We held a very successful Annual General Meeting on Thursday, January 26, last week in Gaelscoil Liatroma.
The following officers were elected:
- Chairperson: Siobhan Murtagh
- Vice-Chairperson: Andrew Brennan
- Secretary & PRO: John Connolly
- Treasurer: Karen Brennan
- Children's Officer: Donnacha Holmes
- Adult Group Co-ordinator: Graham Allen
The following are the address of chairperson Siobhan Murtagh and secretary John Connolly.
CHAIRPERSON SIOBHAN MURTAGH’S ADDRESS
Good evening. I would like to welcome you all to our AGM. Thank you all for taking the time to attend. I have enjoyed my first year as chairperson and if re-elected I would like to continue to do my best for the club.
Starting 2022, we were still dealing with Covid restrictions. Training for all age groups had to be conducted outside. We were very lucky to have the Gaelscoil grounds as a safe and secure place to train our groups. I would like to thank Priobhide Caitriona for very kindly allowing us the use of the school grounds and her generosity providing a room for us to have a number of club meetings, providing tea/coffee and treats. It was very greatly appreciated.
The month of May brought us fantastic news when Jane Brady of Brady Insurance, approached us to become Carrick on Shannon AC’s first main sponsor. The welcome Brady Insurance sponsorship, will go a long way in helping us secure a new long jump pit which we have in our sites, training events in Longford, Sligo and Athlone, along with new equipment for our juvenile members.
I would like to say a huge thank you to Jane Brady and in appreciation we would like to encourage our members to support Brady Insurance, when considering their insurance needs. We would also like to congratulate them on their recent merger and extension of their large offices beside the town clock in Carrick on Shannon.
Throughout the Summer we returned to the top field at Carrick Community School. It was great to have the grass back under our feet. I would like to thank Adrian Jackson, principle of Carrick Community School for very generously allowing us the use of the top field and to the caretaker Sean Duignan for keeping it maintained so well for us.
During the Summer we also had many training sessions in Sligo IT in preparation for competitions which was invaluable for all of our athletes. I would like to thank all of the parents for driving over and back to Sligo on so many occasions as the option with a bus was still considered a risk due to covid.
On our return to training in October, thankfully restrictions had been lifted and the sports complex was once again available for us to continue our work, training our younger age groups indoors. We were delighted to see a brand new floor in the sports hall. I would like to thank Noelene for all of her great work in the sports complex and for looking after us so well each week.
Throughout 2022 once again, our athletes have made us all very proud. I would like to thank all of our athletes and congratulate the many athletes that have had great successes–John has kindly named everyone in his report.
To my fellow coaches that so generously give up their time each week to ensure the club continues to grow, I would like to say a very big thank you. To John Connolly, Mary O’Donnell, Michelle Lever, Aisling OHart, Orla McGuinness, Karen Brennan, Andrew Brennan, Donnacha Holmes, Diane Charles, Linda Mollohan, Aideen Hennessy, Deirdre Martin, Ann Wynne, Evelyn Russell, Aoife McCormack who helped earlier in the year. I would also like to thank Graham Allen for the great work he does with the adult group which is continuing to grow.
I would like to welcome Brian O’Donnell back to the club as our high jump coach. Brian has had many successes as a Carrick AC member in his years with the club. It is great to have his experience and knowledge back in the club. I would like to thank Brian for all of the great work he is doing. Michael O’Brien would be very proud to see our athletes back high jumping again.
Looking forward to 2023 is already looking very promising for Carrick AC.
We will be celebrating our 50th year in October. This will be very exciting for us all. We will be lucky enough to look back and remember all of the great athletes and coaches that contributed to our club over the past five decades. We plan to organise a very special event to celebrate this. John has been busy planning a book full of personal memories of people involved in the club throughout this time. This will be a wonderful tribute to such a momentous occasion and a treasured keepsake for everyone to remember it by. Thank you, John, for the work you have done so far on this.
On another positive note, the Shannonside Recreational Campus, after having secured land on the Castlecarra road, has also secured full planning permission. This comprises a 400m track, full size 4G pitch and Indoor Sports Hall with changing facilities.
The SRC has recently acquired a company to complete a business plan for the development. They have already seen the first draft of this plan which is due for completion in the next few weeks. I would like to thank all of the people involved for immense dedication and tireless work on this project which has seen huge progress over the past 12 months.
To my fellow committee members, John Connolly, who works tirelessly in so many capacities. Thank you for all of your support throughout the year. To Karen Brennan as treasurer, It has been a busy role this year, thank you for all of your great work. To Donnacha Holmes as child welfare officer, thank you for ensuring the health and safety of the children throughout the year.
On a personal note, I would like to say a huge thank you to Mary O’Donnell. So many times I have to ring/text Mary to ask advice, check on competition rules, what height should the hurdles be??? The list goes on…. If Mary isn’t beside me she is always there on the end of the phone. Thank you so much Mary for always being there and for being the glue keeping it all together.
In conclusion, I am very excited for the future of Carrick Athletic Club and I look forward to what 2023 will bring for us all - Siobhan Murtagh
SECRETARY JOHN CONNOLLY’S REPORT
It gives me great pleasure to once again look back over another action-packed year as I present my report for the 2022 season to the Carrick-on-Shannon Athletic Club Annual General Meeting. It was only when I started reviewing my notes of the 12 months gone by that I realised that what appeared to be a quiet year was in fact action packed with some historic developments for our club and yet many more great achievements on track, road and cross-country.
NEW SPONSOR
We certainly broke new ground off the track when Brady Insurance became the club’s first ever main sponsor. We are so indebted to Jane Brady and her team for their support but to be honest, it was a bigger deal to me that a business as respected and with such deep ties in the community would be so willing to join with us and support us this way. It really means a lot to us and once again, I’d like to thank Jane for teaming up with the Club and we look forward to a wonderful partnership.
50th ANNIVERSARY
October 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the Club’s founding and I believe we should make a special effort to mark such a wonderful milestone. We have a few tentative ideas but we’d like to hear more from our members as we mark the occasion in a worthy manner, reflecting the impact the club has had on the sporting and social fabric of the greater Carrick-on-Shannon Area since 1973.PERFORMANCES
This is going to stun some of us as it is almost easy to overlook the incredible achievements of our athletes but we had four members represent their country in international competition in 2022. Gerard O’Donnell & Eanna Madden were members of the Ireland team who finished third at the inaugural DNA event in Glasgow in January 2022, Gerard earning the double honour of captaining the team on the day.
Clive Glancy again proved to be one of the fastest Gardai in the country when he represented Ireland in USPE European Police Championships Marathon in Eindhoven last October, setting a new personal best in the process.
But perhaps the most kudos should go to club coach Deirdre Martin who, apart from winning the Galway Bay Marathon in October, represented Ireland at the Anglo Celtic Plate 100Km race in Perth Scotland last April, winning a bronze medal into the bargain – not bad for someone who used to think running a 200m race was like running a marathon! Deirdre also won a silver medal in the National 50Km and she had time to help out with the juvenile training groups!
These were the standout performances but by no means the only amazing performances with Ann Wynne and Eilis Conway both winning two gold medals over 800m, Ann in the Masters Indoors and Outdoors and Ellis in the University and U23 championships.
Gerard O’Donnell surrendered his 110m Hurdles title but not without an almighty battle, losing out by two one hundredths of a second! It added to the bronze he won at the National Indoors, a medal replicated by Eanna Madden in the outdoor 400m.
Congratulations also to Tom Trench Winston on winning a fourth-place medal in the National Community Games Long Jump and well done to Kevin English, not a member at the time but now in Carrick AC royal blue, for medalling also.
Finally, while not a medal winning performance as such, can’t not mention Donnacha Holmes superb display in the Ironman World Championship with a time of 9 hours 59 minutes and 32 seconds. Another of our juvenile coaches who gives so much of his time.
COACHES
Once again, I want to highlight the contribution of our club coaches who give so generously of their time and their enthusiasm. We simply wouldn’t have a group without them but I’d like to thank Graham Allen, Mary O’Donnell, Siobhan Murtagh, Michelle Lever, Aisling O’Hart, Donnacha Holmes, Andrew & Karen Brennan, Deirdre Martin, Ann Wynne, Diane Charles, Linda Mollohan, Aideen McGovern, Orla McGuinness & Evie Russell. We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without your dedication.
I’d also like to congratulate Gerard O’Donnell on his promotion to Coach Education Manager with Athletics Ireland, a worthy recognition of his talents as a coach and I’m sure he will be a great success in the role.
BACK TO THE COMPLEX
We returned to the Sports Complex last October after our Covid enforced break and while it was wonderful to be back in our old home, I can’t let the occasion go without putting on record our thanks to Gaelscoil Liatroma for allowing us to use their facilities during the pandemic. It truly was a lifesaver that allowed the club to continue to operate during a really testing time for the club.
SYMPATHY
2022 saw some of our members suffer bereavements during the year and I’d ask everyone to keep those who have suffered loss in our thoughts. In particular, I would like to offer my sympathy to the following families on their great loss in 2022: The Mulvey family Hartley on the death of Rosaleen, the Leaver family on the passing of Andrew’s mother Wendy, the McGuinness & Keaney families on the loss of Oliver; the Corcoran and Mulligan family on the sad passing of Michelle Corcoran; the Mollohan family on the passing of Linda's father Fred Gill; Siobhan & Callum Whelan on the sad passing of mother Lily. I’d also like to pass our sympathy to the family of the late Ray Flynn, a great friend of many Carrick AC athletes and officials down through the years.
Apologies to anyone who has inadvertently been missed out but once again, the deepest sympathy of Carrick AC on your loss.
THANKS
I’m going to finish up by thanking everyone who has supported and helped me over the past year, particularly Siobhan Murtagh, Karen Brennan, Mary O’Donnell, Graham Allen, Donnacha Holmes & Gerard O’Donnell and a special thanks to all our athletes for the pride they display in wearing the Carrick AC vest. Here’s to another busy and successful 2023! - John Connolly
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