Newry and Mourne honour Cooraclare man

COORACLARE man, Martin Donnelly has become only the third person from outside the Newry and Mourne area to be civically recognised by the Newry and Mourne District Council.
At the recent civic reception in his honour, Mayor of Newry and Mourne, Charlie Casey, paid tribute toMartin “for his promotion of Newry and Mourne locally, nationally and internationally all, it must be said, done in a quiet and committed way”.
“A renowned sporting journalist in an article about him declared, ‘Martin should be declared the patron saint of sports promotion. Everything the jovial Clare man lends his assistance to seems to turn to gold’ and when you look at his input and support for sports such as Gaelic games, football, hurling, camogie, ladies’ football, boxing, cycling and handball, you can see why this was written.
“Former world champion, Bernard Dunne; like current Clare hurling manager, Davy Fitzgerald; cyclist Sean Kelly; former soccer player, Niall Quinn;Armagh’s Joe Kernan and Down’s Graham Clarke, are just a few of those who call Martin their friend,” the Mayor added.
Martin emigrated to England at the age of 17 to find work. He returned to establish M Donnelly and Co Ltd in 1980. “His sponsorship of the Clare team, who famously defeated Kerry to lift the Munster senior football title in 1992, is something that Martin will always be remembered for. It was also the reason for his first introduction to our council, as in 1993 the Munster champions visited the area to play Down in a national league fixture and were honoured by the council. Since then, Martin has always retained contact with the area and many in it,” Mayor Casey added.
“There is a genuine respect and warmth for Martin Donnelly and his family by many, all from traditions throughout Newry and Mourne and Ulster. It is with great pride that we can call this Clare man a partner, a supporter, a sponsor but, most importantly, a friend. Tonight, Newry and Mourne Council officially recognise him for his contribution to the promotion of the area and the support of many activities that go on within it,” he concluded.