THOUSANDS of tyres which could have been dumped or stockpiled are now being recycled to make some of Ireland's top GAA pitches playable all year round thanks to the ingenuity of a young South Kerry entrepreneur.

The revolutionary new pitches are saving and generating thousands of euros for GAA clubs while also helping to keep star inter-county players injury free.

The brains behind the idea to add rubber from recycled tyres to turf playing pitches is Conor O'Neill, a 23 year old entrepreneur from Dromid, whose company Rubber Pitches Ireland already counts some of the country's top GAA clubs among its growing list of customers.

The former landscape gardener turned green businessman recycles hundreds of tyres for each pitch he re-surfaces.

"I spent six years researching the idea and travelled extensively throughout Europe to work out the best system for developing and maintaining a pitch," he said. "I discovered that tyres can be granulated to create a crumb rubber product which improves turf grass, making pitches more durable and even safer for athletes.

"These pitches can take serious wear and tear. They won't freeze or water-log, making them playable all year round and they even improve the natural bounce of a ball," he said.

"The rubber based foundation also acts as a shock absorber, reducing the impact on muscles and joints and inter-county managers and coaches have found that this helps to prevent players from picking up injuries or aggravating old injuries," he said.

The product has been tested and approved by The Sports Turf Research Institute, who are among the world's leading independent consultants for turf grass research and agronomy, and the quality of the product has also led to Mr O'Neill's business being credited with the Guaranteed Irish standard.

The real key to Mr O'Neill's innovation was an attempt to devise a money-saving alternative to the traditional use of sand to maintain and repair pitches. The rubber alternative has also been especially good news for players who no longer have to worry about picking up sand cuts and abrasions.

"What I've come up with is a non-abrasive alternative which won't get washed away or played away. The crumb rubber doesn't compact and the crown of the grass bends across it allowing it to withstand the rigours of competition and to recover quickly thereby prolonging the playing season," Mr O'Neill said.

"Clubs can have rubber added to their pitch for almost the same money that they spend on sand and the benefit is that it requires no maintenance for a full year. They save money in the long run because at the end of four years of using rubber they won't need to invest any more money in maintaining or developing their grounds," he added.

The benefits of using rubber pitches have been recognised and endorsed by players, managers and GAA County Boards alike including Kerry manager Jack O'Connor.

"The Kerry inter-county panel have trained on the rubber pitch at Austin Stack Park and there is no doubt that it is one of the best surfaces around. It is ideal for winter training and we have found that the surface cushions joints and muscles to protect players from injury," said Mr O'Connor.

Mr O'Neill plans to expand his business by targeting the FAI and the IRFU as well as the country's horse racing courses and stables.