04/06/2026
Last Thursday 21st May was a signal day in the annals of Ballymahon GAA Club. We were honoured by the visit of Minister Dara Calleary and Cathaoirleach of Longford County Council, Cllr Garry Murtagh to officially open our new walkway, fencing and planting project at Leo Casey Park.
Leo Casey Park has been transformed in recent years, with a huge volume of work being undertaken by a dedicated committee. Development work started with the er****on of match-standard LED floodlighting in 2024 to replace the original lights. 2025 saw us going digital, with the overhaul of our old scoreboard. No longer will volunteers, or should that be victims, have to perch precariously on a ladder to post the ‘home’ and ‘away’ lettering. Substitutes and management can now finally sit in comfort on the sideline, courtesy of our new precast dugouts - the old ones may have been below sea-level.
Autumn 2025 saw ground break on the club’s most ambitious development to date. Despite the worst weather conditions in recent memory, Fencing Matters completed outstanding work to construct a community walkway around our playing field. We would like to thank them for their commitment to this project and for their quality workmanship. For the first time our pitch is now fully enclosed by a high-quality fence and spectator railing. The results of the work are visually striking and it is worth coming down to check it out for yourselves. It is also worth highlighting that our walkway is open for use free-of-charge by the entire community.
At the official opening event itself, our Vice-Chairperson Christy Mannion was an efficient Master of Ceremonies and ensured that proceedings were kept on track. Council Cathaoirleach, Councillor Garry Murtagh and Municipal District Cathaoirleach, Councillor Martin Skelly both praised the development being undertaken by the club, and even managed to introduce a bit of inter-club rivalry into their speeches. Fr. Liam Murray and Canon Christiaan Snell added an important element to proceedings as they took part in an ecumenical blessing of the new facilities.
Then it was the turn of Minister Calleary to declare the new walkway officially open. We are grateful to him for attending this event, particularly given the demanding nature of his dual-mandate ministry. In an engaging speech, he emphasised how important projects like ours are to the local community. The Minister then unveiled a commemorative plaque, ably assisted by Cathaoirleach Garry Murtagh, before proceeding to cut the ribbon on the new development. Thanks are due to Jenny White for all her work creating the balloon columns and providing the ribbon for the occasion.
The Chief Executive of Longford County Council, Paddy Mahon, then brought the formal proceedings to a close with a witty speech that also left those present in no doubt of the Council’s support for communities across the county. As this was one of the Chief Executive’s last official functions in the Ballymahon area before retiring, we would like to wish him a very happy retirement and thank him for making the time to be with us. All those present then repaired to the clubhouse, where our thanks are due to Cooney’s Hotel and our hospitality committee for the excellent spread that was laid on, with nobody leaving hungry. We would also like to thank Frank McGrath, as he captured the event for posterity in his ever-obliging, unobtrusive way.
We were heartened by a huge turnout of supporters and our sponsors from across the community and we hope they enjoyed the afternoon. In particular, we were delighted to welcome our Club Presidents, Phil Ronayne & Albert Fallon, and our Vice-Presidents, Mel Duncan and John Ryan. We hope these club legends are proud of the developments that the current committee have brought to fruition, knowing how far they and countless others have brought the club in leaner times.
We were delighted to offer a ‘Ballymahon Bienvenue’ to the residents of Landevant and Landaul, who in a happy coincidence were also in town to celebrate the silver anniversary of our twinning, chief among them their Mayor Pascale le Clave and his wife Fabian.
In a true measure of community partnership, we were also delighted that representatives of the Ballymahon Men’s Shed were able to be with us on the afternoon. We are more than happy to be able to offer them a place to call home until they can realise that aspiration for themselves.
We were grateful that so many dignitaries wanted to attend the opening, which in itself is a mark of the esteem in which the club is held. Aside from the aforementioned, we were honoured to welcome Minister of State, Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran; Deputy Micheál Carrigy; Senators Joe Flaherty and Paraic Brady; Leas-Cathaoirleach of the Ballymahon Municipal District, Councillor Sean Mimnagh; Councillors Pat O’Toole, Paul Ross, Martin Monaghan and David Cassidy; Samantha Healy, Director of Services, Longford County Council and Derek Fahy, Chairman of Longford County Board. At this time, all at Ballymahon GAA Club send our best wishes to Councillor Mick Cahill for a speedy recovery.
We would like to place on record our thanks to the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, and Longford County Council for their generous assistance, without which this project would not have been brought to fruition. The results speak for themselves and we look forward to welcoming supporters, both home and away, to enjoy games in comfort at our upgraded facilities.
