Nina Carberry to present Roscommon Herald/SuperValu Sportstar Awards this evening

Fri, 08 Mar, 2024 - 10:15

After an absence of four years, the Roscommon Herald/SuperValu Sportstar of the Year gala awards banquet returns to the Abbey Hotel in Roscommon Town this evening (Friday, March 8th).

Fourteen monthly winners, comprising of individual athletes and teams from around the county, will be honoured in handball, rugby, ladies’ football, soccer, golf, camogie, Gaelic football, boxing, para-cycling and rounders.

On the night, the Team of the Year, Junior Sportstar of the Year and Overall Sportstar of the Year for 2023 will be announced.

The late Marie McAleer, widely regarded as Roscommon’s most committed and outstanding administrator, will be awarded the Roscommon Herald/SuperValu Hall of Fame award, posthumously.

Her husband Tiernan alongside daughters Amy and Kara will collect the award in her memory.

Roscommon and Kilbride ladies’ footballer, Aisling Hanly, will receive the Special Achievement.

Aisling, who is one of the county’s most inspirational, skillful and popular young ladies’ footballers, came to prominence nationally early in March 2023 when, ahead of the Convent of Mercy’s All-Ireland schools’ football final, she revealed to the nation in a powerful interview that she was born profoundly deaf.

But Aisling has never let her disability define her and is inspiring a generation of sportspeople, both young and old, to dream big and conquer their goals in life.

South Roscommon native, Heather Payne, who was part of the first women’s senior soccer team from the country to compete at the World Cup finals last summer, will be honoured with the Outstanding Achievement award.

Special guest on the night will be one of the country’s most famous female sporting personalities — former jockey Nina Carberry.

“It’s wonderful to finally bring back these special awards. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since we last held our gala banquet in January 2020.

“No one could have foreseen the impact Covid-19 would have on all our lives but we’ve ridden out the storm and we’re looking forward to welcoming our award winners and their families to the Abbey Hotel for a great night to celebrate all that is good about sport in our county,” said Ian Cooney, Sports Editor, Roscommon Herald.

MONTHLY WINNERS

January: Rory Carthy (handball)

February: Creggs junior rugby squad (rugby)

March: Convent of Mercy senior ladies’ football panel (ladies’ football)

April: Charles Nevin (soccer)

April: Olivia Costello (golf)

May: Roscommon minor camogie panel (camogie)

May: St. Joseph’s U-15 boys’ soccer squad (soccer)

June: Enda Smith (Gaelic football)

July: Aoife O’Rourke (boxing)

August: Richael Timothy (paracycling)

September: Michael Glaveys intermediate men’s rounders team (rounders)