A home to be proud of
March 01, 2010The new facilities were blessed by local PP Fr Tom McManus and the crowd was also addressed by Minister for Agriculture Brendan Smith TD; Fine Gael Councillor Peter McVitty; and the chairman of the County Board Phil Smith. Senator Joe O'Reilly and councillors Maura Maguire Lynch, Sean Smith and Damian Brady were also on hand to witness this landmark occasion. Thanks to the tireless efforts of countless people within the club, a lasting legacy has been left for future generations in this scenic corner of the county.
St. Patrick's have installed a sand-based pitch at a cost of over €600,000, which included dressing rooms and a store room. Grants were obtained for over €220,000 but the club also received sponsorship from local businesses, past members and surrounding clubs towards the funding. The facilities represent a remarkable achievement for such a small club.
As PRO with the Leitrim border outfit, Gerard Prior looks back on the official opening of the new pitch and clubhouse with an obvious degree of pride: "We opened it officially over the October Bank Holiday weekend and we had a whole series of events running right through from the Friday until the Monday, including table quizzes and matches etc. All in all, it was a great weekend, and an important one for Corlough GAA.
"Sunday was the main day. We had 'Micko' up for the ceremony and we also hosted a challenge match between the mighty Crossmaglen Rangers of Armagh and Leitrim champions Glencar-Manorhamilton, who stepped in late after Corofin of Galway got caught up in a replay in their own club championship. Pat McEneaney refereed the match and we also had the Kiltubrid Pipe Band on duty for the parade. We had a great turn-out from the local community as well as assorted dignitaries including local councillors, County Board reps, members of local clubs and reporters from the local media.
"It was a big occasion for our club and we're delighted to have these excellent facilities at our disposal now, complete with state-of-the-art dressing-rooms and floodlights etc. The development is a credit to the club and to all the people who supported us in making the dream a reality.
"I'd like to take this opportunity to go on record and sincerely thank all the local clubs who came and supported us on the day and also helped us out many times during the year - and prior to that - when we needed a pitch to play on. Our neighbouring clubs were extremely good to us and they never hesitated to allow us the use of their facilities in previous years when we were stuck. We really appreciate that. I'd also like to express our gratitude to all the sponsors who helped us throughout the year - this would never have been possible without their support.
"The pitch is superb and it's holding up well in all weather conditions. We're very pleased with it and I've no doubt it will serve the club and the local community very well for many years to come. We hosted our first championship match on the pitch in 2009 when Kildallan and Templeport played here. There was a big turn-out for that match and it was encouraging to have confirmation that our facilities are up to County Board standard. We also have fencing around the field and there are also top-class car-parking facilities, so everything is in place to host championship matches."
No doubt there will be many more major matches staged at St Patrick's Park in 2010 and beyond. With one of the finest playing surfaces in the county at their disposal, Corlough GAA club have every reason to be feeling just a little bit smug at present.
The next challenge is to defy the odds (considering the club's obvious limitations in terms of numbers) and produce a team that can challenge for honours…
On this front, Gerard (a former club captain who now doubles up as a first-team selector) admits there's more work to be done: "The team was very disappointing in 2009. Compared to the previous year, it wasn't great… When you consider that we only won one league match out of 13 you know it just didn't happen for us. They never really got going. They put in a better showing in the latter part of the year, when they were racking up bigger scores, but still one win is very disappointing and we'll need to improve considerably on that.
"But we'll get it right. We just have to work with them a bit harder this year…"
In the 2009 county JFC, Corlough lost both their group games - to Cornafean (3-7 to 1-10 and Mountnugent (5-12 to 1-8).
What's a realistic goal for the team, bearing in mind how poorly they performed in '09? "To be in the top four or five in the league but, preferably, we'd love to get to a junior championship final and I see no reason why we can't do that. If we get to the final, we'll take it from there and talk about winning it once we get there. That would certainly be my objective for the team.
"We have some great players in that team at the minute and it would be a tremendous pity to see them retire without some proper silverware to show for their years representing Corlough. To think that they might get to the end of their playing days and have nothing to show for it … that's not a nice thought. I never won anything with the club myself as a player. We got to a championship final against Gowna and some league finals, but won nothing. Having won nothing for them on the field of play, I'd love to help win something from the line."
Two-thousand-and-ten promises to be another hectic year for Corlough St Patrick's, as they settle into their new home. Gerard concludes: "We'll field at all grades. At underage, we'll once more be amalgamated with Swanlinbar (Dernacrieve Gaels). That's a good set-up and it's going well. Drumlane ran a good U10 tournament over two weekends last year with seven or eight clubs involved and Dernacrieve won that out. The local Tullyveela NS also tasted success in Cumann na mBunscol during the year, which also bodes well for the future. Our U12s and U14s kept it going in '09 and we have some good young players coming along. We work hard with our underage players from February through to October, so hopefully they'll continue to develop and progress into a successful adult team." Tweet
