Fixture: Saturday, March 23: Under-14 FL Division One v Killanny (Home) at 2pm

Sunday, March 24: Under-21 FL Division Two v Killanny in Inniskeen at 4pm

Monday, March 25: Under-14 HL v Truagh (Home) at 7pm

Tuesday, March 26: MFL Division One v Truagh (Home) at 5.45pm

 

Monaghan Harps Lotto: Numbers 10, 16, 19 and 23. Jackpot of €3,700 not won. Residual prizes: €100 Aidan Donnelly c/o Paddy Donnelly; €40 Alan Kane c/o Liz Brennan; €40 Adrian Toal c/o Barry Sullivan; €40 Mary McRory c/o Paddy Donnelly. Jackpot for Sunday, March 24 is €3,850 and Dermot and Liz Brannigan are on duty. All welcome. Anyone who has sold a direct-debit is asked to pass the details on to the Lotto committee as soon as possible, so they can be entered into our weekly draw straight away. The Monaghan Harps Lotto plays an integral role in the running of the club. If you want to volunteer to get involved in any way (e.g. selling tickets), please contact any committee member.

 

Race night: Our much-anticipated race night attracted an impressive crowd to the clubhouse last Friday night. The Monaghan Harps Race Night raised money for the footballers’ training fund and was in association with the Barry Doherty fund, which is raising money for a young Harps supporter who has muscular dystrophy. We wish Barry Óg and his family all the best in the future and hope that the money raised will be of benefit to them. We are very grateful to everyone who contributed or helped out in any way, either on the night or by sponsoring horses in the run-up to it. Thanks in particular to our race sponsors: Owen Smyth; David Norry Construction; Pat McQuaid Plumbing; Connolly Chemist, Monaghan; Shane Carey; FBD Monaghan; SH Tyres; McKenna’s Bar, Armagh; and Terry’s Bar and Lounge, Monaghan. Well done to everyone involved in organising the event, especially Gerard Gilsenan, and to Terry Gilsenan, who did a great job with the auction for the Barry Doherty Grand National.

 

St. Patrick’s Day: Thanks to everyone who attended and took part in the St. Patrick’s Day parade on behalf of the club last Sunday. Thanks also to everyone who came back to the clubhouse afterwards and the musicians who kept the crowd entertained.

 

Reserves: We started our RFL Division 3 campaign with a one-point win at home to Emyvale in difficult conditions last Saturday. David Loughran, Pat Murphy and Conor Devlin were among the scorers as we took a 0-4 to 0-3 lead at half-time and we kept our noses in front for most of the second half, before Ciarán O’Connell kicked a late point to seal a 0-8 to 0-7 win.

Team: Ronan McGann; Paul Smyth, Paddy Kelly, Anthony Croarkin; Conor Forde, Johnny Sherry, Robbie Moyna; Conor Devlin (Capt.), Dean Treanor; Shane Loughran, Gary Murray, Pat Murphy; David Loughran, Conor McCaughey, Colm Shalvey.

Subs used: Finnian McKenna, Dean McMahon, Ciarán O’Connell.

Next up is the rescheduled game away to Blackhill on Saturday week (March 30).

 

Under-21s: The new Under-21 Football League gets underway this Sunday, when our lads travel to Inniskeen to take on Killanny in a 4pm throw-in.

 

Minors: Our minor footballers play their first competitive game of the year next Tuesday when they host Truagh in the league. Good luck to Brian Lenehan, Gary White, Nicholas Scott, Michael Buckley and the team.

 

U-14: Both our Under-14 footballers and hurlers open their league campaigns in the next few days. First up is the football Division One game at home to Killanny on Saturday at 12 noon, before the hurling against Truagh, also at home, on Monday evening. Good luck to all involved.

 

Membership: Under GAA rules, the deadline for affiliation is the end of this month, so membership money should be paid to registrar Maurice Galligan as soon as possible. Fees for 2013 are being maintained as follows: €20 per adult, €10 per child or €50 for a family of two adults and any number of children. All players must be paid-up members.

 

Dates to remember: Scheduled start dates for the leagues are as follows. Senior Football League: Sunday, March 31; Under-16 FL; Thursday, April 4; Under-12 Spring Leagues: Saturday, March 30; Senior Hurling League: Thursday, April 25; Development Hurling League: Thursday, April 4; Minor Hurling League: Sunday, March 31. Our Saturday-morning juvenile coaching is due to resume on April 6. Anyone interested in getting involved with coaching is invited to a training day on Saturday week, March 30.

 

Pitch bookings: All pitch bookings this year should once again be made by contacting Jimmy Croarkin at 087 1249635. We remind all managers and team mentors to remain vigilant in their use of our facilities and to always lock gates and turn off lights when finished training etc.

 

Harps watches: We are now selling wrist-watches with the Harps crest for €10. Contact Liadhan Treanor at 086 7837204 for more details.

 

County teams: Well done to Neil McAdam and Conor Galligan who helped Monaghan’s senior footballers to beat Wicklow last Saturday and good luck in Roscommon this Sunday. Good luck also to the minor footballers, senior and minor hurlers and ladies footballers, who are all in action this weekend and to Liam Hahessy and the Under-21 footballers who take on Cavan tomorrow night (Wednesday).

 

Votes of sympathy: At last Thursday’s club meeting, votes of sympathy were passed to the families of Mary McNelis and Rosaleen Ward.

 

Easter camps: Following from the success of previous years, the Farney Academy three-day Easter camps will take place for the third year running from April 2-4. The camp is for boys and girls aged between five and 12 and will be run in three venues in the (Scotstown, Ballybay and Clones). Gaelic football will be at the core of activities during the camp, but activities will also include hurling and camogie. All activities will be delivered by qualified coaches who will ensure your kids have an enjoyable experience. Entry Fee: €40 for first child and €35 for additional children from the same family; free hoodie for all participants. For further information, contact Games Development Manager Paul O’Connor by email at developmentmanager.monaghan@gaa.ie or phone at 086 8374827.

 

The Gathering: We are organising some events for current and former Harps players and members to coincide with the ‘Gathering’ initiative. It is hoped to have the first of these next month. Anyone willing to get involved can contact any committee member.

 

Thanks: To Tony Croarkin, who stepped in at short notice to fix a leak in the dressing rooms recently.

 

Scoláireachtaí Gaeltachta: Interviews for Gaeltacht Scholarships to Coláiste Bhríde, Rann Na Feirste will be held in GAA Administration Office, Cloghan on Saturday, April 20. Interviews for students who are pre Junior Cert will start at 10am, while interviews for post- Junior Cert and Leaving Cert students will begin at 11.30am. No pre-booking is required.