JUST €1.10 TOTTENHAM...0 MAN UTD...1 DE GEA EARNS HIS SPURS SEE SUNSPORT & GOALS Monday, January 14, 2019 BEST VALUE IN IRELAND €1.10 (55p NI) www.thesun.ie KINAHAN MOB’S No2 NABBED Funding . Delaney FAI net €5m in jig time BOMBER’S By CRAIG FARRELL and NEIL COTTER THE FAI requested and received early drawdowns of its state funding worth over €5million since 2015 — before they had even been approved. Boss John Delaney was granted the cash by Sport Ireland head John Treacy, correspondence received under FOI shows. Full Story — Pages 10 & 11 ‘SECRET EXCLUSIVE by STEPHEN BREEN, Crime Editor TOKEN 10 KINAHAN No2 Thomas ‘Bomber’ Kavanagh had got PAGE 23 off a South American flight when lifted by UK cops. Investigators believe the Dubliner, arrested at Birmingham Airport on Saturday morning, may have been away organising drug shipments. SOUTH Full Story — Pages Four and Five Expenses . Martin Cllr HQ trips on AMERICAN public EXCLUSIVE by KIERAN DINEEN THE brother of Fianna Fail chief Micheal Martin claimed €966 in expenses for two trips to Croker in 2017, we can reveal. Cllr Sean Martin, depu- tising for Cork’s Lord Mayor when he lodged the bills, said: “I broke my holidays to go to those matches.” Full Story — Page 13 DRUG RUN’ 10 ...............Monday, January 14, 2019 1RM 1RM Monday, January 14, 2019 ............... 11 John sis FAMILIES’ SHOCK ‘not fixer’ FAI SOUGHT FUNDS BEFORE GREEN LIGHT THE sister of ex-Celtic star John Hartson will EXCLUSIVE by CRAIG FARRELL face no further action and NEIL COTTER OVER BODY HUNT after being arrested in a FAI IN THE families of a doctor who By ADAM HIGGINS Welsh match-fixing probe. OVER the last four years, disappeared ten years ago want Hayley Hartson, 45, was FAI chief John Delaney has held after cops learnt of NUMBERS to speak with gardai about the of digging, the operation ended last applied for early access to week without success. betting patterns in 2016. €360,000: decision to undertake a new Port Talbot lost 5-0 to millions of euro of State search for her remains. The Donnelly and O’Flaherty FOOTBALL families yesterday released a joint Rhyl, who had not won in Association Deirdre Donnelly O’Fla- 17 previous matches. funding that hadn’t been herty, 46, from Strabane, Co statement, saying: “Notifica- of Ireland tion that gardai were going Hayley, who put £50 on approved yet. Tyrone, went missing from Rhyl, insisted: “I want supremo Moville, Co Donegal, on to carry out a land search Documents released to the John Del- for Deirdre was entirely people to know I did noth- January 11, 2009. Irish Sun by Sport Ireland aney’s salary. Last Tuesday, gardai unexpected, not least given ing wrong.” reveal Delaney made numerous launched a major search and that the finding by Order of requests for early drawdown excavation operation in the Judge Deeney at Belfast High Court on the 12th of January GYM AND TONIC despite not knowing how much 9%: THE Milford area after cops got a funding was available. increase in letter claiming to know the 2012 that Deirdre had ‘gone More than half of into the water and drowned’ And in 2018 the soccer boss made Win, lose or turnover at 18-35s prefer going to the exact location of her body. a submission to Sport Ireland for the FAI A number of gardai and a was supported by the oral gym for a work-out than evidence of the investigating an early pay out of 50 per cent of from 2007 mini-digger were moved onto Search . Deirdre going to the pub, a their annual funding — just 15 days Garda Sergeant.” survey of 1,000 revealed. (€45m) to site, however, after four days into the year. 2017 (€49m). Correspondence between Delaney and Sport Ireland head John Treacy shows the FAI top brass regularly 177%: THE sought early access to funds, which hike in turn- the State body continually granted. There is nothing improper about over at the the FAI’s request, or the granting of IRFU bet- that request by Sport Ireland. ween 2007 Back in March 2015, the footballing (€48m) and body was approved a grant of 2017 (€85m). €2,565,410 by Sport Ireland — then the Irish Sports Council — to support grassroots “participation and 218%: THE development” in the game. jump in A sum of €142,500 was also issued turnover at to the FAI as part of the Women in the GAA Sport initiative. drawdown from 2006 The same level of funding was (€30m) to issued in the subsequent three years. ’17 (€65.6m). A requirement of the sporting grants is that compliance documen- tation, such as end of year financial €29.5m: FAI statements, mid-year reports and a debt left on breakdown of how the FAI intends to allocate the funds, must be filed Aviva, which with Sport Ireland. Delaney in- Letters in 2015 between the heads sists will be of the two bodies show the FAI cleared by received access to 50 per cent of year 2020. their funding before it was given the green light for approval. And the letter also states that €4.5m: THE payment of the final half of the profit from grant funds will only occur when Euro 2016, specific compliance documents have Footie dosh . where Rob- been received. bie Brady But in May, the FAI sent a letter FAI’s chief scored appealing for an early drawdown of exec Delaney 25 per cent of their final chunk. against Italy. The request was granted by Sport contacted Ireland the following month with a Sport Ireland €2m: Martin note that “payment in respect of the final 25 per cent instalment of your O’Neill’s sal- 2015 funding will be made when ary when he your organisation has submitted the was let go – required compliance documentation”. along with The process repeated itself the fol- €600k for lowing spring when Delaney Roy Keane. approached Treacy seeking the possibility of grant funds being transferred prematurely despite only €10m: CASH being in the process of finalising Denis O’Brien their financial statements for the paid to cover previous year. the salaries He wrote: “I trust you will look of manage- favourably upon our request.” ment teams This came on the back of a 12 months which Delaney described as in 2008-18. “a good financial year”. Speaking about the organisation’s €5m: HUSH finances in September 2015, Delaney said: “We will be in around a five money FAI or six million pound profit, irrespec- got from tive of qualification (for Euro 2016) Fifa after this year. It is a good financial year the Thierry for sure but it will be better cer- Henry hand- tainly if we qualify.” ball in 2009. In the summer of 2017, the FAI chief said the organisation had enjoyed its “biggest turnover” ever. EARLY He claimed: “It was a successful 2015 - 75% 2016 - 25% 2017 - 50% 2018 - 50% last year 2016, our biggest turnover ever. We had a turnover of over DRAWDOWN €50million, but the key point I think €2,030,931 €676,977 €1,353,954 €1,282,704 from football’s perspective is our TOTALS banking debt on the Aviva Stadium, which is now €34million.” Delaney added: “When you pro- seeking a fast-tracking of State cash. was again in contact seeking access be released was accepted in the drawdown of funding at the previous year, a full programme of duce your biggest turnover in the In February and March, the FAI to a quarter of the cash pile. February and €1,282,704 was trans- beginning of the year has helped to action for the year ahead, evidence Association’s history in 2016 that appealed for funds to be released According to the FAI, the organisa- ferred to the FAI’s accounts from continue investing in Irish football of tax compliance and other relevant just shows how strong we’re develop- early to the organisation. tion recorded a pre-tax profit of Sport Ireland. A further 25 per cent evenly throughout the year.” compliance obligations as per the ing in sponsorship in terms of sum- The Co Waterford native wrote: €5.2million in 2017, up from €4.7mil- was then sought by the FAI in June. A Sport Ireland spokesman terms and conditions of funding. mer camps, coach education, “We understand that our grant total lion the previous year. An FAI spokesman told us: explained: “The chief executive has “There are a number of reasons grants from Uefa, grants from Fifa, for 2017 has not been decided as yet In spite of the reported profits, the “Sport Ireland facilitated an early the authority to pay to funded bodies why a funded body may request government grants, local authority but are requesting an advance pay- solicitation for early drawdowns was drawdown of funding to aid the that operate on an ongoing basis up drawdown, including, but not limited grants — so there’s a good spread of ment of 25 per cent based on last even sooner in 2018 as just 15 days development of the game, at all lev- to 50 per cent of their previous to, the scheduling of home fixtures, income generated. year’s grant amount.” into the year Delaney sought early els, during a period when interna- year’s allocation in advance of formal financial cycles for the funded “Of course, match-day income too, Both requests were again agreed to access to 50 per cent of the Sport tional fixtures are infrequent. approval by the Board.” body and Sport Ireland, the hosting our season tickets sales and this year before the FAI had received grant Ireland grant.