Pumpkins, Winter Walkers and Monster Bingo - One 'Vale' of a Year for local GAA club

Fast forward 12 months and the adage, ‘What a difference a year makes’ most definitely rings true for us all. Little did anyone imagine when St. Patrick’s Day was cancelled that we would be facing the prospect of a Christmas that none of us will forget. But, human nature is a funny thing and it’s often the case that people find their greatest resolve in times of uncertainty. Followers become leaders, neighbours become friends and communities bind in a way they may never have done before.

The latter has been the case in the community of Faughanvale where the local GAA club, St. Mary’s, has been very much to the fore. So, what has 2020 been like in the life of a GAA club? We caught up with club chairman, Eamonn King, who takes up the story.

“Like so many other clubs, we set out this year with high hopes to build on the work that had been done before but I don’t think any of us were prepared for what we have faced,” reflects the ‘Vale Chairman, “It is a testament to the people, not only in our club but of our community, that we have made what we feel is the best out of such a bad year for so many of us.”

The year no one could imagine has become the year no one will ever forget but the pandemic has also highlighted much of the positive work that often goes on unnoticed in society and the the GAA has been central to much of that good work since the lockdown was introduced earlier in the year.

Between the months of March and July, St. Mary’s set about introducing several initiatives aimed at keeping people connected to ensure no one was left feeling isolated. The first of these saw the the club team up with local farmers to provide potatoes and vegetables to members of the community unable to access shops, with the food parcels and groceries delivered to homes over a three week period. Social media interaction was also to the fore of these efforts to maintain communication and contact with archive footage from games, ‘wheelie bin’ and ‘solo’ challenges were set with people of all ages getting active and sharing their efforts.

Current and past players from the ‘Vale’s ladies teams shared their memories of being involved with the club which participated in both Mental Health Awareness Week and the GAA’s Healthy Step Challenge’, recording over 200,000 steps during the month of June.

With games finally making a welcome return in July, the club got behind the teams on the field. The senior ladies won the Intermediate Championship, defeating Limavady in the final. The Minor men lost out in the final of their championship, with the senior men’s team progressing to the semi-final of the Intermediate championship.

Once the on-field activities concluded, the focus turned to planning for the future. The construction of a ball wall between the two playing fields will no doubt be a welcome addition to the facilities while the club have recently announce plans for a fit-for-purpose gym to be located within the club grounds. With planning permission in place for a walking trail, which will be landscaped around the perimeter of the 18 acres at John McLaughlin Park, and plans in place to extend the changing facilities, it’s safe to say the ‘Vale are intent on not standing still.

The final piece of the jigsaw for 2020 has seen the club announce new sponsors for the next two years. Previous overall club sponsor, Evermore Energy, who are behind the north’s newest electricity provider ‘Bright’, will now sponsor all club youth teams. Four local businesses have combined to sponsor the clubs senior teams, and have foregone the opportunity to have their branding used, to instead allow the club to carry the logo of ‘Cairde Vale’ a selfless action, somewhat befitting of the clubs activities this year.

The ‘Vale Chairman, however, stresses that the club’s progress this year has been a team effort with plenty of support from the community

“We have been very fortunate over a long number of years to have had a dedicated club committee, supported by our fundraising and development committees, as well as our many coaches and those who look after the upkeep of our grounds. We are also indebted to our community and local business community who have never let us down when we asked for support.”

To bring these ambitious plans to fruition, the club recently launched ‘Cairde Vale’ which will be the fundraising arm of the club development.

“Basically, people have committed to contribute £5 per week to the club, for a three year period, explains Eamonn, “These vital funds will be used solely for the future development of the club, continuing to improve the facilities at John McLaughlin Park and will go a long way to assist our grants in the instances were match-funding is required.

“Due to the obvious restrictions faced by us all, we have the facility in place to sign up online for membership of ‘Cairde Vale’ and I would like to thank those who have already signed up. We have been hugely encouraged by the positive response we have had from those who have indicated a willingness to follow suit.”

The club have also been proactive in successfully applying for grant funding during the year with other community stakeholders and groups benefitting from their efforts. The primary schools of Faughanvale, Broadbridge and Eglinton, as well as Greysteel Playschool, received sporting equipment aimed at promoting healthy lifestyles for the younger members of the community. Technology has also been a lifeline to the weekly club lotto with many supporters now playing online and the draw being streamed live each week on social media.

In the final months of the year, a social media ‘Pumpkin Challenge’ had Halloweeners of all ages sharing photos of their pumpkins while the club grounds hosted a drive-in ‘Monster Bingo’. From mid-November the club grounds have been lit up on Tuesday and Thursday evenings as the club encourages people to get active and join the ‘Vale ‘Winter Walkers’.

The final social media initiative of the year has arguably been the most popular of all. ‘Sunday’s Child’ sees members of the local community share stories of their lives, both sporting and non-sporting going as far back as the World War and running right up to present day.

“At the beginning of this year, I don’t think any of us were prepared for the challenges that would lie ahead,” adds Eamonn, “As a club, we offer our sincere sympathies to those who have lost loved ones during this year or who have suffered ill-health due to the ongoing pandemic. We are more grateful than ever for the wonderful support of the members of our club and community who, once again, showed everything that is good about our community and our county. We are proud that Faughanvale GAA club could play a small part in helping people throughout this most difficult year.”

Heartfelt words from Eamonn King, which will sum up the year for a lot of people and a lot of sports clubs but it’s fair to say that whilst this year hasn’t been what most would have expected it to be, the people of Faughanvale haven’t shied away from the challenge, and they can look forward with optimism for what lies ahead.

*Details on “Cairde Vale” can be found on the club website (faughanvalegac.com) or by contacting the club via any of their social media platforms.