Board

George Lucas — Chair Sport NI

George has served on boards for over 30 years. He held the roles of Managing Director of Corus Steel Ireland and Chair of Steel Company of Ireland during a long and successful career in the industry. Formerly Chair of the Health and Safety Executive Northern Ireland (HSENI}, he is also a past Chair of the Ulster Branch of Tennis Ireland. George is also on the Board of UK Sport.

A strong believer in the lifelong benefits of participation in sport and physical recreation, keen sportsman George currently plays tennis for Ireland at Veterans level and has competed in 14 International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Team Championships, held in a range of countries.

Gavin Boyd — Vice Chair and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee of Sport NI.

A Chartered Accountant, Gavin has held numerous high level positions including CEO of the Northern Ireland Council for Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) and CEO of the Southern and Belfast Education and Library Boards. He led the planning for and creation of the Education Authority (EA}, merging five major organisations and creating a regional authority with 43 000 staff and an annual budget of £2bn, retiring in 2019 after four years as first CEO of EA.

Gavin played Gaelic Football for club, school, and university, captained the school athletics squad, and played squash and rugby after leaving school. He has refereed Gaelic football at a senior level, including a number of County Finals. He has been a member of Balmoral Golf Club for over 40 years and is a season ticket holder at Ulster Rugby.

Greg Irwin

Greg has led corporate functions across public sector organisations in Northern Ireland, the UK, Ireland and Australia for over 25 years and brings expertise in strategy, governance and communications to the Sport NI board. Currently the Utility Regulator’s Board Secretary, he shaped effective governance arrangements for the new organisation. At the Food Standards Agency and the NSW Food Authority he improved business services and created successful strategic stakeholder partnerships.

Greg played rugby for 30 years, playing for Ulster clubs at age grade level and is now Chair of the Ulster Rugby Committee. He is also a spectator most weekends during the winter watching his children play rugby, football and hockey on school and club teams.

Eoin McGarrity

Eoin is a qualified solicitor and is currently Head of Legal & Compliance, and a Director at Charterhouse Group, where he is responsible for risk management, governance, ESG and legal compliance. Eoin brings a range of commercial, financial, and partnership working skills to the Sport NI Board.

Eoin grew up immersed in sport, participating in soccer, Gaelic football, tennis, angling, and swimming and later took up golf. He started running during the pandemic and now runs 30km per week.

Denise McElrea

Denise is the Head of Governance & Human Resources at NILGOSC. With over 20 years experience in the field of governance and risk, Denise brings a wealth of experience to Sport NI. A member of The Chartered Governance Institute, with a Masters in Management and Corporate Governance as well as an Advanced Certificate in Sports Governance & Administration from The Chartered Governance Institute, Denise has worked across a number of third and public sector organisations including the Housing Executive, Age NI, Helm Housing, and most recently Mid and East Antrim Borough Council.

Denise has a particular interest in grassroots sport and the governance structures that support them. She was the Club Secretary for St Mary’s Football Club for almost 13 years and played a key role in growing the clubs participation numbers and the foundations for the creation of girls teams and a senior men’s team, with successful admission to the Amateur League. She also volunteered as a mentor for Sported NI for 8 years. Denise has also used her skills and experience to sit on a number of Boards including the Irish FA Foundation and Ark Housing.

Alison Nicholl

Alison is Senior Technology Consultant at EY. Before taking up her current role, Alison was Head of Digital Transformation at Invest Northern Ireland, working in economic development. She worked closely with the Northern Ireland business base helping companies to grow their exports by utilising and exploiting technology.

A football fanatic, Alison is a pro-license coach in football and was first female in Northern Ireland to obtain the qualification. She coached NI u17 women's team for 13 years and is currently Player/Manager of Coleraine Women’s FC where she also helped setup the girls' junior academy. Alison also played hockey for Coleraine and enjoys cycling, running, and going to the gym when her football schedule permits.

Stephen Reid

Stephen retired in June 2024 as Chief Executive of Ards and North Down Borough Council, a post which he had held for ten years, having worked for almost forty years in Local Government for six Northern Ireland Councils. Stephen is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors, a Chartered Director and gained an MBA from Queen’s University Belfast. He is a former Chair of SOLACE (the Council Chief Executive Group) and brings a wealth of experience working with a wide range of stakeholders, strategic planning, good governance and partnership working to the Board.

A graduate of Loughborough University (Physical Education and Recreation Management), he has played rugby at various levels including for Ireland Under 18, Ulster at Under 23 level and club rugby at Collegians and Belfast Harlequins.

Gary Lyons

Gary is CEO of TalkTerms, a specialist platform providing bespoke dispute resolution advice to a range of clients. Gary brings a wealth of experience in technology, compliance and governance to Sport NI. He has a Law Degree and Masters in International Commercial Law and further accreditations in compliance risk management and corporate governance.
A passionate advocate for sport and the benefits it brings to communities, Gary has previously played golf and hockey and has more recently taken up cycling and is a member of the Titanic Quarter Cycling Club.

Wendy Elliott

Following on from a series of appointments as Branch Manager within the Nationwide Building society, Wendy played a key role in the formation of the South Tyrone Area Partnership. She performed the role of Strategic Partnership Manager to the Board. More recently she was regional Fundraising Manager at the National Trust, where she successfully secured £20m to facilitate the delivery of many transformation projects, including the restoration of Mount Stewart mansion house and the development of world class visitor facilities at the Giants Causeway, Northern Ireland's only world heritage site.

Wendy has always been interested in sport and is a firm believer in the power of sport for our health, wellbeing and self-esteem. Currently a member of Bangor Golf club, Wendy plays competitively for several teams and captains the Senior cup team. She also assists with junior golf coaching over the summer months and is an avid rugby fan and season ticket holder for Ulster rugby.

Claire Moore

Claire is a member of the Senior Leadership Team at The Royal Belfast Academical Institution and is responsible for its financial performance including management of the annual budget and financial projections. She is a former Member of the Governing Body of Stranmillis University College from 2014 to 2023. She was Chair of its Audit and Risk Assurance Committee, gaining governance skills which she will bring to the Sport NI Board. Mrs Moore is also a former member of the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) College Advisory Group from 2017 to 2019, representing the Finance sector.

A keen sports fan, Claire is an Ulster rugby season ticket holder and fan of Ballyclare RFC. She enjoys Formula 1 and follows all RBAI sports teams.