The Co Tyrone villages of Stewartstown and Galbally will be deserted this Sunday as their communities head south for one of the biggest days in the GAA club calendar.
Both Stewartstown Harps and Galbally Pearses have gone on mesmerising runs from the early days of the Tyrone championship, through the Ulster rounds and now find themselves in Croke Park on All-Ireland Final Day.
Stewartstown will take on the might of David Clifford’s Fossa in the Junior final, while another Kerry opponent, Rathmore, stand in the way of Galbally in the Intermediate decider.
While there won’t be a sinner in either village this Sunday, that was in stark contrast to the buzz of activity that took over both areas this week.
Flags and bunting draped across every road, there was only one thing people have been talking about this week.
On Friday, local primary schools St Mary’s and St Joseph’s were awash with colour as the younger generation prepared to cheer their heroes on to glory on Sunday.
St Joseph’s Galbally pupils were busy making hats, flags, scarves and headbands ahead of the big day, and principal Páraic Martin told Belfast Live they were special days for everyone in the community.
“It’s a very special day for all associated with the club and the community, an historic day”, Paraic said.
“To be running out on to Croke Park is a massive thing for the players themselves, and for the children here as well to see their role models, their neighbours, their clubmates, it’s going to be a very special day for everybody in Dublin.
“It’s a great inspiration then for the children here in the school that maybe some day they will be able to go on and achieve similar fates.
“It’s been very uplifting, you think of January maybe as a very blue month, but for us here in the school the last few weeks it has really taken our minds off all the things that you normally associate with January.
“It’s all everybody has been talking about this past few weeks so there has been a great buzz, a great excitement and we’re obviously hoping that Galbally can do the business on Sunday.”
Meanwhile in Stewartstown, St Mary’s pupils welcomed the team to the school hall as heroes in an effort to spur them on to victory in Croke Park.
“Well it’s just amazing, it has just ignited our whole club and the passion of the community,” Harps chairman Cathal Coyle said.
“Everybody is just so looking forward to getting behind the boys. They have had such a fantastic season, it has been dramatic to say the least.
“It’s absolutely magnificent and the reception that the players received today at their old primary school was just very emotional for a lot of them.
“It’s unbelievable what it means to the players and the boys and girls who came out today to clap them and cheer them on - it’s just incredible for the whole community.
“Master Reilly said he taught most of them and he could recall when most of them were outside kicking and their main dream was to play for Stewartsown Harps in Croke Park.
“Stewartstown Harps means everything to them and it still does.”
Stewarstown vs Fossa kicks off at 1.30pm on Sunday while Galbally take on Rathmore at 3.30pm in Croke Park.
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