Kevin Gorman

This month we caught up with our Club Children's Officer, Kevin Gorman, a proud Townie.

Growing Up

My father’s family lived on the Dublin Road before moving to St. Brigid’s Place when the Church was being built where they lived. He went away to work in England not long after school, met my mam and got married, and when I was born moved back home to live in Fielbrook. We moved out to Borris Great then, where the family house still is, and close to where I'm living myself now.

The whole Borris/Colliers Lane/Kilminchy area wasn’t developed at all back then, you were in the country, but there was no shortage of lads to play sport with. You’d be gone from morning to dark, mostly football and soccer, but tennis when Wimbledon was on and we’d cycle miles during the Tour de France.

One of those lads was Enda Coleman who won a Leinster medal at midfield against Skyrne in 2004, and who now trains one of my daughters at U12.

Family & Work Life

I’m married to Jane, originally a Sarsfield’s woman but now one of our club members. I work as principal in Newtown NS, Crettyard, and Jane teaches French in Scoil Chríost Rí.

We have four children, Jamie who is with the U15 boys, Carrie and Ruth who are with the U12 and U10 girls, and Kevin the youngest who is starting his club career with the U6s. So, six club members in our house. Exactly what the new club family membership was designed for!

Early Memories of the Club

The club was always part of my life. My father, Marty, was a big club supporter and I’d say he was a handy enough underage player. He started for Portlaoise in three consecutive minor finals from 1960-62, winning two.

His teammates in those matches were future club greats such as Bill Phelan, Ollie Byrne, Teddy Fennelly, John Fennell, Brian Delaney and Paddy Fitzpatrick among others.

Early days were spent watching the hurlers make the breakthrough and win four county finals in a row in different grounds, and contest football and hurling finals nearly every year.

The ’80s were great times to be a club supporter, travelling all around Leinster as a young lad to matches with the Larkins and the Dunnes and looking forward to the bag of Tayto and glass of coke in the pub after where all the analysis took place.

I was there in Cloughjordan on the proudest day in our history when we won the All-Ireland Club in 1983. I was very young and can’t remember anything about the match, but I’m there in the famous photo taken after winning that day, between Bernie Conroy and Billy Bohan, just behind Teddy Fennelly and Brian Bohan.

Playing Days

I was never going to emulate the lads on the field, more often than not I was sub but that didn’t really matter.

We had a great group of lads and loved training and the general craic. Our age group didn’t win a whole lot, but I remember reaching the national Féile in Galway during Italia ’90.

1992 was a decent year. We were U16, and I don’t want to be unfair to others but my memory is of Brochan O’Reilly at midfield driving us on to a County Final victory against Rathdowney/Errill.

Speaking of driving, Brochan also drove a coach’s car around the GAA Centre that year but that’s another story.

We were within a point of doing the double that year but a very strong Heath team had our measure, as they did all the way up along.

We had some great players though, notably Trevor Shore, Mickey Fennelly who would play in an All-Ireland final for The Town, and Ian Fitzgerald who captained Laois to Leinster in 2003.

I kind of moved away from playing after minor, which I still regret. I’ll never understand how more capable players stopped playing when they had a lot more to offer.

Friendships Formed

We had a great bunch, nearly all dual players. Most of us went to the CBS too. During the summer a lot of us would cycle out to The Heath to play 18 holes in the morning, have a basket of chips before another 18 in the afternoon, before cycling back for training; football twice a week, hurling twice a week. Wasn’t much burnout back then!

All of us that played together would still be lifelong friends, even if it’s harder to all get together in the same place these days. We have a WhatsApp group that was called “40yr olds on Tour” when it was set up a number of years ago to organise a trip away for that year as we all turned 40. That group is now called “46yr olds on Tour” and we’ve still gone nowhere.

Biggest Disappointments

Ah there’s no doubt about the biggest disappointment. That was in Nowlan Park in 1987, no real need to mention the occasion or the opponents as they're ingrained into the hearts of all club supporters.

I was 11, and clearly remember us two points ahead in injury time, inside the wire and ready to run onto the field to celebrate. Instead, the late goal went in and I was roaring crying instead. No club has ever won a hurling and football Leinster in their history, and we were a puck of the ball away from doing it in the same year as the footballers beat Parnell’s.

Stradbally in 2016 comes close I suppose, I walked down to Peigs from OMP that day and couldn’t get the roar out of my head after the ball hit the net to deny the 10-in-a-row.

Then over the years there was Ballina, Kilmurry, Ballyboden, Rathnure again, Graigue-Ballycallan. You’d nearly think there was more bad memories than good but that’s definitely not the case, even if we should’ve won more Leinsters and All-Irelands.

Standout Games

I remember a Leinster quarter final against Longford Slashers in Pearse Park about 10 years ago. We were well behind but a great comeback forced extra time. CheChe came on late just a few days after losing his mam and when he kicked a monster point in extra time the roar from the Town supporters would give you goosebumps.

It was dark when the game finished. The whole Leinster campaign of 2009 when we were putting huge scores on everyone and hardly conceding before beating Garrycastle in the final. Beating Palatine in Leinster the day after the county final.

The hurlers gave us great days in 1998 up to the Leinster final with the win against Kilkenny champions Graigue-Ballycallan a day for the ages, and again four years ago in the Leinster intermediate. The semi-final against Ballinamere in OMP stands out as a cracker.

Early Heroes

There was no shortage of heroes in the early days; football, the Prendergasts, the Brownes, Atch; hurling, the Rigneys, the Bohans, the Bergins, Cheddar. I would have been no different to every lad my age in idolising Curly and John Taylor in particular, and Zoom was just Zoom.

I think a lot of us did Camp Thunderbird back in the day because he was involved. I know Pat very well these days, and have nothing but admiration for the passion he has to improve the club, not just now but to pave the way for more great days in future years.

I was very proud of all the Town players representing decent Laois teams back then, and I remember a Leinster Express poster of the NFL winning team of 1986 on my bedroom wall among all the Man Utd posters out of Shoot.

In later years, there were plenty more who represented the club to great effect; Bruno, Cahir Healy, Aidan Fennelly, Tommy Fitz, Joe Phelan to name but a few, and it’s great to see all of those lads helping now in some capacity to inspire and develop the next group of Town legends.

Club Childrens Officer Role

I got involved with the juvenile scene when Jamie started training as a 3-year-old. Damien Lynch got myself and Brian Scully to help out at the nursery, and that was it. We stayed with that group all the way up, Brian is now with the u15 hurlers and I’m with the footballers with Brian Dunne, Cha Fitzpatrick and Rusty Delaney. They’re a fantastic group, having won the Laois football Féile in May, and will hopefully have a right tilt at a minor football and hurling double in two years. I’ve no doubt there’s plenty of future Senior players in our ranks.

About 4 years back Cyril Duggan was Chairman of the Juvenile Committee and asked me if I’d consider becoming Club Children’s Officer. I thought I’d do it for a year but I’m still there! I’m the bane of a lot of coaches lives, constantly in their ear to get Garda vetted and do Child Safeguarding courses, but these really are necessary aspects of modern coaching. Parents need to know that their children are being developed in a safe place by coaches who are concerned about the children’s welfare and part of my job is to provide parents and children with the opportunity to voice any concerns that they may have. The role of Children’s Officer is central to maintaining the safeguarding of children and young people in our club and to the implementation of the Code of Behaviour. I also have to ensure, with the cooperation of other Officers, that legislative requirements governing people who work with children/young people are followed. Achieving this requires the cooperation of other Officers, coaches, parents and our underage players.

The Childrens Officer is automatically a member of the Club Executive & you learn a lot about the running of a GAA club from those meetings, & the amount of work done behind the scenes by the various volunteers. Everyone who attends those meetings are real characters & the beating heart of the club. Admin-wise, I’m also chairman of the Laois Cumann na mBunscol & there’s great club involvement in that too, with the likes of Brian Dunne, T

Enjoyable Aspects

It’s great being involved in such a vibrant club with a brilliant tradition. With my own kids involved & the u15 footballers as well as being Children’s Officer, I’d be in Rathleague most nights of the week. There’s a real satisfaction in seeing lads who have been with us since before they even attended school developing into the players they are today, representing their club and county with pride. There’s always someone to have a chat with & everyone is pulling in the same direction. There’s a lot of friends out there, old & new, & there’s always a laugh to be had, no matter how serious the issue being discussed. You’ll never have to face a problem on your own in Rathleague.

Frustrations

WhatsApp groups. Lots & lots of WhatsApp groups. & the notifications that come with them!

Any funny memories ?

There’s always a few funny stories out of away days, but one that stands out is the Leinster hurling final a couple of weeks before Christmas 1998. The supporters bus we were on stopped in Durrow on the way back from Kilkenny, & when the driver went into the Nore Nets with the rest of us, one of the lads, a great friend of mine, somehow ended up with the keys and did laps of Durrow in the bus, with a few festive passengers on board singing “We wish you a merry Christmas” . The same fella was once swinging a hurl so wildly as a juvenile that Bill Phelan was left with no option but to state that his presence was no longer required at training. Ever. He knows who he is!

What does club mean to you ?

The club is a focal point of the community, and has given me many great days. There’s great memories from the past, & now it’s going to give my own children chances to make their own memories in years to come. As a supporter, there’s many a winter that was shortened with Leinster Championship matches every couple of weeks in October, November & December.

There was a good few great nights in the old GAA centre too. The club owes me nothing, & that’s why I’m happy to be involved both in coaching & administration.

Aspirations for how the Club should move forward

These are exciting & interesting times for the club. There’s a great group in the club who have driven the Town25 project from the start, and once complete, our club facilities will be the envy of others.

The current fundraising drives are crucial to the fulfilment of these plans, & the launch of club bingo was inspired & all at the club are immensely grateful to Mick Ryan,Brochan, & everyone involved. Presently, I would consider us to have energetic & highly motivated Senior and Juvenile committees under the chairmanships of Teddy Fennelly & David Powders, who will steer the club along the right courses.