Great attendance at our online AGM

Our annual general meeting took place on Friday last, 21st January. In what was a very well attended event it was also the final meeting chaired by our outgoing chairperson, Brendan Keane. The tributes were in abundance for Brendan and they were totally deserved. Brendan was at the helm for 13 successful years and oversaw the development of our club to reach the highest ranks in senior hurling and football. In our secretary Bosco Creed’s report he pays a superb tribute to Brendan. Speaking of reports Bosco did an amazing job with his report and this was recognised by all who attended. Our outgoing treasurer, Richard Kelliher also produced an outstanding report on the finances and we are really grateful for this. There was also time set aside for a report on the progress of our new development with contributions from John “Jocky” O’Sullivan and David Ryan. The AGM was a great success and we are now hoping to have a great and successful time on the field as well as off the field in 2022.

SECRETARY’S REPORT FOR 2021

It is a privilege to present my annual report on the various activities of Fermoy GAA club.

In a year just like 2020 that was dominated by Covid-19 and despite the changes we all had to make as a consequence we still strived to do the best for our members both on and off the field.

On the field our adult teams remain competitive in ladies football, hurling and football. Off the field we continue to work hard to continually improve facilities and maintain the ones we have. On behalf of Cumann Mainistir Fhearmuí I would like to pay tribute to all those who assist in the club in any way. If all the volunteers that assist our great club were to be present in one room, it would take an enormous room to host it.

Club Presentation Night: Thanks to Covid-19 we were unable to have our normal club presentation night so consequently were unable to award club person of the year or various players of the year.

Golf Classic: We held our annual classic on August 6th. The Dano Maloney Perpetual Cup was presented to the winners. The event provided a badly needed boost to club finances. We are very grateful to the dedicated committee who make this event so successful each year.

Fermoy Goes Country: Despite enormous efforts by the organising committee, we had to take the hard decision to cancel the 2021 event. With Covid-19 restrictions in place, it was simply not possible to run this event in a satisfactory and safe manner.

Win a Gaff: Thanks to Dermot O’Callaghan and his hard working committee for taking on this vital fundraiser.

Weekly Lotto: Thanks to Tom O’Brien and his team who faithfully look after our weekly lotto. Special thanks to Tommy O’Brien and Pat O’Brien who sell tickets evert Friday outside Shinnick’s Spar.

Adult Football Leagues: A reduced league campaign was offered this year thanks to Covid-19.

County League Cup – Group 2: We played 3 group games and progressed no further. Avondhu Junior Football Division 1 league – Group B: We played 3 group games, winning 1 and thus failed to progress further Avondhu Junior Football Division 3 league – Group A: We played 3 groups games and progressed no further.

Senior A Football Championship: We were paired with Mallow, Bantry Blues and Clyda Rovers in Group C. We lost narrowly to Mallow and Clyda Rovers and beat Bantry Blues to narrowly miss on a quarter final place. The fact our scoring difference was +1 despite two narrow losses gives you a feel for how tight the group was and the wafer thin margins between elimination and progression.

Avondhu Junior A Football Championship: Pitted in a Group 1 with Kilworth, Liscarroll Churchtown Gaels and Charleville we should consider ourselves unfortunate to not come out of this group. Very much a case of should have and could have.

Avondhu Junior B2 Football Championship: This competition was run on straight knock put and we lost the opening round by a single point to Ballyhooly.

Fé 21A Football Championship: This competition was run on straight knock out basis in December and we suffered a heavy defeat to eventual champions Mallow.

Adult Hurling Leagues: A reduced league campaign was offered this year thanks to Covid-19.

County League Cup – Group 4: We played 3 group games and progressed to the semi-final and lost to Ballincollig.

Avondhu Junior Hurling Division 1 league – Group A: Just 1 win from 3 meant we progressed no further.

Avondhu Junior Hurling Division 3 league – Group A: One win from 3 games meant we progressed no further.

Senior A Hurling Championship: We were grouped with Blarney, Bandon and Kanturk in Group A. We lost to Blarney and Kanturk and beat Bandon to miss on a quarter final place.

Avondhu Junior A Hurling Championship: We grouped with Araglin, Ballygiblin and Killavullen. A win and a draw were unfortunately not enough to progress. Just like the junior football championship “very much a case of should have and could have”.

Avondhu Junior C Hurling Championship: This is still run under the old format (straight knockout), we played Ballyhooly in round 1 and Charleville in the semi-final. As this report is being prepared we are still waiting for a finalist to emerge from the other half of the competition. The final decision is that this competition is scrapped for 2021 but having made it to the final it is a hollow victory of sorts.

Fé 21 Premier Hurling Championship: We played Charleville in the Avondhu Premier semi-final on July 13th and waited until December 1st for the final. The wait was worth it as we won the Avondhu Premier title in a rip roaring contest versus Mallow. There was no county wide competition run in 2021.

Rebel Óg East Fé 18 Division 2 football league: There is a one off Fé 18 set of competitions this year With minor now being Fé 17. We lost 2 games and received 1 walkover which meant we failed to qualify for a semi-final.

Rebel Óg East Fé 18 Division 2 hurling league: With minor now being Fé 17, there is one off Fé 18 set of competitions this year. We won 2 games and drew the other game and therefore qualified for a semi-final. We won a tight encounter by a single point to earn the right to play Fr O’Neill’s in the final. On the day we lost by just 2 points.

County Division 1 Ladies Football league: Two wins plus a walkover received meant we reached the semi-final where we lost narrowly to Clonakilty.

County Junior 2A Ladies Football league: Two wins and one loss was not enough to progress to the knock out stage of this competition.

Fé 18 East Cork A Ladies Football league: Our first team had a mixed league campaign, winning 1, drawing and losing 2.

Fé 18 East Cork B Ladies Football league: Our second team played just 1 league game as weather and pitch availability combined to make other games unplayable.

County Senior Ladies Football championship: Two losses and two wins meant we pitted against St Val’s in the senior B semi-final. On the day we lost to the eventual champions.

County Division 2A Ladies Football championship: Four losses from four games meant we failed to emerge from our group.

County Fé 21 Ladies Football Championship: Covid 19 was the only winner here as no games were played.

Fé 18 Ladies Football County Championship: Our first team lost their opening round by just a point to Valley Rovers and this that ended their championship campaign. Our second team had no championship game.

Fé 18 Camogie County Championship: Just 4 years after we restarted camogie we entered our first minor team in championship. Played on a round robin bases, we suffered a heavy defeat to Grenagh and rallied to put in a credible performance versus Watergrasshill. However, you have to factor in that this was a very young minor team and for some of them it was their first ever games of camogie.

Team management and mentors: It is only when you list the mentors for the teams on page that you begin to realise the volume of people working with teams for this club, it is right and proper that we thank them for the work they did this year and continue to do.

Value of 3rd teams: In football 57 players got adult football championship game time and in hurling the corresponding number was 60. When you consider how many players we had used on our first and second teams combined with players isolating for Covid-19 reasons it was a serious statement of commitment by mentors and players to get teams for championship. Social teams are an area that we should never neglect as they provide a valuable way of keeping players in the loop as the come out of underage as well as providing an outlet for more “mature” players.

Tomás Clancy Intercountry retirement: I cannot and should not let our AGM pass without paying tribute to Tomás Clancy. Since making his senior intercountry debut in 2013 Tomás had worn the Cork jersey with distinction and has always represented his family, his club and himself brilliantly. In all that time Tomás has often made himself available to help out with juvenile training sessions. Our collective hearts always swelled with pride when he stepped out for Cork on match day. As befits his unassuming character he was determined that no fuss be made on intercountry retirement so much so he wanted Fermoy GAA social media to handle the announcement. Thanks Tomás for all your time in the blood and bandages and apologies for making this fuss!

Ladies Football: Our Ladies Football committee has worked very hard this year under the leadership of Denis O’Brien. It is great to see the work being put in year after year.

Juvenile Committee: Great work as always is being done with the young boys of the area by a very dynamic committee led by Declan O’Flynn. It is great to see the volume and quality of young players starting to come through year on year. I would to wish the incoming officers and committee members well for the coming year.

Camogie Committee: From small beginnings in March of 2017, our camogie section has grown steadily since. It has been great to see the steady progress made by the players in a short amount of time. Great credit is due to the dedicated bunch of volunteers led by Lisa Wall. This year we fielded teams at Fé 18, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10 and 8.Plans are afoot to field an adult team in 2022 which just shows you have far we have come since 2017.

Pitch & Putt Committee: Thanks to Ned Rice and his hard working committee our Pitch and Putt section continues to do well I would to wish the incoming officers and committee members well for the coming year.

Club facilities: Our thanks to Jerry Galvin and his hardworking committee for their work in keeping the place so well whilst working a shoestring budget, remember they also look after the cutting of pitches in St Colman’s college.

Gym Committee: This facility has proven to a vital source of revenue for the club and our thanks to those who assist to run it.

Health and Wellbeing committee: Martin Joyce and his committee continue to do great work in the background. Our normal highlight would have been the annual Darkness Into Light walk in aid of Pieta House but in common with most events Covid-19 put a stop on these plans.

Club Sponsors: No club runs without serious financial backing and we are blessed to have a loyal sponsor in Laya Healthcare. We should not forget the major part local businesses play in supporting the club by paying for pitch advertising, adverts and teams in association with the golf classic. When you spend your hard earned money, please remember to support those who support us.

Development Committee: Under the very able leadership of Dave Ryan they have shown great ambition in looking at the overall facilities we have and will need in the future, we are close to breaking ground in the coming months on Phase 1 of the development plan.

One Club: 2019 was the first year we became One Club. The work that has been going on the background has been incremental in developing the one club model. It fair to say that all sections of the club have never been working better in harmony towards a common vision While we still have work to do, it is fair to say that One Club has been working well.

Finance: I would encourage each and every member to take the time to study the financial reports. You will begin to see that we should be deeply grateful to Richie Kelleher and Tom O’Brien for the dedicated work they have done this year. In middle of funding crisis caused by Covid-19 which meant no weekly lotto, reduced income from the club gym they have somehow kept the show on the road. Thanks to the respective treasurers of the juvenile committee Pádraig Hayden and ladies football John Duffy. You can play your part by subscribing to our weekly lotto, entering our car draw and entering Rebels’ Bounty for 2022

Registration: In 2019 Annette Roche stepped into the breach to take on this important function. It is fair to say she has transformed the role and through her enthusiasm she has linked in well with her colleagues

Fran Llewellyn Ladies Football and Noreen McConville (camogie) to ensure that the 3 separate registration databases are keep up to date and accurate. In 2021 the GAA is rolled out a revamped registration database (Foireann) that made this onerous job much easier and make for a more simplified registration process for clubs such as ours that have gone down the “One Club” model.

Covid-19: Throughout all the above sections you can get a sense of the way Covid-19 has affected our lives this year. There has not been one element of our activities that has been untouched, it is safe to say that our membership has had to change practises to do our part to reduce the risk for us all.

On behalf of us all I would like to thanks those who have volunteered to be Covid-19 compliance officers for all our teams, without all of those volunteers we simply could not have resumed activities last June.

Fé 19 and Fé 21 for 2022: When Cork GAA Board announced plans to run a Fé 19 competition in 2022; I have to admit I was somewhat dubious as to how this would fit into an already crowded fixture schedule. However, when I delved deeper in the detail I can see a lot of merit in the plans. Fé 19 games will be played on Wednesdays with Fé 17 and adult games scheduled for weekends.

Having watched a first-hand I can see that Fé 21 GAA competitions simply are not helping us achieve what should be our primary goal which is retaining players. Albert Einstein reputedly said “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result”.

I would encourage all to embrace this forthcoming Fé 19 schedule with an open mind and ask yourself what would success at Fé 19 look like. For me success would be a player who is too old for underage (Fé 17) playing Fé 19 on a Wednesday and playing on any of our adult teams at the weekend. For too long we have lost players as they emerge from the underage GAA structures.

BRENDAN KEANE

Today’s marks a serious changing of the guard as Brendan Keane vacates the chairperson role he has graced with such distinction since 2009. In those 13 years he has overseen a remarkable transformation in the club from junior through to senior. Off the field too there have major advancements such as One Club. Throughout it all Brendan has demonstrated a remarkable ability to shown leadership when it was needed in both the good days and the not so good days.

No doubt he will say he was standing on the shoulders on those who went before him but he truly has provided the shoulders for the next chairperson to reach for the stars. On behalf of all us, I would like to say “A Bhreandán, mile buíochas as ucht do threoir agus cheannaireacht spreagúil” - “Brendan, thank you for your inspirational guidance and leadership”.

Richie Kelleher: Richie stepped in to become club treasurer in 2020 and added a layer of professionalism and organisation to a busy role. He has always been helpful and diligent. Unfortunately, Richie will not be able to commit to be club treasurer for 2022, the enthusiasm he brought will be missed.

Sympathies: One behalf of Fermoy GAA Club, I offer our sincere condolences to all those who have suffered loss in the past year.

CHAIRPERSON’S ADDRESS

Comprehensive Secretarys report: Covering the detail of the extensive activity that takes place under the umbrella of Fermoy GAA One Club, Bosco has also captured the areas of administration, playing and support that have earned our thanks and appreciation and that I also personally endorse. I will not single out individuals already mentioned but in stepping down after 13 years at the helm there are a couple of specifics I do want to mention. Forgive me if I omit mention of many people or events that warrant inclusion. Upfront I want to thank Donal Clancy and Laya Healthcare for their fantastic support since we first approached them in their former life as Bupa. I asked a lot in that presentation 12 years ago and their contribution to the club is in significant six figures over that time. Mile buíochas. Thanks.

Thoughts: Many members including I have a family history of involvement in Fermoy GAA. We are now a broader church, one club, equal access, more widely embedded in a more diverse community and we need the membership and administration of the club to representative of that changing and richer environment. The club needs to continuously challenge itself to make sure we are open and welcoming and using the talent and potential at our disposal. Drawn in originally by Brian Shinnick, Dave Ryan and Joe Kearney to do some strategy work on structures in 2005 I have been fortunate to have the inspiration of great clubmen of the past but in particular to be guided by the three presidents I have had the privilege of serving with, John Fenton, Joe Kearney and Tommy O’Brien Senior. Thank you to all the executive committee members, the Pitch and Putt committees, Juvenile committees and Ladies committees that have put the interests of players and our club front and centre of everything being done. My thanks to CCB and NCB delegates and in particular to Diarmuid Gowen, treasurer of the Cork County board.

The club and its officers need to play an active and supportive role in the affairs of both Avondhu and the CCB. Diarmuid like fellow Fermoy men before him on the CCB has provided insight and help when required by the club.

To all the hard-working managers and staff, it has been my privilege to work with since 2009 I say thank you and you have my admiration for your dedication and pursuit of excellence. This year’s mentors are very committed, knowledgeable and determinedly set up for success. Great to see a blend of external expertise and former players involved, my best wishes for 2022. Sometimes we look back to the past for inspiration, but I have to say the players that currently wear Fermoy jerseys are the real inspiration. All are great club members with some leading and contributing to Cork ladies and men’s teams for many years. I look forward to their continued ambition and success and have enjoyed many hours on the sideline at all grades sharing their pain and their joy. Lastly and most importantly the underage boys and girls and everything to do with their participation, enjoyment and development is the most important work of the future. Declan, Denis challenge every aspect and set high standards. Playing success is a welcome result that makes us all feel good but just as important will be maximizing involvement in the club right through to adulthood and administration.

2020 Executive committee aims: Last year’s goals and result. Strive for and support further playing success at adult and all levels fielding three teams in both hurling and football and possibly a second u21 team. Bring the Club development proposal to an EGM for decision and commence fundraising and project preparation. Well underway Dave Ryan Chairing development committee I will remain fully committed and involved. Underage development and coaching girls’ and boys’ football, hurling and camogie ongoing great work especially at nursery but challenge our schools coach and skills pathway.

Fundraising: Start for additional facilities: Great work by Diarmuid Callaghan and winagaff committee raising €90,000. Finance committees appointed led by Mike Walsh and James Mullery to raise funds. Denis O’Brien, Sports capital committee, applying for much needed support. Jerry Canty crucial in our ongoing lease discussions and our planned arrangement with St Colman’s Fermoy goes Country on August 23th build on the success of this year delayed to 2022 thank you Tommy and committee. Car draw imminent: some tickets sold need certainty on date. Increase retention, membership and volunteers and identify committee replacements. Great work on membership, One Club, player involvement but a serious need for regeneration and new blood on committee.

FUTURE

My thanks to my wife Katherine and our four children for the understanding and support over the last years that has allowed me be active in Fermoy GAA. Hopefully coming through a difficult time over the last two years we are emerging into a brighter future. Fermoy GAA One Club is well placed for success. “It always seems impossible until it is done” – Nelson Mandela. My very best wishes to all in whatever role you can play in realizing that bright future. Though stepping down I am not going away.! Nil neart go cur le chéile, go raibh maith agaibh.

VOTE OF SYMPATHY

The club extends its deepest and sincerest sympathy to Mr Paddy O’Sullivan and family on the recent passing of his sister Mrs Veronica McMahon (nee O’Sullivan), Codrum, Macroom, Cork. The late Mrs McMahon’s father, the late Dan O’Sullivan as well as Paddy were very involved in Fermoy GAA. Dan was treasurer of the club during the period when our pitch was purchased. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam.

Shop local. Stay safe! Stay healthy!

MAIN SPONSOR

Laya Healthcare.