Unique competition has contestants testing their skills in a number of disciplines

Teams comprising a Gaelic free-taker, a soccer sharpshooter, a golf long-driver and putter, along with someone who’s good at picking the winner of greyhound races, come together this weekend to contest the Éamon Carroll Memorial Sports Challenge.

The person commemorated is your writer’s late son, who was killed in a road accident nine years ago. The young man’s sisters and brother have joined with Bellurgan FC and St Patrick’s GFC to organise the fourth running of the event which highlights the sports with which he was associated.

Éamon played with Bellurgan in his youth before turning his attention to St Patrick’s. There he won six Louth senior championship medals and several at league level. And all the time he honed his golfing skills, playing with Greenore GC at under-age level and at one time lowering his handicap to 3.

He wasn’t by any means an avid greyhound racing fan, but because he was listed as the owner of one of the dogs, No Way Jose – that occupied one of the kennels behind his family home – he’s in the record books as breeder of Moral Standards, NWJ’s son, who won the 1994 English Derby.

There are four on each of the teams competing in the Challenge. The first of them will be out testing their skills over nine holes on the Ballymascanlon course.

It will then be the turn of another member to try to put the ball past the goalkeeper from the penalty-spot at Bellurgan’s Tom Flynn Park, and also have a go at hitting the crossbar in a separate competition.

The free-taking competition, won last year by budding Louth star, Dylan McKeown, will be decided at Páirc Éamon, the home of St Patrick’s.

The final contest takes place at Dundalk Stadium, where the fourth team member will attempt to pick winners on the 11-race card, which includes the final of the €2,500-to-the-winner Paddy & Éamon Carroll Memorial Stake.

Valuable prizes have been lined up for the raffle taking place at the stadium, and returns from this, as well as teams’ entry-fees, will go to charity.

Martin Finnegan, a member of Bellurgan FC and one of the day’s chief organisers, said: “But for Covid, this would be the sixth running of the event. As always, we have had no problem filling the entry sheet, and if it’s as good a day as the others, there’ll be lots of fun.”

This is the second major event on the Bellurgan FC calendar. The Ciarán Casey Weekend, commemorating a deceased former footballer with the club, was staged a number of weeks back.

It included a quiz and adult and children’s soccer competitions, the latter attracting teams from a number of counties, and was a huge success.