Lagan Harps officially reopen Orchard Park after recent redevelopment work

Lagan Harps are back home with the recent redevelopment work on Orchard Park now completed. 

To mark the occasion, a weekend of celebratory action took place that culminated in the meeting of Lagan’s senior mens outfit and Finn Harps U-20s on Sunday. 

Club secretary Ernie Pollock says Lagan are indebted to many for facilitating them in between with playing pitches and training facilities. And he says it’s just exciting now to be back in Orchard Park. 

“It was a brilliant weekend,” he said. “We were using the Aura Centre and the Community Centre (Letterkenny). 

“They are great facilities. But we are fielding that many sides, across so many grades, that it took a lot of planning and organising. So much time was spent on the phone dealing with the bookings and logistics of all of that. 

“But it was great to be back on our own patch. It’s so much easier for the coaches, particularly the underage ones and their parents.

“The weekend got underway on Friday night with the U-14 girls taking on Ballyraine in a league game. On Saturday, Raphoe Town came down with underage boys and girls sides. 

“On Sunday, Maiden City came in and, at the end, we finished off with Finn Harps against our own senior mens team.

“That was nice as Oisin McMenamin was in charge of them and he’s a former Lagan player. 

“Dylan McAteer and Ben O’Donnell were also playing for Harps so that was nice. Two more of our old lads. It was a real family affair. The numbers and representation across all the teams and eras was all there”. 

Even with the workload of sourcing playing venues and training pitches is now off the table, Pollock admits the grind never stops with the club also on the lookout for a senior team boss. 

Recruitment of players and even admin staff remains a crucial arm in all of that. 

“The club is such an important part of Manorcunningham and Newtoncunnnigham. The facilities are really important in that sense. 

“We’ve over 200 kids involved in the underage set-up, we have the two adult sides and we field girls teams from U-10 right up. 

“Realistically, down the line, we might also have to look into finding another pitch to deal with the demands of all of that. 

“Pre-season gets going in the next few weeks so we have to look to get a manager in place. It just rolls around. 

“It feels like the season has just ended and we’re off again. It’s virtually a 12-month gig now. It’s non-stop but it keeps us all busy”.