Gabriel Rangers' Mark Cronin on balancing chairperson's job with playing role

Being a chairperson of a GAA club nowadays is no easy task.

There are a lot of moving parts and all the balls have to be juggled at the same time. For Mark Cronin, the Gabriel Rangers chairperson, he has a foot in both camps with the sales representative with Drinagh Co-Op still a key part of the club's first team.

They ply their trade in the fourth tier of the Cork football championship, the Intermediate A grade. The West Cork outfit reached the last four last year, beaten by the eventual winners Glanmire by a point. They won’t be far away either this year.

Cronin is more of an impact sub these days. He was Gabriel Rangers’ star man in 2016 when they won the County JAFC title.

“There are challenges,” he said when asked about the role of chairperson.

“There’s a lot to it and it’s also challenging when you're still playing. There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes that people don’t see. I am out nearly every night of the week, but I wouldn’t be doing it if I didn’t enjoy it. I am lucky to have such a great committee. There’s plenty of help.

“Gabriel Rangers is a great club. We have a fantastic bunch of players. They come to me if they need anything and they listen too. There’s buy-in from everyone in the community and so on. We wouldn’t be able to carry on without the support of our sponsors and businesses.

“We have a small area to pick from in terms of players. Ballydehob and Schull are small places. We come together though. We played against each other for years in the soccer, but once we go over the bridge in Ballydehob, we come together for the love of the GAA.

“I have been involved with Gabriel Rangers all my life. This is my 22nd year playing adult football and this is also my second season as chairperson.” 

There wasn’t exactly a queue for the top position in Gabriel Rangers when it became available, but it wasn’t something Cronin put too much thought into when he did get the chance.

“There was no one to take it on,” he says.

“Finbarr O’Brien had done seven years as chairperson and I worked closely with him, helping him out or whatever needed to be done. I stepped up and went for it and I am into my second year at it now.

“I am on the phone the whole time, always looking to improve the club. Our biggest thing last year in terms of off the field was pitch signage. That was a big fundraiser. Nearly 40 businesses came in, so that helped us. Rebels’ Bounty is big for us this year and we have a new gym. We have done a lot so far, but always more to do.

“The gym is state of the art and is bringing in money for the club. We never ever had a gym before, so that was important for us to get a new gym.” 

On the pitch, the aim is to return to the McCarthy Insurance Group PIFC after Gabriel Rangers' one-season stint at that grade came to an end in 2020. In the IAFC group stage this year, they will face Mitchelstown, Kildorrery and Dromtarriffe.

“The league is the first thing and we want to get promoted out of Division 5. We have a nice mix of youth and experience in our panel. We want to go one better in the championship after losing at the semi-final stage last year.

“Our plan is to push hard for it this year. We have big plans in general. We will take it one game at a time though and see how it goes.” Cronin concluded.