Emmet Moloney writes for the 'Farmers Journal' and is a former sports columnist with 'The Kerryman'.

It’s AGM time for GAA clubs around the country and the usual set of arguments will undoubtedly be given another airing. Emmet Moloney writes...

December is a great month for good intentions in the sporting world. Every club up and down the country holds an AGM and pledges are made to win next year’s Junior B championship. Finances are discussed and the treasurer speaks solemnly from the top table. Times are hard, lads. Next year will be tougher again. The floodlights will have to wait. And those jerseys, ragged as they are, will have to do for another year. We’ll have to start pushing the lotto again. And the secretary will try to step down and he won’t be let.

The motions will provoke debate. As sure as God, there will be one or two mired in our Republican heritage. While living in London in the late ’80s I attended an AGM where seven motions were discussed and passed, all of which called for the British government to get out of the North! We went from a discussion about going back to Junior to a discussion about getting the British out of Ireland ... seamlessly!

Aon Gno Eile (Any Other Business) is always entertaining. There’s always one or two. They have been waiting in the long grass and now is their chance. Up they’ll stand. They have kept quiet long enough.

“Mister Chairman, why didn’t we win the senior/U-21/Minor/U-16 championship? We had the best crop of hurlers we’ve ever had.” He’ll have a buddy at the back of the hall who will agree with him and then the dreaded drink will be introduced.

“Mister Chairman, we have a problem with discipline in this club.” That’s AGM code for the “the players were out drinking the night before a match” argument. Then the fun really starts. The Treasurer’s Report, which was passed without a murmur two hours ago is suddenly brought up again. Now that we know the senior/U-21/Minor team are all alcoholics, why are we spending so much money on them? Leading the charge will be the fella who last led them to a county title. There was no drink at all on his watch. A team of pioneers, if you don’t mind.

It all calms down, of course. There will be a consensus at the end that the seniors/U-21s/Minors are all grand lads, apart from the one or two. No names are ever mentioned. And we don’t talk about it again until the AGM next year. Then we all head for the pub afterwards to talk about the AGM. Was I right to say that? What did you think of yer man? Of course we know where he’s coming from!

Pat Shortt hasn’t done The AGM yet. I’m sure he’ll get to it. Sure it writes itself.

These scenes will be repeated in clubhouses around the four provinces. And remember, almost every club in the country now has its own clubhouse. Most clubs have a couple of pitches. Almost every club near a town is trying to cope with the influx of younger members. And no eight- or 12-year-old should be left without a hurley. All must be catered for. All have to be catered for.

But it’s not easy. Mentors are needed, sliotars are needed, organisation is needed – or these kids will be lost to us. Lost to soccer which can offer most of them a game every weekend. Lost to rugby which has its own attractions, especially in Munster. This is what clubs are facing. And with the good times over, running multiple teams is getting harder. Sponsorship will dry up. Revenue will be tight. The treasurer’s job will come with a health warning.

My own club in Clarecastle, Co Clare is no different from hundreds of clubs around the country. We want the best for our young people but it’s not going to happen by accident. We have built superb facilities and throughout the summer months our fields are full of kids who want to play hurling and (occasionally) football. We’re a senior hurling club and proud of it. These kids will be delivering championships for the village in about 15 or 20 years’ time. That’s the plan and we can never lose sight of that.

You know the scene in every club. There are four or five fellas that do everything. From lining pitches to cutting grass, they’re there morning, noon and night. They are what are called “great club men”. Come AGM time they are lauded from the floor for the great work they do. Then they are left at it for another year. When was the last time you were at the AGM of your club? Have you paid your membership yet for 2009? Are you down at the field a couple of nights a week training 10-year-olds?

Maybe you’re not. But don’t fret. There is time. This should be our New Year’s resolution. But we’ll make it in December. Get involved. Sign up. Take a job. Help out. Don’t just show up to watch the kids when they are playing. Don’t wait to be asked. Make a difference in your club. This is ownership. And you need to take it.

Volunteerism is a nice concept. Particularly for those that don’t volunteer. Luckily for them, there are always the “great club men” who get things done.

Croke Park does show initiative on this. There are courses, there are seminars, but volunteerism isn’t that sexy, so we don’t hear too much about it. We should hear more. Bertie set up a think tank on it once upon a time. Serious people like Mary Davis and Fr Harry Bohan got involved, experts on volunteerism, they came up with some good ideas. Their group was called the Active Citizenship Task Force. And they came up with a report. It’s on the Internet – have a read of it. Volunteer to do that at least!

Then go away and have a think for yourself. How can I help my club?

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