Aidan Crowley (SportActive-Engraveit-An Chuirt Hotel) wins the Brendan Campbell Memorial 2011 (Photo: Ieva Japertaite)
One of the most distinctive jerseys in the domestic peloton in recent years will be absent in 2012, with news that the ‘SportActive-Engraveit-An Chuirt Hotel’ team has folded.
Team manager Philip Finnegan told stickybottle the economic climate made it difficult for two of the three sponsors to continue and also made it impossible to find replacement backers.
While SportActive was willing to continue with its backing, the other two sponsors – the Engraveit corporate gifts firm in Tullamore and the An Chuirt Hotel in Donegal – found continuing to financially back a cycling team was now more difficult.
“You can understand completely that if companies are asking their staff maybe for a pay cut or a pay freeze or examining other ways to cut costs, it is very hard to justify sponsoring any team,” said Finnegan.
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While he had held negotiations with a variety of potential sponsors that were interested in the project, some preferred to wait for another year and assess the economic conditions.
Others asked to wait for a couple of months into 2012 before deciding if they wanted to go ahead with the project. With the season approaching, this deadline was too late for Finnegan and the riders.
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“It’s a real pity because we made the team look and run as professionally as we could; with distinctive jerseys and a motor home among the support vehicles,” said Finnegan.
“I know SportActive bookings are up for this year and I would put a lot of that down to the fact that backing the team got their brand much better known; really got the word out. So there definitely are good reasons to back a cycling team. I think it’s just very hard for companies to justify it to their workforces at a time when you might have cutbacks in the company itself.”
The team last year was a tight operation, with Finnegan managing a small number of riders, namely Ryan Sherlock, Aidan Crowley, Paidi O’Brien, Daniel Clifford and Mark McKinley.
Finnegan will now remain in the sport in a managerial and support role with the Tim Barry-run ‘Dan Morrissey-Speedy Spokes’ team, formerly The Edge.
Paidi O’Brien has returned to third level education but will ride with Barry’s outfit next year. Aidan Crowley has returned to Dunboyne CC, now sponsored by DID Electrical having parted company with Dectek.
McKinley is going to Eurocycles-EuroBaby. It is unclear where Sherlock will ride next year. Daniel Clifford’s plans for 2012 are also unclear, though he has been training in Australia of late.
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