Delight as Noeleen to be feted at camogie awards
‘SHOCK’ is how Wicklow’s Volunteer of the Year award winner Noeleen Whelan describes her reaction to being told that she had scooped the award.
So taken aback was she by the news being delivered by Aughrim Camogie Club Chairman Kevin Byrne that she had to wait until husband Paul googled it on his smartphone to be sure that it wasn’t some prank being played on the dedicated camogie coach.
‘Seven nights a week,’ is how Noeleen describes her commitment to camogie.
The Cappagh native is a coach with the club’s under-12s, under-16s and was joint manager with Rachel Campbell with the Aughrim Junior side who lost out to Annacurra in the county final replay late last year.
Throw in her role with the under-16 county development squad and the fact that she is a Aughrim Camogie Club committee member and it’s fair to say that camogie is a huge part of Noeleen’s life.
Noeleen played camogie for many years with Knockananna before moving back to Aughrim when the game hit hard times on the Carlow border.
A back operation came with strong advice to never play contact sport again, but this year saw Noeleen lining out as well as joint managing the Aughrim Juniors in what was a memorable year despite the county final replay defeat to the neighbours.
Noeleen says that her love of the game and her ambition for the game to flourish in the Granite Village were the inspiration for her to get involved at club level where it was verey much a case of rolling up the sleeves and getting stuck in at the coalface.
A very worthy award winner, camogie in Aughrim is in safe hands with Noeleen Whelan.
Noeleen will be presented with her award by Camogie Association Uachtaran Kathleen Woods at a function in Croke Park on Saturday, January 26.