‘WE’RE going to need a bigger room!’ said Helen Wycherley, director of the Celtic Ross Hotel in Rosscarbery when she was organising the latest round of West Cork Sports Star Award presentations.
When news reached Caoimhe Flannery’s clan – the Castlehaven teen was being honoured for her All-Ireland schools’ athletics success – that her first cousin, Damien Cahalane, was also to receive an award, diaries were changed to ensure it became a family gathering.
Hence, Helen Wycherley’s need to move the monthly award presentations to a bigger room. It was a wise decision.
Rising athlete Caoimhe and Castlehaven footballer/Cork hurler Damien are first cousins, as their moms, Emer and Ailish, are sisters – it’s one connection in a family tree that has links to every Cork senior inter-county team.
Damien and his brother Jack are on the Cork hurling panel. Their brother Conor and his cousins Rory and Cathal Maguire were with the Cork footballers this season, managed by their uncle John Cleary. Meábh is the Cork camogie captain, and Orlaith and Grainne are on the panel too. Emma Cleary – first cousin to the Cahalanes, and daughter to John Cleary – is with the Cork ladies footballers. Their reach is wide, but the family is tight.
Just ask Damien Cahalane, who picked up a West Cork sports star award to recognise his role in Cork hurlers’ recent Munster senior hurling championship win.
Award winner Damien Cahalane and his girlfriend Lesley Ann Wilkinson with his parents Ailish and Niall and his grandmother Kathleen Cleary. (Photos: Paddy Feen)
‘It’s family that makes it all possible,’ he said.
‘Pursuing a sporting goal is a role that can be very selfish in a way, so you need a great support network around you. When you have that – and I am lucky I do – it makes it possible to pursue those goals,’ he added, and even though the awards presentations were being held on a Friday afternoon in Rosscarbery, the Cahalanes and Clearys and friends turned out in force to celebrate the success of their own.
‘Days like these are for them because as players you are focussed on the next session, the next meal or getting your sleep right and recovery right. Days like these, they probably enjoy more than we do,’ Damien said.
‘It’s nice to gather the support network that you have around you, your family and the people around you who have helped to make pursuing a goal possible.’
First cousins Caoimhe Flannery and Damien Cahalane with their grandmother Kathleen Cleary.
His parents, Cork football great Niall and Ailish, were there, too. They are the rocks that provided the platform on which Damien and his siblings are now starring. Family means a lot to Damien. He’s 32 now so more aware of its role and importance in his own story. Down west, he is known better for his exploits with Castlehaven footballers, but his part in the success of the Cork hurlers led him to the Celtic Ross Hotel for the West Cork Sports Star Awards.
When Cork defender Damien and the Rebels won the Munster SHC final after an extra-time epic against Limerick, it was his fourth senior provincial hurling title, following on from the wins in 2014, 2017 and 2018. He is one of only four current Cork hurlers to have won his four titles, joining Conor Lehane, Seamus Harnedy and Patrick Horgan – that’s good company to keep.
‘The older you get, the more you realise the road is a bit shorter ahead of you than what is behind you,’ Damien pointed out.
‘I made my debut in 2012 against Wexford, and I didn’t think I’d still be here in 2025.
‘It’s great to be able to go to training every week with guys who are pursuing a common goal, and are of a similar mindset and pursuing high-performance habits. It’s nice to be surrounded by like-minded people – that’s the buzz I get out of it. Hopefully we can pursue that for another few weeks anyway.’
After winning a fourth Munster senior hurling medal, Damien’s attention is now on Dublin in Saturday’s All-Ireland semi-final at Croke Park. It’s the next step on the journey. He is experienced enough to know Cork need to make the most of the opportunity that has opened up, and he will know too his family will be in GAA HQ to cheer him on. Whether it’s a random Friday afternoon in Rosscarbery in June or a super Saturday in Croke Park in July, there’s a certainty attached: the Cahalanes and family will be there to cheer on their own. Of course, the jersey matters, but the family behind it matters even more.
