Fixture: Saturday, March 12: RFL Division 1A v Truagh (Away) at 5pm
Monaghan Harps Lotto: The numbers for last Sunday's draw were 16, 25, 27 and 29. Jackpot of €1,900 not won. The four €40 lucky-dip prize winners were: Bernard Murphy c/o ClubZap; Matt McCaughey c/o himself; Eugene Greenan c/o Séamus Treanor; and Richard Rutledge c/o Paddy Donnelly. The sellers' prize of €20 was won by Paddy Donnelly. Jackpot for Sunday, March 13 is €2,000. Thanks to everyone for their continued support for our lotto, which plays an integral part for the club. Please note that the cut-off point for ClubZap each week is 6pm on Sunday.
County: Good luck to Seán Callan, Jack Lynch and Oisín Reilly with the Monaghan minors as they continue their Ulster MFL campaign against Armagh this Saturday. Congratulations to Seán on being named as Monaghan minor captain for 2022.
Upcoming club events: We will be hosting a championship preview night in the Hillgrove Hotel on Saturday, April 9, while our juvenile presentation night will take place on April 12. Please try to keep these dates free and support these club events!
Saturday-morning coaching: Our U-9, U-7 and nursery groups will be starting back training on Saturday, April 2 at 10am. We will also be taking part in the St. Patrick's Day parade, so please put those two dates in your diary. Úna Forde will update with more information later.
Reserves: The 2022 season began last Sunday with an away game against Scotstown in the RFL Division Three. We fielded a young team featuring seven players making their competitive debuts in adult football: Gregory O'Connell, Jordan Crampton, Gary Devlin, Jake McConnon, Shea Swift, Karol Parszywka and Luke McManus. Despite a bright start, with Luke on target early on, we trailed by 1-6 to 0-3 at half-time and Scotstown stretched their lead after the restart, before a spirited comeback saw us take the game down to the wire. A brace of goals by Shea Swift helped us close the gap and we closed to within one point late on until Scotstown replied to secure the win by 1-13 to 3-5.
Team and scorers: Ryan Shields; Gregory O'Connell, John Mulligan (Capt.), Anthony Croarkin; Jordan Crampton, Gary Devlin, James Curley; Jake McConnon, Liam Conway; Shane Hannon, Shea Swift (2-0), Colm Shalvey (1-1, 0-1f); Karol Parszywka, Luke McManus (0-4, 2f), Conor Devlin.
Our RFL Division 1A campaign starts this Saturday with an away game against Truagh at 5pm.
Scór: We had a great night at the Scór na nÓg county final last Saturday in Tyholland. We were very well represented in drama, recitation, solo singing, group singing and music group. Monaghan Harps won the best club overall on the night. Our ballad group, instrumental group and solo singing representatives were all successful and will progress to the Ulster Scór semi-final. Well done agus GRMA to everyone involved.
Colleges: Hard luck to Seán Callan, Jack and Mark Lynch, John McCrystal and the St. Macartan's College team who lost out in last week's Rannafast Cup Final.
Coaching: We are asking new coaches to get involved at juvenile level, particularly with our youngest groups on Saturday mornings, which is set to resume on April 2. This is the perfect place to start coaching and now is an ideal time of year to begin to learn/upskill. Monaghan GAA Coaching and Games have organised another series of workshops for the next few weeks. If you are interested in getting involved, please contact Pádraig Callan on 087 2543511 or callanpadraig@yahoo.ie.
Urgent: Ground-development works will be starting soon. Matching finance is needed from the club. Please support our lotto frequently. Become a regular lotto player by buying weekly or setting up a recurring entry on ClubZap or direct debit or contact Rose Donnelly 086 0825782. Your support is greatly appreciated.
Pitch: Our main pitch remains closed for repairs and essential maintenance. We ask that everyone stays off the main pitch until further notice and we appreciate the co-operation of all club members.
Every Step Counts: Well done to all our club members who took part in the GAA/Irish Life Every Step Counts challenge, covering almost 12,000km in total – the equivalent of three times around the coastline of Ireland. Thanks to our Healthy Club Officer Úna Forde for registering the club and promoting the challenge. We encourage everyone to keep up the healthy habits.
Hope for Ukraine: Collection of vital priority supplies for the refugees of Ukraine taking place in Monaghan Town on Saturday, March 19 (venue to be confirmed). Priority list: First-aid kits; wound dressings; medical pressure bands; batteries; flashlights; power banks; sleeping bags; hot water bottles; toiletries; socks; creams/burn gels; paracetamol; women's items, personal care; thermal underwear, socks, vests, hats, scarfs, gloves; needles and thread; energy bars; tinned food; baby food, jars & ready-to-eat pouches; dried food. Contact Mary White (0838750843) or Colm Mahony (0867778117).
Cúl Camp: Save the dates for our 2022 Kellogg's Cúl Camp at Gavan Duffy Park: July 4-8. More information will be available soon.
Registration: Registration fees for 2022 can now be paid via Foireann.ie (use your log-in details from last year's return-to-play questionnaires). When you open the app, select 'my club' and 'membership' to pay your membership in seconds. Fees are as follows: juveniles €30; senior citizens €30; adults and all adult players €50; family membership (two adults and up to three juvenile players) €90. You can also renew your membership by contacting club registrar Kevin Treanor or treasurer Rose Donnelly. Please note that all juvenile and adult players must be paid-up members.
Club app: As well as offering an option to support our lotto, our new club app also has a function to pay your annual membership, make financial donations to the club, as well as a communication suite for all that goes on at the club. You can get involved by downloading 'ClubZap' on your phone and registering as a Monaghan Harps GAA Club member.
