Calls to improve wheelchair facility at Tallaght Stadium
By Aideen O'Flaherty
Father of a young man who was a lifelong Shamrock Rovers fan and a wheelchair user, is calling on South Dublin County Council to incorporate improved wheelchair facilities in their plans for a new stand in Tallaght Stadium.
As reported in The Echo earlier this month, work on a major €7.7m upgrade to the stadium is set to begin in the coming weeks, while the bulk of the upgrade’s cost will go towards the development of a new north stand, facing the N81, at a cost of €5m.
Tallaght Stadium, photographed in November 2019 and The late AJ Walsh
These plans are of particular interest to Jim Walsh, a Millbrook Lawns resident, as he has long advocated for improved facilities for wheelchair users in Tallaght Stadium, as he regularly attended home games with his son, AJ, who had cerebral palsy and was a loyal Hoops fan.
AJ, who followed the Hoops, alongside his father, when they played in their former grounds in Milltown and continued supporting them when the team moved to Tallaght Stadium, sadly passed away last month at age 34.
The young man was a regular attendee at the club’s home matches, but the location of the wheelchair facilities sometimes affected his enjoyment of the games, which his father saw first-hand.
“The circumstances at the wheelchair section in the east stand were pretty bad,” explained Jim. “There were issues with people standing in front of the stand or walking past, but in fairness to Shamrock Rovers, when the issue was brought to their attention, they took action and used to move people on.
“It’s no problem getting into the stadium in a wheelchair, the problem is the location of the wheelchair section – you’re out in the elements, and it’s at ground level so you’re trying to look over a wall, so it wasn’t always easy for AJ to follow a game.”
Jim also flagged the issue back in October 2018, when another new stand was being built in Tallaght Stadium, and called on the council to install a ramp/wheelchair lift and a raised platform for wheelchair users.
He detailed how in poor weather wheelchair users weren’t shielded from the elements, and how visibility could be poor as the wheelchair users were situated behind advertising hoarding that surrounded the pitch, but no changes were implemented for the new stand.
“When the weather was bad on Friday nights it was not possible to bring AJ to see Rovers,” he said, “due to health issues, and I am sure that there were others in the same position.”
Jim is again asking the local authority to consider including a raised and covered platform for wheelchair users in their plans for the new north stand.
“I don’t think it would cost the council much more to put in a ramp and a wheelchair lift,” he said.
“I’m very frustrated that nothing has happened since 2018.
“If they do it this time, it will be no good for me and AJ anymore, but there are a lot of wheelchair users who still go to the stadium.
“This is about anyone who uses Tallaght Stadium and is in a wheelchair…these things have always been a concern for other wheelchair users.”
When asked how he’ll feel about returning to Tallaght Stadium without AJ, when members of the public will be allowed to attend sports events again, Jim said: “It won’t be too bad for me, because for most of last year AJ wasn’t well enough to go to matches.
“So, I’d just sit together with my family in the west stand, so that takes the sting out of it a little bit.”
He added: “I really would hope that South Dublin County Council will do better for wheelchair users.”
When asked if they plan to provide raised and covered platforms for wheelchair users, a spokesperson for South Dublin County Council said: “I can confirm that both the proposed north stand and the existing south stand, will have raised and covered platforms for universal access.
“The existing south stand will be modified to ensure the existing universal access seats will be raised and covered.”
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