Seamus McCluskey looks back on a golden era in the history of Killanny G.F.C. Writing in the 1979 Co. Monaghan GAA Yearbook (at the end of 1978), Joe Murray had this to say: "Since the club's foundation, finding a permanent home had always been a problem. In the early years our pitch shifted from field to field with such frequency that often our home venue was "found" only a matter of days before a match. Eventually the famous "Black Meadow" became our recognised abode, and they still talk throughout the county of some of the famous 'battles' that took place there. When our tenure at the Meadow expired we were back on the road again and after some twenty-five years, during which we were given refuge by several kind farmers, we finally made the plunge and in 1975 the club purchased a portion of Lannett Bog with a view to developing a 'castle' of our own. Some people thought we were mad but now, some three years later and after tremendous sacrifices, we have a "Home" second to none in the county and one of which I'm sure these earlier standard bearers - and goal-post carriers - of ours, would justifiably feel proud." Joe later continued: - "So, if our successes on the playing field isn't all it might be, our achievements behind that long boundary wall proudly stand as a fitting monument both to the endeavours of our predecessors and to the foresight of our energetic officers of the 1975 era. The past year (1978) wasn't a particularly great one for our Junior Football team ... winning ten out of fourteen championship and Dr Ward Cup matches being poor compensation for our failure at the semi-final stages of both competitions." Little did Joe Murray realise, at that point in time, that his newly found "castle" in Killanny would actually prove to be the stepping stone to a year of tremendous success, as Killanny would sweep the decks the following year when they captured the coveted 'Junior Double' of both Junior Football Championship and Dr. Ward Cup (League) for 1979. His new 'castle' provided the spirit that drove his club's footballers to efforts far and beyond the call of duty, and their double success that year was as meritted as it was deserved. Defeat in both semi-finals of 1978 had not deterred them and, knowing that they were no longer 'travellers' in their own parish, they had just been imbued with a newly found pride which inspired them to new heights and a remarkable series of successes that would go down in their club history as probably one of their greatest years ever. Writing in the 1980 GAA Yearbook Joe Murray was again their scribe, and he began his article with the following: "Killanny must have created something of a record in the 1970s. They ushered in the decade by winning the Junior Championship in their first year and now embark on the 'eighties as Junior Champions again having, coincidentally, defeated, Tyholland on both occasions. And really, after all the ups and downs of the intervening years, it's a marvellous feeling to be back amongst the bigger names in Monaghan football." Quite rightly did Joe Murray and his club-mates celebrate the magnificent double of 1979 and he was in very optimistic mood when he later recorded: "There is a tremendous air of confidence within the club at the moment, and why shouldn't there be. After all, this is a very young team and yet still one with loads of experience. Eleven of the championship winning side - Dermot Boylan, Harry Boylan, Denis Grimes, Anthony Boylan, Michael Cunningham, Peter Finnegan, Dermot McGlew, Liam Thornton, Francie Thornton, John Conlon and Pat Traynor - were members of our under 21 team which defeated Clones in the League Final (Division Two) just two years ago. John Beirne, Dickie Kellett, Finbar Boylan, Tommy Daly, Johnny Callan, Meiteal Quinn and Kevin Boylan are just in the prime of their footballing careers. With a good U21 side in 1979 pressing for places, there is no reason why we can't continue on our upward track." Joe Murray finished his article with this lovely little piece, when he quoted the then eighty-five years old Jemmy 'Jumps' Califf, one of the finest footballers ever to don the Killanny and Co. Monaghan jerseys: - "Thank God I lived to see the Pope coming to Ireland, Monaghan to win the Ulster Championship, Scotstown to win the Ulster Club Championship and Killanny take the Junior Crown - what a year it was." True words, for it was a great year for Killanny, as following their wonderful win in the championship, they defeated Rockcorry in the league (Dr. Ward Cup) final to finish off the remarkable double achievement. Then promoted to senior ranks (there was a "Division Two Senior" in the county at that stage, rather than an Intermediate grade), they gave a very good account of themselves in senior ranks although not figuring among the trophy winners at the end of the season but, the following year 1981, they would remedy that situation when they captured the Division Two League (Fr. Hackett Cup) title, and thus recorded probably their greatest ever achievement in senior grade football circles up to that date. They competed in the Senior Championship in 1982 and held their place in senior grade for the following two years but were relegated again at the end of 1985. Not to be dispirited however, the Junior 'C' team took the Kieran Cup in that year, defeating Emyvale in the final at Clontibret with this team; - Michael McMahon, Johnny Quinn, John McMahon, Meitcal McKeown, Dermot Finnegan, Pauric McConnon, Peter Finnegan, Dermot Grimes, Dessie O'Rourke, Tommy O'Brien, Michael Cunningham, Tommy Gartland, Finbar Boylan, Francie McMahon and Damien Grimes. Subs used: Seamus McMahon, Tommy Steele and Meiteal Quinn, while other members of the panel were PJ McMahon, Terence Dooley, Paddy Quinn, Michael McMahon, David Merrin, PJ Finn, Pat Duffy, Paul Goodman, John Mills and Enda McMahon. All in all, a great achievement for the smallest parish in the diocese of Clogher and a parish that is divided by both county and provincial boundaries as it lies partly in Co Monaghan and partly in Co Louth. When a small parish of its size can conjure up such spirit and enthusiasm for the game, further success must surely follow and it came as no surprise when the Fr Hackett Cup again paid a visit to the club in 1986 while the Junior League title (Dr Ward Cup) returned in 1990. Despite their limited resources and pool of players, this truly magnificent small rural club is assured if even greater success in the not too distant future and, with a spirit and commitment like theirs, they deserve to be commended and admired by all. The youth of today Judging by the calibre of young player coming through the ranks in Killanny, the days of the club struggling at adult level could be coming to an end sooner than some people expect. Killanny may not have set the Monaghan GAA scene alight at adult level in 2001, but fortunately for the south Monaghan club, success - or lack thereof - is judged in more ways than one. At juvenile level, the club moved forward in veritable leaps and bounds, enjoying a level of success that must surely augur well for their future. Thus, with the club's future very much in the hands of its youth, Killanny may not have as much to worry about as some might fear. Winning and losing are really nothing more than habits. Killanny's first team is stuck in a bit of a rut at the moment, and they're struggling to shake the losing habit. But the younger members of the club know a thing or two about winning games, as their performances right through the various juvenile grades in 2001 indicate. What Killanny have to do now is hold onto these players, nurture them and bring them through to the first team with unclipped wings. Easier said than done, granted, but this is certainly one case where the end would more than justify the means. While the first team struggled to make an impact in 2001, it was a busy year for the clubs underage stars. The local school team - Naomh Eanna - had an excellent run, qualifying for the semi-final of the Ollie O'Rourke Cup before coming a cropper on the day against Clontibret. There was no shame in defeat at this late stage in the competition and the young Killanny lads can be rightfully proud of what they achieved during the year. En route to the final, they accounted for Corduff, Broomfield and Mullaghrafferty amongst others - no mean feat by any standards. The teachers and parents who were involved with this particular team over the course of their lengthy season did an excellent job, and they are to be complimented in no uncertain terms on what they've achieved. As, of course are the players! The panel of players which brought honour to Naomh Eanna with some swashbuckling performances in 2001 was as follows: Caolan Duffy, James McConnon, Michael Quinn (captain), Sarah McMahon, Aoife Byrne, Patrick Byrne, Cian Lambe, Edmund Markey, Stephen McMahon, Mark Carolan, Padraig Shevlin, Dean McNulty, Stephen McBride, Darryl Treanor, Kevin Quinn, Simon Burns, Padraig Treanor and Jimmy Kierans. The manager of the team was Master John Jones. Well done one and all! Meanwhile, the under 12s didn't exactly disgrace themselves either, flying the Killanny flag with enough conviction and craft to merit a special mention in this publication. They contested the McGill Cup and made it all the way to the last four. In the league stage of the competition, Killanny's U12s enjoyed great wins over Currin, Aghabog, Latton, Killeevan, Tyholland and Toome, losing only to Oram and Blackhill. This was more than enough to earn them a spot in the semi-final, wherein Killanny came face to face once more with their earlier conquerors Blackhill. There was little between the sides from start to finish and Killanny could consider themselves somewhat unfortunate to emerge the wrong side of the scoreline by a mere two points at the end of a match which could quite easily have gone either way. Killanny were out, the dream was over, but they had given the club's supporters and administrators plenty to smile about. And so, moving rapidly forward, to the under 15s, where yet another great year was had by all. This time, they did even better, going all the way to a county final. The U15s contested the McGuigan Cup and put together a series of blistering displays to book their place in the final. En route to the penultimate stage of the competition, Killanny accounted for Oram, Currin and Tyholland. In the semi-final, they found themselves paired with Tyholland and recorded yet another win to advance to the decider. In the McGuigan Cup final, Killanny locked horns with Killeevan. Unfortunately, the final didn't go quite according to plan and they had to settle for finishing second best. No shame in that. Included on the gallant under 15 squad were the following talented youngsters: Padraic Martin, Sean Treanor, Luke Kellett, Francis Leegan, Peter Marron, James Kelly, Niall Keenan, David Byrne, Padraig Shevlin, Paul McMahon, Philip Daly (capt), Bernard Byrne, Barry Mulholland, Adrian Holland, Gareth McGrattan, Conor Leegan and Enda Shevlin. The team was managed by Lornie Duffy, who also took charge of the under 12s. Progress was made at minor level too. For the U18 competitions, Killanny amalgamated with Corduff, under the banner of Kilduff. They contested the Treanor Cup and came agonisingly close to reaching the knock-out stage, missing a semi-final berth by a mere point. In the championship, meanwhile, there was nothing much to write home about as they lost to Aughnamullen in the first round. It's hardly the world's best-kept secret that the Killanny adult side has been struggling somewhat of late. As the club's Chairman John McMahon points out, however, this could be all set to change: "Recent seasons have been disappointing, but you have to allow these things time. We've been going through a transition period for the past number of years and, while there were no signs in 2001 to suggest that we're about to turn the corner, we do have a lot of good players coming through from underage level. There's great talent coming through from minor and under 21 teams and our plan is to hold onto these players and build a team around them. Hopefully, we'll have a bunch of players capable of getting us out of junior football within the next two or three years." As the song says, 'Things Can Only Get Better'. It won't take much for Killanny to improve on their 2001 showing. They were beaten by Cremartin in the first round of the championship and came back in through the back door only to suffer another defeat, this time at the hands of Doohamlet. Such failures don't make for very comforting reading . . . unless you're a fan of horror! "There's no point in us being too despondent; we're just in a bit of a slump. We had a very successful minor team about three or four years ago under Patsy Ward, Peadar Dooley, Kathleen Dooley and Shane Birdy and we're hoping to keep all our young talent together to build a strong team. "The biggest challenge facing the club is keeping all the young lads together and keeping them interested in football. It's a big step-up from underage football to adult football but hopefully some of them can make that transition and Killanny can start winning things at adult level again." If the schools, under 12, under 15 and minor teams of 2001 are anything to go by, then this is a distinct possibility... The club's view For Killanny Geraldines the year 2001 can only be recorded as one of huge disappointment. Having reached the championship final last year, much was expected from our junior team but the hoped for improvement never looked likely to materialise and our abysmal league campaign was matched only by an equally disastrous championship run. However, the famed south Monaghan club were oftimes in the doldrums throughout their history yet always bounced back to distinguish themselves at intermediate and senior level. While at the same time providing many outstanding players of inter-county standard. We are confident that our present slump will soon be reversed and that we will once again be playing in the top divisions. When we do return to former glory, as we surely will, we will be counting on our present crop of under 15s and under 12s players, who distinguished themselves in their respective league competitions this year, to keep the red and black colours flying at the highest levels. Our under 15s were most impressive in qualifying for the league final where they went under to a strong Killeevan outfit. Our panel of players was: Peter Marron, Donal McArdle, Paul McMahon, Niall Keenan, Paraic Martin, Bernard Byrne, David Byrne, Philip Daly, Barry Mulholland, Garret McGrattan, Francis Leegan, James Kelly, Sean Traynor, Conor Leegan, Enda Shevlin and Adrian Holland. Our Under 12s likewise performed heroics on their way to the semi finals where they were unlucky to lose by 2 points to Blackhill. Panel of players were: Caolain Duffy, Cian Wakely, Fiacra Kerley, Michael Quinn, Darrel Traynor, Damien Kerley, Fabian Marron, Stephen McMahon, Simon Byrne, Mark Conlon, Stephen McBride, Jimmy Kierans, Aoife Byrne, Sarah McMahon, James McConnon, Donal Byrne, Edmund Markey, Dean McNulty, Kevin Quinn, Patrick Byrne. We congratulate all our under age players and their mentors on their supreme efforts during the year and we trust that their endeavours will be rewarded over the coming years. Officers elected at our last annual general meeting were; Chairman - John McMahon; Vice Chairman, Adrian Campbell; Secretary, Martin Burns; Assistant Secretary, Kathleen Dooley; Treasurer, Seamus Murray; PRO, Kathleen Dooley; Development Officer, Joe Murray; Commitee Members, Michael Quinn, Lornie Duffy, Peadar Gartlan, Leo McGlew, Peadar Dooley, Patsy Ward, Ian Smyth, Paul Grimes, Seamus McMahon, Kevin Boylan. Tweet

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