and on the field, though I acknowledge the anticipation of full integration is matched by understandable apprehension in some quarters at how this will look at the level of inter-county activity. I promise we will move decisively, but sensibly towards this goal and I welcome today the group of girls from my school who told me they were coming here to ensure I mentioned them in my speech and who will hold me to driving this project to completion."
Speaking about the current conversation on the constitutional position Burns added "The GAA’s position on the constitutional issue, as laid out in Treoir Oifigiúil, is no secret and we remain wedded to that aspiration via purely peaceful means. Our games have always been organised on an all-island basis, before they went truly global, and this approach provided succour and assurance to our people in the North when Croke Park seemed metaphorically a very long way away during some very dark days. The island is changing, and the GAA will have a role to play in that change when the time comes."
In conclusion the new President added "My plans are ambitious, they’re not fancy, or grandiose. But they are value-led and based on what you have told me what we need to do. Our amateur status, our UNESCO game of hurling, the dream of unifying our Gaelic games Associations, being realistic about our infrastructure agenda and of course, the small matter of Gaelic football and its current standing.
"All of these could be controversial, or radical or even transformational. We don’t know. But each and every one of us has the chance today to contribute and to write the next chapter of the history of Cumann Lúthchleas Gael. It will take us all – working together – to put us back in control of this great organisation so we can make it reach its full potential as the greatest sporting and cultural association in the world."
Tongue in cheek yes, but perhaps the best line of his maiden speech reflected on how he got here "My family have enjoyed the good days and also the not so good ones, on the field and off it, and because they remember me as a youngster - I know they are secretly scratching their heads wondering how the hell did our Jarlath get to be President of the GAA."
