Joe Hegarty's parents Michael and Andrea, and sister Katie, pictured with Carey Faughs captain Shea Hunter after the club's Antrim Intermediate Hurling Final success.
By John Harrington
When Carey Faughs Chairperson, Sean McBride, answers the phone he’s slightly out of breath from gathering sheep on Fair Head, the most north easterly point of Antrim.
From that 660-foot mountain cliff you have sweeping coastal views all the way to Rathlin Island but it’s not just scenic country, it’s hurling country.
To quote McBride himself, for the people of Ballyvoy in Antrim hurling "is a way of life that binds our community together.”
The place will empty on Saturday for the AIB Ulster Club Intermediate hurling semi-final against Monaghan champions Castleblayney in Carrickmore, but this year their unity of purpose comes from more than just hurling.
Tragedy has a way of bonding a community together like nothing else and, sadly, Carey Faughs have had their fill of it this year.
Last August the hurling team’s biggest supporter, six-year-old Joe Hegarty, died in a farmyard accident.
His loss was a shocking one because everyone in Ballyvoy knew ‘Wee Joe’. An effervescent ball of energy with a happy habit of putting smiles on faces, Joe’s life revolved around the club.
When his father Michael managed the senior hurlers Joe was his right hand man at every training session as he bounced here, there, and everywhere with a hurley in his hand.
The late, much loved Joe Hegarty.
He was the team’s 26th man, which is why the club had a banner remembering him as such made for the county final against Oisins Glenariffe last month.
There was a quiet determination in the club that they’d win the Antrim Intermediate title this year for Joe. When they did, it was a bittersweet moment.
Sweet because they had done him proud, but bitterly sad he wasn’t there himself to celebrate with the unbridled enthusiasm that was always his calling-card.
“We’ve very much had a roller-coaster year because the triumphs on the pitch have been tempered by tragedy off the field,” says Club Chairperson, Sean McBride.
“Joe was a fantastic young fella who was just full of energy. The current panel would have had a great affinity with him because when Michael was managing the team Joe would have been there all the time. As soon as he could walk he'd always be down at the field.
“The guys on the senior panel would all have a Joe story. They had a great love for him so it was a huge shock.
“It’s tough too for the week kids in the parish, the other six and seven-year-olds, who have had to learn about death too soon, I suppose.
“Coming up to the final it was definitely on our minds. Winning it for Joe was a big thing for everyone. They wanted to win it anyway obviously and it was one of those situations where the management had to try to keep level heads on everyone, but there's no doubt it was an extra source of inspiration for everyone.”
The Carey Faughs hurlers celebrate after their Antrim Intermediate Hurling Championship success.
Whatever bit of extra inspiration Joe gave the Carey Faughs hurlers surely made the difference in their epic Ulster quarter-final win over Tyrone champions Carrickmore.
Late points from Faughs at the end of both normal time and extra-time ensured the game would be decided by penalties, and two brilliant saves by Steven McGinn ultimately sealed victory for the Antrim club.
“It was a unique day for our parish," says McBride. "We were overwhelmed by the number of people who went to the match. It was 80 miles away but a huge crowd travelled. I suppose the Joe factor played a part in that alright.
“It was a tough, hard game for both teams and finishing with penalties isn't a great thing, but thankfully Steven McGinn is a very good goalkeeper and he did really well.
“It wasn't just another round of the competition, that day in Carrickmore just felt like a very special occasion for the parish. Just the fact that so many people travelled, the whole parish seemed to empty.
“We're hoping for a big support on Saturday now as well because everyone has bought into it. People are helping out and doing whatever they can because when you get to this stage there's more stuff involved. People are just ringing up and asking what they can do, that sort of thing.”
Some of Carey Faughs' youngest supporters show their passion for the club.
Saturday’s semi-final against Castleblayney was meant to be played last weekend but had to be postponed when more tragedy struck Ballyvoy with the passing of another well-known member of their tight-knit community, James Black.
"He was very much a Carey Faughs stalwart and would have been very proud of his son young James who's one of our best players, 'Rocket' as we call him," says McBride.
So when Ballyvoy empties on Saturday and the Carey Faughs team and supporters travel in convoy to Carrickmore, they'll be thinking about more than just a match.
As McBride says, hurling binds their community together, but they know more than ever that so does family and friendship and those bonds have never felt stronger in Ballyvoy than they do now.
