Turin's passion burns brightly 100 years on
On Sunday, the Turin Hurling Club hosted a day of celebration in McCabe Park, with a number of underage games and an adult sevens tournament which consisted of mixed teams of past and present players.
It was great to see so many people getting the chance to play together in the mixed teams and remarkable to have Richie Heffernan and Noel Poynton Snr togging out for the game. Others involved included John Scally and Dermot Brady, a former Westmeath football star who has proud hurling links with Turin. It was a great opportunity for players who represented the club in different years to play together and it will be treasured in years to come.
Among the many who attended were Pat Anderson and Jim McCormack, who played for Turin back in the 1950s. Following the day's activities at McCabe Park, it was on to the Annebrook House Hotel, Mullingar for a memorable social gathering on Sunday evening, with over 150 people attending.
A number of people made it possible, including John Heffernan, John Gorman, John Penrose, Alan Leech, Damien Keogh and Johanna Farrell. All of these were there from early morning to set up for what proved a memorable day.
The underage blitz included mixed teams from Turin and St Munna's camogie club. Throughout the day there was a raffle organised and it proved a great success.
Following that, the community met in the Annebrook House Hotel, Mullingar for a social night with music and some drinks. It proved a great occasion for the proud club which was founded in 1923 under the guidance of Larry Carey and Paddy Daly.
Back all those years ago, it was during a period of extreme national unrest, strife and civil war when Turin first started out and it's remarkable that it has stood the test of time and demonstrated such fortitude over the years. The sacrifices of 1916 were fresh in people’s minds, along with the grief of the great war.
Turin is an extremely small area, sparsely populated and surrounded by large centralised centres of population each having its own club. The founding members of the Turin Hurling Club were a diverse group of individuals, including farmers, tradesmen, and labourers. Despite their diverse backgrounds, they shared a common goal of creating a successful hurling club that would represent their local community with pride.
It's remarkable that Turin have survived 100 years when one considers there is no shop or school in the area and it's testament to the hard work of all associated with the club. They have won four junior titles in their history and the last success came in 1985, but they still dream of big days ahead and that's what the GAA is all about.