Council Chair hosts a reception for Éire Óg Under 15 Camogie Team All Ireland Féile Champions

Recently the Chair of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, Councillor John McClaughry, hosted a reception for the Éire Óg Under 15 Camogie Team who were the All Ireland Féile Champions 2024.

The following is a copy of the Chair’s speech which he made at the reception:

Good evening ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls

As Chair of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, I am delighted to welcome you all here to Strule Arts Centre, Omagh for this reception in honour of All Ireland Féile Champions Éire Óg under 15 Camogie Team.

Your journey in the Féile began in January of this year with training and the challenge to retain the Tyrone Féile title for the second year in a row, following your first ever title win in 2023.

I understand you had a tough group stage, however, your determination and talents shone through and you deservedly earned your place in the Tyrone Féile Final.  Your opponents were neighbours, Dungannon and, although it was a very close match, you emerged victorious with a two point win and back to back Tyrone Féile success.

In June 2024, all roads led to Rosslare in Wexford for the All Ireland Féile with your first match on Saturday 22 June 2024 against the reigning champions, Carnew Emmetts.  You didn’t let this, or the final of 2023, put you off and, after a great show of teamwork and courage you emerged as winners.

Next up was the hosts, St Mary’s, who had home advantage and after a very close match, they had a narrow 3 point win.

The final group match was against Westport and you had an excellent win which I am sure gave you great confidence as you progressed to the semi-final.

Your semi-final opponents were the winners of Group 2, Setanta from Carlow.  The fist half was very close with just one point scored, however, following the half time break and perhaps an encouraging team talk, you emerged strongly with another emphatic win and a place in the final.

St Mary’s Rosslare, the hosts and whom you had played before, were you opponents in the final and they were the only team to go unbeaten on the day.  However, this all changed when Éire Óg took to the pitch with fantastic support in the stands.  I believe you had an excellent first half performance to take the lead at half time and you showed outstanding determination, talent and courage to give an unforgettable second half performance to claim the All Ireland Féile title.

This is a fantastic achievement and I understand this is the first All Ireland Féile camogie title to be brought back to Tyrone.

I would like to commend the Management Team of Michael Kerr, Leanne McKernan and Mark Dobbs for all your work and commitment to train the girls.  I also want to thank you for sharing your skills and knowledge with the girls to allow them to be the best they can on the pitch and enjoy momentous success such as this.

Being part of a sports team is important as it gives you the opportunity to be active, which is important for your mental and physical health.  However, it also teaches you valuable life talents in terms of teamwork, listening, communication and being resilient.  Each of you have demonstrated these qualities throughout the competition and I am confident that they will benefit you in the future in your school, college and work life.

On behalf of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, and on my own behalf, I would like to congratulate each and every player for your commitment to training and for the determination, talent and courage you showed to achieve this outstanding success.  You have done yourselves, your family and friends, your Club, your County and your District proud and you will certainly be an inspiration to future Camogie stars in Éire Óg and beyond.  Thank you.