Naomh Moninne planning for official opening of new pitches

When you’re out you’re out, I suppose. No longer in the the GAA loop, where information of coming events and the like is distributed, I wasn’t aware of the first game being played on the new Naomh Moninne pitch on last Sunday week.

If I’d known about it, I’d have been hot-tailing it out to Fatima. It would, of course, have been to see the set-up – which I’d been told is hugely impressive – but also for sentimental reasons.

There was a pitch on the site close to where the new grounds are located and it had floodlights. Of that I’m sure, because, believe it not, I played in the underage game to mark the switching on of the lights.

Yes, of course it was a hurling match, and it was played on a Sunday night. I was on the Dundalk Gaels side, but for the life of me can’t recall who were in opposition. Whoever they were almost certainly won.

My loss of recall begs to be excused: the game took place more than six decades ago, which is another way of saying about 1960, soon after the Naomh Moninne club was founded.

There was never a great tradition of hurling in our club, just a number of enthusiasts, among them those who made the Munster final one of their annual outings. If they got tickets, they’d then head to the All-Ireland final.

There were also a few players who doubled up. One of my sidekicks, PJ, played with Erin’s Own; the late Donal O’Gorman, a Corkman, was also heavily involved. More recent than that, Prionsias Ó Cúanaigh, former Dundalk CBS Secondary School principal, another who played football with us, was a regular with Naomh Moninne and Louth.

Taking a glimpse into the record books, I see that the first Louth hurling championship was played in 1902 and was won by Dundalk side, Shamrocks. From then until 1986, the championship had junior status, but was then upgraded to senior.

First winners of the senior were none other than Moninne, and they went on win it on the following two years, and many times after that.

Knockbridge won the junior title back in the 1940s before going out of business. But they’re back in the fold, and have taken the senior on a number of occasions. A former player of theirs, David Dunne, is the only Louthman to have won Poc Fáda na hÉireann.

Clubs have come and gone, and many of those no longer in existence figure among the championship-winners. Naomh Moninne aside, eight Dundalk sides have been successful, the already-mentioned Shamrocks and Erin’s Own, along with Recreation Club, Gaelic League, Con Colberts, Cuchulainns, Clan na Gael and, most recently, Pearse Óg.

One of Louth’s best-ever footballers, Kevin Beahan, won medals with Naomh Colmcille, one of two Ardee clubs to taken the title, St Mochta’s being the other.

Drogheda is well represented on the roll of honour through Wolfe Tones, CBS Tredagh, CBS Shamrocks, Na Piarsaigh, John Mitchel’s and Boyne Emmets.

Mid-Louth side, Hitchestown, were successful in 1932, while in recent times, one of the county’s youngest hurling clubs, St Fechin’s have been on the mark.

Moninne have two fine pitches on their new site. One has been in use for around twelve months, while Sunday week’s game, in which the host club played Knockbridge, was the first to be staged on the main pitch. An official opening of the complex is planned for the weekend of Poc Fáda, early in August.