The commercial firm owned by Irish rugby legend Paul O'Connell have enjoyed a strong year, as accumulated profits topped €2.15 million.
New accounts show that the fortunes of O’Connell’s Nellcon Ltd continue to flourish after the Limerick man’s retirement from the professional game in 2016.
The company recorded a post-tax profit of €117,960 in the 12 months to the end of April 2019, which followed post-tax profits of €468,374 in the 2018 fiscal year.
The drop in profit for the year is partly explained by pay to directors more than doubling, from €81,024 to €165,181.
The pay to directors last year was made up of €102,918 in remuneration and pension contributions of €62,263.
During the same period the firm’s cash pile increased by €85,094, from €1.469m to €1.555m.
The value of the company’s financial assets remained the same at €75,000.
The 40-year-old iconic figure of world and Irish rugby retired from the game in 2016 after sustaining a severe hamstring injury in the 2015 World Cup game against France.
The strong profits of the past two years compare very favourably with profits for the firm when Mr O’Connell was still playing professional rugby - €72,534 in the 12 months to the end of April 2016; €72,891 in 2015 and €143,627 in 2014.
The directors of the firm are Paul O’Connell and Michael O’Connell.
The firm owed €72,838 to Paul O’Connell at the end of April 2019.
Mr O’Connell was a talisman for Munster and Ireland for over a decade, winning his 100th cap against Wales in March 2015 and adding a further eight caps before retiring.
Mr O’Connell established Nellcon Ltd in 2005 and the figures show that the firm’s net assets were valued at €2.156m at the end of April last.
