O'Malley reveals Mayo ambitions on night of celebration for local sport
Guest of honour Austin O'Malley presents the Young Sportsperson of the Year award to Swinford triathlete Pearse Gallagher. Picture: Michael Donnelly
There was another packed ballroom at Breaffy House Hotel on Friday, February 21 as the attendance paid homage to the Mayo Sports Stars Award winners of 2024.
A total of 21 awards were presented, including to World, European and Irish champions across a range of disciplines, with another highlight being the induction of Deora Marsh into the Mayo Sports Stars Hall of Fame.
The US-born basketball star arrived in Ballina in the 1980s and quickly became one of the town’s most-loved sons because of both his exploits on the court and his affable nature off it. Born and raised in Ohio, Marsh helped Ballina become the first Connacht team to ever win top-flight honours, as they claimed two National Cups (1991 and 1996) and the National League (1992). Such was the extent of his ability, Marsh not only top-scored in all three finals but was named MVP on each occasion.
“The people in the town were just excellent to me,” recalled Deora on the night.
“When I came to Ireland my mum and dad had always said if you don’t like it you can always go home. But when I came to Ballina, I’d be up in Derek Leonard’s mother’s house and pub playing rummy or any kind of game that was going. I got along with everybody, I’m that type of person. I try to treat people how people treat me,” added Deora, who was joined on the night by his family and a large gathering of his friends and former teammates.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do it if it wasn’t for the fans, whether they were from Killala, Castlebar, Swinford, they all came to support us. They had to be there an hour or two beforehand just to get into the gym,” he said about those legendary nights and matches where hundreds upon hundreds would pack into Killala Community Complex to watch Ballina play.
“We were all like brothers, we’d win together, we’d lose together, we’d party together. Win, lose or draw we were still friends off the court so I think that’s what helped us when we got deep into the trenches, we fought together, we stayed as one. Like, we’d kill each other playing but when the game was over with, we were the best of buddies.”
Deora Marsh was presented with his award – as were all the winners – by special guest Austin O’Malley, the former Mayo footballer who just last month managed Dublin side Cuala to their first All-Ireland Club SFC title. The Louisburgh native gave a wonderful insight into the experiences of his days playing for Mayo that have helped to shape and mold his coaching philosophies and principals.
Asked if it would be an ambition to one day manage his native county, he replied: “I don’t think you can ever write those things off. I’m a Mayo man, you’ve dreams, you’ve visions, you’d love to see Mayo win an All-Ireland and you’d probably be lying to yourself if you said that you wouldn’t love to be part of that and help that, in order to make that happen. So one hundred percent.
“But right now I’m trying to grow a business, I’ve a lot of different levers pulling, but I’m green and red through and through so if there’s ever an opportunity that you can plug in and help, that’s certainly something you’d have to consider.”
Ryan O’Donoghue spoke via video from the Mayo team hotel on the eve of his man-of-the-match display in Saturday’s Allianz Football League Division 1 draw against All-Ireland champions Armagh. O’Donoghue, the Mayo Sports Stars Award winner for Gaelic football, said it was a real privilege to receive the award having grown up reading the and, in more recent years, following the event on social media.
“To be put alongside some of the names who have won this in the past really is a great honour.
“I’m proud to represent by club, Béal an Mhuirthead, and proud to represent my county Mayo, and this award is as much for them as it is for me.” Thanking his teammates, coaches and supporters for their support, Ryan reserved special praise for his family, particularly his parents Brenda and Michael, “who have been with me every step of the way”.
“This is for them,” declared Ireland’s top scoring championship footballer of 2024, before kicking another six points for Mayo the following evening.
Through conversations with event hosts Anthony Hennigan and Stuart Tynan, there was some wonderful insight provided by many of the other award winners too, as the 2024 Sports Stars humbly regaled the audience with tales of their sporting glories, already with an eye on raising the bar again in 2025.
Athletics – Hugh Armstrong (Ballina AC); Basketball – St Muredach’s College, Ballina; Boxing – Shannon Sweeney (St Anne’s BC, Westport); Club of the Year – Breaffy GAA Rounders; Community Award – Erris Darts; Golf – John William Burke (Ballyhaunis GC); Gaelic football – Ryan O’Donoghue (Belmullet); Handball – Joe McCann (Ballaghaderreen), Cuileann Bourke (Belcarra), Shane Heraty (Aughagower), Lorcan Conlon (Bofield); Hurling – Liam Lavin (Tooreen); Merit – Carlagh Peake (Ballyhaunis BC); Pool – Mayo U23s: Padraic Coyle (Doohoma), Adam McAndrew (Pullatomas), Danny Feehan (Westport), Dermot Kelly (Killawalla), David Doocey; Rugby – Ailish Quinn, Grainne Moran, Emily Foley (Ballina RFC); Soccer – Mayo U15 Schoolgirls; Snooker – Darren Flaherty (Ballina); Special Achievement – Carol Commons (Killala); Team of the Year: Castlebar Celtic; Track and Field – Philip Griffith (Claremorris AC); Volleyball – St Louis’ CS, Kiltimagh; Sports Personality – Oisin Joyce (Lake District AC); Young Sportsperson of the Year – Pearse Gallagher (Swinford AC); Hall of Fame – Deora Marsh (Ballina).
