2000 and beyond
CLUB ACQUIRES NEW GROUND AT DUBLIN ROAD
With new ladies teams, as well as hurling and football teams numbering 18 in all, a second pitch became an immediate priority as the twentieth centaury drew to a close and we entered a new millennium. Contact was made with Down District Council to lease or purchase the Council owned Gaelic pitch at the Bann Road on the edge of the town. The Council had been deliberating for a number of years on the future of the Council owned Gaelic and Soccer playing fields at Bann Road and during the mid 1990’s had invited both the town Gaelic Club and the town Soccer Club to submit applications for leasing. The Soccer Club had applied to lease both the Gaelic and Soccer pitches while the Gaelic Club applied for lease of the Gaelic pitch only. There were a number of meetings between both the town clubs over the years to see if some accommodation could be met and if a joint approach for purchase and management of the Bann Road facility would be a feasible option. Our own Club eventually ruled this out as it was felt that the interests of Gaelic games in the town would not be best served by a joint management scheme. Both Club’s made their views known during the course of a number of amicable meetings. The Soccer Club advised us that they would have to oppose any change in the status of the playing fields that would not allow them access to both the Gaelic pitch and the Soccer pitch at Bann Road as this would mean reducing the number of teams that they fielded. However the Club maintained that it needed the exclusive use of a second Gaelic pitch and training ground to service the Club’s eighteen teams and that joint management and use of the Gaelic Pitch at Bann Road by both club’s could not be an option that the Gaelic Club could consider. Castlewellan FC were assured that the Club had no designs on the soccer pitch at Bann Road, but that we were in dire need of a second full time Gaelic pitch in the town. The Club also made it clear that it would not oppose a similar application by the Town Soccer Club for control of the soccer pitch at Bann Road or for that matter the soccer pitch at Annsborough also. St Malachy’s Park by the mid 1990’s was beyond game saturation point, training was prohibited with the exception of U12 coaching and match practise only was permitted by the other Club teams in exceptional circumstances. In addition and to discourage ad hoc usage of the playing field the goal posts were removed at the end of each season to allow for pitch recovery and repair. During the playing season as many as 3 home games were taking place in St Malachy’s Park on a Sunday and perhaps one or two every other evening of the week. During the winter months finding a training ground had become a nightmare with our teams on occasions having to travel to Downpatrick and to Newry to find suitable floodlit facilities. By the Spring of 2002 we knew that something had to be done in that year if not by the Council then we would have to find additional land in the town ourselves. It had been one of the wettest winters and springs on record. Pitches were closed all over the County on a regular basis including all the Council pitches and we knew it was make or break time.
Headed up by an enthusiastic and committed Chairman in the shape of John McCartan the hunt was on for suitable additional land while at the same time attempting to exert as much pressure as possible on Down District Council and local public representatives to do something for Gaelic Sport in the town by facilitating a second dedicated Gaelic pitch in the town. At a meeting with Council Officials and public representatives in April 2002 our needs were again outlined by the Club Chairman John McCartan and Secretary Ciarán Crilly. as well as providing details of our own proposals for the future of St Malachy's Club. We were however shocked to learn that the Council did not have a sports strategy for Down District and no plans to provide any additional sports or recreation facilities in the town. This in spite of the fact that the town had trebled in size over the previous 10 -15 years, and hundreds more houses were then under construction on the old playing fields of the former 'County' School off Church Street. The ‘County School’ playing fields were used for years by the Town soccer club and these generous sized playing fields were now a building site and lost to the town as a recreational amenity. Things were not made easier for the Club with the decision of St Malachy's High School not to pemit local Clubs to hire the new playing fields attached to the School. This was another disappointment for the Club as traditionally we enjoyed an excellent relationship with the Town School and always had generous use of all the school facilities for training and games. In return the Club provided the school with transport to travel to GAA games and for other school excursions for many years as well as providing the use of St Malachy’s Park for games and training particularly during the period that the new school was under construction.
By 2002 therefore it was felt strongly by the Club Executive that at the end of the day only our own efforts to acquire additional playing facilities would bear any fruit in the short and the long term. This didn’t take long to happen as discreet enquiries by our Chairman had yielded a willing landowner that could be persuaded to part with eight and a half acres of land on the Dublin Road (known locally as the Cutt). Negotiations were not protracted and within a short time a price and a completion date of 5th July 2002 was agreed. All the Club needed now was the money - which it didn’t have because development work was still on-going in St Malachy’s Park at the Circular Road. But we could not pass this opportunity by, so the Club Executive agreed that they would attempt to raise the required figure by the completion date, (which was less than a week away). A ‘hit list’ of possible benefactors in the shape of current and former playing members and committee members was drawn up. Within 24 hours the figure required was gathered in, as personal loans from our Club benefactors and the deal was completed much to the shock of many local people who were completely unaware that the Club had been land hunting. The Club intends to develop the ground as soon as it is possible. Our plans are to build two new full-size pitches. One of the pitches will be for training, complete with floodlighting and the other pitch (the same dimensions as in Croke Park) will be used for a much-needed second home pitch. Changing rooms and car-parking will also form part of the proposals. All of this will require a great deal of money and we will be appealing to members past and present as well as all GAA supporters in the town to support our endeavours to raise the necessary finance and so secure for Castlewellan top quality GAA sporting facilities for this and future generations.
Fund raising has always had to exercise the minds of Club Officials as far back as most people can remember, but particularly since the early 1970’s when the new Social Club and St Malachy’s Park development programme commenced. Since then there have been many great fund raising ventures and every year something new is added to continually generate funding. On 23 March 2001, the Club hosted its first annual GOLF CLASSIC, played on the world famous Royal County Down Golf Course in nearby Newcastle. The event, drew the maximum number of competitors allowed by the host club, and proved an outstanding financial success as well as a very enjoyable occasion. The winning team was from Kilmacud’s GAA club in Co.Dublin, and the Golf Classic has now become an annual fund raising and social occasion. In 1999 Mickey Keown devised an innovative annual fund raising draw (500 Club) which proved extremely popular and financially rewarding, bringing in much needed funds to pay for the on-going club development programme.(see funding section) . But perhaps the most successful fund raising as well fun raising was the crazy summer festivals that took place between 1986 to 1990.
The Social Club
The first GAA Social Club in Co. Down opened its doors in March 1976 to a bewildered public who did not know what to expect from this big bus garage that had lay idle on the Town’s Circular Road for the previous 30 years or more.
Neither too did the local GAA Club who had purchased the former UTA Garage a number of years previously from the then parish priest one Austin McNabb. It seemed like a good idea at the time to purchase the garage that lay adjacent to the old meadow, which was the playing pitch for Castlewellan GAC. If nothing else it would do to garage the Club Bus. No doubt Fr. McNabb thought it was a good idea too when he had purchased the old garage from the Ulster Transport Authority who in turn had purchased it from the RAF or British Army where it was used for billeting trucks during the war.
Fast forward a few years to about 1973 and a young and enthusiastic Club Secretary by the name of Gerard Dougherty bombshelled a rather bewildered middle aged committee with the suggestion that the old garage should be turned into a Social Club complete with licensed bar. Following, at first apprehension and many debates the committee warmed to this novel idea. After all we were the first club in all of Ireland to own our own club coach (1954) why not first GAA CLUB, if not in Ireland, well at least in County Down to open our own Social Club.
Money and labour was required to turn this dream into reality. Money was scarce, but labour was plentiful in the form of players, their families and local well wishers many of who had the necessary trades and the experience to carry out the job. It would be impossible to name all the workers who give up their time on a voluntary basis to see the job through to fruition. But some of the more prominent volunteers included Pat Rice, Pat Keown, Dermot McCabe, Brendan Steele, Big Joe Bannon, Joe McPhilips, Gerry Dougherty, Mickey Brannigan, Baldy Corrigan, Dominic Owens, Pat and Johnny Rooney, Teddy Rice, Phil King, Colm and Ivan McGreevy, Joe McKibben, Johnny O’Neill, Teddy Hardy, Danny Keown. Perhaps the youngest skilled worker present and one who deserves special mention is Sean McPhilips who at 17 was still in apprenticeship wired the entire premises on his own. There were plenty of others about too, to provide much needed labour to the skilled workers, Butcher Burns, Colm and Ciaran Crilly, Ned McCartan, Gerard McAlinden, Jimmy Bannon, Brendan Toner, Kieran Nixon to name but a few.
The price of a pint when the Club finally opened in 1976 would have set you back a mere 28 pence and the cover charge for a Sunday night dance 20 pence. The Social Club, which opened 7 nights, a week from 7.30pm until late proved very successful particularly on a Sunday night as no other pubs were (officially) open due to the licensing laws. This brought in much needed revenue to facilitate the development of the "meadow" which officially opened as Parc Naomh Maolmhoig a few years later in 1978.
Cabaret, and folk concerts became a very popular feature of the new Club, and the Club’s young and enthusiastic entertainment’s officer Ciarán Crilly, ensured that all the major acts of the day played the Castlewellan venue in the 70s and early 80s. Folk music was very popular in the 70s, many of the top bands hailing from Belfast. "Blackthorn", "Tara Folk", "The Pikemen"(formerly "Wolfhound"), "Battering Ram", "Hoggs Eye", "Hyland Paddy", to name but a few, and of course Castlewellan’s own "Claddagh" later to become "Slainte" they were Tom McCann, Terry Cowan, Fee Dobbin, and Dermot McNamara. Perhaps the most popular of the folk bands was "Tara Folk" who became an institution in the club, playing one Sunday night a month for two or three years to packed houses. The cabaret nights too proved very popular, featuring the popular Belfast singer Bo Birch, as well as up and coming comedian, Gene Fitzpatrick, Ann Breen from Downpatrick, big John Trotter from Derry and a host of other cabaret artists, and stars in their own right. Encouraging top southern act to travel north proved a bit more difficult during the seventies, but come they did. Danny Doyle, a popular television and recording artiste of the day was the first of the southern acts to appear, followed by Johnny McEvoy who also was in his heyday then. Other acts included the Dublin City Ramblers, Paddy Reilly, Roly Daniels, and Brendan Grace.
But the Club was still heavily in debt because of the amount of borrowing required for the Club development, but more particularly because of the very heavy interest rate of about 19% or 20% which continued right through the 70s and into the 80s. It would take another 10 years of blood sweat and tears and 5 outdoor festivals before the Club would be in the black again.
As the last decade of the 20th century dawned, the social club was beginning to show serious signs of wear and tear. It was no longer the Mecca of entertainment that it had been in it’s hey day and turnover had begun to slump. Only the few loyal diehards continued to frequent the Club although that been said there were still some good memorable nights. But the place seriously required major surgery, and it was finally decided to build a new wing adjoining the old club, which would include a new modern member’s, lounge, kitchen, toilets and committee and meeting rooms. The work was carried out by direct labour under the expert supervision of local Builder and Clubman Seamus Laverty, who insured that the work was completed to a very high standard. The work was completed early in 1995 and soon after was officially opened. The old club became the function hall and was virtually mothballed until finances enabled a complete refurbishment in 1998.
This also was completed in record time and this time the work went out to contract, and was awarded to John McCartan, another local Building contractor, who later became Club Chairman.
The Club facilities today include a fully equipped kitchen which has enabled us to further expand our service to the community providing facilities for wedding and funeral receptions, christening, and private member’s parties as well as providing conference and meeting facilities. Some of the activities that take place on a weekly basis include Yoga, indoor bowls, table tennis, Irish dancing, Irish language classes, Bingo (Friday Nights), pool and outdoor skittles, plus live entertainment every weekend.
As we look ahead beyond the Club’s first one-hundred years committed Gaels, Club men and women continue to work tirelessly for St Malachy’s GAC and the community we serve. Many people form the community are involved, family names that have been synonymous with Castlewellan Club for generations and also many new residents to the town who appreciate the importance of a thriving GAA Club in the community and the opportunities and facilities which our Club provides particularly for the youth of the parish. With your help and support we will endeavour to continue to promote Gaelic games and provide the best available facilities for future generations of young people and their families and will continue to make our socuial and recreational facilities at Circular Road and Dublin Road
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