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There is a great deal of attention at this time being focussed on the victory of St Mary’s over Dublin giant, Dublin City University (DCU), in the Sigerson Cup. Paddy Tally and the small team of volunteers who support him in coaching and preparing the College team are to be commended on their work with the students who play Gaelic football at St Mary’s.
St Mary’s has been heartened by the huge level of congratulatory emails, texts and phone messages that have been received, including one from the vice-chancellor of DCU.
Our senior football team will contest the Sigerson Cup semi-final with University College Cork (UCC) in Mayo on Friday,17 February, with the same values of honesty and hard work they have displayed all season and down through the years.
The hurlers will contest the Fergal Maher Cup with Ulster University Magee (UUM), and other students will put on the College’s maroon and green jersey with pride in netball (a special word of thanks to the volunteer input of Elaine McLaughlin in that regard), ladies football, camogie and soccer. We wish all our student sportsmen and sportswomen well in their endeavours.
Participation in inter-varsity sports competition by students is one of the great gifts of participation in higher education. All sorts of geographical boundaries are crossed when university competes against university, and students engage in honest competition with their peers. Competition is invariably tough as the students seek to test their skill and resolve in a sporting arena that is effectively at national level.
The benefits of such competition extend, however, well beyond the direct sphere of sport and enter into the realms of increasing confidence, building character and friendships, teaching respect, developing focus and demonstrating the benefits of teamwork. It is for all those reasons that St Mary’s, even though it is a very small institution, seeks to cement its proud place in Ireland’s inter-varsity sports scene. |
