Last ditch effort made to save Shamrocks

A LAST ditch attempt is being made to secure the survival of the Strabane Shamrocks hurling club which has been keeping actively promoting the sport from its north Tyrone base for the past four decades.

 

Like a number of other clubs in the county, the famous Shamrocks have been struggling to maintain their involvement in competitions at youth and adult level in recent years. But now matters have come to a head, prompting one final effort to see if a fresh move to revitalise the club – and hurling locally.

 

An AGM took place remotely last Friday night with only five members in attendance. Due to the low numbers, none of the committee positions could be filled, leaving them in a degree of limbo as 2021 gathers pace.

 

Now the aim is to hold a second annual meeting next Friday, January 22. It is hoped that this one might be more successful in generating interest, but the choice for those interest in hurling locally is stark and the failure to put the structures required in place on this occasion is destined to lead to the club finally folding.

 

Current Chairman, Gary McGettigan, has been involved in the Shamrocks for around 30 years as both a player and official. He enjoyed the good days when they won the Tyrone Senior League and reached the County Final, and some of the less encouraging occasions when they struggled to field both at youth and adult level.

 

A hurling enthusiast to the core, he wants to the Shamrocks grow again into an active presence in Tyrone 

hurling. 

 

However, he is also under no illusions about the task ahead as the efforts to get things going again are given this one final chance to succeed.

 

“We haven’t been going good for the past couple of years now, but a few dedicated officials and coaches have been able to keep things going. A lot of former players have drifted away over the years, a process speeded up when we stopped fielding at senior level in 2015,” he said.

 

FULL STORY IN YESTERDAY’S STRABANE CHRONICLE