Energetic St Nathy’s now officially One Good Club!
AFTER 10 weeks of creative ideas, and bringing the entire community together, St Nathy’s LGFA Club were crowned the Lidl One Good Club national champions.
The five-step youth mental health awareness programme had been developed for local clubs by Lidl Ireland, the Ladies Gaelic Football Association (LGFA) and Jigsaw (the national centre for youth mental health).
The programme aims to increase awareness and knowledge of mental health across the LGFA community. The initiative offers clubs the opportunity to support all members and engage in activities that can promote their health and wellbeing.
25 clubs across the country – out of 900 applications – were picked to participate.
St Nathy’s is a stand-alone Ladies Gaelic Football club, covering mainly Bunninadden, Coolaney, Mullinabreena, and Ballinacarrow, with some players also from Ballymote.
The announcement of their win was made through a live event on Facebook, on Thursday last, hosted by RTE Gaelic Games correspondent Marty Morrissey. The event showed coverage of what each of the finalists had done as part of the programme and the different ideas they all had. Marty had visited St Nathy’s a week ago to meet and interview the committee members.
St Nathy’s PRO Kathleen Coleman said: “We had so much fun sharing our ideas and introducing him to other members in the club who had benefitted from the programme.
“We couldn’t wait to see the footage on the night, it meant a lot to people to see the club celebrated in such a lovely way.
“This was a big occasion for the club and we were so proud that it was happening as result of all our hard work,” she said.
Kathleen said that they had engaged in so many activities in the past 10 weeks, including virtual farms, letters to the underage players, the Easter Bunnies, The BOOTique, the Music Showcase, Fittest Family, Davey Nutrition Talk, skills videos, art competitions, a virtual trip around Ireland and to the USA, pilates, and zoom quiz. She said: “It has been a real team effort, we could never have imagined how successful it would be. As a small, rural club in Sligo we were going up against some of the biggest clubs, but we proved this has no bearing on the strength of a community and the bond we have as a club.
“The initiative brought people together and highlighted very important messages about mental health in our youth. We had the opportunity to meet players and families for the first time in such an enjoyable way. “There was so much excitement around the club and on the night, with an outpouring of well-wishes received by the steering committee. We were so nervous and excited, waiting to see the footage of our programme and the reaction it would receive.
“Not in our wildest dreams did we think we could win the whole competition, which was evident in our reaction to the win.
“We were so humbled by the praise on the night, with some very funny reactions to the video clip. That’s what it was all about, enjoyment and creating a buzz around the club, “she said. Kathleen said that there had been “lots of laughs, stressful nights and nerves, which have made some worldclass blooper reels”.
“We cannot thank Lidl and Jigsaw enough for the way they implemented the initiative and the opportunities it has given us.
“We never would have done something like this without the programme being put in place,” she said. Kathleen said a special word of congratulations must be extended to the steering committee, a group of senior players from the club, who have been working tirelessly to put this whole thing together.
They are Úna Cafferky, Jennie Creegan, Claire Rooney, Noelle Gormley, Áine McDonagh, Etna Flanagan, Ann-Marie, Kathleen and Carol Coleman, Jacqueline Barrett, and Hannah Walsh.
And Kathleen said that buzz of the programme and their win has left everyone on a high.
“Spirits within the club are at an alltime high as we return to play and that is thanks to this whole experience. “It’s an unbelievable achievement and when the time is right, we look forward to gathering as a club to celebrate together in style.
“Even Marty is looking forward to returning to party with us. But for now, it’s back to the football field and a few less Zoom calls,” she said.