4.2.2 Field Sports/Playing Pitches

There are in the order of 230 playing pitches set out in Dublin City Council’s public parks and open spaces primarily for soccer and gaelic games. It is estimated that up to 5,000 people participate weekly in field sports in City parks. Other field games such as rugby, soft ball, tag rugby, cricket and ultimate frisbee are also accommodated on these pitches.

Playing pitches are allocated following an annual application by clubs for their use for a ‘season’. The soccer season generally begins in September and finishes in May. There is some debate at present to vary these times so as to facilitate a close down of pitches for the winter months and to allow the clubs to avail of the better weather and ground conditions between March and October, similar to the GAA season.

The UK Fields in Trust recommend a standard of 1.15 hectares per 1,000 population for playing pitches in urban areas. The total parkland allocated for field sports by Dublin City Council and OPW (grass and all weather) is in the order of 495.73 hectares or 0.1 ha per 1,000 population. This however does not take into account the pitches on private grounds, schools and colleges.

A 15 minute walk Is considered in the UK (Fields in Trust) to be a reasonable distance for people to walk to a playing pitch, which equates to a 1.2km distance. Using this buffer for each playing pitch indicates that the city is reasonably well catered for as regards playing pitches as shown on the above plan. However, there are anomalies that relate to Dublin City which would not be replicated in many UK urban areas. Firstly, the size of a senior GAA pitch is almost twice the size of a senior soccer pitch and it is may be difficult therefore to set out a pitch of this size in many open spaces.

Also there are no public pitches in the city centre within the Grand Canal and North Circular Road (Trinity College, Blackhall Place and Grangegorman Campus are the only private pitches in this area), which is an issue for communities in the city centre that have to travel outside the canals to access playing fields. The provision of all weather training facilities within the canals is an important consideration.

This situation has been highlighted as a particular problem in the south west inner-city and Dublin City Council has committed to developing all weather training facilities closely associated with schools.

It should be noted that school facilities and other all weather facilities under private management have not been included in this analysis, such facilities provide further opportunities for community sports clubs to train.