May 24th 1964 was a red letter day in the history of Eglish St Patricks GFC when Fr Connolly Park was officially opened by Dean Quinn and Mr Harry Carey, Chairman of Ulster Council GAA. Named after a revered former parish priest, Fr Connolly, the pitch has been the hub of recreation for generations of young camogs and footballers to this present day.
To celebrate its golden anniversary, the local club is hosting a ‘Night of Nostalgia’ reflecting on the past 50 years of GAA activities. Donal McAnallen, local historian, will give a short talk on how the club has evolved during this period. Tyrone played neighbouring rivals Armagh at the official opening with local player Terry Daly lining out at full back. Present on the night will be St Patrick’s committees of 1963 and 1964 and a selection of Tyrone players who played on the day. These include Art McCrory, Jody O’Neill, Patsy Forbes, Mick Donaghy and Terry Daly. They will reflect on that day and also on the battles their teams had with Eglish over the ensuing years.
Kevin Kelly and Damien Harvey from Teamtalk will act as MC’s for the night and Teamtalk will broadcast the show ‘live’ on the internet.
Refreshments will be served at the interval and during the second half of the evening the MC’s will interact with various topics within the club and retell some stories of bygone days.
Finally, there will be a presentation at the conclusion of the evening to our senior and reserve players of the year for 2014, and also Club Person of the Year. We would encourage everyone with an interest in local GAA to come along, join in the debates and view the array of paper cuttings, photos and memorabilia from the last half century.
Show commences at 8.30pm and admission is £10
