Working from a small pool of players, Butlersbridge were always going to be under pressure in Division 2. A club with a proud tradition and a distinct self belief they were not about to surrender their recently promoted status to without a fight. By Tony Dunne.

Their true spirit was certainly evident in their championship campaign where they were pitted against Swanlinbar, one of the favourites to win the Intermediate championship, premier senior league team Killeshandra and a seasoned and dogged Killinkere side. With one win and a draw to their credit the 'Bridge could deem themselves unlucky to have lost out on a quarter-final placing on point difference. With both themselves and Killeshandra sharing second place in the group on three points apiece, the 'Bridge conceded a place in the quarter-finals on the points difference scale.

When you talk to the long serving club PRO, Paul Henry you get a real value of what Butlersbridge is all about. Paul, who is a manager at the Hotel Kilmore, is widely respected in his profession for his quiet, efficient and courteous manner, values which he brings to bear on his beloved club. Talking to Paul you get a true sense of what the 'Bridge means. He is quick to point out that all that has been achieved has been done so through an entire community effort. He speaks with great pride and fondness for his club and believes that it is the community spirit of this small part of Cavan that has helped to sustain and drive them onwards.

The Henry family have long been associated with the club and are one of a small group of families that have over the years helped to keep the colours of their local club flying with pride.
"We have always worked from a small group of players throughout our history but have managed on quite a few occasions to produce some excellent teams over those years. We have also seen some excellent players grace the inter county jersey throughout our history," said the PRO.

Paul, along with his three brothers, Ollie, Sean and Seamus all played for the club. Both Ollie and Sean are still contributing on the playing front as they line out with the 'B' team. They along with fellow selector, Paddy McGovern line out with the club's second team.
"We feel this is important for our 'more senior' players to make up the numbers so that our younger players get a chance to progress through the grades' said the club's PRO.
Both Ollie and Sean are current members of the Cavan over 40s panel. Paul was also chairman of the club for six years and has held down a number of positions before taking the role as PRO.

"I seem to have been PRO for a long period now but I must pay tribute to the former holder of the position, Mick Cryan who has helped me out on many occasions over the years I have been involved. Mick's contribution is indeed invaluable," said Paul.
"As a club we can look back on the 2011 season with a fair degree of satisfaction. Our pre-season goals would have been to retain both our league and championship status in Division 2. I suppose you could say we were a little unlucky not to have qualified for the quarter-finals of the championship. We lost out on the points difference rule.

"We were also under pressure to retain our position in the Division 2 league and with the loss of a number of players through emigration it was indeed a struggle. As we are one of the smallest catchment areas in the county, our player base is indeed quite small. So the loss of players of the calibre of Sean Flanagan, Oisin Henry (both to the US), and Brian Greenan (Derby) and Lorcan Mulvey (London) left a large dent in our resources. These were all first team players so their exodus was sharply felt. Lorcan Mulvey would be a huge loss to any club but a club as small as ours it was indeed a great void in our hopes," explained Paul.

"In fairness to the panel, they showed great determination and rallied as younger players were introduced to help shore up the absence of the those that had emigrated. Our aim was to solidify our position in Division 2 and this we have managed to do. Credit must be given to the entire panel and management team of Ray Johnstone, Ollie Henry, Paddy McGovern and Mickey Reilly. Over the past number of seasons we had managed to gain promotion to Division 2 only to be in a position of facing relegation the following year. This was something we were keen on to avoid and we felt the experience playing at a higher level would be of greater value to the players.

"The decision was made to bring in an experienced outside manager and we feel that as a club we were fortunate to gain the services of former Fermanagh senior player Raymond Johnston. Under his guidance the players took on a strict winter gym programme which was embraced with great enthusiasm and commitment. His professional approach was highly valued by the entire panel. He was ably assisted in his work by a hard working management team of Ollie Henry, Paddy McGovern and Mickey Reilly all former senior players with the club," stated Paul.
"As I have already stated that loss of key playing members was a curve ball that was going to be difficult to deal with. However, with adversity comes resolve and this is something we have plenty of at the 'Bridge. With a small panel of senior players, the need to bring on younger players was fast-tracked through necessity."

The club have been fortunate that over the years they have always had commmitted and hard-working officials and volunteers at juvenile level. It was through their endeavours that they were able to call on a number of younger players to help face the battle that lay ahead.

"So far we have been able to call on the services of players like, Stephen Murphy, Michael McDermott, Gareth Henry, Cahir Reilly, Peter Conaty and Padraig O'Reilly. These young players have been called upon and when asked have all played their part. I feel that their contribution alongside our more experienced players augurs well for the future of the club," stated Paul.
Paul went on to say that while they had faced their difficulties on the playing front the club as a whole was in excellent condition. Speaking with great pride of the progress that has been made off the pitch Paul was keen to point out that this was done through an entire community effort.

"We have undertaken over the past few years some major development at the grounds at a cost of over €430,000. This was a sizeable commitment for such a small area but the remarkable aspect of this is that the club will be debt free by Christmas 2011. When you consider that this project was being run alonside the refurbishment of the local church which in itself raised €1.2m for its work then you have a clear idea of the true spirit of the Bridge people," said the club PRO.
"We are currently working on a new project that will see some major work take place on our playing surface and I feel confident that we will not have to go the struggling banks requiring a loan. The work on the playing field will commence over the closed season so as to have the facility ready for the incoming 2012 season.

"While it is always a dangerous thing to name names when thanking people, it is important I feel to mention a number of people who have been involved in the long-term at fund-raising. It would be remiss I feel not to pay a special tribute to Terry Leddy, Mary Shannon, Brian McEntee, Sean McGowan, Adrian McEntee and Hugh Leddy among many others".
It is people like them and others over the years to the present day that has enabled us to put together magnificent facilities in such a small area" stated a justifiably proud club official.

The club has also contributed our part to the functioning of games throughout the county. Not only have they managed not only to compete on the playing field but also to contribute more than a fair share of officials to the county pool of referees. In what most people would agree is the most difficult and unthankful role in the GAA the club have three club referees registered. John Emo, Ollie Henry and Harry Conaty have been regulars 'knights of the whistle' at club games throughout the county over the years.
"We also have a great underage structure and this is something that we like all other clubs hold dear to our hearts. Currently we have a very energetic chairman in Joe English who is keen to continue the development of this level of the game. We play at all the juvenile levels but have had to amalgamate with neighbours Redhills at minor and under 16 level."
The U14s finished third in the Roinn D league and earned themselves a place in the semi-final against table toppers Lavey. In an exciting game played at Kingspan Breiffi Park, they bagged six goals but lost out to a more powerful Lavey side on a scoreline of Lavey 4-18 to 6-6. Great credit must be given to the entire panel and team management who did so well and brought so much pride to the club.

The juvenile section will look back on the 2011 as one of the busiest ever. Commitment from the outset from both parents and senior players as coaches was outstanding. All involved partook in a series of coaching courses run through the auspices of the Cavan County Development Officers. With the team management and coaching structure in place it was down to business in early Spring.
There has also been a marked increase in the number of children attending training. In response to this the club organised and ran a very successful eight week summer football skills camp. This year the club introduced for the first time the GAA U-Can awards system for all U8 and U10 players. Each child was given their own 'Skills Passport' which is used to log and track improvements made in a wide range of skills.

Without doubt one of the most notable features of the year to date at these levels has been the number of friendly games played. As well as hosting a number of other clubs including Drumlane, Ballinagh, Mullahoran, Drumalee and Cornafaen, the club also travelled away to a number of blitzes organised Kianwley, Drumlane and Belturbet. The under 8s were unbeaten at the Kinawley blitz and on the same day, with teams from all over Ulster competing, the Under 10s were narrowly beaten in the final by Magheracloone.
The club is thankful to Gerry McPhillips, Ciaran Maguire, and Paddy Greenan for their ongoing commitment to the U10s. The U8 players were well looked after by Cian Murtagh, Padraic Smith, Harry Conaty, Aishling Shiels and Gareth Henry. Patrick Graham, Colm Murphy and Daryn Stinson got the Under 6 junior kickers off to an early start.

The U12s competed very well in Roinn B of the Go Games league winning 5 of the 7 games they participated in. The Go Games season concluded with a Festival of football in the 3G pitch, Breffni Park on the June bank holiday weekend.
"We had a young U-13 side who despite finding the going tough in Roinn C nonetheless showed great battling qualities. This is a very young and skilful side with most of the players still eligible to play at this level for the next two years," explained Paul.

Under the guidance of Colm Murphy, Micheal Leddy and Ronan Flood this team has the ability to make an impact in the future.
Following a very successful series of league matches the U14s reached the Roinn D league semi-final. Despite a brave performance from the lads, who never gave up, they were beaten by a strong Lavey side who went on to win the final. Great credit is due to the entire panel and management team of Mickey Shiels and Tommy Owens under the steady coaching hands of Cahir O' Reilly and Gareth Henry.

"The club would like to pay a special tribute to Joe English and to all those involved at the juvenile club for their unstinted commitment to the youth of the community," added the club PRO. Tweet

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