With the amount of residential developments being currently erected in Johnstown and its surrounding environs, Walterstown supporters are rubbing their hands at the thoughts of the benefits the club should derive from the increase in numbers. Walterstown secretary Sean O'Brien reveals that plans are in place to maximise the potential which the population increase should provide. The eyes of GAA-minded people travelling through the ever-burgeoning village of Johnstown light up green with envy when they contemplate the rewards the population explosion the area is currently experiencing should reap for Walterstown GFC in future years. And, according to club secretary Sean O'Brien, the Blacks are rising to the challenge which the inevitable increase in numbers will place on their facilities. Already work has commenced on the development of two new playing pitches and Sean reveals that the club's hard-working committee have no intentions of resting on their laurels. They're determined to provide their players and members with one of the finest playing facilities in the county and further plans are in the pipeline. "Last year the club purchased 16 acres of land which are adjoining to our existing field. Along with the development of the two new pitches we plan to modernise the clubhouse and extend it. We hope to start work on that in the coming year. "The main reason behind the purchase of the land was the amount of residential developments in and around Johnstown. Already the number of houses in the area has increased from 400 to 2,500. We intend to have the facilities in place in the future which will allow us capitalise on the increase in numbers in the parish." Finance for the project was raised by a 'House Draw' which the club ran in conjunction with neighbours, and old foes, Skryne at the end of 1999. "The House Draw was a great success. I suppose you could say it was unique in that two clubs, who are great rivals on the pitch, came together to organise it but there was great co-operation between ourselves and Skryne and both clubs were extremely satisfied with the final outcome. The money raised allows us to progress with the development plans at full steam ahead." In an ironic twist of fate, Walterstown and Skryne were fixed to play in the semi-final of the Meath SFC on the eve of the draw night. Unfortunately, from a Walterstown perspective, it was the Skryne contingent who were sporting the biggest smiles in the Newgrange Hotel that night. Having reached such as advanced stage on that occasion, big things were expected of Walterstown in the twelve months just coming to an end but, unfortunately 2000 proved to be a massive anti-climax as the Blacks failed to qualify from a group which contained Summerhill, Kilmainhamwood, Seneschalstown and Moynalvey. A one point defeat at the hands of rivals Seneschalstown in the opening game was a sign of things to come but a draw against Summerhill and a win against Moynalvey offered hope which Kilmainhamwood extinguished in the final group game "It was a very disappointing year on the senior football front," admits Sean. "Looking at it realistically, I wouldn't have thought at the start of the year that we were going to win the Keegan Cup given the young age profile of the team, but having reached the semi-final stages last year, I would have hoped to have repeated that achievement this year. "Joey Farrelly's departure for Australia was a major blow, plus we were hit with a number of injuries during the course of the senior championship campaign which, obviously, didn't help. "In the Kilmainhamwood game we missed too many chances and you can't afford to do that in the senior championship. But, as I said, the team is very young and I would be hopeful that they will learn from their mistakes this year and bounce back." It's no secret that the Blacks have at their disposal some of the finest young talent in the county. As recently as 1998, they provided six to the Meath minor XV which tackled Dublin in the Leinster championship and, unsurprisingly, they were crowned county minor champions the same year. They boasted six of the St Patrick's, Navan panel which claimed All-Ireland Colleges honours this year. Raymond Reynolds, Brian McCormack, Ronan Conaty and Paddy O'Brien starred on the team which overcame St Pat's, Armagh in the decider at Breffni Park while Eoin Carroll and Kelan Daly were amongst the substitutes on that historic occasion. "Those lads did the club proud and it was great to see them getting their hands on All-Ireland medals. We actually had the second highest representation on the panel after the O'Mahony's. It was a magnificent achievement by all associated with the St Pat's team." Sean continues: "We were unlucky not to have fared better in the minor championship this year. We had a strong team but the problem was that the panel was small and we were badly affected with injuries. Again, like the seniors, we probably didn't expect to win it, but we did expect to do better." Despite the failure of the seniors and minors to land some form of silverware, the Walterstown trophy cabinet isn't empty at the moment thanks to the efforts of the club's Under 14s who captured the FL Division 3 title at the expense of Ballinabrackey on a scoreline of 2-14 to 3-3. Brendan Murray, Brian Crosbie, Mick O'Keeffe, Christy Reynolds and Denis O'Mahony were in charge of that winning side and Sean points to it as further cause for optimism regarding the Blacks' future prospects. To those who remember the halycon era of Walterstown GFC, notably the period 1978 to 1984 which yielded five Keegan Cup successes and two All-Ireland club final appearances, the present state of affairs have been difficult to swallow. It is for this reason that any straw which resembles a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel is clutched at desperately. Sean has been a committee member continuously since being first elected in the mid-sixties. He has occupied the chairmanship on three different occasions, for stints of four years, and is currently in his 12th year as secretary. He has served as a selector on the club's senior team on a couple of occasions but it has been at underage level that he has contributed most on the footballing side of things. And his highlights were? "The first senior championship win in 1978 was undoubtedly the highlight. We reached the final in '76 but Summerhill hammered us. We knew we'd be there or thereabouts in '78 and we got the bit of luck required to win a championship and that set the ball rolling. "Reaching two All-Ireland club finals would also have to rank up there although we were disappointed not to win one. We were particularly unfortunate against Nemo Rangers in 1984. "On the day of the final the handpass rule, which that Walterstown team had perfected, was abolished and that was serious disadvantage to us. The present Leinster Council chairman, Seamus Aldridge was referee that day and he enforced the new rule to the letter of the law." The Royal Liver Insurance employee was chairman in 1985, when the Oldtown based club unveiled its new clubhouse and playing pitch. "The purchase of our own pitch after years of togging out behind a ditch in Con O'Sullivan's field was another highlight. The official opening, when Meath played Monaghan, was a big day in the history of the club." More 'big days' may just lie around the corner . . . U-14 FL Division 3 success for Walterstown Walterstown proved too strong for Ballinabrackey in the u-14 FL Division 3 final on a scoreline of 2-14 to 3-3. Playing with wind advantage in the first half, the winner's built up a 1-7 to 1-0 interval lead with Brian Farrelly putting his name on their first goal. Ballinabrackey fought back on the resumption to reduce the deficit to just two points with two goals. Farrelly later earned his side a penalty which Paddy Murray dispatched to the net. With Neil Darby also netting a goal and top scorer Alan O'Keeffe adding on three points, Walterstown ran out comfortable winners. Walterstown - A McCormack; J Quinn, C Reynolds, C Brady; K McGrane, P Murray (1-1), C Hennelly; A Crosby, D Reynolds; C Daly, N Darby (0-3), J Coogan; A O'Keeffe (0-8), B Farrelly (1-2), D McGuinness. Subs - A Curtis, C O'Sullivan, T Clarke, D McGuinness. Tweet

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