It has been a huge honour for me to be president of Lansdowne FC over the last year. We have a great club with great people and the season gone by bears testament to that.
As you are all aware there has been a huge amount going on this season both on an off the pitch. Off the pitch with our purchase of Claremont Road this has been a season like no other. It is so amazing to have secured this fantastic sporting hub. As well as rugby Claremont has played host to many other sports and activities such as hockey, soccer , softball and we now have a public gym (District One) operating out of the clubhouse and we hope to add to this as we build out the infrastructure in Claremont. I would like to pay tribute to everyone involved in the development of Claremont Road and in particular Stephen Tunney & Derry Shaw. Our club and members are all very grateful to you all.
On the pitch it’s been a great season. Our senior team secured the Leinster Senior Cup back in September in a pulsating match in Energia Park and came agonisingly close to making the AIL final with a last minute defeat to Terenure in the AIL Play-offs. Our J1 lost out on qualifying for a league final by the very narrowest of margins but finished the season on a winning note picking up the Metro J1 Plate whilst our J2 and J3 won their respective leagues playing some fantastic rugby. The 20’s came so close to winning the JP Fanagan League and the Fraser McMullen All Ireland Cup. At minis and youths we go from strength to strength with our U13’s, U’15’s, U 16’s and U18.5’s all bringing home some silver. It is brilliant to see all of our teams have been up there where they should be competing for honours in their respective competitions. Thank you to all our players, coaches, medics, parents & administrators and a very special thank you to Enda Bohan & Brian Moran for their tireless work.
Throughout the season I have received huge support from our executive committee and I would like to thank them all for the massive efforts and huge amount of work they have and continue to put in on behalf of the club. Our Chairman Mick Dawson has done a great job overseeing and co-ordinating the efforts of our various committees and their chairs. A big thank you to all these committees and their respective chairs: Simon Coyle (House), Hugh McGauran (Claremont Operations), Enda Bohan (Rugby), Karl Cleere (Finance), John Quinn (Sponsorship), Brian Moran (Mini’s & Youths), Colin Murtagh (Membership), Mick Galvin (Year book), Eddie Byrne (AIL Lunches) , Maura Rooney (Ladies Lunch). I am delighted to welcome Tony Garry, who will be chairing our fundraising committee, into the fold.
Off the pitch and behind the scenes, the trojan work of Elayne Power & Stephanie Ojo is incredible and we really are very lucky to have them involved with Lansdowne.
The club is in very good hands going forward with Conor Shaw now taking over the reins ably supported by VP Gavin Lee, JVP Graham Quinn our executive committee and chairman Michael Dawson. I would like to pay tribute to Conor Shaw who has been a massive support to me over the last couple of seasons and his dedication and attention to detail will be a huge asset to Lansdowne in the next 12 months which will be a very busy and challenging year for the club. I have no doubt that with Conor at the helm not only will we meet all of those challenges but the club will continue to push onwards and upwards.
Have a great Summer and I look forward to seeing all of you next season.
Stephen Rooney
President
Lansdowne 2023-24
Well done, Roo – not only for the past year but also for the many, many hours you put in over the past several seasons as Director of Rugby. All done in your own unique, quiet and unassuming way!
With all best wishes for the future.
Mick Daly