Former Athlone Town goalkeeper, Anthony 'Jelly' Keenan was honoured at the recently hosted Shay 'Muscles' O'Brien tournament, during which a veritable feast of underage football graced the vast green swathe in Gainstown, the home of Mullingar Athletic.
Over the course of two days clubs from the Midlands region competed for honours with a wealth of talent on display as the memory of the late great Seamus 'Muscles' O'Brien was brought to the fore.
The cup final saw Mullingar Athletic AFC play St Joseph’s Athlone in a great game with Mullingar coming out on top on this occasion with a 2-1 win. It surely was an emotional day for Shay O’Brien managing the Mullingar team, whose son Dillon had a great game in goal. Shay would lift his father’s trophy for the first time since the tournament started and it must have been a very proud day for the O’Brien family.
Willow Park emerged victors in the shield final, the team performing excellently throughout the tournament.
The late Anthony 'Jelly' Keenan was honoured during the tournament this year, Zac Mullally winning the inaugural goalkeeping award with a string of fine performances.
David and Andrew Keenan, representing the Keenan family, had the hard task of choosing the eventual award winner, Mullally being the favoured custodian following the tournament's conclusion.
Padraig Nicholson recalled his memories of 'Jelly' and how he had indeed managed 'Jelly' during his playing days with Athlone Town. He recalled converting 'Jelly' from the outfield player to goalkeeper and the rest they say is history!
