A truly special day for Castlebar Celtic FC recalled

BY NIGEL NAUGHTON

MAY 20, 2007 is a date that will always resonate with Castlebar Celtic.

It was on this day, with the sun splitting the stones and a couple of thousand supporters crammed into Milebush Park, that the famous Hoops, currently in their 96th year, won their one and only FAI Cup title.

Declan Kilkelly and Harry Jennings’ charges had come close before but this talented group of players would not be denied in their hometown, defeating Cork’s Everton FC 2-1 with goals from Gary Price and Pat Fitzgerald to land the FAI Youths (Under 18) Cup.

"An amazing moment when the final whistle went – Milebush was a sea of green and white, full of Castlebar people and friends and family.

"My proudest moment with Celtic – the embrace, emotion and euphoria after the game was something else," said Ioseph O’Reilly, who played the full 90 minutes on the right wing on that famous day.

It is fair to say that O’Reilly can now be described as Mr. Celtic – the ultimate one-club man who has seen and done it all since he started with Celtic as a seven-year-old in 1996.

He captained the club he loves to the Mayo Super League title in 2019 and can’t help but reflect with fondness and admiration on that historic 2006/2007 season.

"The majority of the group had played together since such a young age. There was a special bond within the group; we knew each other so well and all knew our roles to a tee when we went out on to the pitch," said O’Reilly.

"You have to give Dec (Kilkelly) and Harry (Jennings) so much praise – they created a bond in the dressing room, won seven out of eight competitions across two seasons at Under 18, and made a good squad into probably the greatest squad the club has ever seen. I’ll be forever grateful to them," he added.

The captain of this all-conquering team, who also won the Mayo League, Mayo Cup and Connaught Cup in the same season, paid further homage to the influence of the management team of Kilkelly and Jennings.

"That historic season and FAI Cup win would not have happened without Dec and Harry," said Breaffy man James Minogue.

"First of all, they assembled a very strong group of players but then got everyone to buy into things, which is not always easy with teenagers. They had us so fit, set really high standards and instilled a belief into us which gave us the confidence to go on and achieve what we did."

Both Minogue and O’Reilly offer differing yet equally defining moments in the season that stood to them and gave the group a sense of what might be possible.

A penalty shootout victory away to Shamrock Rovers in the quarterfinal was one of finest wins in Celtic’s illustrious history, while in the semi-final they went to Limerick looking to overcome Wembley Rovers, who had defeated them 12 months previously in the Under 17 FAI Cup semi-final.

"When we beat Shamrock Rovers away in the quarterfinal, up in Dublin, was when we really started to believe that we could win it," offered Minogue.

"We went 3-2 down with a minute left of extra time and that looked like it was about to end our journey. But we really showed our determination and spirit when we bundled one over the line to force penalties. That was a huge win, and brought the group even closer together," he concluded.

"The Wembley win in the semi-final was massive. They beat us at the same stage the previous year, and seven months earlier, myself, Josh (Tierney), Niall (Walsh), Dougie, Ger (McDonagh), Peter (Dravins) and quite a few more were still underage for the Under 17 FAI Cup semi-final against Drogheda United, where we got hammered.

"So there were nerves, but we put together a huge performance to win and from there, nobody was going to stop us," said O’Reilly.

For manager Kilkelly, a club legend and former Connaught Cup-winning goalkeeper, the spell in charge of Celtic’s youth side is something he cherishes.

"It is right up there at the top of my best memories in football," beamed Kilkelly.

"That group of players had exceptional youth careers, and across two seasons at Under 18, we won seven out of eight trophies available, and only lost one game.

"Across the group we instilled that winning mentality, and once you get a taste of winning, a good team will always find further ways to win. The drive was there in the group from the word go, the drive to win."

Kilkelly references previous disappointments as adding fuel to an already towering inferno, which provided added motivation and inspiration to eventually secure the holy grail of youth football.

"You take a lot from winning, but you have to take a lot from losing too, to make sure you learn, improve and avoid it the next time.

"I remember coming off the pitch after losing the Under 17 semi-final on penalties in 2006 and saying to James (Minogue) that we would be back next year and we would win it – and so we did," he said.

For Minogue, it is a day and season that he will never forget. "It was a special time and a special team, but looking back, the expectation was quite high.

"The week before we played Everton, we actually won the Connaught Cup, beating Salthill Devon 3-0 in the final in Milebush. That gave us even more confidence going into the FAI Cup final.

"When I think about the day, it was quite tense to start. There was an expectation, and Pricey gave us an early lead, and then Pat Fitzgerald scored one of the best goals I have ever seen.

"So we were 2-0 up at the break, and we just wanted the final whistle for most of the second half really, just wishing the time away.

"They even went down to 10 men but pulled one back and at the death, we were hanging on a bit, but we were deserving winners on the day, I think. It was a privilege to be a part of that group," concluded the primary school teacher.

The name Gary Price is synonymous with this golden period of Castlebar Celtic.

The Swinford striker arrived at the club and helped propel them to another level, with his velvet touches and ice cool finishing remembered fondly across the Mayo football community, especially in Swinford and Castlebar.

Price tragically lost his life in 2012, and Kilkelly paid tribute a 'special player and special person'.

He added: "The first time I came across Gary was when we played them in Swinford a couple of years earlier.

"He was so good that we had to pay such close attention to him, and it was James’ job to get tight to him and stop him turning and just try to prevent him influencing the game. He then joined us the following year, and we all knew that to win an FAI Cup, you need that type of quality in your squad.

"Gary made everyone around him better - he was a special, special player, and scored huge goals for us in every round.

"As a person, he was just as amazing – very laid back, very relaxed, but fitted into the group straight away. I could not speak highly enough of him as a person and on the pitch he was a match winner. We still miss him every day."