Monaghan club Truagh Gaels are celebrating 50 years in existence this year and last Friday night, November 28th. Those celebrations culminated with a Gala Ball in the Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan where some 800 guests assembled to join in the celebrations. The atmosphere on the night was enhanced by the fact that the club was also celebrating a return to senior ranks as winners of the intermediate football league, a feat they achieved by defeating Ballybay with an injury time point in an absorbing intermediate league final in Scotstown. The Ard Stiurthoir of the GAA Paraic Duffy was among the special guests as was Sam Maguire who was accompanied by the McMahon brothers, Justin and Joe from Tyrone's All Ireland winning side. Paraic Duffy's appointment as Ard Stiurthoir had only just been announced late last year when he attended the launch of the club's Golden Jubilee celebrations and gave them a central theme around which to build those celebrations when he told them that they were a shining example of a club that has put themselves at the very heart of their community and went on to describe them as "an exceptional club that I would regard as one of the most vibrant units of the GAA in Monaghan". The Gala Ball is the culmination of a series of events that were organised throughout the year to mark the clubs 50th anniversary, the chief of which was "Founders Day" when the founding fathers including their first chairman, Canon Tom Breen were guests at a special night entertainment in the club's newly refurbished and extended Social Centre. The programme for tomorrow night's big event will be compered by RTE's Marty Morrissey and will include a major ballot of prizes the chief of which is a trip to Las Vegas. A club jersey signed by all the players who won promotion for the club this year was be auctioned as were a number of other items, all of which made for a most enjoyable evening. Tweet

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