St Michael’s GAA club set for United States voyage 

St Michael’s GAA club are off to the United States for the weekend.

The trip, organised in conjunction with Philadelphia-based Creeslough native Seamus Sweeney of Kildarragh Construction, will see 41 club members take in Philadelphia and New York.

On Saturday, St Michael’s will play a USA Select at Limerick Park in Philly before taking in the Galway-New York fixture in the Connacht Senior Football Championship on Sunday at Gaelic Park in New York. 

“It was organised between ourselves and Seamus, who has a long association with the club,” says St Michael’s clubman Liam McElhinney, who was part of the organising group, 

“We have a lot of players at a stage where they have never been away as a team together. We’re really looking forward to it. It’s a great chance for the team to get away as a group. I finished up as the Chairman last year and said we’d do something. We’ve a lot of lads playing for years who haven’t got this chance.”

The club has strong ties to the US, with the links to Sweeney in Philadelphia particularly strong. The late Danny Doohan and Danny McLaughlin were firm roots for the club in New York before their respective passing.

“Seamus is really looking forward to the visit,” McElhinney says. “Seamus has a function organised for us with the Donegal Association in Philadelphia on the Saturday evening.

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“It’s a great trip for the team to get. Seamus has been brilliant for the club over the years and it’s brilliant for us to get a chance as a club to go over to him.”

St Michael’s players Martin McElhinney and Daniel McLaughlin, who were members of the Donegal squad that won the All-Ireland in 2012, will also take part in a coaching session during the trip.