Supporting Derry GAA
August 09, 2010H&A Mechanical Services Ltd in Draperstown, Magherafelt isn't just synonymous with the design, supply, installation and maintenance of heating systems; it is also synonymous with the local GAA scene through its sponsorship of the Derry All-County Football Leagues and the county's camogie teams.
Established in 1993 by husband-and-wife Hugh and Anne McWilliams, the company has experienced phenomenal growth since then to firmly establish itself as Northern Ireland's leading provider of heating installations, electrical works and building works. H&A Mechanical Services has successfully completed in excess of 10,000 heating installations for customers throughout the North and is now making major indoors into the same market in the Republic, which has led to the opening of a second office in Clane, Co. Kildare. The company employs 170 in total.
Over the past 17 years, H&A Mechanical Services has worked on a diversity of projects from individual homes, public and private sector residential developments and commercial industrial products. In 1999, they became the first ever winners of the highly prestigious Phoenix Natural Gas 'Installer of the Year' award. More recently, H&A was awarded the contract for the new Warm Homes Scheme in Northern Ireland, which is the Social Development Department's primary tool in tackling fuel poverty.
The company, whose large fleet of trucks and vans are a familiar sight on Irish roads, has learned that the best guarantee of a job well done is close personal contact and consultation with the customer through every stage of the project. Its business is based around three key fundamentals - design, install and maintain.
Given its location in the GAA stronghold of South Derry and the fact that many of its management and staff are actively involved in the Association, it seems entirely fitting that H&A is one of Derry GAA's main sponsors. It has been sponsoring the Derry All-County Football Leagues and the county's camogie teams for the past few years and even fielded a team in the Ulster inter-firms football competition until recently.
"As a rurally-based company which is situated in a renowned GAA heartland, you won't be surprised to hear that most of the conversations revolve around the GAA," says Lavey clubman Martin Collins, who is a director in the company along with owners and founders Hugh and Anne McWilliams, Denis Haskins and Margaret McCrystal.
"Gaelic football is a daily topic of conversation among the staff. We employ a lot of players and club members, particularly from the local club Ballinascreen. Ballinascreen is one of Derry's most famous GAA clubs, with the county team having played their home matches there for many years. The club has produced many outstanding players down through the years, with the best known of them being Tony Scullion, who was arguably the best corner back in the country in the early 1990s.
"Ballinascreen is currently represented on the county panel by Seamus Bradley, who works with us and was a key member of our inter-firms team along with the likes of Sean Woods, who also plays for Ballinascreen."
Martin continues: "I'm sure it won't be too long before Seamus is joined in the county set-up by his club colleague Carlus McWilliams, who is Hugh and Anne's son, and was full back on the Derry minor team that reached the All-Ireland final three years ago. Derry lost that final to a last-minute Galway goal and I've no doubt that Carlus has ambitions to atone for that disappointment with the seniors in the not too distant future."
Martin himself hails from a well-known GAA family in Lavey. While Lavey is better known for its football (it won the All-Ireland club football championship in 1991 and has produced players of the calibre of 1993 Derry All-Ireland winners Henry Downey, Seamus Downey and Johnny McGurk), it also boasts a proud hurling tradition. Martin played both codes at underage level, but hurling has always been his passion and he won numerous county championships with the Erin's Own in the 1980s and 1990s.
His brothers Ollie and Michael both played county hurling. Ollie also represented Ulster in the Railway Cup and received an All-Star nomination in the late 1990s.
Martin reveals that H&A Mechanical Services is proud to sponsor the Derry All-County Football Leagues.
There are five divisions in the Derry All-County Leagues, which are keenly contested each year. Division 1 is the top league which is entered by the leading eight senior clubs in the county who play each other twice. The team that finishes top automatically wins the league, while the bottom-placed team is relegated to Division 2, to be replaced by the Division 2 winners The team that finishes seventh enters a relegation/promotion playoff with the team that finishes second in Division 2. The same format applies in the other divisions. The current Division 1 holders are Glenullin, whose star players are the Bradley brothers, Paddy and Eoin. Ironically, they were also the inaugural league winners way back in 1927.
"The league is the second most important competition in Derry after the championship," Martin says.
"It is tied into the championship in that teams can achieve promotion to the senior and intermediate ranks by winning their divisions. So that certainly adds to the competitiveness of the leagues. Teams view the leagues as another way of climbing the ladder.
"Glenullin are the reigning Division 1 champions, but you can be the sure the likes of Ballinderry, Slaughtneil and Dungiven will be trying their utmost to take their crown this year. Ballinascreen and Lavey are also doing quite well which is good to see from my own point of view."
H&A Mechanical Services has also been sponsoring the Derry county camogie teams since 2007. In the first year of the sponsorship, Derry defeated Clare in the All-Ireland junior championship final at Croke Park, which ensured H&A of extensive television and newspaper coverage. The decider was one of the most dramatic ever played at GAA headquarters with Derry snatching victory from the jaws of defeat thanks to Aisling Diamond's decisive goal seven-and-a-half minutes into injury-time.
The Derry camogs have enjoyed a successful start to 2010 with their under 16 team defeating Limerick by 3-9 to 1-16 in the recent All-Ireland 'B' final. Derry also claimed the Ulster under 18 title following a 3-4 to 0-10 victory over Antrim, while Barney McGrellis' seniors have put themselves in a strong position for provincial honours after powering to a 5-19 to 1-7 victory over Antrim, a game in which Karen Kielt helped herself to 2-9.
No doubt, Derry camogie's chief sponsor will be hoping for more of the same in the coming months! Tweet
