CARRICK ROVERS ENDORSED AS AN OFFICIAL FAI PLAYER DEVELOPMENT CENTRE AS IRELAND INTERNATIONAL SOCCER MANAGER AND TWO MINISTERS VISIT NEW PITCHES

By Veronica Corr

Monday was a big day for Carrick Rovers, as the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) rolled into town, to give the club its official seal of approval, the ‘FAI Club Mark 1 Star Award’, recognising Carrick Rovers as a Player Development Centre. Minister for Sport Catherine Martin visited her hometown for the event and she was accompanied by her husband Deputy Francis Noel Duffy, whom Carrick Rovers’ Chairperson David McSharry credited with having painted the original club crest. County native, Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys was also there for the landmark event in the history of the expanding club, during which Carrick Rovers revealed their new pitches, still being developed on the Convent Lands.

The group of invited guests visited the club’s traditional grounds on the Ballybay Road too. Speaking to The Northern Standard on the day, Irish International Soccer Manager Stephen Kenny said that the region had a special place in his heart because he still lives in Louth and used to manage Dundalk FC. There…