While still we are still training online and keeping our skills up to date, we are looking forward to the restrictions easing and beginning to train safely outside.It will be the first time since Christmas that we have trained together face to face.Here is just a few photos of our guys training online and one or two from the past. We hope everyone is keeping safe and hope to see you all soon.

Well done to our members and their families who took on a 24 hour relay challenge in April from Friday 3pm to Saturday 3pm in aid of Daffodil Day. There were 48 half hour slots to fill across the 24 hours and none were left blank. The weather was kind although those hardy enough to fill the slots in the early hours of Saturday morning had to endure sub zero temperatures. Thanks to the organisers. Donations kindly accepted to Daffodil Day 2021.
A reminder to parents to renew their children’s registration now that Juvenile training has resumed. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for full return to training details.A big thank you to our coaches & mentors for sending weekly training plans to keep us motivated while in lockdown. Good luck to everyone preparing for the Portmarnock 5k / 5 mile and the Drogheda 10k that take place in May. Don’t forget to register. Our photos all show those taking part in the Lusk AC 24 hour relay for Daffodil day.

The Executive Committee of Lusk United A.F.C. are delighted to inform you of the great news of our successful application for funding to the 2021 sports equipment grant of Fingal County Council (Sports Office). Lusk United A.F.C. will receive a payment of €2,000 which will partially support the upgrade works to the fencing at our all-weather training area at Station Road, Lusk. The Executive Committee of Lusk United expressed their gratitude to those involved for making this happen and they look forward to working with all stakeholders,particularly Fingal County Council, in delivering these upgrade works over the months ahead. Once again, it has been a busy month for the Lusk United Youth Council, as they continue to work to foster team spirit in our underage players while they are unable to train and play. This month saw the Easter Hunt. Local children firstly enjoyed painting rocks with an Easter theme, then heading out on Easter Sunday, with no doubt a belly full of chocolate, on a hunt for painted rocks. It is so heartening to see the Youth Council go from strength to strength and strive to provide children in our community with such fun activities. Meanwhile, it is all systems go as we prepare for the return to play. Pitches have been fertilised, reshaped and goalposts moved as we make facilities even better for our players and their long awaited return. If anyone wishes to get involved with our club as a volunteer, we would be delighted! The more the merrier as we #workhard and #havefun at Lusk United, aiming to make a better community for all.

At the April Area Committee meeting Cllr Rob O’Donoghue tabled a motion regarding the dangers of future increased traffic along the Station Road ,Lusk, linked to the new housing development and town centre and called for safe crossing points for current and future residents.Cllr O’Donoghue stated that ‘The area will be used by current and new residents accessing the new Lidl which will be constructed post the lifting of Covid restrictions. The increased traffic that this will bring will primarily affect residents of the surrounding estates and nursing home and provision should be made now to ensure the safety of residents accessing the new town centre and our nursing home.’ The response from the Council stated that a number of pedestrian crossings are to be provided, to facilitate access to the new development on Station Road. A zebra crossing will be provided on the Station Road arm of the Remount Roundabout. To the west of the entrance to the Community Centre, a raised table and uncontrolled crossing will be provided to provide access to the new town centre.Cllr O’Donoghue hailed the decision stating that ‘the new town centre will be used not only by residents of Lusk but also of surrounding towns, which will bring revenue into the town and that is welcomed. I am happy to see that the safety of pedestrians is also to be prioritised for residents accessing the new town centre.’

Lusk Tidy Towns recently launched our work programme for 2021. Thank You to the community for collecting litter!. Stay Safe. Pat Kelly (photo by Brian Egan) .

By Brian Arnold

May 2021 is a key month for looking to the future of Fingal and Lusk. The 12th May is the submission date for the first stage of the Fingal Development Plan while the 27th May is the date for submissions on the Fingal Coastal Way. In advance of these dates Lusk Community Council consultants, working on the Lusk Vision 2030, will be giving feedback on what you have told them. We hope that this feedback will help you to frame your submissions for Fingal County Council.We are mid-way through the Lusk Vision 2030, the consultants have completed extensive consultation both online and via virtual workshops. This represents a first for Lusk and the Community Council. The timing is very important as it is helping to frame the submission which will be made to Fingal County Council in advance of the 12th May deadline. We have to emphasise the importance of the Fingal Development Plan which will run to 2029. This document will affect all of our lives, so please take time to thInk about it and make a submission. Your views are what is important. Please do not take other peoples views and reheat them for your submission. Take 15 minutes to think about what you want and sketch out your ideas, write them down and submit via the Fingal County Council consultation portal. Fingal have set out 7 themes to make is easier to connect with and understand the process i.e.1. People & Place , 2. Climate Change,3. Connectivity and movement,4. Employment, economy and Dublin Airport,5. Cultural heritage, 6. Green infrastructure and natural heritage,7. Infrastructure and utilities.Covid 19 has brought so much more information online and Fingal County Council has made great progress in explaining the 7 themes and how you can engage on the new Development Plan via their website . This is important so take your 15 minutes to engage.The level 5 lockdown has prevented the commencement of the construction contract for the Lusk Community Cultural Centre on Church Road. However it is hoped that work will have commenced by the time that you are reading this article. Looking forward over coming months, if thevaccination programme does what we hope it will, we look forward to the reopening of our community facilities in Lusk and Fingal. Fingers crossed. Stay Safe, Suppress The Virus, Protect Each Other.

At the March Area meeting Cllr Rob O’Donoghue tabled a motion regarding the Lusk Sports Hub. Virtual engagement between the Council and the 2020 Sport Group has continued during the current lockdown, the group were advised that further development of the Hub is contingent on the transfer to the Council of the balance of open space zoned land by the developer so that the key sporting infrastructure objectives can be met. Cllr O’Donoghue welcomed the continued engagement and urged the speedy delivery of remaining Class 1 Open Space to the Council for the benefit of the all the community in Lusk.In other Council news, the Fingal Development Plan 2023 - 2029 public consultation was opened on the 12th of March and will be open until the 12th of May. Councillor O’Donoghue ask that the people of Lusk have their say in development of Lusk into the future by making your submission on how you would like to see the town develop on the FCC website. The Council have also committed to bringing the pathway at the top of Orylnn Park which has been in need of repair for some time up to standard in the calendar year.

All may be quiet on the pitches of Lusk United Football Club, but behind the scenes the club is very much active. The club’s Youth Council, newly formed before Covid, are unable to interact with members as first planned…but they’ve not let a pandemic stop them. Rather, they have formed their very own ‘Skillz School’, broadcasting through the club’s social media platforms, urging younger members to get involved and get active. Indeed, The Youth Council took a front seat organising the St. Patrick’s Day Virtual Parade, which was a huge success. We are so proud of these young people getting involved in their club and community in a positive way. Follow their hashtag, #luskutdYC, to keep an eye on what they’re up to. On International Women’s Day, we celebrated our 30% female members aged 18 or under, female mentors and managers, ladies kick fit team and our female volunteers. Our girls team members reflected upon what sport and being part of Lusk United means to them. It was truly heart-warming to hear the girl’s thoughts and reflections. We were delighted to be joined by Jamie Finn, Irish International player. Jamie sent a contribution to the club’s International Women’s Day video, encouraging all girls to believe with determination and hard work anything is possible. Jamie has also been working via zoom with the U-11 girls team during lockdown…ready for the much awaited return to football.One of our academy coaches, left in October to go on tour with The Irish Army. A few months later a message was sent by Coach Paul asking if any jerseys or football boots could be collected and sent to Mali. An SOS call was sent out. We were overwhelmed by the response from the Lusk community, St. Michael’s House and from Paul Keogh of the FAI. A huge shipment was sent to Mali. We are delighted to hear it has arrived safely this week and Coach Paul is back doing what he does best…coaching soccer. All in all a busy month for us, but one which embraces our ethos #workhard #havefun.

The recent Lusk 4 mile Virtual race was a tremendous success with over 700 registrations including over 200 Juvenile entries of the Thomas Ashe Dash. This was the highest number of juvenile entries in a Virtual race since lockdown began. We really appreciate the support of local athletes, other club runners and sponsors in making the event so successful. Thanks also to Annette Foy and Nicole Hodson for organising the event. There were some fantastic times recorded with Darren Ryan and Alex Bell retaining their titles as fastest male and female Lusk AC athletes.We would like to congratulate members for continuing their own training during this extended lockdown. Some of the times recorded over the last few months have been phenomenal and show the hard work being put in is really paying dividends. We are very excited to resume group training once allowed.The 40 day Sunrise Challenge is almost at an end. Well done to everyone who took part.

There is an old saying – the secret to getting ahead is getting started and that’s what we at Junsa have done, instead of waiting for lockdown to finish, and an end to restrictions so we can train together safely , we have gone training , online, and separately but together.Even though our students are safely training at home they are training together where they can still see and chat ( but not too much !) to each other over our Zoom training sessions.While it’s still not the same the students are still keeping their fitness and Taekwondo skills up to date.The club made their kick pads available to the students for home training, which means they need someone to hold the pads,and in steps the mams and dadsw to help out.It’s great to see the parents and guardians getting involved in the students sport.Well done to everyone , and huge thank you to all for the support. Here are some of our students training at home via Zoom.A huge thank you to everyone who has kept up their training online and we hope to see everyone back for training face to face as soon as it’s safe to do so.