Monasterboice native Gerry Winters looks back on his playing career with Naomh Mairtin and Louth, gives his views on the current state of Louth football and talks about his involvement with Clontarf GAA and his role as a director of Invesco Limited.

Gerry Winters has nothing but fond memories of his time as a Naomh Mairtin and Louth footballer.
Based in Dublin for the past two decades, Gerry represented both club and county with distinction in the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s. His rewards included a county IFC medal won with Naomh Mairtin and an O'Byrne Cup souvenir he collected with Louth.
"I didn't win as much as I would have liked, but I have great memories of my playing career," says the 43-year-old company director, who recently pulled on the Naomh Mairtin jersey again to play in a charity reunion match against O'Rahallaigh's. "The reality is that there are many many GAA players who've played for longer than me and have probably less to show (in terms of medals that is) for the dedication - it really is not all about the medals"
"I moved to Dublin when I was 18, but continued playing for Naomh Mairtin for another 13 years after that. The highlight was winning the IFC in 1988 when we beat Naomh Malachi in the final. The club has been senior ever since, but the one big regret I'd have is that we never won the SFC in the 1990s when we lost a number of quarter-finals and semi-finals. In 1994, we were beaten in the quarter-final of the championship, the semi-final of the senior league and the final of the ACC Cup. For a senior club we had a very small but highly committed panel of players and were always there or thereabouts, but just couldn't get across the line.
"I first played for Louth in the under 14 Leinster championship, losing narrowly to Kildare in the semi-final. I then went on to play in the under 16, minor and under 21 Leinster championships. I got the call from the then Louth manager Frank Lynch to join the Louth seniors after playing in a Leinster JFC final. Our best year was 1991 when we won the O'Byrne Cup and beat Longford and Kildare in the championship. Martin Morgan was the other Naomh Mairtin player on the Louth team that year."
Gerry's passion for the GAA was instilled in him by his late father Paddy who was heavily involved in the Naomh Mairtin underage scene when he and his brothers Martin, Fergus and Colm were coming through the ranks (the four siblings later played senior football together). In the early 1980s, Paddy combined the roles of underage chairman and manager, and served as Mid-Louth Board secretary from 1988 to '98. He managed the Naomh Mairtin seniors in 1996 and acted as stats man in more recent times.
Gerry was part of the Paddy Winters/Tony Lynn-managed Naomh Mairtin U14 team that won a Callan Cup in 1982. He subsequently played in U16 and minor championship finals for Naomh Baoithe
"When I played for the Naomh Baoithe U16s we were a combination of Monasterboice, Tullyallen and Collon. But when we played in the the minor final, it was just ourselves and Tullyallen," he explains.
A past-pupil of St. Joseph's CBS in Drogheda, Gerry was also a talented middle distance runner in his youth and wore the Dunleer Athletic Club singlet when winning All-Ireland 800-metre and 1,500-metre titles at U15 and U17 level. Indeed, he still keeps himself in good shape and, along with his three brothers, completed the Gaelforce West event in Westport, Co. Mayo last August.
Gerry has vivid and happy memories of Naomh Mairtin's IFC triumph in 1988. After losing the '86 final to Dreadnots after a replay and being knocked out by St. Mary's the following year, the Monasterboice men finally made the breakthrough following a one-point victory over Naomh Malachi. They were denied a league and championship double that year by St. Joseph's. The team management was made up of Noel Berrill and Nicky Fitzpatrick (selectors) and John Roche and Con Sands (trainers). The team, which was captained by Martin Morgan, was as follows: Shane Cowley, Gerry Callan, Nicky Sullivan, Richard McCormack, Martin Winters, Kevin Lambe, Gerry Winters, Noel Healy, Paddy Sullivan, Raymond Lambe, Martin Morgan, Paddy Holdcroft, David Holdcroft, Tom Rooney, Jimmy Berrill,
"It was a fantastic occasion and a great achievement for the club to go senior for the first time," he recalls.
"I lined out at left half back and as it was only my second year on the senior team, I probably didn't appreciate fully at the time. Martin Morgan scored a late point to give us the win. I played on for a good few years after that before a combination of collarbone and cruciate knee ligament injuries forced me to retire in my early 30s."
Gerry now lives in Clontarf with his wife Ciara and children Mark (11) and Keila (8). He is currently coaching the club's U11 football and hurling teams, both of which Mark is a member of .
"You could say that I'm following in my father's footsteps by getting into the underage coaching. It's something I really enjoy. I've been with the U11s since they were U5s and it's very rewarding to see the progress they're making. We actually brought them to Monasterboice to play Naomh Mairtin last year which was their first inter-county experience and earlier this year we brought them to Belfast. Keila's U8's have also recently started playing matches which is fantastic to see"
"There is a huge emphasis on underage coaching in Clontarf. We have 300 kids in the nursery every Saturday morning with the emphasis on fun and participation for all. Football, hurling and coaching kicks off from 9.30 every Saturday morning September through to June, with very few exceptions. In Clontarf, you're competing with rugby, cricket and soccer, but having said that, we all get on well together. The main thing for the kids at that age is involvement and participation in sport."
A former team-mate of Louth manager Peter Fitzpatrick, Gerry could find himself shouting for the Wee County against his adopted Dublin in next year's Leinster SFC should they overcome Westmeath in the first round. Before then, however, Louth will hope to retain their NFL Division 2 status after winning promotion last spring.
"It will be a huge ask to beat Dublin if they get that far," he admits.
"Dublin have got the monkey off their back by winning their first All-Ireland in 16 years and will probably go from strength to strength over the next few years. Louth is a small county in football terms and has suffered with emigration in the past year or so. But playing in Division 2 will help - playing against better quality teams can only bring them on. All of the top teams are using the National League as a springboard for the championship now and I think Louth should be thinking the same next year.
"Given the draw they've been handed, consolidating their Division 2 status should be their main objective for 2012."
Since joining Invesco Limited 10 years ago, Gerry has seen the company grow from employing 22 staff to 102. Found in 1991, Invesco has offices in Sandyford and Cork and is recognised as the leading Irish-owned firm of Employee Benefits Consultants. "We are successfully competing with some very large US Multi-nationals and indeed view our "Irishness" as a distinct advantage."
Through their Corporate Pensions Division, Invesco provide comprehensive employee benefits, administration and advisory services to a wide range of multinational and indigenous companies. Their Wealth Management Advisory Service provides advice on all aspects of Personal Financial Planning. Invesco's independence, ensures clients receive the expertise and recommendations which are essential in the increasingly complicated financial world of today. Tweet

Most Read Stories