*Photograph: Burren Eye Photography
This will be a huge weekend for Clare ladies football.
A victory away to Louth on Sunday will edge the unbeaten side closer to the league final and to promotion to Division 2 of the Lidl National Ladies Football league.
Prior to that, however, county officials will be busy hosting the annual congress of the LGFA at the Falls Hotel in Ennistymon.
Clare chairman Sean Lenihan and his committee have planned a huge weekend of activity for this, the 50th anniversary of the founding of ladies football.
“It is Munster’s turn to host congress and all counties in the province were entitled to make a pitch for the event Kerry didn’t take up that option as they hosted the event the last time it was in the province. The other five counties did bid for the event and we were delighted to be chosen”, Clare chairman Sean Lenihan told The Clare Echo this week.
Clare previously hosted congress back in 2015 when the Inn at Dromoland in Newmarket-on-Fergus was the venue.
Miltown Malbay native Lenihan said, “We have a long and proud tradition in ladies football and we just celebrated our 40th anniversary. We are really looking forward to welcoming the delegates from all county boards as well as those from clubs in the UK, the US, mainland Europe and Asia. There will be 190 delegates in total attending congress”.
Lenihan will officially open Congress along with Munster President, Robbie Smyth. Registration will be at 2p.m. and the business of the annual gathering will get under way later that evening and will continue throughout the day on Saturday.
There will be a full programme of business which includes reports from the various officials, motions and debate on proposed rule changes.
At 6p.m. on Saturday evening Congress Mass will be celebrated and this will be followed at 8p.m. by a gala dinner.
“As you know we love our music in Clare and we could not let the occasion go without treating the visitors to traditional music and dancing. John Fennell and his Hell for Leather Troop will perform at Saturday’s gala function”, the Clare chairman explained.
During Saturday’s function there will be a raffle with the proceeds going to Sláinte an Chláir and Clare Haven and the prizes have been provided by the Falls Hotel, the Bellbridge House Hotel and the Armada Hotel.
The organisers have included two tours into the weekend schedule. “On Friday afternoon there will be a tour to the Michael Cusack Centre in Carron and we thank chairman Donal Ó hÁiniféin and the centre manager Tim Madden for their assistance in organizing this,” Sean explained.
On Saturday there will be a tour to the Cliffs of Moher for those who are not delegates to the congress and this has been facilitated by Clare County Council.
Each county board will have three delegates at congress and Clare’s delegates this weekend are Sean Lenihan, J.J. O’Dea and Rachel Healy from Miltown who is the player delegate from the host county.
