Tourmakeady win inaugural Éilis Maloney 7-a-side tournament
Tourmakeady captain, Laura Nic Giobúin (centre), receiving the Éilis Maloney Memorial Trophy from Éilis’s sister, Claire. Also pictured are, from left: Éilis’ mother Carmel, her brother Seán and his son Rían, and Éilis’ father, Vincent. Pictures by Des May and Andy Walsh
Warmth, fun, energy, superb football and incredible community spirit were all on display in Flanagan Park, Ballinrobe on Saturday, June 13 for the inaugural Éilis Maloney Seven-a-Side Ladies Football Memorial Tournament.
Ballinrobe GAA and LGFA Club joined with the Maloney family in welcoming four neighbouring clubs – Kilmaine, The Neale, Tourmakeady and Shrule-Glencorrib – and scores of wider family members, friends, former teammates, colleagues, neighbours and acquaintances to celebrate Éilis’s life and ladies football legacy.
Even the sun obliged by shining in time for Tourmakeady captain, Laura Nic Giobúin to accept the Éilis Maloney Memorial Trophy for the first time, just before 3pm.
10 competitive round robin games were played, plus a display of more mature skills from the Ballinrobe Gaelic for Mothers and Others team, before Kilmaine and Tourmakeady took to the pitch for a highly entertaining and keenly-contested final, which was edged out by the Gaeltacht team.
The cup was presented by Éilis’s sister, Claire, who paid tribute to “the best sister I could have asked for”, describing Éilis as competitive and fiercely determined on the pitch, but fun-loving, kind and supportive off it. On behalf of the Maloney family, she expressed her gratitude to everyone who had helped to make the day so special.
The club was also delighted with the success of the event, as Ballinrobe LGFA chairperson, Nicola Macken, explained.
“We couldn’t have wished for a more memorable day of remembrance for Éilis, a much-loved teammate, club member and friend to many.
“The day was about football, fun and friendship and all six teams fully embraced that spirit, treating the large crowd of supporters and friends to an entertaining but competitive display of skill and sportsmanship,” she said.
She concluded by thanking everyone who helped to make the day so special: the players and their management teams, local businesses who supported it so generously, club members who brought home-baked refreshments, the referees, photographers, the club executive, Mayo LGFA, and all the volunteers who contributed in important ways to the smooth running of a busy day.
With Martin O’Connor pumping out the tunes and Liam Horan conducting matters with the mic, there was a festival atmosphere, as young and old mingled and enjoyed a mix of football, refreshments and reminiscences on a truly memorable day.
To make the event even more meaningful, over €3,600 was raised for the Mayo Suicide Bereavement Liaison Services, which operates from the Family Centre in Castlebar. Head of Services for the Family Centre, Sinéad O’Malley, chairperson of the Board, Nessa Cox, and counsellor Paula Sheridan were all present at the tournament.
“The warmth on the day and the genuine sense of a community coming together to remember someone who mattered dearly to them was evident from start to finish. We were honoured to be chosen as the charity that benefitted from the day and we were blown away by the generosity of the contributions from people. We are deeply grateful to everyone involved,” said Sinéad.
