ULSTER GAA have confirmed that the capacity of Casement Park will likely be halved from the planned 34,500.
Earlier this week the Ulster Council met and a decision was made that the West Belfast venue be scaled-down in order to meet the financial demands imposed by a shortfall in UK funding.
The stadium will still be the Ulster provincial ground in the heart of the province's biggest city, but the swingeing cut in the expected capacity will come as a blow to those who had higher hopes for the new venue.
The stadium will host Antrim club and inter-county league and championship matches, as well as Ulster senior football semi-finals, but this latest news means Clones remains firmly in the picture as the Ulster finals venue.
The original proposal involved a figure of around £150 million, but that soared to an estimated £270 million for a 34,500 capacity stadium with consequently higher inputs required from the stakeholder bodies.
After that Ulster Council meeting, fears were expressed that Westminster may halt the release of monies due to cutbacks in public project funding.
It now looks likely that a capacity of just under 20,000 will likely be the final figure, with the best estimates putting the final number at between 17,000 and 18,000.
Preparatory work which resumed in March has now completed and the five-year planning permission window remains open despite concern to the contrary.
No Stormont funding has been made available for the next stage of work at the Andersonstown site and soil remediation needed to remove industrial, hydrocarbon and heavy metal contamination has been put on hold.
The Stormont Executive’s original commitment of £62.5 million is set to rise to over £100 million due to inflation, according to Finance Minister John O'Dowd. Should that figure rise above £100 million further significant unionist opposition is expected.
Casement Park has remained derelict since 2013 and has been continuously delayed due to a seemingly ceaseless parade of planning, residential, health and safety and cost issues.
Speaking in January, GAA President Jarlath Burns said Casement was "a priority" for the GAA.
“Casement Park is now firmly established as a key sporting, cultural, economic and social priority for the Northern Ireland Executive, the Irish government and the British government," he said.
"Within our own association and across the wider community it is more important now than ever to remain fully focused on the delivery of what has been promised and we must remain united and steadfast in our determination to ensure its delivery once and for all.”
