Union to target funding

A financial situation which needs addressing, the setting of a schedule for the year ahead and an airing of problems of communication in the organisation provided the bulk of the debate at the Irish Amateur Rowing Union a.g.m. at Trinity College on Saturday.

Outgoing president Tom Fennessey, reelected unopposed as were treasurer John McGeehan and honorary secretary Jimmy Bermingham, made a point in customarily entertaining addresses of thanking the Irish Sports Council for their funding and support for the year.

But McGeehan's report highlighted the union's debt of approximately £50,000, and said the incoming executive would be given a recommendation that competitors' levies should be doubled, although a number of delegates protested. Coach John Holland questioned the way in which coaches were informed of their omission from those travelling to the World Championships, and Fennessey also referred to communication problems in the union. But there was no official information forthcoming about the shape of coaching structures for the year ahead, with the incoming executive left to decide.

The most pertinent fact from the fixture calendar for the year ahead is that the National Championships will be held at Inniscarra on July 14th-16th. The big Cork City (May 27th) and Metropolitan (June 3rd) regattas will be only a week apart.

Garda finished third in the club eights at the Head of the Schuylkill in the United States on Saturday.