David Clarke impressed for Ballina Stephenites in their Mayo GAA Senior Club Football Championship final against Westport in MacHale Park, Castlebar. Pic: Sportsfile
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22 Oct 2025
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22 Oct 2025
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L-R: Áine Fitzgerald, Molly Pittendrigh, Niamh Doherty, Saoirse Moran, Diarmuid Swift, Evan Dillion, Cillian Gallagher and Mark Bolger
A group of Mayo teenage musicians have qualified as finalists of Siansa Gael Linn.
Luasc, made-up up of Áine Fitzgerald, Molly Pittendrigh, Niamh Doherty, Saoirse Moran, Diarmuid Swift, Evan Dillion, Cillian Gallagher and Mark Bolger, have made their way to the final of one of the country's most prestigious competitions for young traditional Irish music and singing groups.
Mentored by multi-instrumentalist and composer Stephen Doherty, the group have already successfully made their way through two rounds of the competition and are the only group from the West of Ireland to make it to the final.
"The musicality and technical ability of this young group is at a serious level, it's been great working with them on this musical journey and they've gone from strength to strength over the past number of months" said Mr Doherty.
No stranger to the competition, the composer successfully mentored 'Armoin' who came second in the national final, last year.
Group co-ordinator, Eileen Bolger said the group are ‘indebted’ to Mr Doherty for all his ‘expert guidance’, and will be performing some of his own compositions at the final.
She added: “A special word also for Mags Gallen, for all her help with the song, chosen by the group. Rehearsals have been taking place in Foxford and the Bridge, Castlebar in preparation for the national competition and a special word of thanks to the Swift Family and Tom Doherty for all the help along the way.”
Luasc are competing against seven other groups from Kildare, Clare, Longford, Wexford, Tipperary, Laois and Cork.
With a prize fund of €4,500, the competition, run entirely through the medium of Irish, is organised by Gael Linn, with support from RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta and Irish Music Magazine.
The talened group will compete in the final on Sunday, April 14, in the National Concert Hall, Dublin, and will be broadcast on Radio na Gaeltachta at 7.30pm.
A limited number of tickets for the event are available on the National Concert Hall’s wesbite.
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