THE DONEGAL County Board Chairman, Mick McGrath, has suggested that significant inroads has been made in chipping away at a debt of over half-a-million in the last year.
McGrath hinted that the debt, which stood at just over €600,000 at the end of 2018, could be as much as halved.
McGrath, speaking at the launch of the 2019 Donegal SFC final last night at the Abbey Hotel in Donegal Town, touched on the importance of upcoming fundraisers.
Donegal GAA are set to launch a €100 ticket draw this weekend, with the first prize on offer of a house in Dublin.
“We really need that type of fundraising effort,” McGrath said.
“We had €600,000 of debt last year and we have that brought down to around €300,000 at the moment, pre-empting what the books will be like at the end of the moment.
“We have a good group of people working with us and it is very positive. That’s not me painting a bad picture good; that is a good picture. There is a great buzz behind the county.”
While Donegal GAA made a small operating profit in 2018, there was alarm with the balance sheet showing current liabilities of a whopping €603,299, a figure that had almost doubled from the previous year’s.
Delegates will hear the exact figures at the annual Donegal GAA Convention, which is expected to take place in December.
McGrath, meanwhile, has confirmed that the building and spectator stand at the Donegal GAA Training Centre in Convoy will be finished by Christmas.
The two-storey building comprises, dressing rooms, a multi-purpose hall, a gym, meeting rooms an admin area and a catering facility.
McGrath said: “It’s something I was either going to take on board or not take on board. When I became chairman, I decided that I would take on board.
“The building, costing €2.2 million, will be ready for Christmas.
“There is tremendous work going in. We selected a group of people to run a draw and we have an operations manager in place and a good spread of IT people. We will be launch it on Sunday morning before the county final.”
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