St. Vincent's Ardcath haven't been enjoying the best of times recently. Royal County asks chairman Pat Bowens what the reasons behind their poor form are and about the chances of them bouncing back in the not to distant future. The plight of the small rural club suffering at the hands of gaelic football's fluctuating and fickle fortunes has been well documented. Take St. Vincent's, Ardcath for example. As recently as 1963 they were contesting Keegan Cup deciders against Navan O'Mahony's. Eight years earlier they had captured Meath football's blue riband prize. Memorable days . . . but, regretfully, all too distant. 1998 did little to inspire confidence in their prospects of winning the junior title. "To be honest it wasn't one of our more successful years," laments chairman Pat Bowens. "We performed poorly in both the league and championship which was extremely disappointing, however, we had a terrible time with injuries to key players during the year." St. Vincent's are no different to many other small rural clubs in the Royal County. A small population dictates unfavourable consequences for the local GAA club. "It is a big struggle to keep up the numbers. There's a huge commitment there to make sure that all the young footballers in the parish maintain their interest, especially when you're competing against other sports such as soccer and rugby. The fact that we're not enjoying much success in terms of silverware, of course makes it more difficult. "But in saying all that we have two teams here in the club and we always manage to field at least one so you can never give up hope. You have to be optimistic." Naturally Pat's ambition would be to see St. Vincent's climb back up the ladder . . . starting first with a junior championship success. "It would be great for the club, and indeed the parish, if we could return to winning ways. It's been a long time since a championship success was last celebrated here. But as I have already said we need extra bodies and a big commitment from everyone involved if this is to be achieved." Away from the field of play, things couldn't be running any smoother for Pat and his fellow St. Vincent's committee members. The affable Bowens is eager to point out that it is anything but a one man show at the Ardcath outfit, adding that the maroon and whites are blessed with dedicated individuals who sacrifice a lot of their spare time to assist the development of the club. "Paddy Andrews and 'Dickser' Dunne in particular have given a lifetime of service to St. Vincent's GAA club," he says. "Hail, rain or snow they are always available to help out in any way they can. "The secretary Gerry Clerkin (who along with manager Pat Kavanagh and Seamus McEntee made up the St. Vincent's junior team management), treasurer Shay Lane and the rest of the committee all do their bit as well." Having served as chairman of the club's Juvenile Board from 1987 - '96, Pat was elected as overall chairman three years ago. For his own part he enjoys the involvement, despite the ever increasing demands being placed on club chairmen nowadays. "Although it is very time consuming I do enjoy it. I think it's all about the way you delegate the various jobs and I'm extremely fortunate to have such an active committee working alongside me." The weekly parish lotto provides much needed finance for the club. They share the profits with the local soccer and pitch and putt clubs and it has proven to be a great success since its inception three years ago. "The lotto is a great help to us," remarks Pat, who incidentally has been working as a psychiatric nurse since 1971. "It provides us with a consistent income and eliminates the need for other fund raising ventures. A committee member takes it in turn each week to organise it and it is alternated on a monthly basis." Income from the lotto goes a long way towards the keep of the club's facilities, which consists of clubrooms and a playing field. Pat says the club are proud of their facilities. "We have our own clubhouse and a very good pitch. It's one of the driest in the county. We're very happy with the facilities . . . they're as good as anything else you would find in Meath." It may come as a surprise for some to learn that Pat is actually a native of Kentstown. He played with the local Seneschalstown club at underage and juvenile level, garnering U17 and minor championship souvenirs in 1969 and '70. Willie and Joe Clarke were team-mates on those successful sides. Work commitments forced him to move to Dublin in 1971, but not before he had contested a Leinster Vocational Schools final with a Meath team which included future county star Kevin McConnell. With Navan Vocational School he attained county and Leinster honours playing alongside 1988 Meath All-Ireland winning captain, Joe Cassells. In Dublin he lined out with St. Pat's of Donabate. The nearest he came to silverware with his adopted club was in 1975 when they were beaten in the Dublin junior championship decider. From there he moved to Ardcath in 1983 and the rest, as they say, is history. Pat's involvement with St. Vincent's stretches back to 1986. His six sons, Raymond, Barry, Jason, Bryan, Robert and Stanley have all worn the maroon and white at some stage. While the footballers of St. Vincent's may not have been faring out too well in recent times, the camogie club, which was formed only a couple of years ago has made impressive strides of progress. Pat pays tribute to the fine work of the likes of chairperson Mary Byrne, Nuala Carberry, Patricia O'Brien, Maura McKenna and Molly Mulvaney. Can the footballers follow suit? St. Vincent's supporters can rest safe in the knowledge that Pat Bowens and his hard working committee will leave no stone unturned in their quest for a return to the glory days. Tweet

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