There are many ways in which we can attempt to safeguard the future of Monaghan GAA. One of the most obvious is by keeping the population intact through the building of quality, affordable housing in the county. To this end, J & M Begley (Building Contractors) Ltd. is certainly doing its part. Though headquartered in bordering County Tyrone, J & M Begley (Building Contractors) Ltd. has a strong presence in Monaghan, where the company is a preferred choice of local authorities when it comes to the provision of quality housing. Long-term, through improving the standard of living and keeping people in the county, Begleys' presence in Monaghan could have beneficial knock-on effects for the local GAA. J & M Begley (Building Contractors) Ltd. is based at 222 Barony Road, Carrickmore, Omagh, County Tyrone and is fast approaching its 25th anniversary, having been established by John and Mary Begley in 1983. John came from a building background himself and saw a niche in the market for a company placing a major emphasis on quality workmanship at a reasonable price. The hunch proved correct and John and Mary have meticulously built a strong family business that today also includes sons Damian, Kevin and Colin as well as daughter Sharon. J & M covers a substantial catchment area that includes practically all of Northern Ireland as far up as Belfast, even though work is predominantly in Tyrone and bordering counties. The company's favourable reputation has spread and they are prepared to tender for work near and far, secure in the knowledge that they possess the necessary professionalism, workmanship and experience to complete every job to the very highest standard. Active south of the border for about five years now, J & M Begley has a growing presence in County Monaghan in particular, where a nice mix of projects has been completed already, with others ongoing and no doubt more in the pipeline. Monaghan County Council (specifically its housing division) and Monaghan Town Council are amongst the company's burgeoning client list. Two housing developments have been completed in the border village of Emyvale on behalf of Monaghan County Council and the keys to another 19-house development in Monaghan town's popular Coolshannagh area have recently been handed over. At the time of writing, a further project comprising 29 renovations of residential properties at Mullaghmatt in Monaghan town was on course for completion by Christmas 2006, while J & M Begley (Building Contractors) Ltd. has also been granted the green light for a residential caravan park at Gortakeegan on the outskirts of the county town. This particular contract incorporates the construction of 20 residential caravan bays and associated utility units comprising kitchen, bathroom and store plus one community building complete with general purpose meeting room, pre-school facilities and associated kitchen, store, laundry, toilets, caretaker's room, entrance lobby and nurse's room. The project covers all works, including roads, sewage, drains, attenuation tanks and percolation areas. Towards the south of the county, a renovation has also been completed at St Patrick's National School in Castleblayney. Most of J & M's labour is subcontracted out and the company has an unbeatable record when it comes to meeting targets, be that in terms of time or money. As the work in Monaghan is mostly for local authorities, the Tyrone company is selected on the basis of its high-quality workmanship and reasonable rates, something which has separated J & M from its competitors since Day One. In their native county, J & M are busy all year around working on both local authority and private contracts. No job is deemed too big or too small and the company operates within the residential, community, health and educational sectors. Be it new homes (one-offs or entire developments), renovations or extensions, schools, churches, hospitals or community centres, J & M Begley (Building Contractors) Ltd. is always on hand to provide an expert job from start to finish. Examples of the company's work can be found all over counties Monaghan, Tyrone, Armagh, Derry, Antrim and Fermanagh. Indeed, the very mention of these territories is enough to whet one's appetite for the forthcoming Ulster SFC. But who will lift the Anglo-Celt Cup in 2007? Monaghan lost some ground in the year gone by as they failed to build on the heroics of '05 but Banty's Boys are still capable of stringing together three performances to rule the province for the first time since 1988. They will start as outsiders but stranger things have happened and supporters of the national code in the county can but live in hope. John Begley's native Tyrone look a more likely bet. The O'Neill men appeared jaded in '06 as they failed in their defence of the Sam Maguire Cup but Mickey Harte has his sights set on a third All-Ireland in five years and it would take a brave man to bet against them in Ulster. John will definitely be hoping for another long, hot summer for the Tyrone bandwagon but one suspects that he'll not be inconsolable if his neighbours in Monaghan emerge from the wilderness. He knows the county well now and the goodwill between both parties is mutual. Tweet

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