St Enda’s honour club legend on 95th birthday

A SPECIAL birthday party was held at Omagh St Enda’s last Thursday to celebrate the life of one of the local GAA club’s most acclaimed players.

Donal McSorley, who turned 95, is the last surviving member of Omagh’s first Tyrone Senior Championship triumph in 1948, and he went onto to lift the O’Neill Cup on three subsequent occasions.

He, and his wife, Kathleen, and daughter, Joan, were welcomed back to Healy Park for the special birthday tea to mark his milestone by Omagh St Enda’s chairman, Conor Sally.

Donal was a member of the Tyrone Ulster minor winning squad in 1945, and went on to represent the County seniors in 1952, but his biggest success was at club level, where he played a key role in four Senior Championship successes with Omagh, including the famous three in a row from 1952-54. Donal regaled club members with some exceptional memories and stories, including a crucial match-winning point that set the club on their way to that first title some 75 years ago.

He recalled in impressive detail St Enda’s various successful campaigns with pin-point accuracy, and the personnel involved both on-and-off the field in the Omagh and opposition teams.

Donal jested that he was ‘wrote off’ in the closing minutes against Carrickmore in the first round match in 1948, but as the place kicker at the time, he was tasked with a crucial kick with the sides level.

In turn, the coolest man on the park dropped over the winning point that put the club through and on the road to history, as they eventually beat Clogher in the final at Gardrum Park.

A bustling right half back, midfielder and latterly centre half Donal is one of only four players at St Enda’s to claim those first four Senior Championship medals, the others being the late Donal and Sean Donnelly and Thady Turbett.

Donal also talked about some of the great players he played alongside, including midfielder Brian Mullan, as well as Liam Magee, Jackie Martin and Paddy Corey, all who whom helped to make up what he described as a great team.

He also praised other club stalwarts, too, like Francie O’Neill, Jim Gormley, Jim Doherty, Charlie Hunter and Paddy Mossey.

He recalled playing games at St Patrick’s Park and the Omagh CBS Park, and the clashes with the big rivals at the time, including the Iggy Jones-inspired Dungannon, as well as Carrickmore and Urney.

Donal brought with him a couple of the Senior Championship medals he won, as well as his Ulster Minor medal. He revealed that other medals he won had been buried with his late brother, Brian, also a fine footballer for club and county.

Donal’s own career was cut short when he went across the water to work in London, and, while his playing days were over, he always maintained a keen interest in the exploits of Omagh and Tyrone.

Club chairman, Conor Sally, spoke of the immense honour it was for him and the club to welcome such a legend back to the club, and to honour him on his birthday.

“It is a pleasure for us to have Donal and his family members with us.

“His recollections are amazing, and to top it off, he was to get to hold those hard won medals, especially the one from our first championship in 1948. He is a real inspiration to players of today.”

Donal’s memories are to be recorded for the club annals this week.