'The football team has kept the area on the map'

Every season is invariably full of twists and turns for football teams; sweet triumphs that can be followed by bitter setbacks. It was no different for Robinstown FC in 2024 but for them the good outweighed the bad. That reality was reflected in the way they won the North East Football League (NEFL) Div 2 title.

Reflecting back on the season Robinstown manager Damien Sheridan betrayed no hesitation in picking out one game when, he felt, his team negotiated a tricky bend in the road; when the big prize, the league title, began to appear tantalisingly on the horizon.

"We played Navan Town Cosmos who were then top of the table. That was a big thing, a major result for us. We played them earlier in the season and beat them 2-0 but then we played them in the fourth last game of the season and we basically had to win to stay in touch. We beat them at their own ground, 3-2. That kept us within a point of them, that was crucial."

Dealing with the pressure of HAVING to dig out victories is just one quality league champions need and Robinstown showed they had the right stuff that day - and other days too.

The title was eventually secured on the last day of the season. This time Robinstown defeated Trim Celtic 3-2 with the help of goals from Brian Fay, Mark O'Neill (penalty) and Ciaran Fitzsimons who, in typical Roy of the Rovers mode, came off the bench in the closing stages to grab the winner.

Here too Robinstown displayed that invaluable quality of being able to fashion a victory when it was needed. There was something else about that win, that day, that made it special.

"The trophies we had won last year were presented to us at the MDL which was understandable because they were finals, even the Div 3 title we clinched at the MDL. This year we won Div 2 at our home ground when we beat Trim Celtic. It was great to win something at home."

A local football team winning a local league might not seem that significant outside the confines of the football club itself but Robinstown's success has, Sheridan believes, helped to sustain the local community in all sorts of ways.

"Robinstown once had a pub and a shop but now both are closed, it became a bit of a ghost-town like many villages but the football club has kept the area on the map," he asserts. "Over the years players from Navan and Trim have turned out for us, I suppose there's a rural feel to the club they like."

This is golden era for the Robins but there ware years when they really struggled. They were absorbed into another local team known as Botown (a mix of Shambo and Robinstown) for a time.

About 10 or more years ago Sheridan took charge of one of the club's u-14s boys side. He is still managing basically the same group of players, having guided them all the way up through the ranks to senior level.

Somewhere along the way this core group of footballers have developed an indestructible espirit de corps that has helped them overcome many challenges.

In 2023 Robinstown won three trophies - the Leinster Junior Shield, the NEFL Div 3 title and the O'Neill Shield. Before that red-letter season they hadn't won anything since 1993 then they also claimed the Div 2 crown. The hat-trick of victories in '23 was confirmation that the team, and the club, were really going places.

The run of success also ended a long drought without a trophy.

This year the aim was for the Robins to consolidate their place in Div 2 but a spurge of early victories made a push for the title a reality.

A feature of the current Robinstown team is that while it is composed mainly of that group of players who have grown up, and yes, grown older together, it also includes others, such as the indomitable Paul Garry and Paul Curtin, who have defied the passing of time and made their own vital contributions, in their own distinctive ways.

"A player like Paul Garry has been a hell of a addition to the club over the years. Paul Curtin didn't play much first team football this year but having the likes of him and Paul Garry around the club has been great, inspiring to other, younger players."

These days Robinstown is run by a enterprising committee under forward-thinking chairman Eamon Curley but Damien Sheridan can recall the time when he and just two others ran the club.

Despite the success of recent seasons there are plenty of challenges facing clubs like Robinstown. Right up there is the need for volunteers especially coaches for under-age teams. "Some parents think it's the club's job to supply coaches but in reality you need one of the parents to manage teams."

There are moves afoot also to ensure the ground Robinstown occupy is owned by the club in the near future. The Robins are clearly flying in more ways than one.

* The Robinstown team for that title winning game against Trim Celtic was: Ian Corry, Mark O’Neill, Dale O’Kane, Eoghan O’Neill (c), Paul Maxwell, Paul Garry, Enda Sweeney, Aidan Hilliard, Shane Bell, Brian Fay, Kieran O’Reilly. Sub - Ciaran Fitzsimons for Bell. Other squad members - Josh Finegan, Ciaran Roche, Paul Curtin, Cian O’Neill, Dylan Kavanagh, Tommy Carroll.