Fabulous year for Mayo sport is recalled at night with the stars

A truly special occasion unfolded as almost 350 people flocked to Breaffy House Resort on Friday for the 2023 Western People Mayo Sports Stars Awards, where 20 award categories highlighted the plethora of magnificent sportspeople throughout the county.

Iconic RTÉ commentator Ger Canning was the special guest as his long-time co-commentator Martin Carney was inducted into the Mayo Sports Stars Hall of Fame. Ger has been RTÉ television’s main Gaelic games commentator since 1985, taking over from the legendary Micheál O’Hehir and subsequently commentating on exactly 80 All-Ireland senior finals.

Ger sat down for an interview with Western People sports editor Anthony Hennigan, who was MC on the night. The Cork man revealed that in the early days he was double-jobbing as secondary school teacher and commentator for RTÉ, on both radio and television.

The day before the 1985 European Cup Final between Liverpool and Juventus, RTÉ contacted South Presentation school in Cork City, asking Ger could he travel to Brussels to commentate on the match at Heysel Stadium as George Hamilton’s father was sadly dying.

“So, I said to the boss, ‘do you mind if I take Wednesday off? I’ve got to go to Brussels for a match’. I knew very little about the two teams because I had been focusing on the GAA, but after school I went down to the local Easons and bought a copy of Shoot.”

Heading over to the Belgian capital, Ger could never have imagined what was to unfold as it became one of the darkest nights in European football. 39 people, mostly Juventus fans, were killed when a wall collapsed on them before kick-off.

Back then there was no panel in studio, so Ger had to keep commentating and painted a picture of the harrowing scenes at Heysel. He said the game went ahead because authorities were afraid it would make the situation worse if fans spilled out onto the streets. Juventus won 1-0 and that very same night, Ger was offered a full-time contract with RTÉ.

The first presentation was to Athletics award winner Pauline Moran. Her exceptional performances throughout 2023, but specifically at the World Masters Athletics Championships where she won four gold medals (over three distances), saw her as a worthy winner. The Mayo AC runner also won double gold at the British and Irish Masters cross countrys.

“It was very exciting, I didn’t expect to win those medals. I had won a few silvers before that so it was lovely win gold,” Pauline said.

Bethany Doocey was then presented with her Boxing award. The Keelogues native is one of the highest-rated boxers in the country and she enhanced her ever-growing reputation in claiming the Elite title at light heavyweight last January at the National Stadium in Dublin. It was her eighth national title overall.

The 21-year-old, who represents Castlebar Boxing Club, retained her title with a unanimous 5-0 victory over current European Youths gold medallist Dearbhla Tinnelly in the women’s 81kg final.

Not content with just that title, Bethany defeated Swinford’s Molly Rowley at the very same venue later in the year on another unanimous decision to add the U22 Irish title at 75kg to her collection, while she was also crowned intervarsities champion.

There was rapturous applause when Doocey outlined her plans for 2024, with an eye to more national glory and performing strongly at the European Championships.

Moy Valley AC, which was only established in 2016, was selected as Club of the Year. It has become a dominant force in all of Ireland for cross-country running at underage level, with an eyewatering list of accomplishments that extends right from under-11 level all the way up to senior. 2023 was an exceptional year altogether with an array of national titles won at both individual and team level.

Seán Gallagher accepted the award on behalf of Moy Valley AC, thanking parents, athletes and everyone who is involved in the success of the club.

This year’s Community award winner was Rita Casey from Charlestown. Rita ran the Dublin Marathon last October in 4h04m – her third to have completed while undergoing chemotherapy treatment. She raised an incredible €22,300 for Mayo Roscommon Hospice in the process.

When asked where her willpower comes from, she replied: “I have so much to live for.”

Running has helped Rita massively throughout her treatment and this was her fifth marathon in total, a remarkable achievement. A native of Malin Head, Rita is the wife of well-known former Mayo footballer and RTÉ pundit John Casey, who himself was a Mayo Sports Stars Award winner in 1995 for Gaelic football.

Ballindine runner Adrian McNamara marked New Year’s Eve by setting a new Irish record when running almost 144 kilometres in 12 hours. That’s 12km an hour!

“I like to set myself challenges,” Adrian said. “Mindset is a massive thing. I do believe I have a lot more in me.”

Adrian ran for 11h58m56s and completed 143.2 kilometres, beating the previous 12-hour national record of 142.14k achieved by Ed McGroarty from Donegal in the same event last year. He has his eyes set on the Irish 24-hour record next.

Cuileann Bourke was this year’s Handball award winner. Winning the All-Ireland junior singles 40x20 championship and the Irish Third Level open one-wall championship, the Belcarra native also became the first Mayo player in several years to reach an Irish senior singles final. In addition, the Trinity College student also represented Ireland at the US Collegiates in Arizona.

“This year I want to go a step closer and win the Irish senior title,” Cuileann said.

A 2022 recipient, Oisín Joyce continues to break new ground and after another season of excellence, is again selected for a Mayo Sports Stars Award in the Javelin. The Ballinrobe youngster smashed a 24-year-old record to win the All-Ireland Schools senior title and smashed a 16-year-old record by over 10m to win the All-Ireland U19 title. The best was yet to come when he won gold at his first-ever national senior championships with a PB throw of 70.56m and he also finished sixth in the European U20 Championships Final. Oisín’s award was picked up by his father and coach, Padraic.

The 2023 Mayo Sports Star Award for Ladies Gaelic Football was presented to the footballers of Claremorris LGFA who enjoyed an historic run to the All-Ireland Club junior football championship final, winning Mayo and Connacht titles along the way.

“It was extremely disappointing [to lose the All-Ireland final] but we did ourselves proud, we did our club proud and who knows what will happen next year,” captain Laura Kelly told Western People sports reporter Stuart Tynan.

After more than 40 years of unstinting service to the Grainne Uaile Sub Aqua Club in Ballina of which he is a founding member, Christy McDonagh was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement award. He has introduced over 400 people to the sport of scuba diving and has seen the club develop from a shed in his back garden to a state-of-the-art clubhouse in Ballina.

A talented rower also, Christy once also represented Ireland against England at the prestigious Henley Regatta and in 2020, helped establish Ballina Rowling Club.

“I just love it underwater. The colour is unreal and the only people bothering you are the fish!” Christy said.

A man who made waves Down Under, Jack Armstrong, accepted the 2023 Mayo Sports Stars Awards for Martial Arts. The Ballina man enjoyed a career-high when becoming a gold medallist at the International Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Federation’s Pan Pacific Championships in Australia.

There was a lovely symmetry as Jack was on the same Ballina Rugby Club U10 team as fellow award winners on Friday, Caelan Doris and Jordan Flynn.

After moving home, Jack is now hoping to make it as a professional grappler after talking with jiu-jitsu organisations.

The Motorsport award recipients were husband and wife John Warren and Ruthann O’Connor. The Ballinrobe duo swept the boards as Class winners in the National Irish Rally Championship, Border Rally Championship and West Coast Rally Championship. Co-driver Ruthann also secured ‘Top Female’ awards at both the National Rally Championship and West Coast Rally Championship along the way.

“I like to tell him what to do, I kind of fell into it when he needed a co-driver, and I love it,” Ruthann said.

“When you’re driving at that speed you need to have full trust in the person beside you,” John said.

The Posthumous award was awarded to the late Padraig Brogan from Belmullet. A driving force behind the hugely successful Erris Parkrun, Padraig passed away last January. He was remembered as a ‘a true leader, brilliant organiser, caring friend, and so much more’. Originally from Ballina, he was a leading official in the Belmullet Municipal District as a member of the staff of Mayo County Council, Padraig was also a member of Belmullet GAA Club for many years and coached at a variety of age levels along the way., He was someone described as a “true volunteer” and who gave up so much of his time “to help the youth develop their potential”.

The award was accepted by Padraig’s wife Marie and son Edward, who read out a touching statement.

“On January 3, 2023, we all lost someone who inspired so many people around him. On that day, we lost a husband, a father, a brother, a brother-in-law, uncle and friend. We lost someone we could never replace, but after standing here tonight, I know that he’ll never be forgotten,” Edward said.

It was a special night for Ballina RFC as Fiachna Barrett and Harry West, who were U20 Grand Slam winners and U20 World Cup finalists with Ireland in 2023, received the Rugby award.

“It’s a credit to the club, the amount of lads that go out coaching is massive, they’ve made it for us. Our family helped us so much on our journeys too,” Harry said.

Fiachna is from Geesala, a 45-minute drive from Ballina, and said: “I’d like to thank my mum and dad for bringing me in and out to training. I used to be buzzing in the car going, which is a testament to my coaches.”

Both men are now in the Connacht Academy set-up.

The Schools award went to St Joseph’s Secondary School, Foxford in recognition of lifting the FAI Schools National Senior ‘B’ Girls Cup last season.

The Mayo students come from behind to beat Ulster champions Coláiste Oiriall 2-1 after extra-time in Athlone.

“It was just unbelievable and we will never forget it,” said team captain Mila Sotoparra. “Even though we’ve all gone our separate ways, we always meet up and talk about that game.”

Ending the county’s 29-year wait to win the LGFA All-Ireland U14 ‘A’ Football Championship was plenty of reason enough for the Mayo U14s to be recognised as Team of the Year. They defeated Galway, Kildare and Cork in the All-Ireland series on their way to capturing a first U14 national title since 1994.

“The emotions are just phenomenal. We had over 207 girls come for trials at the start of the year, and to see it culminate in an All-Ireland title was special,” manager Sinéad Stagg said.

The Soccer award went to Manulla FC’s women’s team, who dominated the domestic football scene in Mayo in 2023. They won the domestic treble of the Premier League, Mayo FA Cup and Rumley Cup, named after their coach Tommy Rumley.

“These are really a special group of girls. That 6-3 cup final win over Castlebar Town was a brilliant day,” manager Ollie King said.

A stellar year on the playing field for Jordan Flynn in 2023 saw him win the Gaelic Football award at the Western People Mayo Sports Stars Awards.

The Crossmolina Deel Rovers man displayed remarkable consistency of the highest level and was a key cog in Mayo’s National Football League Division 1 title-winning campaign. Carrying his good form – and scoring prowess – into the championship, he was later one of only two Mayo players nominated for a GAA Football All-Star award.

Jordan was unable to attend as he had travelled south with the Mayo team in advance of Saturday’s NFL clash with Kerry the following day, but he did send a video message.

“Thank you very much to everyone at the Western People for the award. It’s something that I’m very proud of and I’m very grateful for that. It’s a lovely touch that both Caelan and Jack have also been awarded on the same night. Luckily for Caelan, I decided to play Gaelic, because if I stuck with rugby, his career wouldn’t have blossomed into what it is now,” Jordan joked.

His award was accepted by his brothers Dylan and Kobe.

Moy Valley AC’s Seamus Clarke is this year’s Young Sportsperson of the Year. It was a busy weekend for Seamus as after receiving the award on Friday night, he made his way to Dublin early Sunday morning to compete in his first National Senior Championships in the 5000m walk distance. Seamus crossed the line in fourth place in an impressive time of 21m31s, shaving 41 seconds off his personal best time and setting a new Irish U18 National (track) record in the process. The record was held by Olympian Jamie Costin of West Waterford AC and had stood since 1994.

One of the country’s most exciting up-and-coming racewalkers, Seamus won gold medals at World Athletics Series U18 5000m races in Dudince, Slovakia and Raheny, Dublin (in a PB time), and gold at the U20 5000m Open International in Isle of Man.

Finishing ninth in the U18 5000m at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Slovenia, the Ballina teen has already secured qualification for the 2024 European Athletics U18 Championships.

“I was better at walking than I was at running, so I said I’d keep doing it! But it was great year, every race I felt like I was getting a PB,” said Seamus, whose mum, Deirdre Gallagher, took part in the racewalk at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

The Sports Personality of the Year award went to none other than Irish rugby star Caelan Doris. The Lacken native was such a pivotal figure in Ireland’s men’s rugby team winning the Six Nations Grand Slam and beating eventual champions South Africa on route to reaching the Rugby World Cup quarter-final.

Doris also became the first Mayo man to captain the Irish men’s team when Ireland defeated Italy 36-0 at the Aviva Stadium earlier this month. He was due to attend Friday night’s awards but suffered an injury scare at training that morning and had to undergo a scan instead. He sent a video message however, in which the toll from the Italian game could be shown with his two black eyes!

“Sorry I cannot be there. As you can see, I took quite a battering! I’m very honoured to be Mayo Sports Personality of the Year tonight. I’d love to be there to meet you all and have a pint or two, but nonetheless I’m still very grateful for all the support. It’s nice to be recognised amongst all the great sportspeople in Mayo,” Caelan said.

“I was lucky to get to Ballina over Christmas and I saw the development at the rugby club. I’d like to thank Ballina RFC for all their support.” The award was accepted by his mother Rachel.

Last but certainly not least, one of the true legends of Mayo football, Martin Carney was inducted into the Western People Mayo Sports Stars Awards Hall of Fame. He was presented the award by his long-time friend and colleague Ger Canning.

One of Mayo’s longest-serving senior footballers, Martin had already won two Ulster SFC medals – and played 10 years – with his native Donegal by the time he switched allegiances to the county of his father’s birth in 1980.

Within a year he was captaining the Green and Red to their first Connacht SFC title in 12 years – one of four Carney would go on to win – and he remained part of the Mayo panel up until deciding the retire the season after Mayo reached the 1989 All-Ireland Final. That’s 20 years of inter-county senior football – what an innings.

“I wouldn’t have had the time I had in football if it wasn’t for my late wife, Gina. She was remarkable person. She was the physiotherapist to the U21 football team at a time when there was four in the family and Orla was a baby. The boys used to come out to the house for treatment – John Casey would remember this. They’d come out, sit in the kitchen and be brought into the treatment room and whoever was there had to feed Orla the bottle,” Martin said.

“It was a different world altogether, it was strictly amateur, I used to love training on the beaches. To be honest, the training we did then was unsuitable. I was built like a skeleton and in 1981, the All-Ireland semi-final against Kerry, I remember walking down the North Circular Road, I should have been diverted into the Mater Hospital for malnutrition rather than going out and playing against Páidí Ó Sé. I captained Mayo that year, but we just didn’t have the size or the knowledge, enthusiasm and character in those days.

“I would love to have had the knowledge and expertise that informs people these days.

“I’m honoured to have got the award but I really don’t feel I should be getting it. Some of names I’m being compared to, I think I didn’t do a sight as much as them, but it’s lovely to be inducted into this Hall of Fame.”