New sponsor for Middle East GAA
October 20, 2014
At the sponsorship launch were Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael Liam Ó Néill, second from left, with from left, Peter Gormley and Patrick Gormley, Sperrin Metal Storage Solutions, and Paddy Darcy, Secretary Middle East County Board.
The GAA's newest county board, Middle East GAA, are delighted to welcome Sperrin Metal as the official sponsors of the Middle East League & the Middle East County Board for the 2104/2015 Season.
The launch of the Sperrin Metal Middle East League took place in Croke Park earlier this week with Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael Liam Ó Néill, Peter Gormley and Patrick Gormley, Sperrin Metal Storage Solutions and Paddy Darcy, Secretary of the Middle East County Board.
The 1st Round of the Sperrin Metal Middle East League kicks off next week in Bahrain with a record number of Teams (55) flying in for the weekend. With 660 players and 112 fixtures to be played, Gaelic Games in the Middle East has gone from strength to strength over the last 2/3 years. New Irish Ambassador Tony Cotter will be in attendance to officially open the games at the weekend.
The games hosted by the Arabian Celts GAA Club start with some "Thursday Night Timber" on Thursday evening as the first fixtures of the Middle East Hurling League gets underway under floodlights down at the Bahrain Rugby Club sports facility. Friday the 24th sees the 1st Round of the Mens & Ladies Gaelic Football League and with a number of Clubs reporting the influx of lot of new players it should be our most competitive season yet.
Sperrin Metal Storage Solutions is the leading storage manufacturer in Ireland with over 50 years in business. In the last two years Sperrin Metal has refocused its export marketing strategy for the Middle East and this is proving effective. Sperrin Metal has a well known link with the GAA, having sponsored Derry for many years, including an All Ireland title.
This affiliation with the GAA has been renewed with Director Peter Gormley realising the potential of overseas sponsorship with this developing market. His recent success in Dubai introduced him to the Middle East County Board and this has led on to Sperrin Metal becoming the sponsor of the Middle East GAA team. This partnership is seen by the company as a way of growing the business by promoting their presence in the Middle East while maintaining support for a much loved sport.
Chairman of the Middle East County Board, James Kennedy stated "We are delighted to welcome Sperrin Metal as the new Sponsors of Middle East GAA. Having spoken to Peter Gormley it is clear that not only is he a very successful businessman but he has a great passion for Gaelic Games and an affinity with the Middle East which fits in with our own strategic plan for the further development of Gaelic games in the Region.
"The Middle East League has blossomed over the past few years and is one of the most hotly contested International GAA competitions," Kennedy noted. "The next round of the League is in Abu Dhabi in November and in the new year Al Ain, Qatar, Sharjah before the Championship finals in Dubai at the end of March. We also hope to announce very soon our plans for the 1st World GAA Games in Abu Dhabi in March 2015".
Since June 2013, when the Middle East County Board was officially ratified by Croke Park, Gaelic Games promotion and development in the Middle Eastern region has gone from strength to strength. Last season, the Middle East League held Senior, Intermediate, Mens and Ladies Football competitions along with the world s first Hurling Super 11s League all being battled for in the scorching desert heat.
The small ball brought home the region's first County title with the Middle East County Team winning the Aer Lingus/ Etihad International Hurling Festival in Galway last September as part of the Gathering celebration. Juvenile Gaelic Games development is continually growing in popularity in clubs and international schools across the Gulf region with ever increasing numbers of children, both Irish and non Irish playing our games. Coaching and refereeing courses have been successfully run throughout the season.
Liam Ó Néill, President of the GAA and Pat Quille, President of the LGFA attended the Middle East Championship Finals last April and presented the inaugural All Star Awards in Mens and Ladies football and hurling.
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