FINBARR Harrington knows better than anyone what Garnish GAA Club has gone through – and is still going through – to stay afloat.

BY TOM LYONS

He has given a lifetime to the club, as both player and mentor, through thick and thin.

Now back at the helm of Garnish’s junior B team, Harrington is guiding a group determined to keep the club alive. They opened their McCarthy Insurance Group Confined Junior B Football Championship campaign with a loss to Clann na nGael, and attention now turns to their next group game against Castlelyons this Saturday in Ballingeary (1pm).

‘It’s a game we could have won,’ Harrington said, reflecting on the 3-7 to 0-12 defeat.

‘The one great positive we can take is that we had 29 players togged out – that is a huge achievement for us. A few years ago we had no team. Older lads were retiring and others were moving away from the parish.

‘These lads are totally dedicated to the survival of our club and the future is definitely looking brighter.

‘I’ve been involved all my life and I’ve seen the club fall from junior A champions, competing with neighbours like Urhan and Glengarriff, to junior B also-rans and almost going out of existence over the past ten years. They have been really hard times and it was a real struggle to keep things going.’

Sean Terry O'Sullivan is a key player for Garnish. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

Numbers alone weren’t the only challenge threatening Garnish’s survival. Geography has also played its part.

Situated at the tip of the Beara Peninsula, travel to games can take half a day – you’re halfway to Dublin before you even leave Cork. Step beyond the parish boundary and you’re into the Atlantic Ocean; the next landfall is America. Garnish can lay claim to being the furthest club in the country from Croke Park.

‘Gathering players even for training is a daunting task,’ Harrington explained.

‘We have lads scattered all over the country, working or in college. What is there to keep them in Garnish? We try to get those based in Cork together twice a week.

‘Travelling to matches can be a nightmare as well. We’re in Division 3 of the Carbery/Beara league and we do our level best to field away, which isn’t always possible. Some clubs are reluctant to travel west for our home games. It’s a struggle to fulfil fixtures each season. We can only hope opponents understand the difficulties.’

Like many small clubs, Garnish relies heavily on a few committed families. Against Clann na nGael, six O’Sullivans lined out. Among them were brothers Brian and Seán Terry O’Sullivan, brothers of Cork ladies footballer Áine Terry.

Brian dominated midfield and earned man-of-the-match honours, while Seán impressed at both centre-back and centre-forward. Between them, they contributed 0-9 of Garnish’s 0-12 tally.

‘Brian is an outstanding footballer and a great club man,’ Harrington said.

‘He lined out with the new Beara senior team this year. He’s working in Dublin but is hugely committed and tries to get home every weekend.

‘Seán would have played for Beara too, only he’s carrying an injury – he played through it. He’s a mighty man.

‘All our players are fiercely committed to bringing Garnish back up again. I spent a few years as manager before stepping aside to recharge and focus on family. The lads needed a new voice too. But it was all hands on deck this season after we failed to get out of our group last year, so here I am again.

‘We’ve been in junior B for five or six years now and would love to win this county to get back to junior A. We reached a quarter-final and a semi-final early on, but recent years have been tough. Paul McGrath has come in as coach and is doing a super job already.’

So what keeps people like Harrington going, giving so much for so little tangible reward?

‘It’s all about the parish,’ he said.

‘The GAA is such a huge part of who we are. What else is there in a small parish like ours? You’re born into it, bred into it.

‘The club will be 100 years old next year – founded in 1927 – and how could we not keep it going for that? It’s a great incentive to restore our fortunes. We can’t be the generation that let the club die.

‘We’re very happy with our underage structure. We field our own teams at U10 and U12, then join with Castletown at teenage level. Paudie O’Sullivan, the school principal, is doing great work – there are about 45 pupils in total. We had four for First Communion.

‘We’re hopeful for the future with those numbers. The problems won’t go away – numbers and travel in particular – but many rural clubs are facing the same issues. South Kerry is decimated. You do wonder if enough is being done to help.

‘We’re not looking for sympathy, but it is difficult. There’s a lot of hard work going in to keep the club alive.

‘It’s been a long time since we won anything, and if we could mark our centenary in 2027 with a title, it would make it all worthwhile. We’ll certainly give it our best shot.’