Wonderful Occasion: Croke Park Debut for Mullingar Shamrocks Under-8s …

It was an early start on Wednesday morning for our Under-8 footballers as they assembled in Springfield for the 8.15 departure for their debut in Croke Park. The occasion was the Leinster Under-8 Croke Park Activity Day in association with Littlewoods Ireland. The bus arrived in the Cathedral of Gaelic Games in good time and after a picnic in the Arctic conditions of the Cusack Stand, the players changed into their playing gear in the frosty open-air for their big moment (a reminder, perhaps, of what it was like in the old days and a measure of progress in the past few decades!). But first there was a visit to the one of the dressing rooms at the base of the Cusack Stand where some of our players made themselves totally at home as can be seen from the attached photos. It was then to the warm-up area attached to the dressing rooms to prepare for the big match before moving into the tunnels and out to the pitch to the roar of the crowd where Mullingar Shamrocks had three 9-a-side teams playing against Rehan (Kildare) and St Patrick’s (Louth) using the Go-Games Concept. It was just wonderful to see the young players have their day out and get 40 minutes of football on the pitch. When the final whistle was blown all players travelled to the Hogan Stand presentation area and had the opportunity of lifting a trophy where so many captains over the years have lifted the Sam Maguire and Liam MacCarthy Cups.  It was then back to the Cusack Stand (some took time-out for a Sunday Game style interview behind the Cusack Stand goal!), for more food before heading back to Mullingar with a stop at Apple Green on the way where some healthy food was consumed.   

Mullingar Shamrocks were represented by Zach Gilbride, Lewis Farrelly, M. J. Burke, Killian Hand, Jamie Timoney, Jonah Hassett, Conor Matthews, Fionn Ledwith, Lily Walsh, Kacey Cleary, Sam Sheerin, Darragh McCabe, Sam Phillips, Oliver Keane, Ryan Keaveney, Colm Clinton, Carl Keane, Jamie Murtagh, Cian Treanor, Lily Rose Rock, Macy Gilligan,, Kajetan Semperski, Anna Orenczuk, Emily Maguire, Adam Clinton, Alfie Rock, Shane Boner, Liam Forde, Josh Burke, Theo Kelly, Darragh Daly, Manus Kelly, Moya Kilmartin, Conan Kelly, Emily Forde.

The behaviour and good humour of these players in unpleasant conditions was a credit to their families and from a club perspective it was great to see so many parents and indeed grandparents make the journey to Croke Park.  Well done to our coaches and mentors for their dedication and goodwill in volunteering their time so willingly. Finally, the Leinster Council should be acknowledged for this wonderful initiative in allowing the young players to experience the Croke Park sensation. The logistics involved worked with military precision in what was a very busy day for the officials. The only negative was outside everyone’s control … the weather could hardly have been worse: bitterly cold and heavy rain but this did not spoil what was a wonderful occasion for all those involved.