The 2008 season may not have resulted in Glen Emmets landing any silverware, but it was nonetheless a significant one in terms of the continued development of the Tullyallen club as their state-of-the-art clubrooms were in use for the first time. The new facilities further enhance the great work that has been carried out at Cusack Park over the past number of the years which has included the laying of a new pitch and the construction of a stand to make it one of the best venues in the county. While all at Glen Emmets have been celebrating the latest milestone in their development, there was some sense of sadness that one of the main driving forces in the project, Mannix Carolan, has left the area this summer for pastures new in Canada. While extending his best wishes to Mannix, Club PRO, David Dowling, acknowledged that he will be a massive loss after the sterling work the former chairman had carried out over the last number of years. "The development project involved a lot of hard work by many people over the years, but it is fair to say that when Mannix took over as chairman and began to push the project in 2001, it really took off. "He was there to oversee the development and when you consider that the project cost in the region of 800,000 and we had to raise 70% of that, it gives you an indication of what was involved. "The pitch was back in use in 2004 and we followed up by building the stand so it was great to have the clubrooms in operation when the players came back for training at the start of the season. "The facilities are open to everyone in the parish and we have a gym, kitchen, meeting room and dressingrooms and we believe that this facility is one of the best in the county," David added. "There was a lot of hard work from everyone involved and Mannix was a fantastic worker throughout that time and I don't think we would have achieved as much without him. There is no way we would be in the situation we are without his drive and there probably wouldn't be a club here without his influence over the past few years. "He will be sorely missed and all at the club wish him the very best in Canada," continued David. The hard work will continue over the coming years as David explained that although the facilities are in place, the challenge is to keep raising funds to pay off debts. "We raised money through great local support and held events such as a golf classic and car raffle while there were also grants from the National Lottery. However, the real source of funding was the weekly lotto and that will continue in order to pay the mortgage. "Once again we will be calling on the local community in the coming years to support the weekly lotto as that is what really keeps us going," added the PRO. With the club facilities among the best in Louth, Glen Emmets began the year hoping to match that with their exploits on the field of play. Although they failed to secure any silverware, there was plenty of reason for optimism as a they young squad reached the shield final and just missed out on a place in the knock-out stages of the championship. The Junior 1 team has been among the top teams in that grade in recent times and started the season with high hopes of making a big impression. They made their intentions clear with some impressive early displays that saw them reach the final of the Kevin Mullen Shield where they were hoping successfully defend their title against Stabannon Parnells. The game played at Monasterboice proved to be a rather disappointing affair particularly for the Tullyallen men as they let an early lead slip before suffering a 2-5 to 1-6 defeat. Despite a mixed start to the league, hopes were high that the Emmets could make an impression on the championship, as David explained. "Last year, we had a number of U-16 and minor players come through into the Division 4 team and some of them had stepped up into the first team, so we had our eye on silverware this year." For much of the group stages of the championship, it looked as if those dreams would materialise and they got off to a flying start with victory over championship favourites, St Mochtas. That set the team up nicely for the next outing and when they saw off the challenge of St Fechins, there were in a very strong position. Despite losing to Stabannon, a draw in the next game against Lannleire had the Emmets on five points going into their last game. Against a Naomh Fionnbarra side who were already out of contention, the Tullyallen side needed just one point to progress to the quarter-final, so their destiny was very much in their own hands. However, on a very frustrating and disappointing night, Glen Emmets were left to rue a number of controversial decisions as Naomh Fionnbarra grabbed a surprise 3-10 to 3-6 win. To compound their misery, the other game of interest between Stabannon and Lannleire finished level which meant that both teams went through to the quarter-finals at the expense of Glen Emmets. Meanwhile, the good work at underage level was paying off for the Division 4 team as the young side gave a very good account of themselves in the 4B league. As the competition reached the concluding stages, the Emmets were looking very good for a top four finish and a place in the semi-final, and according to David that provides great encouragement for all involved. "We have a lot of young players at the club and there are five or six minutes who have come through to be part of the first team squad and are playing regularly in Division 4B. "Overall our underage set-up is in a very healthy state and one of the most pleasing aspects for us is the fact that we are able to field on our own from U-6 right up to Junior 1. "We made the decision to go ourselves and it has worked out well so far. We even put out an U-21 team and although we lost to Naomh Mairtin, it was another step forward for us as a club." The club PRO is also satisfied with the progress made at minor level particularly as the Emmets were competing in the top league this season. "Last year we were in Division 4 of the league, but his season we were put into Division 1. Although it was a big jump in standard, we were very pleased to be able to hold our own against some of the top sides. "We also had a number of players involved with the Louth Development Squads at various age groups so that is a good sign for the future." Glen Emmets also fielded a Ladies team for the second season and although it is early days, David feels that progress is being made. "This is the second year on the go for the ladies and they are doing well. They have won more than they lost and are showing signs of improvement, while one of the most encouraging things is the amount of players who turn up for training." Tweet

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