Stabannon all set to remember Nicola
STABANNON Parnells will host the inaugural Nicola Barry Memorial Tournament this coming Saturday to honour and remember one of their players who lost her fight against a brain tumour on August 1st 2014.
Nicola started playing for the club in 2006 and was instrumental in guiding Stabannon ladies to their first-ever senior title three years later when seeing off Naomh Malachi in a replay.
Parnells won by a margin of two points that day and it was Nicola’s penalty save in the second half that spurred on Parnells and enabled them to land the championship silverware.
She continued to line out in goals for the remainder of her career with Stabannon and won numerous medals, including a Leinster Championship.
Following her passing almost two years ago, her number 1 jersey was retired and it now resides on the wall of the dressing-rooms in the club grounds.
The tournament on Saturday will be all about the football and everyone is encouraged to come along on the day and enjoy the game, as Nicola did.
Clubs from County Louth taking part are Clan na Gael, St Fechin’s, St Kevin’s, Naomh Fionnbarra, Glyde Rangers and St Mocha’s. Joining them are a number of other clubs from the North-East region - St Killian’s of Cavan, Portebollo of Dublin, St Colmcille’s of Meath and reigning All Ireland Club champions Donaghmoyne from Monaghan.
As one of the most decorated club teams in the Ladies game, having won four All-Ireland Senior titles, Donaghmoyne enter the tournament as hot favourites. They possess a number of the game’s top players, including multiple AllStar winners Linda Martin, Sharon Courtney and Cora Courtney.
The variety and quality of teams taking part will make for an exciting and entertaining day of football for both players and spectators alike. Clubs are encouraged to bring with them as much colour as is possible to make this day a fun and vibrant one to remember.
The first round of games are scheduled to start at 11am, with the semi-final at 2.15pm and the final taking place at 3pm.