Happy New Year to all of our members and patrons. As we enter another period of restriction designed to keep us all safe and well it is worth setting out the overall picture for our club at the start of 2021.

While we don’t have playing activity at the moment or for the coming period, we are busy advancing our long-held goals of proceeding with our new development expected start date in March and maximising Bremore Park with a new Training room facility and mobile floodlights for the benefit of our players and future generations.

The overall spend by the Club in relation to the development project is very significant over the period from 2019 to 2023. The Club is very pleased on the progress made to date and the exciting plans going forward.

The Club Executive has considered the question of membership fees for 2021 in the context of the planned expenditure and the reduced availability of training and playing to members in 2020 and 2021.

On balance the Executive has decided that, in the interest of ensuring that we can meet the current and fixed financial obligations of the club (rates, pitch upkeep, insurance, team gear etc etc) while at the same time sustaining our planned capital projects, it would be imprudent to reduce membership rates in 2021. If it materialises that there are reductions to our respective registration fees and obligations these will be reviewed with a view of passing these reductions directly back to the membership.

In the absence of this clarity, any such reduction would have the effect of reducing the Club’s basic income at exactly the time when we are undertaking the most significant expenditure programme seen in the Club for decades.

Further context is provided by the severe impact upon the Club in terms of capacity to conduct fundraising in 2020 and 2021 as a result of public health restrictions across the period and was shared during our AGM in December.

The Club Executive committee is confident that the sense of this approach will be supported by the membership and that whereas our ability to fully utilise our Club in 2021 will be reduced, we will all benefit in the coming years and decades from the work supported by the current generation of members right now.

The registration team this year have listened to the members and have been working very closely with the Coaching and Games committee to develop membership options to encourage greater participation at all levels within our club, make it easier for players/parents to pay membership and to ease the administrative burden on coaches/mentors during the year.

Membership is available now on the Club website on the link here https://odwyersgaa.com/membership along with additional information on benefits and membership discounts available.

Should any member have difficulties at this time with meeting the cost of membership please make contact with the club registrar confidentially.

O'Dwyers Executive Committee