Leitrim GAA Chairman Stenson warns of threat to rural clubs

Leitrim GAA Clubs are facing a unique threat to their survival thanks to planning laws that prevents the building of new homes in rural areas according to Leitrim GAA County Board Chairman Enda Stenson at last Monday's online County Board Convention.

Departing from his prepared speech, Mr Stenson highlighted the fact that under current plans laws, 87% of the county could not be built upon, the next nearest county coming to somewhere around 50%, leaving Leitrim with a unique and very troubling problem of rural depopulation.

“Rural clubs and the decline of rural areas is going to become a huge problem, it is more than a football area,” Mr Stenson told delegates, “The almost ban on houses in rural areas means we will not have young people growing in up an area like Effernagh or Aughnasheelin or many other small communities.

“A huge problem that is going to raise its head and politically it is something we have to work on, 87% of our ground in Leitrim cannot be built on.”