Hard work comingto fruition as the club develops facilities

The club started out just renting a field for a number of years but in 2001 they purchased a seven-acre field in the townland of Lenamore from local farmer Mike Mulvihill.

Then the real hard work had to begin to drain the field and put a sand carpet in place and more importantly generate the money to fund it. They club had a bit of money raised and with the aid of a Credit Union Loan they proceeded with the development project.

They also had a very successful weekly lottery in place, which generated a good bit of funds and their main ticket seller was the late Joe O’Grady who canvassed all the bars every weekend selling tickets.

They were fortunate to be able to secure a number of Sports Capital Grants and allocations from the FAI and SSE which were a major help in bringing the work to fruition. When work on the pitch was completed erecting a clubhouse was their next priority and after erecting the shell of the building they had to wait a few years before they had the funds to progress further.

After more fund raising and grant aid the work is now almost completed and they have a club house they can be proud of. The club have been assisted in more recent years by the local Community Employment Scheme who cut the grass and keep the place trim and tidy throughout the year. The entire project cost in excess of €240,000.

Micheál Dennehy is the man who made it all happen following the club through thick and thin. The work he does behind the scenes is incredible and he has kept the cogs turning over the past 26 years.

Micheál has been a Jack of All Trades for the club organising the fund raising managing the team and looking after the facilities. He also managed the team for a long time and has done tremendous work promoting the game in the area.

Lenamore played their first game in October 1994 against neighbours Moybella and they won 2-0. The line out that day was Jack Mulvihill, Mike Donovan, Kieran Dennehy, Stephen Mulvihill, Eamon Dunlea, Michael Higgins, Michael Dennehy (Junior), Andreas Lynch, Thomas Stack, Tommy Mulvihill, Denis Kelly.

One of the highlights for the club was when Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Staunton called to see their facilities when the FAI held their AGM and week long Festival of Football in Kerry in 2007.

They also had the red carpet out for the visit of former FAI CEO John Delaney.