Declan Lynch remains an influential figure for the Antrim footballers.
By Cian O’Connell
Engaging and enthusiastic, Declan Lynch is aware of the crucial phase Antrim GAA is about to embrace.
Small nuggets of good news have been available in recent times with the Casement Park project receiving planning approval last month.
That is a hugely significant development in Belfast so Lynch is encouraged about the future. “It is a long time coming,” Lynch admits.
“To be perfectly honest we should have been at this decision a lot sooner than we are. We have landed on a positive outcome, hopefully we can get the ball rolling. It will be a massive bonus and positive, not just for Gaels across Belfast, but Antrim as a whole and Ulster.
“In terms of the GAA in Antrim I think it will be a massive step forward for us as a county, getting our home pitch back, and at the same time Corrigan Park is being renovated.
“The stand has been finished which is great to see, you have the work of Gaelfast continuing on. So I think there are a number of key issues and initiatives being taken around Belfast.
“It will only improve Antrim as whole, ladies football, men's football, camogie, and hurling too. It is a massive step forward for us.”
Having attending bunscoil Phobal Féirste and Scoil Mhuire the Irish language always carried relevance in Lynch’s life. “There is a path from the naí scoil to the bunscoil,” Lynch responds.
Declan Lynch in Allianz Football League Division Four action against Waterford last month.
“Then instead of going down the normal route of meanscoil or Colaiste Feirste, that it is, I went to St Mary's and continued on with my Irish.
“I was part of Laochra Loch Lao teams that went away as part of Comortas Peile na Gaeltachta. It is a positive step now that they are a fully fledged GAA club in Belfast.
“It is great to see a fully fledged Irish speaking team emerge from everything that has come in the past. It is great, I'm firmly rooted in the Irish speaking.”
That willingness to develop the Irish language and culture is something that matters deeply to Lynch. “Absolutely, I would speak regularly with friends and family as Gaeilge,” Lynch adds.
“When you don't speak it for a while you sort of lose it, but when you are in the middle of a conversation it comes back.
“I make a conscious effort about trying to keep as much Irish as possible, and I'm improving it year by year again, getting back up to a good standard. So I think it is important as we come through the naí scoil and the bunscoil that we continue to drive the agenda of the Irish language.”
It is one of the many areas Lynch remains passionate about. Saturday’s trip to Kingspan Breffni for a tussle with Cavan is the sporting focus.
Ensuring the Antrim footballers stay relevant under the shrewd guidance of Lenny Harbison is the chief item on the agenda.
