Dublin City University has applied to Fingal County Council for permission to develop a 10,000 capacity indoor GAA stadium at its Glasnevin campus. College authorities are hopeful that the ambitious project will receive planning permission and be completed within the next three to five years, paving the way for the first ever competitive indoor inter-county football match to be staged. Though enclosed, the pitch will still be grass-based thanks to a transparent roof and, according to former GAA president and DCU Academy committee member Peter Quinn, the only drawback to the structure will be the fact that the ceiling will be 35-40ft high. That would be just about low enough to reach with a particularly hefty kick and would automatically rule it out as a venue for a competitive hurling fixture. Football, however, may be a different story. "Clearly it mightn't be appropriate for championship football but we would have said 10 years ago playing under floodlights wouldn't be appropriate for championship. "Now half of the country's club championships are being played on Saturday nights under lights. "We will just have to see how the game develops and how the facility develops but we will certainly have a facility that will be playable 365 days each year and 24 hours a day." The DCU stadium would not be the first enclosed venue to host Gaelic games. Back in 1990 and 1991, All Star exhibition games involving the likes of Tyrone, Dublin and Tipperary were held in each code at the then newly-built Toronto Skydome's astroturf surface. Though the dimensions of the pitch will mirror those at Croke Park, the use of wind and rain machines, as well as multiple cameras, will mean that they will be able to mimic conditions at any ground in the country. Tweet

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