I congratulate the Irish team on last night. It was a wonderful success and I wish it well at the weekend. More important to me on a local level, Ferns United is in the Leinster Football Association, LFA, final this Sunday and I wish them well - Tiny, Terry, Paul and the girls. I went to see them a few weeks ago and I was taken aback by the family and community spirit there. The club is not even in the town of Ferns - it is on a crossroads - but the level of engagement of the team on and off the field with the people who were there after the game and what they are giving back to the community has to be commended. Regarding football as a whole, when Ireland are doing well, the whole nation is lifted. It really is. I come from a hospitality background. I was working in 1990 and for all the world cups and it brings so much business and prosperity. People are in good form. I remember visiting some people in hospital at the time in 1990 and it did not matter how sick they were. They were glued to the television when the Irish lads had the jersey on. We should never underestimate that. What happens on the pitch is important, but that shows a need for more support on the pitch and funding. Let us start at grassroots. We need to continue. The sports capital fund is incredible. It gets to the little clubs like Ferns United, which are heavily reliant on fundraising. I see them shaking buckets on the street in Bunclody. It is still going on. They still sell lotto tickets every Sunday night, but we need to continue a bit of both, with support from the Government, including local councils, and the clubs will do their fundraising. On facilities and infrastructure, I was interested to listen to James McClean talking recently about how he felt and what a product we have now. We are right there. We are climbing up, but do we have the infrastructure? Do we have the pitches to match it? Not yet. We are definitely not yet there. If we want the new Katie McCabes or Troy Parrotts, we will have to continue this investment. I will make a point about investment and large foreign investors coming in and buying clubs. I have seen my colleague Deputy Joanna Byrne up front in operation and I have to commend her on the work she has done. I have met friends of hers she does not realise I have spoken to and they could not speak more highly of the work she has done for the club. We might not agree on everything, but I have been up there and involved in matches with her and I know her heart and soul are in the club. If people like her are being removed from the FAI and the club scene, it will be our loss. Volunteers are the backbone. We can talk about money all we like. I remember in my youth jumping over the wall in Gorey and going to the pitch. There is a guy there now, Joe Cullen, from Gorey Rangers. He is not in great health. He was my first manager and I will never forget the joy I got. I was a sub for the first seven games, but at my eighth game he gave me the jersey and it was a great lift. There is also the likes of Dano Kinsella, the current chair of the club, who is not in good health.

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Those people have to be recognised and we wish them well.

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