SUITED and booted, Piaras Donaghy will drive his parents over to the Devenish Complex in west Belfast for the Antrim GAA Allstars gig on Saturday evening, sip a few waters, feel the butterflies in the pit of his stomach as he makes his way to the stage to collect his award, soak up the atmosphere before making a discreet exit.
The north Belfast man plans to be in bed at the regular time for Na Piarsaigh’s Ulster Junior Championship match with Newtownbutler First Fermanaghs the following day at Brewster Park.
Beyond urban environs, few would know who Piaras Donaghy is. But those who follow Gaelic Games in the city and, in particular, the junior grade, will be well acquainted with the gifted midfielder from Pearses.
He was the heartbeat of the north Belfast club’s triumphant march to last month’s junior championship - only their second in their history - defeating west Belfast neighbours O’Donnell’s in the decider at Dunsilly.
The club's captain will lead from the front at Brewster Park on Sunday afternoon as they take an audacious stab at provincial glory.
Donaghy is one of only two junior footballers (the other being his Pearse’s team-mate Liam Deegan) that will gain Antrim Allstar recognition at the Devenish bash on Saturday night, with the vast majority of award winners, voted by the public, being drawn from the senior grade.
In an interview with The Irish News prior to their Junior SFC final with O’Donnell’s, club stalwart and Pearses team-mate Tomas O’Neill name-checked Donaghy, describing him as a “role model on and off the field”.
Donaghy is also one of four nominees for 2022 Player of the Year; the others, Kevin O’Boyle, John McNabb (both Cargin) and Dunloy’s dual ace Conal Cunning – with the winner announced on the night.
When he clasps his Allstar award on stage he will be doing so on behalf of his team-mates, management, mentors and the many Pearses volunteers down through the years who kept the club afloat in hard times.
“To be honest, it means an awful lot to be recognised,” Donaghy says, “just for the next generation coming through in that you don’t have to move clubs, you don’t have to play Division One football to have your talent recognised.
“The award is only going to benefit us as a community and a club in north Belfast, that there will be more eyes on us now and we might get a few people interested and wanting to play and staying on this side of the city.”
Over the years, so many Gaelic footballers from north Belfast migrated to some of the bigger clubs of west Belfast.
Donaghy had many offers to join the exodus and could have played at a higher level, but leaving the club that moulded him was non-negotiable.
“At underage, I was always kind of there or thereabouts... When you played against teams from west Belfast, they’d come up to you afterwards and say: ‘Why are you playing for that team for? Come and join us.’
“It was kind of patronising. So, to get this award on behalf of Pearses means a lot.”
The improving standards at Ardoyne Kickhams and Pearses and the rejuvenation of their respective underage structures in recent years has perhaps stemmed the flow of players transferring to the west.
“I’ve two reasons for staying,” insists Donaghy, a schoolteacher.
“First and foremost, it’s my family club. My grandfather [Manuel] played, my daddy [also Manuel] and my brothers all played for Pearses.
“North Belfast was full of soccer heads and kids wanting to be the next David Beckham... Aidan McCrory was my PE teacher at the time and Donal Kennedy was a St John’s man. He asked me about going to play Gaelic and my mummy, who worked in the school, laughed and said: ‘You’ll have to ask your daddy.’
“I got home and my daddy said: ‘If you’re playing Gaelic for anyone, you’re playing for Pearses.’ He brought me up to the ‘Crickey’ and there were about 30 kids running rings around Marty Hill, another one of our legendary coaches, and my daddy says his famous last words to Marty at the time were: ‘Do you need a hand?’ And he’s been roped in ever since. That was over 20 years ago now. It’s in my blood.
“The way I was brought up was Gaelic football was a club sport, it was all about your community, representing them and where you came from.”
He adds: “I never sought recognition from anybody else other than the people in my area and in my team...
"As I got older I wanted to show people that we are good enough, that we should be taken seriously, we are a Gaelic club and that’s the main thing. It’s not so much about success; we value our club and our club principles and ethos and our community more than we value success. It’s just great now that the two of them are married together.”
In the 1950s, the late Brother Leonard taught in the local Christian Brothers school in the New Lodge Road area and was one of the club’s founding members.
A Kerry native, Pearses colours became gold and green.
The club has enjoyed only fleeting successes. In 1968, they won their one and only senior championship. They claimed their first junior title in 1971 and three years later followed up with an intermediate success.
Several times down through the years, the club threatened to go under, due to a lack of a base and good enough facilities north of the city. They currently use the Floodlit pitch at The ‘Crickey’ on the Cliftonville Road and the Waterworks Multi-Sports Park just off the Antrim Road.
Last season, they lost a league final but rather than having a demoralising impact on the current crop of players, they surged towards a junior championship, and with a bit to spare.
"It meant so much to so many people and not just the playing squad – my daddy, Colin Fitzsimmons, who coached us at underage, Marty Hill, Sean McDonald, who is now part of our senior team, all fellas who laid the groundwork for us to have a team to even play in.
"We played U12, U14 and that carried right through to minor. I remember when we were U12 there was talk of the club folding, so the junior title just wasn’t for the players on the pitch…we were representing the community and we didn't want to let them down."
Even at 29, Donaghy would never turn down the chance to play for his county.
“It felt like, because you weren’t at a big club and that I played for Pearses, it wasn't an option.
“I’m turning 30 now but even at this late stage I would jump at the opportunity, not for myself but for the next generation coming through at our club and for them to say: ‘God, you don’t have to move clubs to play for your county.’
“That's why I think it’s important that there are junior players being recognised among the Antrim Allstars as it shows there is great work being done behind the scenes.”
