I’ve written often in this column about the hugely valuable cultural contribution the Irish community in Birmingham makes to life in our region.

Our Irish community is known for its musical and artistic prowess, as well as for the community outreach projects and charitable organisations that have supported people for so many years.



But in this column, I want to focus on Irish sport – which over the years has provided so many homegrown stars, from the likes of Jack Grealish to gymnast Alice Kinsella, who took Gold at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.

In particular, I want to focus on our latest superstars – the newly-crowned West Midlands-based world Gaelic Football champions.

Just a few weeks ago, Sean McDermott’s, the Gaelic Football Club, went undefeated at the GAA Games to become world champions.

Already the All-Britain Homegrown Gaelic Football Champions, the team won the International Cup Final in Derry after overcoming an excellent team from France.

The Sean McDermott’s players, who are all 2nd or 3rd generation Irish, went undefeated in the tournament against top teams from Spain, France, Argentina, Canada, America and Australia.

This amazing achievement, which places our region right at the pinnacle of Gaelic Sports, is testament to the dedication of the coaching staff and the entire Irish sporting community here.

Now let’s use it as a launchpad to achieve even more. Crucial to ongoing success will be the redevelopment of Warwickshire GAA's Páirc na hÉireann.

This venue has hosted numerous Warwickshire Gaelic football and hurling matches as well as the provincial knockout championships and the British University Gaelic football Championships, as well as welcoming hurling teams from Ireland.

I put my full support behind these redevelopment ambitions, because I understand how important the game is to the Irish community. I have also been hugely impressed by the way Páirc na hÉireann provides a facility for the whole community.

This is a place that is not only a venue for elite level players, it also opens its doors to host charity tournaments, where the next generation of local Gaelic football stars take to the field.

It’s a huge honour for the West Midlands to host Pairc na hÉireann, as it is not only the home of the GAA in Warwickshire but the whole of Britain.

It has 3,000 volunteer members and attracts people from across Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton to engage in Gaelic football, hurling and camogie.

We now have the world champions right here in the West Midlands. Let’s complete the redevelopment of Pairc na hÉireann, and ensure we have the facilities to continue creating sports heroes we can be proud of.

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