Another Naomh Muire development milestone reached at the Banks at the weekend

Naomh Muire marked another milestone in the club’s history at the weekend with the official opening of the new spectator stand at the Banks.

The 200-spectator stand, which was completed in 2023, was officially opened on Sunday morning.

The official opening was done by the club's ladies player and Donegal Ladies captain, Roisin Rodgers.

Seamus Herron of the Donegal LGFA, Mary Coughlan and Mary Kelly, chairperson and secretary of the Donegal GAA board, along with Pat "the Cope" Gallagher and the stand sponsor Declan Ward of Irish Pressings, were also present.

The opening was then marked by an inter-county challenge game between Donegal and Tyrone, which followed the official ceremony.

“The stand was built for the 2023 All-Ireland Comórtas Peile na Gaeltachta, which we hosted, and we are only getting around now to officially open it,” explained club chairman John Colm Gillespie.

 “It was built by local contractor Phil Ward and Sons, with funding from Roinn na Gaeltachta through Jack Chambers TD, Minister of State for Tourism and Sport at the time.

“We also got great assistance at the time from Eamon McGill of Roinn na Gaeltachta. 

“The stand cost in the region of €140,000 and it is a great addition to the ground and the facilities we have here at the Banks”.

The stand is the latest development at the ground -  changes which first began 15 years ago.

“The facilities have greatly improved in the last 15 years under former chairmen Tom Marry, Cormac McGarvey, John Gorman and Pádraig Rua Greene.

“And they have carried on the legacy left by men like Jimmy Doherty, my own father Colm - the club's first chairman - as well as Seamus Rodgers and Tony Doherty, two former stalwarts of the club and two men who are unfortunately no longer with us.

“They have left us with what we have today, and it is up to the current committee to continue to upgrade and provide more facilities.”

The club currently has a top-class floodlit playing pitch and a state-of-the-art clubhouse.

The clubhouse consists of a clubroom with a newly installed fitted kitchen, four dressing rooms, two referees’ rooms and a treatment room on the ground floor.

Upstairs consists of a large and fully equipped gym as well as two meeting rooms.

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“It is the present committee's job to build on the great development of over a decade and a half and move things on, keeping upgrading and improving the facilities at the grounds.”

So next up is the development of an astro turf playing area at the Banks.

“After the All-Ireland Comórtas was over, we found we had a few euros to spare so we decided the next requirement was an astro turf pitch.

“We put a plan in place and we have received funding through the Sports Capital Grants and we are all set to get started on the development.

“We are developing on the current training ground and, while space is tight, the plan is to build a 90 by 50m playing area which teams will be fit to train on all year round.

“We hope to get work underway shortly and hope to have it built for the start of next season. Floodlights are not in the initial phase, but that will happen down the road.”

On the topic of floodlighting, the club is in the planning process of upgrading the existing lights.

“We are currently working with former Donegal goalkeeper Paul Durcan on new LED lights and we hope to have them in place for this winter. They have a better quality of lighting and are more economical to run.”

The club has recently purchased the old Rosses Bakery building, which is adjacent to the Banks.

“We only purchased it recently and we are very grateful to the owner, John Hannigan, who sold it to us at a fair price and one we could afford.

“We own the land right up to the bakery, but it is a project for the future. We have enough on our plate at the moment.

“It is important we get the balance right between physical developments and the development of football. There is no point in having all the best of facilities and no players to use them.

“But we do hope at some stage to build an indoor playing area on the bakery site - but that, for now, is on the long finger.”