Naomh Fionnbarra reached their 50th anniversary in 2007 and the celebratory night that marked the occasion represented the highlight of the club's year. Though silverware was conspicuous by its absence, 50 years nonetheless constitutes a milestone for gaelic football in the Togher/Annagassan area - and something everyone associated with the club can be proud of. It was an uncanny year of birthdays in the county. Naomh Fionnbarra were one of four football clubs in Louth who celebrated their 50th anniversary in '07, with their genesis going back to the most famous year in Wee County history. Back in 1957, as the mighty Reds were storming to All-Ireland glory, a group of hardy volunteers in the Togher area had the idea of forming a GAA club to represent their parish. From those formative notions sprang Naomh Fionnbarra, a club which is still going strong five decades and a new millennium later. Unfortunately, due to circumstances largely beyond their control, 'the Finbarrs' found themselves back in the junior grade in 2007 as club football in the county was restructured and the previous year's intermediate sides got caught in a wicked crossfire, but even that wasn't going to detract from the celebrations that justifiably marked a worthy landmark in their history. Ideally, a piece of silverware would have put the tin hat on the 50th anniversary celebrations that erupted in the Fairways on Saturday night, November 10, but it wasn't to be and the birthday was acknowledged in style regardless. On the field, it wasn't a great season, but there's always next year and that's the beauty of sport. Naomh Fionnbarra boast a proud tradition and they'll pose a real threat in next year's junior football championship and Division Three league. Though a little disappointed by the team's '07 JFC form, club delegate Thomas McQuillan was happy to let the anniversary celebrations take centre stage for the year that was in it: "It's something we were very conscious of from the beginning of the year - to honour those who set up the club. The night was a huge success and we had a big turn-out, so we were all happy with that." Six of the 13 original founding members of the club are still alive and they attended the celebration, where they were each honoured with a special presentation. Representatives of the families of the other seven founding members picked up presentations on behalf of their dearly departed. The three founding members of the club's juvenile section were also honoured - a nice touch as this is an aspect of the GAA that is often forgotten or overlooked. "It's a big milestone in the club's history and it was a very successful night all around," Thomas continues. "Fifty years is a long time and we're very happy to have come this far. In total, we had 320 people at the dinner dance and I think that reflects the large support base Naomh Fionnbarra have and the amount of goodwill being shown to us from the locality." The only shadow cast over the night - apart from the fact that so many of the club's great members from down through the years have passed on to their eternal reward - was that there was no piece of silverware to parade to the revellers. "It's always disappointing when you don't get it but the last few years have been a bit of a struggle," says Thomas, philosophically. "Most of the intermediate teams from 2006 were relegated to junior due to the restructuring of Louth football and unfortunately Naomh Fionnbarra were one of those. "We had been junior before in '78 but it was a bit of a shock going back down and it was difficult to re-adjust to our new surroundings. So it wasn't a great year. We did okay in the league but didn't get going in the championship at all." Naomh Fionnbarra were in Group A of the 2007 Louth JFC and were squeezed out of a place in the knockout phase by eventual winners Dundalk Young Irelands, beaten finalists St Mochtas and Dowdallshill. In the league, they only lost twice all year but still finished two points adrift of Division Three table toppers St Mochtas. Thomas reflects: "We lost our first league game to Dowdallshill in very bad conditions and only lost once more - in the third-last round to St Mochtas. They beat us by a point and that was the big one as we were never going to catch them after that. They won the league by two points in the end. The championship was a disaster for one reason or another, between players missing and under-par performances. That was more or less our year football-wise, but we're hoping to do much better in 2008." Confidence is high that the corner can be turned emphatically in the new season: "We'll have a few lads back available again and that'll make a big difference to the team. Our underage set-up is also very strong so we're very hopeful about the future. We feel that we have everything in place for the future and hopefully we'll be back out of junior ranks very soon." The club overhauled their facilities at the start of the current decade and they are on a par with most other clubs in the Wee County in this regard. They have a strong, hard-working committee, though numbers are sometimes short and Thomas says they could do with a bit more help on the administrative side of things as well as looking after teams. The good news is that the demographic trends are positive: "Numbers in the area are going up and a lot of the new people in the parish were at our 50th anniversary night. Many of them have got involved in the underage, which is a step in the right direction," says Thomas. Apart from the night in question, what other highlights has the club enjoyed over the past 50 years? Though it's difficult to sum up 50 years in a few words, Thomas has a go: "The intermediate championship of 2001 was the highlight along with the official opening of our grounds in 1984, which we marked with a game between Louth and Armagh. We've had a few league successes over the years but 2001 is the only championship we've ever won, so hopefully we can add to it some time soon." The club has John Doyle on the current Louth football squad, following in the footsteps of John Osborne, who did Naomh Fionnbarra proud when featuring on a very strong Wee County XV in the early 'nineties. They've also had various underage county players down through the years. For the time being, Thomas McQuillan is happy that they have the wherewithal to move forward: "I think we have the team to win honours if we get the right attitude and the right commitment and everybody on board. Peter Markey and Donal Sharkey are back and the underage set-up is strong, so we're doing okay. The talent is there if we can harness it and get the commitment we need. "The team played well throughout the league in 2007 and only dropped five points, but the championship in the middle of the year was a disaster. If we can carry on our league form into 2008, we'll do quite well. "We were a bit unlucky to go down to junior so suddenly. I think the restructuring should have taken place gradually over a couple of years - not all at once. The intermediate teams in 2006 were struggling unless they won practically every game and that was hard for all of us. Personally, I think it was done too quickly, but it's done now and there's nothing anybody can do about it. A lot of clubs are in the same boat." Finally, can Naomh Fionnbarra continue to service the local community for another 50 years? "It's a long time and you hope there will be other people coming on. We've had great clubmen over the years and I'm sure there'll be more in the future. There's always somebody there to carry it on; that's the great thing about our parish. "A club is a focal point in a rural area and all the people of the area follow our interests, supporting us in one way or another. So we're hopeful. Please God there'll be another 50 years. We won't be around to see it but this club is special to a lot of people and you never want to see that going." Our juvenile section Naomh Fionnbarra juvenile club catered for approximately 100 children in 2007 aged 6 up to minor age. Each Sunday morning, John Markey park in Ballygassan was a hive of activity with children from 6 to 11 years of age, learning the skills of gaelic football from their mentors and coaches. This year the club entered teams in Og Sport Lu Blitz for under 7's, 9's, 11's and 13's as well as entering the Cumann Lu Lar Theas Leagues. The Blitzes were great for the children to learn the basic skills while enjoying playing the game. Under 14, 16 and minor teams also had a lot of football this year. The minor team had a solid year reaching two finals. Unfortunately they were beaten in both the final of the division 4 league and in the Minor 'B' championship final. The under 16 team also had a successful year. This year they amagamated with St. Kevin's and went on to win, the Division 4 League in Monasterboice, defeating the Wolfe Tones by one point in a very exciting game. They also reached the final of the under 16 'B' secondary competition but they were beaten on the night by a strong St. Patrick's team. The under 14 panel also had a solid campaign in all competitions. They reached the final of the Division 4 League. However, Glen Emmets beat them on the day. The under 13 team had a small panel of players but they also made great progress this year getting to the semi finals in both the Feile competition and in the All county U13 blitz. A lot of thanks must go to all of the people involved running the club during the year. Overall a lot of progress was made with the juvenile section of the club in 2007. Hopefully 2008 can bring more success to the club. Tweet

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