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23 Oct 2025
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23 Oct 2025
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Martin Cosgrave pictured (left) during his playing days and (right) more recently (Pic: Davitts GAA)
THE annual St Stephen’s Day match between Ballindine and Irishtown for the Michael Mooney Memorial Cup will be held in Davitt Park, Ballindine, with a 1pm throw-in. This year’s game will be contested by two teams, consisting of players over the age of 25, who are currently not members of Davitts senior team panel.
All proceeds from the game will be going to former Davitts footballer, Martin Cosgrove, who is suffering from Primary Lateral Sclerosis, a rare neurological disease, and he is now confined to a wheelchair. Martin has resided in Armagh for several years.
Martin, from Meelick, Irishtown, was a brilliant underage footballer with Davitts in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He won two Mayo U-21 titles with Davitts in 1984 and 1985, captaining the team in 1984. This was a golden era for the club when they won three Mayo U-21 titles in a row, an incredible achievement for a relatively small rural club on the borderline of Mayo and Galway.
Billy Kearns from the Davitts club says the health situation relating to Martin (who is a brother of Breege Duggan, Loughanamon, Claremorris) was brought to their attention and the club immediately rallied to the cause.
“Martin was an excellent player with Davitts in those times and that is why he was chosen as captain. Unfortunately, emigration was rampant, especially in the West of Ireland, and the club lost several promising young players, including Martin, who left for England in 1986,” said Kearns.
“Martin is married to Dundalk native, Veronica, whom he met in London. They now live in Meigh, Armagh, and have three children, Jamie, Niamh and Kieran. One of their lads played minor football with Armagh.
“Martin has an enduring passion for Davitts and Mayo and loves to visit his home area on a regular basis. We are confident the Ballindine and Irishtown communities will come out in big support for Martin on St Stephen’s Day,” said Kearns.
You can donate to the fundraiser online at Davitts GAA/LGFA’s GoFundMe page.
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