Ravens swoop for €5,000 sports award

THE Ravens in Bandon are flying high after receiving their €5,000 award as the Cork recipients of the Texaco Support for Sport initiative. 

The awards see €5,000 given to one club in each county to increase their membership base. This year Bandon Ravens have been chosen.  Formed in 2017 to provide an opportunity for girls in Bandon and surrounding parishes to play basketball, the club now has 140 members and is growing quickly. Based out of Coláiste na Toirbhirte sports hall, it caters for under 10 to 18s age groups and adult females.

Overseeing the judging process was Texaco Support for Sport ambassador, former Irish rugby international and broadcaster, Donncha O’Callaghan, who called Bandon Ravens a ‘worthy winner’. ‘As adjudicator, the most uplifting aspect of the Texaco Support for Sport initiative is that it gives clubs rare access to funds which are not linked to popularity, membership size or success,’ he said. ‘Bandon Ravens is a fantastic club, fully dedicated to girls’ basketball. Its success in this initiative shows how keen members are to ensure that their club remains an important part of Bandon community life.’

Now in its third year, the Texaco Support for Sport initiative – organised by Valero Energy (Ireland) Limited, the company that markets fuel in Ireland under the Texaco brand – sees a fund of €130,000 set aside annually for allocation in equal amounts of €5,000 to successful applicants chosen on a county-by-county basis.  Previous Cork winners were Riverstown Amateur Boxing Club from Glanmire (2021) and Rockbán Ladies Football and Camogie Club (2022).

Entries for the 2024 Texaco Support for Sport initiative will open in the autumn.