Wolfe Tones' performances in the 2005 Meath SFC suggest that they are here to stay. Bidding for an astonishing, unprecedented treble of junior, intermediate and senior championships in successive years, the Kilberry club reached a Keegan Cup quarter-final before losing by a mere two points to 2003 finalists Blackhall Gaels. It was a gallant effort from the Tones, leaving club chairman Sean Power justifiably proud. The 2005 Meath SFC quarter-final clash of Wolfe Tones and Blackhall Gaels at Pairc Tailteann on Saturday September 11 was an unlikely pairing considering that, two years earlier, these two sides had won the county junior and senior football championships respectively. Amazingly, the most improved club side in Royal County football led the Kilcloon/Batterstown men as the game went into the fourth quarter but Blackhall's experience ultimately proved decisive as they eked out a 0-14 to 0-12 victory. It all amounted to a brilliant stab from Wolfe Tones. Though they covered themselves in glory with a commendable effort, there was still a hankering sense of regret, a feeling of 'what if?' hanging in the Kilberry air. That's ambition for you. It's the kind of attitude that has seen the Tones come so far so quickly; the attitude that will propel them further. Club chairman Sean Power notes: "We're happy enough with our lot but we were also disappointed in the end because we could have beaten Blackhall Gaels. They were probably the better team on the night but we still could have beaten them. Two points isn't a huge margin. We could have been through to a semi-final…" Despite the fact that the dream journey came to a sudden halt, Sean admits that the season in general went pretty much according to plan: "The plan at the start of the year was to get to the play-offs and to establish ourselves in Division One. We're happy that we consolidated our senior status and it was a good achievement to finish third in our group and contest the knockout stage of the senior championship." Did the Tones really think they could complete the treble? Winning all three major championships back-to-back was a very tall order, after all. "It is, but you always hope you can defy the odds," comes the reply. "Especially when you beat Walterstown in your first game and also beat Skryne, you start to believe it might be possible. I hope we have learned something from our experiences in 2005 and that we will be a little more streetwise in 2006. "You need to be very cute for senior football. We came through the intermediate grade without ever settling into intermediate football at all, so we missed out on some of the learning curve. Maybe a couple of years at intermediate level would set you up better for senior football. Having said that, we fully deserve our senior status and have no intention of relinquishing it. "What Wolfe Tones have achieved in a short space of time is incredible, and we know it was a wonderful feat for this team to get to the last eight at the first attempt. We wanted to go further but we can have no complaints. The lads put in a good display on the night but they were beaten by a more experienced side." Wolfe Tones are set up nicely for the future. "They've acquired a winning habit, which is very important in any club or county because you can very easily get into the habit of losing. We also have a very young team, outside of Tommy Dowd, who was a great asset to the team at senior level this year. His experience was a massive help and we're hoping he'll play with us for another year at least. "I think there's definitely a Keegan Cup in this team. They're a year wiser now, they've filled out a bit more and I'm sure the appetite is still there. "We were all on a high right up to the quarter-final, but that defeat certainly wasn't the worst thing in the world to happen. They can learn from it. They should be wiser now. Senior football is completely different to any other grade and it's part of the learning process." In 2004, Wolfe Tones won the All-Ireland junior club championship and were also crowned Meath Club of the Year. Niall McLoughlin and Cian Ward collected the Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year awards respectively. Stephen Shepherd was on the county minor team in '05, Ciaran McLoughlin was full back with the county juniors and both Niall McLoughlin and Cian Ward featured on Sean Boylan's senior squad. Not to be outdone, Irene Munnelly, representing the very strong ladies section of the club, won the ladies competition in the MBNA All-Ireland Kick Fada in September 2005, with a huge kick of 45 metres. Sean is in the third year of his second stint as club chairman, having previously served a four-year term in the chair. Did he ever dream of days like this? "When I came back I knew there was definitely a junior championship in the team, but to go up and compete at senior - you wouldn't have envisaged that. It's very difficult to get out of junior football. It's possibly the hardest grade of all. We were junior for a long time and we endured a lot of barren years. "But a good crop of players came along at the same time, had success at minor and U21 level and gelled together. Tony Carney came on the scene and did great work." Sean is a site manager with Dublin-headquartered Precision Construction Ltd., a company which specialises in shop fit-outs. Precision Construction carries out a lot of work for Tesco and Lifestyle Sport amongst others and Sean is currently overseeing a new Tesco store in New Ross, which is due to open on March 13 2006. The Meath man has also been involved in Tesco projects in Letterkenny, Roscommon, Midleton and Phibsboro. A number of unsung heroes have contributed to Wolfe Tones' remarkable recent successes. Paddy White from the Lough Allen Hotel in Drumshanbo in the main sponsor and club secretary Michael Carr also does a Trojan amount of unseen work. Richie Caldwell acts as club treasurer and is one of the finest treasurers Wolfe Tones have ever had. Francis Carney looks after the gate at both pitches and does a great job looking after the house. The U10s were looked after by Robert O'Kelly Lynch, Paul Farrelly and Gabriel Muldoon. Philip Ward and Christy Shaw managed the U12s and U13s, while Richie Cahill and Francis Carney took charge of the U14s. Richie Caldwell and Tony Brown were over the U17s and minors. Larry Henry is chairman of the underage section, with Helen Shepherd as secretary. Robert O'Kelly Lynch, Stephen Brennan, Thomas McKeown Jnr. and Dermot Heaney coached the underage hurlers, while adult hurling in the club was in the safe hands of Owen Heaney, Derek Halligan and Aidan Jordan. Tony Kearney, Philip O'Brien, Gerry Thompson and Morgan Carr managed the senior footballers. Gerry O'Brien represents the club as a referee and Oliver McKeown does a lot of photography and keeps records. The ladies got to the junior 'A' final in 2005. Fiona Farrelly is chairperson of the ladies club, while Tom Sheridan is secretary and Gerry McKeever is treasurer. Paddy Diamond looks after the juveniles. It's full steam ahead on all fronts. What a club! Tweet

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