A new UCC sports park, sporting club and sports participation programme are among the key initiatives of University College Cork’s ambitious sports strategy launched yesterday.

The four-year strategy — created after six months of consultation with UCC’s 55 sports clubs and the wider UCC and Cork sporting community —was launched by Olympic rowing hero Paul O’Donovan and athlete Mary Fitzgerald, who recently won three gold medals at the 2019 IWAS World Games.

The strategy is based on a real collaborative approach and will be woven together with the University’s academic strategy to produce a ‘whole of life and education approach’ that will set a benchmark for how third level sport can be given due prominence.

The fact that UCC is launching the strategy off the back of success at the highest level of Third Level sport with Collingwood and Fitzgibbon Cup triumphs in recent weeks is a measure of the fact that they are starting from a strong base but without this look to the future the college was facing a crisis of facilities.

The plan addresses this through an ambition to develop a new UCC Sports Park in Curraheen to replace its current facilities at the Farm in Cork. A new sporting club, ‘Sport for Life Club – Many Tribes-One Team’, will be launched to connect players, volunteers, sponsors, supporters and alumni.

Other plans include the launch of a new #ActiveUCC sports participation programme and for a UCC Sport Hall of Fame Day to become an annual fixture. Also, a new line of UCC Sport Skull and Crossbones-branded apparel will be developed and Vice President Professor John O’Halloran laid down another challenge to produce an anthem that could stir the bones perhaps in the same way as the video produced for yesterday’s launch.

“Sport has long been the social language and currency of the city of Cork, its county and Munster,” he said to a packed Aula Maxima in the historic centre of the University. “Sport is in our bones and pride is on our chest at UCC, and we are proud to be part of such a rich sporting heritage.”

“This ambitious strategy is dedicated to unlocking the power of sport and physical activity across all areas of participation, representation and achievement” added Morgan Buckley, Director of Sport, UCC. “Sport brings people together, and I want to thank the University community for their passion in building this strategy.”

Buckley came on board as Director of Sport last year after spending eight years at World Rugby and it will be his job now to deliver on the strategy that was developed with huge levels of support across the college and pulled together by Emer Howard.

“Sport and physical activity is a growing business globally worth over €90bn per annum. We have a real opportunity to build new partnerships to develop sport in UCC.  We will work with Sport Ireland, the Institute of Sport and National Sports and agencies here in Cork” he continued. “We are committed to providing world-class facilities and a friendly, accessible sporting environment so that sport can be enjoyed at levels.”

UCC has one of the highest rates of student participation in sports clubs among Irish universities, with a combined membership of over 4000 students in sports clubs. The Mardyke, the home of sport and activity in UCC, will celebrate its 300th anniversary in 2019, UCC has been involved there since 1911.

The strategy has 27 actions across six key areas.  It is a strong piece of work and can be downloaded from here.

UCC Sport is supported by Bank of Ireland and both will be part of a new Sports Leadership collective being brought together in the City and County by Sport for Business and Leading Sport.  Join us in the coming weeks as we flesh out what that is going to look like and how we plan to expand the idea to other areas.


UCC are one of the many education institutions who are part of the Sport for Business Community.  If you would like to explore the benefits of joining Trinity College, TU Dublin, Ulster University, University of Limerick, Athlone Institute of Sport and others, contact us today and let’s talk.