Cream of the crop honoured

WITH an Olympic bronze medal in his back pocket it was hardly surprising that Darren Sutherland was much sought after at the Knightsbrook Hotel, Trim on Friday lunchtime. People were eager to shake the young boxer"s hand and congratulate him on his achievement in reaching the semi-finals of the middleweight division in Beijing. A self-effacing, unassuming character, Sutherland also scooped the Meath Chronicle / Cusack Hotels Sports Personality of the Month for August and received his award on Friday. Other high-achievers honoured on Friday included Damien McGrane and the Navan rugby team (joint-winners for April), Denis Hurley (May), Johnny Murtagh (June) and Meath minor football manager Pat Coyle (July). The event was attended by people from the local business, political and sporting worlds including Cusack Hotels managing director Paul McQuillan, and Meath Chronicle sales and marketing manager, Mary McGuigan. Also in attendance was Meath County Council chairperson Liz McCormack. The event had a special chinese theme to mark the victories of Sutherland and McGrane, the idea of Knightsbrook manager Patrick Curran. The ribbon holding Sutherland"s bronze medal is now starting to look a little tattered and frayed with the amount of handling it has received since that memorable day in the Chinese capital; a day he, his family and the Irish boxing fraternity are unlikely ever to forget. Sutherland has been busy visiting various locations over the past few weeks including the Dunboyne school where he studied for his Leaving Certificate before he went on to become something of a national celebrity. He is a regular visitor to Navan where his parents Linda and Tony reside. On Saturday, Sutherland and the other medal winners in Beijing, Paddy Barnes and Kenny Egan were guests of President McAleese. The following day at Croke Park they were introduced to the crowd at half-time during the All-Ireland football final between Kerry and Tyrone. Sutherland spoke in Knightsbrook about his hopes that he could be an 'inspiration' for young people. He hoped the message he sent out was the if you work hard enough and BELIEVE, the dream can become a reality. Sutherland appears almost too easy-going to be engaged in the business of inflicting punishment on someone inside the gruelling, unforgiving confines of a boxing ring. With the Olympic medal in his possession he now plans to embark on a professional career. He received a warm reception on Friday and he will need all the support he can muster as he launches himself into the shark-invested waters of the professional game. Already familiar with the demands of the paid ranks is local golfer McGrane. He hit it big when he won the China Volvo Open in Beijing last April. The same month Navan rugby team achieved a memorable double when they clinched the Provincial Towns" Cup for the 10th time, bagging the All-Ireland Junior Cup for good measure. While the awards were being presented, action from the Ryder Cup flickered on the TV screens in the background. For a time earlier this year it looked like McGrane might make the cut for the 'world cup of golf." Then his form fell away. 'When the big money events came up in the summer my golf was average,' he admitted on Friday. 'I needed to finish in the top 10 to get an automatic pick, but I drifted out a little in the order of merit which was a little bit disappointing. I played very well just before the big events and that affects your bank balance slightly.' Navan RFC president Philip Brady accepted the award on behalf of the club. He spoke about the importance a sport in any community and the opportunity it presents to youngsters to follow their dream. Other Navan rugby men in attendance included Brad Harris, Gerry Williamson, Colm Horton, Ryan Roberts and last year"s captain, Bernard Smyth. This hasn"t been the best of years for Meath football, at least on the senior front. At minor level it was different with Pat Coyle guiding his young guns to a Leinster title. Tipperary were overcome in the All-Ireland quarter-finals before Tyrone abruptly ended the run at Croke Park. Coyle bemoaned the lack of luck for the Meath side in the game against a Tyrone outfit brimming with talent. He thanked all involved in this year"s adventure, the players, backroom team and selectors James Battersby, Paul Clarke, Martin Blake and Richie Cahill. Ace jockey Murtagh was unable to attend on Friday. Murtagh took the June award after reeling in a series of winners at home and across the water. The Bohermeen man notched up six winners at Royal Ascot before teaming up with Aidan O"Brien to win the majority of the classics over a summer of flat racing. Hurley was away preparing for Munster"s game in the Magners League over the weekend. He too could reflect on some notable achievements earlier this year which included a Heinekan Cup medal won in the colours of Munster. That was another in the impressive list of achievements by sports people with connections to the Royal County. The overall winner will be announced early next year and will be selected from the monthly winners. There will also be an outstanding achievement category and a list of nominees will be published in December. The winner of the September award will be announced next week.