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Newry Rugby Club has announced the appointment of Bruce Cornelius as their new Head Coach for the coming season, a move that has been warmly welcomed by senior players and officials alike.
The 54-year-old Kiwi has over 25 years of coaching experience in his native New Zealand and across clubs in Ulster and England. Since his arrival in Ulster, he has played and coached at all levels of the game.
The new coach was warmly welcomed to the club by players and officials on Friday evening at a special Meet The Coach Evening. Speaking about his new challenge at Newry Rugby Club, Cornelius said, “I am pleased to join Newry Rugby Club at an exciting time in their history with the Centenary Year coming up in 2025. I am convinced that the Club has the necessary infrastructure and potential to develop and compete at the highest levels of Junior Rugby."
Cornelius's coaching philosophy is to help each player improve their skill levels, realise their potential, and enjoy playing rugby. His extensive experience includes being the Head Coach of Shirley Rugby Club in New Zealand, where they competed in the Christchurch Men’s Metro Premier League from 2001 to 2003. He then moved to Northern Ireland as Head Coach of Instonians Rugby Club, competing in the Men's AIL Division 3 from 2003 to 2005 and again from 2009 to 2012.
Cornelius added “Newry Rugby Club has a very bright future, and I am aware of the hard work being undertaken at the youth level. I look forward to working with all the talented young players at the club to develop a conveyor belt of talent that will feed the first team and build success at every level."
Chris Hanna, speaking on behalf of the senior playing squad, said, “It is great to have a coach of the calibre of Bruce at our club, and all the players are looking forward to working with him in the coming months to ensure we have a successful season. We are doing great things at Newry Rugby Club and have a great youth setup."
Cornelius also served as Head Coach of Belfast Harlequins in the Men's AIL Division 2 from 2008 to 2009 before moving to Northumbria in England to hold the positions of Head of Performance Rugby at Northumbria University and the Women's Team in the Women's English Premiership. His career shows a deep commitment to developing rugby talent and fostering a love for the game.
Club Chairman Paul Little added, “It is fantastic to have Bruce Cornelius at the club for the new season. He recognizes what we are trying to achieve at the club and wants to work with every player to get the best out of them. I have no doubt his experience as a Head Coach will have a positive impact on our senior players and inspire our youth players."
Cornelius returned to Ulster to take up the Head Coaching roles at Lisburn RFC and Lurgan RFC before his arrival this week to lead Newry Rugby Club's challenge to become a force to be reckoned with in Ulster Junior Rugby. Reflecting on his new role, Cornelius said, “We have an excellent and dedicated management committee at Newry Rugby Club, and I want to ensure that the hard work done off the pitch is replicated on the pitch. I am delighted to be here and am relishing the challenge ahead at Newry Rugby Football Club."
The club is looking forward to a great season ahead with Bruce at the helm.
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Although it was just a fifth-round game in Division 1 of the Lidl National Football League, for Niamh Henderson, Armagh’s match against Kerry at BOX-IT Athletic Grounds on March 3 of this year held great significance.
Henderson, a key member of the Orchard County team that won the TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Football Championship against Waterford in 2012, also secured NFL Division 3 and 2 titles with Armagh in 2014 and 2015. However, after undergoing two knee surgeries, she was away from competitive play for an extended period.
In the summer of 2018, Henderson gave birth to her son, Noah. She returned to club action with Clann Eireann but stayed away from inter-county play until rejoining the Armagh panel earlier this year. The March game against Kerry marked her first time wearing the Orchard jersey in nearly nine years, where she scored a point in a 3-14 to 1-13 victory over Kerry.
“I was nervous coming back for that Kerry game,” Henderson admitted. “It was a big game for us on our home pitch. I just told myself, ‘I need to be brave and try my best.’ I felt proud to wear the Armagh jersey.”
Reflecting on her time away, she said, “I took time off for my knee injury and then to have my son. He’s six now and at a great age. I’m delighted to wear the Armagh jersey and be a role model for him.”
“That game was significant for me, and I’ve been building confidence and gelling with the team since then. I’m delighted I decided to come back this year.”
After working with Greg McGonigle at Clann Eireann in 2023, Henderson, a special needs teacher is now under his guidance in the Armagh setup. Last year, she captained Clann to Armagh and Ulster championship titles and has added more silverware since her return to inter-county play.
Before her player-of-the-match performance in Armagh’s TG4 Ulster Senior Football Championship win over Donegal in May, Henderson played the full 60 minutes in April when Armagh claimed the Lidl National Football League Division 1 title against Kerry. This was her first time playing in Croke Park since the 2012 All-Ireland intermediate final, giving her another reason to cherish her return to inter-county football.
“It was a huge win for us, beating Kerry narrowly and playing in Croke Park was amazing. After winning the All-Ireland intermediate in 2012, I never thought I’d be back on that pitch,” Henderson said.
“I was absolutely delighted and overwhelmed. Lifting the cup in Croke Park with my son Noah is a moment I’ll treasure forever. I’m so happy I decided to come back.”
Clann Eireann is well-represented in the Armagh ladies squad, with eight players on the match day panel for the league final win. The men's team also has strong representation from Clann Eireann. Barry McCambridge, Tiernan Kelly, and Conor Turbitt were all in the starting lineup for Armagh’s All-Ireland Senior Football Championship quarter-final win over Roscommon at Croke Park.
Henderson, whose older brother Ryan also played for Armagh, hopes to draw inspiration from Kieran McGeeney’s team as her own prepares for a quarter-final against Mayo.
“I watched the match in Croke Park and it gave me extra motivation to aim for the semi-final. Barry, Tiernan, and Conor are all from Clann Eireann and it was great to see them making an impact,” Henderson said. “Seeing them motivates us to do the same.”
After quarter-final defeats in the past three seasons, Armagh aims to reach the TG4 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship semi-finals as they face Mayo at BOX-IT Athletic Grounds tomorrow evening 7 July with throw-in at 5.45pm.
As Group 1 winners in the Brendan Martin Cup, Armagh enjoys home advantage for the quarter-final against Liam McHale’s Mayo. However, Henderson remains cautious of Mayo’s strong record.
“Home advantage is big for us this weekend. We had to travel to Mayo for the league game, which is a long journey. We’re delighted to avoid that,” she added. “Mayo will be tough and physical, but if we bring our best performance, there’s no reason we can’t reach the semi-final.”
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Down ladies will take on Tyrone in the semi final of the Intermediate 2024 TG4 All-Ireland championship after a three point win over Monaghan at the weekend.
In the last four of the Intermediate grade, Down will play Tyrone and Leitrim will take on Wexford, with those ties to be played on Sunday, July 14.
Down emerged the winners in a tight contest. Natasha Ferris and Sarah Dougherty found the net for Down in either half while the free-taking of Niamh King got Down over the line. Sarah Tierney hit both goals for Monaghan, who kept in touch with Down throughout.
Results
TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Championship quarter-finals
Down 2-12 Monaghan 2-9
Wexford 5-15 Westmeath 4-12 (AET)
Tyrone 2-8 Clare 2-7
Leitrim 3-13 Roscommon 3-11
TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Championship – relegation qualifiers
Cavan 3-11 Antrim 0-7
Offaly 3-11 Wicklow 0-10
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Newry AC juniors continue to deliver success and silverware when it matters - at championships. This year's Ulster Championships saw two Newry AC athletes podium in middle & long distance events. Middle distance athlete Luc Le Blanc (u16) picked up a double podium across the blue ribbon events of 800 and 1500. Luc narrowly missed out on the 800 crown by five tenths of a second to Letterkenny's Darragh Naughton who broke the tape in a blistering 2:04.71 for two laps of the oval, with Luc in second place clocking 2:05.12. In the 1500 Luc closed out the podium securing 3rd place in 4:25.31, four tenths of a second behind second place Pauric Kelly of Armagh AC.
On the topic of middle distance athletics, as was evident in a recent poorly researched and poorly formed article published around sporting success of Newry natives, the blue ribbon distances of track & field are evidently unvalued and unappreciated in these parts. Although those who do appreciate that ture athletic performances are primarily laid down on tartan and not tarmac also know that Newry's greatest athlete, a Newry AC athlete who was mysteriously not mentioned in the article, was themselves prolific in these middle distance events. Said athlete in 2012 became and remains to this day Ireland's youngest ever 800m senior champion, whilst also representing their country at a world level, a feat not matched or rivaled by Newry athletes. How this athlete was overlooked remains a question only the author of the aforementioned article can answer..
In the 3000m distance specialist Megan Barnet (u16) took home silver dipping under 11 minutes with a showing of 10:59.47. Megan has been dominant on the local road racing scene in recent months picking up countless race victories and podiums, her most recent was only a few days out from the Ulster Championships, which saw her take victory at the Craigavon Lakes 5k. The most valued currency in athletics is championship medals and Megan's display at the Ulster championships, securing a podium finish when it mattered most, will no doubt be the highlight of her season so far.
Both athletes have qualified for the All Ireland championships where they will represent the club and Newry vest at the highest level possible on the Island of Ireland.
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Armagh came back from two second half Tipperary goals taking the last three points of the game to claim a draw in the TG4 All Ireland series on Saturday. Making the long trip to FBD Semple Stadium, Thurles to face Tipperary they knew that victory would guarantee them a home quarter-final in the TG4 All-Ireland serie but they didn't bank on two second half Tipperary goals in three minutes rocking them back on their heels during the course of this very lively encounter.
Armagh manager Greg McGonigle praised his squad for the way they responded to the Tipperary goals. The two goals in three minutes from Anna Rose Kennedy and Aisling Moloney pushed Tipperary ahead in the second half in Thurles before Armagh came back to claim a 2-4 to 0-10 draw.
“Obviously we would have been happier with a win but when you concede two sucker punch goals, and then show great character to get back into the match, you would have to be pleased. We were three down with seven minutes to go and we were very aggressive with our pressing to get back on terms,” said McGonigle.
The Orchard County got the better of Meath by a single point the first round and were in pole position as they faced a Tipperary side making a first appearance since the Munster championship round robin stages when they lost out to Cork.
The visitors were the better side in the first half and could have enjoyed a greater lead than the 0-4 to 0-3 scoreline had they taken their chances. But, Tipperary showed a lot of resilience and following the opening score from Emma Morrissey in the 4th minute, Tipp added two further Morrisey points to keep in touch with Armagh who showed a lot of endeavour in their approach play.
Indeed, Armagh attacked with real pace and this yielded first half flags for Eve Lavery (2), Blainhin Mackin and centre back Lauren McConville as she charged forward and split the posts.
Tipp were without centre forward Aishling McCarthy for a ten minute spell, split by the half time break, after she was yellow carded for persistent fouling. But, they managed to weather the Armagh storm during that period and the gap still stood at the bare minimum by the time she returned — Anna Rose Kennedy and Eve Lavery trading points after resumption.
Armagh extended their leads though through Emily Druse and Kelly Mallon, but Tipp hit back with an Aishling Moloney goal in the 13th minute to draw the sides level again.
And, the Armagh net was rattled again three minutes later when Anna Rose Kennedy was on the end of a wonderful passing movement to beat Anna Carr with a looping shot.
Armagh responded well and they kicked the final three scores of the game through Kelly Mallon (2) and Angela McGuigan to rescue a point and remain unbeaten in the series as they advance to the quarter-finals of the TG4 All-Ireland SFC.
It was a well earned point for Tipperary for whom keeper Lauren Fitzpatrick was also yellow carded right at the very end of the game.
Scorers: Tipperary: AR Kennedy 1-1; E Morrissey 0-3 (2f); A Moloney 1-0.
Armagh: E Lavery 0-3 (2f); K Mallon 0-3(3 f); E Druse, L McConville, B Mackin, A McGuigan 0-1 each.
TIPPERARY: L Fitzpatrick; E Kelly, L Spillane, E Cronin; C O'Dwyer, M Curley, S English; L Morrissey, AR Kennedy; C English, A Moloney, E Morrissey; M Creedon, A McGuigan, E McCarthy. Subs: N Towey for Creedon (45); K Downey for McCarthy (44).
ARMAGH: A Carr; G Ferguson, C McCambridge, R Mulligan; C Towe, L McConville, D Coleman; N Coleman, E Lavery; E Druse, A McCoy, B Mackin; M McCambridge, N Henderson, K Mallon. Subs: S Quigley for Druse (46); C Doyle for Lavery (52); Reel for Mackin.
Referee: Anthony Marron (Monaghan)
Final score: Armagh 0-10 Tipperary 2-4
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Tuesday 11th June – 7:15pm
Adult League Division 1
Bredagh v Kilcoo
Adult League Division 3
Burren B v Dundrum
Tuesday 11th June – 7:30pm
Adult League Division 1
Carryduff v Castlewellan
Adult League Division 2
Loughinisland v St Johns
Adult League Division 3
Teconnaught v Mayobridge
Wednesday 12th June – 7pm
Under 12 League Lar Section
Kilcoo v Teconnaught
Castlewellan v St Johns
Bredagh v Bryansford
Ballymartin v Carryduff
Under 12 League Deisceart Section
Ballyholland v Cumann Pheadair Naofa
Burren v Clonduff
Bosco v Mayobridge
Rostrevor v Newry Shamrocks
Under 12 League Lecale Section
Bryansford B v Bredagh B
Loughinisland v Saul
Carryduff B v Dundrum
Under 12 League Oirthear Section
East Belfast v Carryduff C
Ardglass v Drumaness
St Pauls v Bright
Bredagh C v Dromara
Under 12 Iarthar Section
Aghaderg v Saval
Clann Na Banna v Annaclone
Tullylish v Glenn
Liatroim v St Michaels
Wednesday 12th June – 7:30pm
Under 16 League Section B Sponspored by B4B Renewables Ltd
Aghaderg B v Drumgath
Thursday 13th June – 7:30pm
Adult League Division 4
East Belfast v Drumgath
Under 18 League Section A
Saval v Bredagh
Carryduff v St Johns
Clonduff v Burren
Under 18 League Section C
Cumann Pheadair Naofa v Bredagh B
Kilcoo v Ballymartin
Annaclone v Newry Shamrocks
Saturday 15th June – 7pm
Adult League Division 1
Carryduff v Bredagh
RGU Downpatrick v Burren
Castlewellan v Ballymartin
Adult League Division 2
Cumann Pheadair Naofa v Saval
Loughinisland v Bredagh B
Adult League Division 4
East Belfast v St Pauls
Liatroim v Drumgath
Glenn v Clann Na Banna
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A last minute goal from Derry saw them retain their All-Ireland U14 Gold title with a two-point win over Armagh at the BOX-IT Athletic Grounds.
It was a game of two halves, with Derry building up a huge half time lead of nine points, but Armagh battled back bravely in the second half and looked to have done enough in the last couple of minutes.
But Bennett, who essentially had a shootout with Armagh’s ace attacker Abigail McMahon, launched a high ball in with the last attack of the game and the ball ended up in the back of the net.
Saorla Quinn got the reigning champions off the mark and Derry doubled up their advantage with a free from Bennett. Armagh made the most of their limited first half attacks as captain McMahon swung over two scores (one free), to level the game after 12 minutes.
The remainder of the half belonged to Derry, and they fired off 1-6 on the trot to claim a nine-point half time lead. Cassie Conway and Caoimhe Roche chipped in with points, while Bennett rattled off 1-4 to see her side ahead 1-8 to 0-2 at the break.
Armagh rallied after the turnaround and McMahon kicked off their revival with two scores in as many minutes before Aoife McConville, Armagh’s second scorer of the day, made it a six-point game.
Bennett swept over another free to continue her excellent form in front of the posts, but Armagh came roaring back into contention with a fine goal from full forward Emma Toale.
McMahon exchanged pointed efforts with Derry midfielder Cliodhna Moore before the Clann Eireann sharpshooter fired off 1-3 in a spell where Armagh hit 1-5, with Caitlin Sheridan and Brianna Magee also getting in on the scoring act.
That gave Armagh the lead for the very first time but Derry were still in contention as Bennett knocked over her first point from open play to make it a one-point game with time almost up.
Bennett then produced the game winning score in the dying seconds and although Armagh won the kickout, they didn’t have enough time to reply at the other end.
Scorers: Derry: C Bennett 2-8 (0-6f), C Conway 0-1, C Moore 0-1, C Roche 0-1, S Quinn 0-1.
Armagh: A McMahon 1-7 (0-4f), E Toale 1-0, B Magee 0-1, A McConville 0-1, C Sheridan 0-1.
Derry: K Pachuta; K Birt, M Cleary, A McNally; E McVey, C Conway, F Kerr; C Moore, E Forbes; F Callaghan, S Quinn, G Doherty; A Musgrave, C Bennett, R Gribbin. Rolling subs: C Roche, E Rafferty, M Gray, C Quinn. Subs used: C Roche, E Rafferty, M Gray, C Quinn, C McPeake, I Tohill.
Armagh: C Havern; T Crangle, A McCague, M Creaney; C Brennan, O Reynolds, N McKenna; B Magee, M McGurgan; A McConville, K Taylor, G Marsden; C O’Hanlon, E Toale, A McMahon. Subs used: C Sheridan, R Little, N Doherty, G Gallagher, A McDonnell, E McParland, L McLoughlin.
Referee: Ciara Gilroy (Down).
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Armagh got off to a winning start today in the TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship with a victory against Meath at the BOX-IT Athletic Grounds thanks to a late goal from Niamh Coleman.
Armagh had just lost Blaithin Mackin, who earned her first minutes of 2024, to a yellow card, and the game was all square when Coleman found the net.
She reacted quickest to Kelly Mallon’s shot and although Meath grabbed the final two scores, it was Armagh who left with the three points.
Eve Lavery, Armagh’s only left-footed outfield player in the absence of Aimee Mackin and Caroline O’Hanlon, got the game up and running although her effort was cancelled out by a free from Emma Duggan.
Armagh then raised a green flag with a contender for goal of the season. Aoife McCoy captured Anna Carr’s kickout and after a couple of swift handpasses with Niamh Henderson and Lauren McConville, McCoy buried the ball to the net.
Ciara Smyth and Lavery (free) swapped points, while superb scores from Duggan and Megan Thynne made it a one-point game. Kelly Mallon and Duggan both converted frees as Smyth nailed her second to tie things up.
Lavery (free) added her third of the afternoon to nudge the hosts ahead, but Duggan (free) had the final say of the opening half and both sides headed to the tunnel level at 1-4 to 0-7.
Meath got their noses in front through Sarah Wall, although that lead could have been more but for the heroics Armagh keeper Carr. The Orchard Ladies tagged on the next four scores with Mallon (free), Lavery (2) and Blaithin Mackin all splitting the posts.
Meath turned the screw with a quick fire 1-3. Two Duggan points were split by 1-1 from midfielder Aoibhín Cleary, who punched home the Meath goal after Smyth’s shot had dropped short.
Armagh’s response was rapid and again it was McCoy who fired past Meath skipper Monica McGuick, with the aid of the crossbar, after being played through by Mallon, to level things up once again.
Dearbhla Coleman punched over from close range, assisted by sister Niamh, before the older of the two Coleman’s hit Armagh’s third goal. Byrne and Duggan scored for Meath in the final few minutes, but it wasn’t enough to get something from the game.
Final score: Armagh 3-9 Meath 1-14
Scorers: Armagh: A McCoy 2-0, E Lavery 0-5 (3f), N Coleman 1-0, K Mallon 0-2 (2f), B Mackin 0-1, D Coleman 0-1.
Scorers Meath: E Duggan 0-8 (5f), A Cleary 1-1, C Smyth 0-2, M Byrne 0-1, M Thynne 0-1, S Wall 0-1.
Teams
Armagh: A Carr, G Ferguson, C McCambridge, R Mulligan, C Towe, L McConville, D Coleman, N Coleman, B Mackin, E Druse, A McCoy, S Quigley, E Lavery, N Henderson, K Mallon. Subs: N Reel for E Lavery (51 mins) M McCambridge for S Quigley (51 mins), M McCann for E Druse (63 mins).
Meath: M McGuirk, S Wall, M Lynch, N Troy, N Gallogly, K Cole, K Newe, M O’Shaughnessy, A Cleary, M Thynne, S Melia, C Smyth, M Byrne, M Farrelly, E Duggan. Subs: L Young for C Smyth (54 mins), S Lynch for K Cole (59 mins).
Referee: Gus Chapman (Sligo)
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I love Newry.
Love the people of our city.
And love to see them doing well … in any walk of life.
But especially in sport.
Keeping that in mind though, I feel I have to pose the question.
Why are so few Newry sports people successful at a national level?
In soccer. GAA. Athletics. Cycling. Tennis. Golf. Boxing. Swimming. Triathlon. Even in Darts and Pool.
And before I’m accused of being a sad, sour, embittered old man (which I might be anyway), as I said right at the outset, I love Newry. Love our city.
There’s little that would please me more than to proudly announce Newry have had lots of winners. Lots of champions.
But sadly it just hasn’t happened.
Can anyone tell me why? Is it lack of coaching, lack of finances, lack of ambition, lack of know-how, lack of facilities?
Or simply lack of dedication?
I wouldn’t say I’m a die-hard Newry City fan but I just love to see them winning and go to quite a few matches each season. In 2022 I remember going to see them play away to Carrick in a bottom six clash and I don’t remember being so nervous at any sporting event. Ever.
That night Newry won with ten men. A great result and that evening I left the Carrick ground floating on air. As I have already said, I love seeing people from our wee city being successful.
But after reading this article no doubt I’ll be accused of sticking the boot in.
Newry Town were formed over 100 years ago and in that time they have never won a major competition. True they did win lots of Mid-Ulster Cups, B Divisions, secondary Division One titles and a few minor cups.
But no Premier Leagues … or Division One before it became the Premiership.
No Irish Cups.
No Gold Cups.
Indeed, the only half decent trophy Newry won in their history was the County Antrim Shield in the eighties, when they had the goalscoring duo of Ollie Ralph and Marty Magee in the team. Indeed Newry have never got to a final of the Irish Cup or Gold Cup.
Another sad fact … Newry haven’t won a league match at home in over one and half seasons.
But were there Newry men who won Irish League or Irish Cup medals? Yes there are a few … such as Robbie Casey, Mickey Keenan, Brian Jennings, Marty Magee, Kenny Halliday, Raymsie McGuigan, Mark Haughey etc. But not a lot either.
What about International footballers who hailed from Newry? Yes we have a world beater in Pat Jennings and before him Peter McParland who still holds the Irish record for goals scored in World Cup finals (five in Sweden in 1958). Ryan McGivern too won quite a few International caps – and once when Northern Ireland played Portugal he was marking the famed Cristiano Ronaldo … and kept him from scoring.
Newry man Colin Clarke once held the Northern Ireland goal-scoring record. But he left the Town before his teenage years. So he wasn’t dogged by our failure syndrome.
Another thing. How many players from Newry have played in the English Premiership? The answer. Just one. Again it’s Ryan McGivern, who played for about 20 minutes for Manchester City against Sunderland in 2011.
Yet in the town (or city) of Newry there have been tens of thousands of budding footballers. Why then have so few made it to the top?
What about gaelic football? We’re not great in that field either. Ok so the fiercely competitive DJ Kane captained Down to All-Ireland glory and is the proud owner of two Sams. Tony Hadden was also a double All-Ireland winner as was Kevin O’Neill. While Kevin’s brother Sean, one of the greatest gaelic footballers of all time, won Sam three times. The sadly departed John Murphy was another Sam winner. As was Larry Powell.
Brilliant achievements. But the latest of those triumphs came 30 years ago.
In the fifties and sixties Newry Shamrocks and Newry Mitchels between them won the Down Senior Championship five times. While although the Bosco won the Down Intermediate title, they have never won the senior crown. In fact for close to 60 years no Newry team has been the kingpins of the county. And in recent years only a few Newry footballers have worn senior red and black jerseys.
As a town (or city) why are we not breeding champions?
Athletics? Well there’s Willie McCracken. He ran the Dublin Marathon in 2.23 in 1981. So far no one has beaten his time. Although Michael Fox has gone close and in truth in the future he might eclipse the mighty McCracken.
But how does Willie’s time compare to national level? Not great, I’m at pains to say as the current Irish Marathon record in 2.09. And Internationally that’s a huge eight minutes off the best recorded time for the 26.2 miles – as the world record now stands at 2.01.
And take the popular 10k distance. No Newry runner has ducked under the half hour. And in fact no man or woman from our city has broken 31 minutes. Though Newry AC athlete Gary Crummy looks capable of running a 29-minute 10k.
But here’s a wee story to emphasise the gulf in class from Newry athletes to top national runners. In February 2022 Gary Crummy ran a flat 5k in the Armagh International Road Races and did the exceptional time of 14.31 … the fastest 5k ever from a Newry athlete. A brilliant performance. But what was his position in the event? Unbelievably there were 84 quicker runners that evening!
Knowledgeable people might say Eamon McConvey ran under 30 minutes. True but Eamon was born in Belfast and was then running for a Belfast club, Olympic, I think. And I remember Eamon telling me himself when he did that fabulous time he didn’t even make his club team. Three others were quicker. It sure puts things into prospective.
Ok now we’ll go to boxing. The late Danny McAlinden, born and reared in Newry, won the British and Commonwealth title when he defeated Jack Bodell at Villa Park in 1972. Though many people saw this fight as a wrestling match with Dangerous Danny getting the verdict. Again though when he won the title Danny was boxing out of the Edgewick club in Coventry. Incidentally my late brother Pat knew Danny well as he was also living in Coventry and he too boxed for the Edgewick club.
Presently Conor Wallace, who formerly lived on the Armagh Road in our city, is living and boxing in Australia and is making quite a name for himself as one of the top boxers Down Under. But again he had to leave Newry to become an iconic boxer.
In fact the only other Newry boxer to make a name for himself on the big stage was Adrian Patterson who won an Irish Senior title in the nineties and was selected to box in the Commonwealth Games.
Since then, although the late Seamus McCormack tried really hard in his Sacred Heart Boxing Club and the likes of Owen Murphy did too, they failed to see any of their prodigies make it at national level.
Why?
Why?
Why?
Cycling? Always popular in Newry.
Champions?
Well!
Brian Monaghan and his son Barry are probably the best known and the pair did cross the line first in quite a few races. In fact Brian won a stage in a massive race in France and actually held the yellow jersey … while he did well at home too.
Barry wore the green Irish jersey on occasions. While at present Cloughreagh Park’s Gareth O’Neill looks the best bet to make a career at the two-wheeled sport.
But no Newry rider has ever won a single stage in the Ras Tailteann, the nation’s biggest race that has been running since 1953. In hundreds of stages, many have tried but none have succeeded. Seamus McGreevy was once second on a stage as was Dermot Monaghan, the younger brother of Brian. But again no winners.
Why?
Triathlon? It’s a sport I know well, having been involved right from the start in 1983. Newry started brilliantly too and had one of the first triathlon clubs in Great Britain. Plus in those early days we had triathletes, such as Padraig Lynch and Kookie O’Hagan representing Ireland in England and on the continent while Martin Patterson won his way onto the 1990 Auckland Commonwealth Games team.
But in more recent years … not a lot.
Indeed not a single born and bred Newry man or woman has ever qualified for the World Championship in Hawaii. While by contrast there are quite a few from south Armagh, such as Owen Martin, David Griffin, Patrick Muckian, Adrian Garvey and Peter Tomany etc, have qualified to race on the Big Island.
Presently Mattie Kinkaid is our big hope and has picked up quite a few wins. But Mattie’s from Warrenpoint.
Swimming? There have been quite a few fine swimmers in our town, such as Kevin Magill, Gavin Brown, Shea Rafferty etc.
And some have even been called into the Ulster squad. But I don’t think any Newry swimmer has represented Ireland in a major championship.
But you get the picture. Newry are not breeding sporting champions.
Why not?
I’d loved to be proved wrong.
Maybe I’m missing out.
Hopefully I am.
Anyway, I’d be interested in hearing your views.
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