Since their formation in 1972, Willow Park FC have gone from strength to strength. On the pitch, the club is represented at all age levels, from schoolboy/girls to senior teams including the ladies, while off the pitch continued development has seen DPD Park turn into one of the finest facilities in the Midlands.
While sporting action is currently halted, Willow Park are well placed to chase honours when play hopefully resumes. Two senior teams represent the club with distinction. Under the dual management of Declan Holohan and David McGuinness, Willow compete in the Leinster Senior League and are well placed to secure another promotion. It is tough competing with top Dublin teams, but Willow have made the transition from the CCFL with ease. Holohan's charges signed off with a good away win against Inchicore and will look to keep winning when play resumes.
Padraig Dully is in charge of the current Combined Counties League squad where Willow are looking to retain their Senior Division title. While lying in fifth position and trailing league leaders Monksland by fifteen points, Willow have five games in hand. Results to date have been inconsistent though but a winning streak could draw Willow closer to their local rivals. It still looks like a major task for Dully's men to hold onto their crown.
In the various underage Divisions of the CCFL, Willow are well represented. In the under 19 Premier Division, Willow lie in fourth position but Edenderry Town still look the most likely to claim the title.
It’s a much brighter picture though in the under 17 Premier Division where Willow have one hand already on the trophy. A great campaign to date has seen Willow with an almost impeccable record. Ten wins and a draw have shot the Willow young guns to the top of the table, six points clear of Mullingar Athletic.
On the schoolboy/girl front, DPD Park is usually a hive of activity each weekend as the upcoming stars turn out in the red and black. The future certainly looks bright with so many players set to progress right through to the senior ranks.
In the Women’s Division, it has been a disappointing campaign by their own high standards for the ladies. Having failed to catch Killeigh last season, it is another blank season as the Offaly team and Mullingar Athletic battle for honours. On their day, Willow are a match for any team but consistency has been lacking as seven wins and four defeats sums up their predicament.
Off the field, the club have continued to show the way. Two fine pitches and an astro turf facility are the envy of many clubs, not only in the Midlands but nationally. The most recent developments of a new dressing room facility show that the club does not intend to rest on its laurels. The set-up is a fitting tribute to all the hard work and dedication put in by so many since humble beginnings in the early 1970s and which is carried forward into the present day by a hard working committee.
