Glenhest Rovers to celebrate half a century of soccer

PRIDE, spirit and a sense of place! On Saturday night (December 28) Glenhest Rovers will celebrate half a century of soccer with hundreds of friends, family and supporters in The Castlecourt Hotel in Westport. It promises to be a night like no other, a night when memories are recalled and stories told of a club established in 1974 and going from strength to strength five decades later.

The team was established by a group of locals in order to keep the name of the community alive and they have achieved this goal wonderfully. Exploits on the pitch have yielded countless cups and many league successes but the enduring victory of Glenhest Rovers comes from making the name of the wonderful community a regular part of conversations the length and breadth of Ireland.

The young men who wear the crest on the chest go out wanting to win every game they play and that's the goal of every footballer, but the men who established the club did so to keep the name alive and their foresight has paid off richly.

The many on-field victories will be spoken about on Saturday night and those who have departed this life will be remembered while a few left-field stories will also find their way into the conversations. One of the greatest of these being the day, many years ago, when Rovers had 32 people sent off yet won the game 2-0. Glenhest were playing Ballina Rovers in Belleek and referee Gus Alexander had a busy day. He sent off one Ballina player, three Glenhest players and (as the newspaper report from the day explained) “twenty-nine Glenhest Rovers supporters, including women and children.”

Amazingly, the game was actually won by two goals from Noel McManamon. The first when he chipped the goalkeeper from 35 yards and the second fifteen minutes from the end when he claimed his ninth goal in nine games.

This and many other tales will be recalled on Saturday night.