SPEED and spirit were the watchwords during last Thursday and Friday’s NSW Clontarf Senior League Carnival at Varley Oval.
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Clontarf Academy teams from Inverell, Moree, Dubbo, Coonamble, Armidale/Oxley and Bourke/Brewarrina met for a knock-out tournament, with home-town boys Inverell taking the 2015 trophy with a very proud Dubbo as runner-up. Teams Armidale/Oxley and Moree came in third in a draw.
Liam Toner is the Clontarf Foundation regional manager, and said the carnival was the embodiment of the Clontarf spirit, which exemplifies teamwork and good-sportsmanship. He said it was the most important carnival for the year.
“We’ve had our strongest numbers here. The football has never looked stronger, and the comments that have come from everybody, is the spirit and the vibe around the oval has been really positive,” Toner said.
He said that is why the academies camp in each other’s towns; to share similar stories and realise how much they all had in common.
“It’s been a great carnival. The boys are having fun. It’s good to see the boys here, all together and playing a good game of football and having fun. That’s the main thing,” said Inverell Clontarf operations manager Shane Edmonds.
Inverell faced newcomer Dubbo in the finals. There are three academies now operating in Dubbo and Dubbo South academy director Charlie Maher felt it was very positive in the community and the schools have embraced Clontarf.
“It’s just been great for the kids to take ownership of having a Clontarf Academy, and having a lot of pride in it,” Maher said.
Coonamble was out on the finals day, but director Vili Sirilo said though their team numbers were small, they enjoyed themselves, played with a lot of energy and had a lot of fun.
Play was halted mid-final when Inverell’s Dean Davis was knocked out temporarily. Davis was helped off the field and after the game, Clontarf boys from all schools came up to wish him the best. At the awards presentation, every academy awarded Spirit Awards to a player from their team. Josh Williams stepped forward to accept the Inverell award. He thanked all the boys for coming, earning a rain of cheers from all the academies.
