Two-thousand-and-five marked the return of Killallon GFC as a going concern. The resurrected north Meath club found the going tough at times and struggled to make a major impression, but they did at least get off the mark with a memorable 3-9 to 1-6 defeat of Drumbaragh in the junior 'D' football championship at Ballinlough on Thursday July 14. Club secretary Chris Geraghty spoke to 'Royal County 2005' about the return of the Killallon men. Killallon are back. They took the first tentative steps down the rejuvenation road in 2005 and, though results didn't always go according to plan, are to be commended for their dedication, perseverance and resolution. It's a huge undertaking to get a GAA club up and running and the band of souls who breathed new life into Killallon GFC in '05 deserve nothing but the highest praise. They had a dream. They made that dream come true. Drawing inactive players from the surrounding clubs of Ballinlough, St Brigid's, Drumbaragh and St Paul's in Westmeath, Killallon mustered up a new enthusiasm and verve, benefiting greatly from the goodwill of the local community. The next step is to up the ante in 2006, with improved performances on the field of play a prerequisite for survival. The honeymoon period is over now and Killallon face a big challenge to shake off the mantle of Meath football's whipping boys. In fairness, '05 was always going to be a struggle results-wise and actually fielding teams was an achievement in itself. Everybody associated with the club was finding their way, learning the ropes so to speak, and the obvious inexperience at playing and administrative level hampered the team's progress. A year older and wiser, Killallon will be hoping for bigger and better things in 2006. Attacker and club secretary Chris Geraghty is aiming for a better run in the junior 'D' championship and is confident that the All Blacks can at least reach the knockout stage of that competition. That's the intention anyway. Indeed, it was the championship that presented the Royal County's newest club with their only competitive victory of 2005 - and what a win it was! Drumbaragh provided the opposition for the club's penultimate group outing at Ballinlough in mid-July and Killallon made their mark with a magnificent nine-point victory, 3-9 to 1-6. As the club has been out of existence since the early 1980s, this was their first championship win in over 20 years. They had been close to a breakthrough on a couple of previous occasions only to wind up on the wrong side of tight scorelines. However, nobody could argue with the outcome in this game, as Killallon finished up comfortable winners. With the breeze offering welcome assistance, the newcomers started brightly and had two early points on the board thanks to freetaker Philip Davis. Though Drumbaragh battled back into contention, Davis was the most effective player in the opening period and his goal before the interval gave Killallon a 1-5 to 0-4 half-time cushion. The winners had to weather a mini-revival from their opponents on the restart but put the game out of reach when Robert Davis fired to the net at the end of a flowing counter attack. When Barry Reilly popped up with the third goal, it was all over bar the shouting. Killallon were back. As Killallon had also received a walkover against Meath Hill, they found themselves within touching distance of the semi-final stage of the JFC 'D', with four points out of a possible six. The group closer against Gaeil Colmcille was a winner-takes-all affair with a place in the last four up for grabs, but the Kells side put an end to Killallon's championship aspirations with a 3-13 to 0-8 win. Looking back on the '05 campaign, the club secretary observes: "We were out of our depth in the 'A' league but playing against established teams was a good learning curve and hopefully we can put the experience to good effect next year. We played three games in the championship, winning one, and there's no reason why we can't make an even bigger impression in the junior 'D' next year. We're certainly not out of our depth at that level and, with a bit of improvement, could beat any team on our day." Unfortunately, Killallon suffered some landslide defeats in Division Five. Nobody said it was going to be easy, though, and the All Blacks should be better prepared in the new season. Where did the seed that led to the reformation of Killallon GFC come from? Chris explains: "Myself and my father [club chairman] Padraig talked about it for a year or so and we realised that some people had a dream of playing for Killallon again. We checked around and saw that there was a good interest in getting the club up and running again. The feedback we got was very encouraging. "We held a meeting in the local centre and it was attended by 20 players who said they were all interested in playing for Killallon, It took off from there…" At the start of the 2005 calendar year, the committee found themselves in a race against time to get the new club affiliated: "In January/February, we were nearly out of time with the County Board. We got on to Kilskyre hurling club and they agreed to allow us to use their pitch for the year, which we greatly appreciate. We put up some lights in Seamus Renehan's field and trained there until the long evenings came in. We built up our fitness levels and got things up and running. Once the brighter evenings came in, we trained in Kilskyre." The players were relative rookies. Only Terence Fagan had played regular football the previous season, so the learning curve was a steep one. But at least a good few of the players were also hurling with Kilskyre, which meant a decent level of fitness in the squad. Chris concedes that the whole thing was a huge undertaking: "Personally I didn't think it would be such a big task. We underestimated the amount of work and effort involved. The County Board filled us in on what was required and we kept at it. To be honest, if we'd known it was such a massive undertaking we might have left it for a year, but we got through and we have a year under our belts now, which should stand us in good stead." No regrets then? "No. We took the plunge and are happy to have brought the club back. It was difficult to generate interest and support because it had been so long since there was a team in Killallon, but things eventually caught on and it was great to see people coming to games to support the team. There's a good history of football in Killallon and hopefully we can go on and add to that." While Thomas Daly and Donie Geraghty did a fine job looking after team affairs, Killallon hope to bring in a more experienced coach in 2006, as they strive towards a place in the latter stages of the junior 'D' football championship. "If we get the right dedication and belief for the full year, we could make it to the final," says Chris. "In the league, we'll probably be happy just to run a few teams closer, but the championship is possible. We can make real progress there." Was the secretary pleased with the reception Killallon got in 2005? "It wasn't bad. A lot of people remember the old teams and were glad to see us back. Ballinlough and St Paul's were very understanding when we went looking for a few players and, even though they are bitter rivalries, they wished us well. "We're hoping to get a panel of 25 lads together for next year. We only had 21 towards the end of 2005 and that wouldn't be long going down to 14 or 15 if you had a few injuries. We have a very young team, with only one lad over 30, one 28 and the rest of us under 25, so we have the players to keep it going for the foreseeable future. "If we can add a few more players here and there, we should be fine. We've had approaches already from a few lads interested in wearing the Killallon jersey, and we'll be getting back to them. A lot of people might have thought at the start that we wouldn't succeed, and some people said we were mad to try it, but we've done okay. There's a good interest in the club, with decent numbers turning up for training three nights a week." Chris realises only too well that 2006 will provide the acid test of Killallon's credentials as a viable entity. "We played 15 or 16 competitive games in our first year back and only won one, so we're clearly going to have to do better. We have to start making a name for ourselves. The first year is over and we have to start making progress. Otherwise it's all been a waste of time." The Killallon side that defeated Drumbaragh in the 2005 Scanlons of Kilberry Meath junior 'D' football championship: E Carroll; V Smith, C Renehan, A Davis; J Beggan, P Baugh, D Geraghty; N Geraghty (0-1), T Fagan (0-3); R Ball, P Davis (1-3), A Fagan; R Davis (1-1), B Reilly (1-1), C Geraghty. Tweet

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