Cullen-Lattin FC, whose home grounds are Ashling Park, located in Cullen, Co. Tipperary, is to receive €5,000 funding under the Texaco Support for Sport initiative launched last September by Valero Energy (Ireland) Limited, the company that markets fuel in Ireland under the Texaco brand.
Open to sports clubs across the 26-counties, irrespective of sporting discipline, size, membership, age, cultural appeal or gender, the initiative saw a fund of EUR130,000 being made available by Valero for distribution in equal amounts of EUR5,000 to successful applicants chosen on a county-by-county basis.
Congratulating the club on its success, James Twohig, Director of Ireland Operations, Valero Energy (Ireland) Limited said, “A feature evident in almost all applications was the pressure felt by clubs in the current circumstances to expand their role within their local communities with increased membership demands and the need for extra equipment and improved facilities.”
“The purpose of our initiative is to help clubs to overcome these obstacles so that they can continue to remain active and at the very heart of their local communities. This is why we believe our initiative has been so warmly welcomed by sports clubs nationwide in its launch year,” he added.
One of almost 400 clubs countrywide to make application under the scheme and finalists in the 2016 FAI Club of The Year, Cullen-Lattin FC is a hub for social and community activity whose clubhouse is available to all community groups. Started in 1982 with a plot of uneven land for a pitch, it now has two full-size astro surface pitches and a walking track.
The €5,000 award made to Cullen-Lattin FC under Texaco Support for Sport initiative will be used to purchase outdoor gym equipment bringing outdoor fitness to everyone along with access to wheelchair users and elderly wishing to combat social isolation and exclusion.
Overseeing the adjudication process was Texaco Support for Sport ambassador, acclaimed broadcaster and former Irish rugby international, Donncha O’Callaghan. Referring to the Cullen- Lattin club as ‘a really worthy winner’, he described it as ‘a club with an incredible sense of community that has experienced difficult times and whose plan to purchase outside equipment will benefit the whole community.’
