Ladies Gaelic Football

FEATURE away for 2020 so I was delighted to be able to stay on and build on the great work of 2019."Now that Kilkerrin- Clonberne await, James McDonagh adds: "It's huge, not only for the club but also for the county. It's the first time ever a Sligo club has qualified for a Senior (Connacht) final. "It's going to be a brilliant weekend for Ladies football in the county, with Geevagh and Eoghan Rua in the Intermediate and Junior finals also."Doohan smiles: "There was a great buzz around the club after we qualified for the Final. "Hopefully by the time we get to play the Final, some supporters will be allowed to attend. "Kilkerrin-Clonberne are a great team, they were unfortunate to lose the All-Ireland Final last year. These are the teams that we want to be playing, if we want to continue to improve and put our mark on the Senior ranks." Doohan was 14 when the club was founded back in 1993. She played with the Senior team but half way through the year, discovered that she was also eligible for U14. "I never looked back since. St Nathy's is like a second family, they are there in good and bad times," Doohan reflects. "This year in particular was a tough challenge due to Covid, but the managers in the club stayed connected with their teams, setting challenges each week, organising a virtual sports day, baking challenges and raising money for Pieta house with a 24-hour solo run. "Even though we were apart for all of this, the club players really enjoyed the challenges and they helped people get through this time." On the field, James McDonagh reckons that St Nathy's might have been lacking a little in a key ingredient – self-belief. In his eyes, the talent is most definitely there. "The club has made a big push over the last few years to start making a bigger impact in Connacht, where we felt we had underachieved," he says. "A new management team came in last year and I suppose it got the players looking at the game in a different way. "The talent was always there but they probably lacked that little bit of belief. "We were delighted to win the Connacht Intermediate Championship before narrowly losing out in the All-Ireland semi- Anne Marie Coleman instigates an attack for St Nathy's final. "That was a hard result to take as we dominated the game for long spells. There would be a feeling we left an All-Ireland title behind us." Having been there right from the start, we'll leave the last word to Liam McDonagh. He says: "St. Nathy's has been an integral part of my family life since 1993. "My wife, Bríd, was secretary back in 1993 and is a former club player, my daughters Laoise and Niamh are club players whilst my son Eoin is part of the current senior management team." McDonagh reiterates that St Nathy's is more than just football and the club players released a CD some years ago with that very title – 'more than just football.' "The club is like a big family," he smiles. "And there are some great friendships developed as a result. Away from the playing fields, the club has developed a community spirit and connection, and has been involved in many events for various charities. "Nowadays, it has become the norm to see young children going around daily wearing the St. Nathy's club gear and, to me, this is a testament of the status of the club within the community." Testament, too, to the memory of Fr. Paddy Kilcoyne, who would surely nod approvingly at the stunning recent rate of progress. Some wonderful chapters have been written to date in the St Nathy's story – but you get the feeling that the best is yet to come. "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." www.ladiesgaelic.ie | WINTER 2020 | 45

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