Simon Harris to officially open football pitch in memory of Charlestown's Colm Horkan

AN Taoiseach Simon Harris will travel to Mayo next month to officially open the Colm Horkan Memorial Pitch and Community Walkways in Charlestown.

Charlestown Sarsfields GAA Club have announced that the new Colm Horkan Memorial Pitch and Community Walkways will be officially opened on Sunday, June 2. The official ribbon-cutting ceremony will be performed by An Taoiseach, Simon Harris, TD and the famous Garda Band will be on hand to perform on the day.

A native of Charlestown, Detective Garda Colm Horkan was shot dead while on duty in Castlerea, Co Roscommon on June 17, 2020. He was a proud member of Charlestown Sarsfields and following his death, the club set about developing a project in his memory which culminated in the Colm Horkan Memorial Pitch and Community Walkways.

Chairman of Charlestown Sarsfield Liam Breheny, said that Sunday, June 2 will be both an emotional and very proud day for the club and community as they officially open the new Colm Horkan Memorial Pitch and Community Walkways.

“We will be honoured to welcome An Taoiseach, Simon Harris, TD, to our club to perform the official opening ceremony and thank him for taking the time from his busy schedule to join us on this special day. The goodwill shown and the offers of support from people, both locally, nationally, and from the diaspora around the world for this project has been heartwarming and the new facilities in Colm’s honour will be a fitting legacy for the great man and a facility for the community to enjoy for generations to come – something I know he would be immensely proud of,” he said.

On the day there will be several matches taking place to mark the occasion, with our underage teams getting proceedings underway from 11am on the main pitch at Fr O’Hara Park.

Following the official opening of the new pitch at 1pm, the first game on the new Colm Horkan Memorial pitch will fittingly be an exhibition game, between a Charlestown Sarsfields Masters selection, consisting of many of Colm’s former teammates and friends, against a star-studded Masters selection from counties and clubs across Ireland.

The Charlestown senior ladies’ team will then play an exhibition game against the Templemore College Garda team, whilst the current Senior men’s team will close proceedings with an exhibition match against a representative team from An Garda Síochána. There will be refreshments, entertainment, and activities for all the family to enjoy on the day.

The new pitch and community walkways will provide the Charlestown club with a new state-of-the-art, all-weather, fully floodlit, playing pitch, and walkways for the wider community to enjoy for years to come.

The project, which has taken over three years to complete, has attracted support from all corners of the globe and involved several fundraising events such as the Annual Colm Horkan Memorial Run, and the Colm Horkan Memorial Golf Classic. In addition, the club has received funding through the Government's Sports Capital Programme and other funding programs, which have provided invaluable support towards the completion of this phase of the project.

Colm touched the lives of many in the communities of Charlestown and beyond, with dignity and regalness characterising his every action and deed. He loved his town, and this was the place where many great friendships and bonds were moulded. Colm loved his football and served Charlestown Sarsfields with distinction over the course of a long, stellar, and star-studded career. He donned the green and white jersey with honour and excellence and Fr O’Hara took centre stage in many of the club's finest successes in a career that saw him reach some marvellous heights.