Will Community Games finals make starting line?
THE greatest bond that links communities together in the heat of controlled battle right across Kerry is sport.
The training, preparation, competition and eventual success is the goal of all those involved in various sports and cultural activities. One of the most pro active and fully inclusive organisations in Kerry is Community Games which caters for children of all ages and abilities from under 8 to under 16 in 41 parishes and estates across the county.
Weeks and months of training and preparation, where children become heroes, are now put on hold as Kerry Community Games struggles with plans to complete their vast programme of event.
The blue ribbon event of Kerry Community Games is the annual athletics championships that take place in June at the magnificent Riocht Athletic Club facility in Castleisland. This event attracts more that 2,000 competitors over two days with the winners in each event qualifying for the National Finals which take place in the Athlone IT Complex in August.
“Up until recently the competitors were in training right across Kerry. However, before they could compete at the Kerry finals in Castleisland they would firstly qualify from their own local area sports.
“Now with the coronavirus restrictions in place this is unlikely to take place leaving us with a major headache and a fixtures backlog. For local areas to run off their sports they need the cooperation of local GAA clubs.
“However, the GAA also has a fixture dilemma and this will have a knock-on effect for local community games. When will we run the Denny Kerry Community Games finals, no one knows at the moment,” said Neilus Collins, PRO of Kerry Community Games.
However it is not bad news. Thanks to the phenomenal team of volunteers in Kerry, a number of Kerry area finals were run off in sporting and cultural events prior to the coronavirus lockdown.
Among the long list of event completed for 2020 are Basketball (five competitions), Badminton, Gymnastics, Draughts, Music Groups, Solo Music, Handwriting, Swimming, Art and Recitation.
Among the competitions still to be completed are Futsul, Mini Rugby, Indoor
Soccer, Cross Country, Chess and Quiz.
“For many of our competitions in Kerry, the winners qualify for the Munster Finals which were due to take place over two weekends in the University of Limerick. The first was on the weekend of April 17. This was cancelled and once again we will be left with a major fixtures dilemma.
“It looks like the only option will be to hold events planned for both weekends later in the year. It’s a huge disappointment for all the children particularly as they have prepared so diligently over the last number of months.”
The Community Games were founded in Dublin by Joe Connolly in 1967 and was an activity that brought local estates and communities together in a spirit of harmony and friendship centred on the concept of sport and competition.
Annual Residents Sports were also common at that time in Tralee and these became the springboard for Kerry Community Games, an organisation that has served the needs of Kerry children for more than 48 years.
One residential area of Tralee, St Brendan’s Park, were pioneers in the development of area sports under the direction of the late Christy Murray, a founder member of St Johns Athletic Club, and Bob Casey.
In 1972 an article in a national newspaper featured the success of Community Games in Dublin and an extensive interview with Joe Connolly. This article, read with interest by Christy Murray and Bob Casey, was the catalysis for the formation of Kerry Community Games.
They organised a public meeting in Connolly Hall, Tralee on March 18, 1972. As it transpired this was the inaugural meeting of Tralee Community Games with plans discussed to organise a Tralee Track and Field sports meeting.
Present at the meeting were Tralee residents Michael Henneberry, Dan Kelligher, Florrie Carroll, Helen Toughy, Nora Quinlan and Tommy Curtin. Following extensive discussions on the formation of Tralee Community Games, Christy Murray was elected chairman, Tommy Curtin (Secretary) and Bob Casey (Treasurer).
Although the meeting was to organise Tralee Community Games, in reality it soon became Kerry Community Games.
Following a second meeting, attended by 30 people, on April 28 in Balloonagh School Hall with the National president of Community Games, Brother Perkins, present letters were sent to GAA clubs, schools, soccer clubs, sports clubs and community groups all over Kerry to encourage parishes become involved in this new and dynamic organisation.
The response was phenomenal and on Saturday, August 26, 1972, Austin Stacks Park in Tralee hosted the first annual Kerry Community Games athletics finals. On that historic day 10 parishes from Kerry took part in the finals including St Brendan’s Park (Tralee), Connolly Park (Tralee), Oakpark (Tralee), Blennerville, West Kerry, Castleisland, Listowel, Rock Street/Caherslee (Tralee), Ballymacelligott and Strand Street (Tralee).
The day featured a parade from the Ashe Memorial Hall to Austin Stack Park led by the Killarney Brass and Reed Band. The official starter was Christy Murray, who also served as National starter for two years and medals for the event were supplied free of charge by Vincent Murphy from Castleisland.
Interestingly Vincent Murphy has continued to supply Kerry Community Games with high quality medals for the entire 48 years of the games in Kerry. A film of that inaugural sports day was produced by Roddy O’Donnell and is now in the archives of Kerry County Library.
The winners of the inaugural sports qualified for the National finals on September 15 in Santry Stadium, Dublin. The Kerry team were kitted out with green and gold singlets by Dan Fitzgerald, manager of Moran’s Drapery from Tralee.
The unique honour of winning the first National Community Games medal for Kerry went to Damien McLoughlin from St. Brendan’s Park, Tralee, and later a teacher at Tralee CBS The Green.
He competed in the 100mts, 400mts and Under 12 relay. Damien, who would later become one of the top Kerry runners at local and National level, won a bronze medal in the Under 12 400mts, Kerry only medal in 1972.
The most successful Kerry athlete at the National Community Games finals has been Norma Farrell from Fossa. Between 1975 and 1985 she won a staggering ten gold and two silver medals in the sprints events. Another prolific medal winner was Damien Switzer (Killarney) who won six gold medals in Art.
Other stars over the decades to win National medals included European walks medallist Gillian O’Sullivan (Spa / Muckross) Under 12 Walk in 1989, World Cross Country medal winner Maureen Harrington (Kenmare) winner of the Under 16 1,500m in 1982, Currow/Currans Under 13 Basketball team three in a row titles 1990, 91 and 92 , Castleisland’s phenomenal basketball success at all ages over the decades and the many swimmers who won medals in the early years.
Present Committee
President, Christy Murray RIP; Vice President, Kit Horan (Moyvane/Knockanure); Chairperson, Sean O’Sullivan (Spa/Muckross); Vice-Chairperson, Patsy O’Connell (Abbeydorney/Kilflynn); Secretary, Margaret Culloty (Farranfore/Firies); Minutes Secretary, Linda O’Reilly (Caherslee); Treasurer, Patricia O’Neill (Fossa); Assistant Treasurer, Joan Murphy (Boherbuee/Cloghers/Manor); PRO Radio, Nelius Collins (Duagh/Lyre); Development Officer, Owen Stack (St. Brendans/Oakpark); Children’s Officer, Claire Creighton (Ballydonoghue/Lisselton); Cultural Officer, James O’Neill (Ballydonoghue/Lisselton); Youth Officer, Cora O’Mahony (Ballybunion)