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A ngela Doohan sums it all up. St Nathy's, who are through to a very first Connacht Senior Club Final in their history, refers to the Sligo outfit as a "very close- knit club." And Doohan knows what it takes to be successful, and recover from heart-breaking setbacks. In 2004 and 2005, Sligo suffered TG4 All-Ireland Junior Final defeats against Kildare and Armagh respectively. But in 2006, the door to Junior glory swung open for the Yeats County, with Doohan as team captain. She's still going strong at club level, a key player with a club whose rise from humble beginnings has been nothing short of remarkable. Former Connacht LGFA President and club stalwart Liam McDonagh explains that it's down to the result of the work that's put in at underage level for many years. It was back in December 1992, at the Sligo GAA convention, when a motion was passed to look into the idea of setting up a Ladies Football structure within the county. A meeting was called for all interested clubs and the St Nathy's Ladies Football club was formed in 1993 by the late Fr. Paddy Kilcoyne, who sadly passed away this year. St Nathy's won the inaugural U14 Championship in 1993, and a Senior shield success followed in 1994, with James Finan at the helm. There have been many other notable landmarks along the way, including a 1999 All-Ireland Junior Club Final appearance. Sligo's only All Star hails from the club, with goalkeeper Katrina Connolly honoured in 2006. In the same year, St Nathy's had captain Doohan, Michelle McGowan, Etna Flanagan, Noelle Gormley, Connolly, Martina Keane and Cammie Kennedy involved with the Sligo team that captured the TG4 All-Ireland Junior title. McDonagh has refereed TG4 All-Ireland Finals, there are O'Connor Cup medallists from the club, and players have featured on National League teams of the year. In 2019, St Nathy's went all the way to an All-Ireland Intermediate club semi-final, clocking up some air miles along the way. Club Focus "ST Nathy's isn't just about the football. It's about the life-long friends you make, the craic during the training sessions, the fun on the days and nights out together, the cups of tea and Etna Flanagan's famous cookies after training." By Jackie Cahill. A quarter-final took them to Ruislip in London, to take on Parnells. "We have always been so lucky to have such good people to help run the club," Doohan notes. "When we had to raise €20,000 to go to the UK, the true spirit of St Nathy's came out. "So many people in the club came out in force to help us raise the funds. For that trip, all we had to do was concentrate on winning the match. Everything else was taken care of for us." St Nathy's suffered a one-point semi-final defeat against Antrim outfit Naomh Pól, but they bounced back in 2020 to make it to a Connacht Senior club Final, against provincial holders and heavyweights, Kilkerrin-Clonberne from Galway. From neighbouring parish, Curry, current St Nathy's senior team manager is James McDonagh. And he explained: "A Mayo man, George Leetch, came in as manager for 2019. "He was looking for another local coach to get involved. I was recommended as I had been heavily involved in coaching in the local secondary school, St Attracta's, for many years. "South Sligo is very close-knit, so I knew the calibre of player and ambitions that St. Nathy's had. I saw it as a great opportunity, when George got in touch. "George had to step 44 | WINTER 2020 | www.ladiesgaelic.ie