GAA intends to pursue construction of air domes in all provinces

The GAA’s intention to pursue the construction of air domes in all provinces emerged at the weekend after a very successful annual congress in Connacht’s GAA centre in Bekan, Co Mayo.

Provincial CEO John Prenty drove the development of a dome, which has been a huge success in the west. He cautions, though, that costs are unlikely to remain at just over the €3 million that was spent in Connacht.

“The next one won’t be so cheap. You’ll probably have to go to a greenfield site and the land costs will be significant. We had land as part of our plan building the Centre of Excellence 10 years ago so we only had construction costs. Originally we wanted the land for pitches for schools’ matches. That was the main priority.

“Then when we moved in in 2012 we realised we needed some kind of an indoor facility because of the weather. It was (former taoiseach) Enda Kenny, who suggested looking at air domes as he had noticed the tennis club in Castlebar had one.

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“We went under the radar and it was almost built before there was any word about it. Then we couldn’t use it for months because of Covid.”

According to Prenty the facility has transformed the provision of games development services and coaching. “The advantage from our point of view is that we’ve got three months of work done with schools and clubs that is not dependent on weather. That’s a major advantage.”

It is in constant demand, particularly at this time of the year. Between the outdoor pitches and the dome, Bekan hosted nine schools matches on Monday. How often is it in use?

“Every day. The only time it wasn’t in use was the last two weeks because we had the coaching conference last Saturday week, and then there was no point in taking up the floor before congress.”

GAA president Larry McCarthy has been clearly impressed by the dome and announced the association’s intention of developing similar facilities in other provinces.

“I don’t think we need another one in Connacht but we do in other provinces,” says Prenty. “One in Munster, two in Leinster and maybe in Ulster. The dome does take a good bit of managing. You can’t just blow it up and leave it until you come back a few days later. There’s a facilities manager and he and I have smart phones to respond to any issues with the dome.

“For instance, maintaining pressure all of the time. It probably costs about €170 a day to maintain. We have blowers to keep the pressure steady, run by electricity from generators and gas – three different systems in case any of them fail. You hear them going at various times. If it gets cold we raise the heat.”

It was noticeable entering the dome that the revolving doors were heavily reinforced. On entry there was a faint popping in the ears.

“The doors keep the pressure,” says Prenty. “Probably 40 per cent of the people who went in, their ears popped. I wouldn’t notice it, being in nearly every day of the week, but some people would notice. It’s exactly the same principle as an aircraft and you acclimatise pretty quickly.”

A week before congress arrived the country was buffeted by Storm Eunice, which ripped a hole in London’s O2 dome. Was there any prospect of similar damage in Bekan?

“It’s very robust on the outside. It moves above your head so there’s tolerance. Unlike London there’s no metal in our dome. It’s completely air-based from corner to corner. Older versions are kept up by stays and when the fabric isn’t as strong as what’s holding it up, it just tears.”