Rebels' Bounty draw raises €1.9million for 150 Cork clubs

CONSIDERING the criticism it drew at its initial launch, the number of tickets sold in the Rebels' Bounty initiative has exceeded all expectations.

A total of €2.8million was raised, with €1.9million of that impressive sum heading to clubs in every corner of Cork.

A revamp of the old Cork GAA Clubs Draw, the fact that each club had to hit a minimum sales target before turning a profit drew the ire of many smaller clubs along with those who didn't have a strong membership of the previous incarnation. 

Senior clubs had a target of 100, intermediate clubs 70 tickets, junior A clubs 55 tickets, and junior B clubs 35 tickets. At €100 a ticket, though a direct debit option was also available, that appeared daunting initially, especially during the Covid shutdown.

The key was that each club retained all the money generated on tickets sold above those figures and with a straightforward online option to facilitate sales, considerable momentum built up since January. It was viewed as a way to fundraise without having to tap up local businesses, many under serious pressure due to the pandemic, for prizes. 

Ultimately a total of 28,000 tickets were sold between the launch last November and March 25 when draws for the first three months of 2021 took place. 

The €20,000 top prizes for each went to members in Erin's Own, Aghabullogue and St Catherine's. The second and third sums of €3,000 and €2,000 went to Éire Óg, Randal Óg, Douglas, Clon and Lismire.

Overall in excess of €100,000 in prize money and 90 prizes will be given out.

The county board will take home between €300,000 and €400,000 from the first installment, but the clubs have been the real winners, though not every unit got on board.

INCENTIVES

“That €1.9m is going into our 150 units that participated in the draw is a significant amount of money at this time and will set them up well for the year ahead,” said Cork GAA CEO Kevin O’Donovan. 

“But we feel, more importantly, it will give them a baseline number every year for which they can plan developments, coaching, and make long-term investments based on the certainty of the draw because while club lottos have served us all incredibly well, as have other fundraisers, they can be variable.

“It has given huge focus to the clubs in terms of administration. It has forced virtual meetings to happen. I am not sure if we’d all be in a bit of a slumber still if it wasn’t for Rebels’ Bounty. And then, of course, the clubs have come up trumps and it has been an incredible success financially.

“We felt that once clubs hit those targets they’d see the incentives for the 100% commission for clubs and, in time, that proved to be the case."

REBELS’ BOUNTY DRAW

January winners: €20,000 (Dillon O’Connor, Erin’s Own); €3,000 (Michael Hayes, Clonakilty); €2,000 (JC Daly, Randal Óg).

February winners: €20,000 (Declan and Aileen Casey, Aghabullogue); €3,000 (Gary White, Douglas); €2,000 (Katherine McCarthy, Éire Óg).

March winners: €20,000 (Lisa Moore, St Catherine’s); €3,000 (Jerdy and Sheila McSweeney, Lismire); €2,000 (Philip O’Shea, Éire Óg).