Dundalk FC last week visited O’Fiaich College for their Intercultural Week to give a presentation on the ‘Show Racism the Red Card’ campaign to transition year and fifth-year students.
In attendance were Dundalk FC General Manager Paul Johnston, who led the presentation, Community Coach Dean Arrowsmith, Intercultural Officer Damien Mackin, club photographer David Caldwell and work placement staff Kevin McArdle, Seán Hand and Gerard McHugh. The special guests at the talk were first-team players, star goalkeeper Peter Cherrie and young defender Nathan Murphy. “It’s great for the club to get out and about to give these talks,” Arrowsmith tolddundalkfc.com. “The schools around the town have various nationalities so these talks are always well received and the trip to O’Fiaich proved no different.”
The presentation consists of firstly a video presentation of the ‘Show Racism the Red Card’ programme, which features young kids who have been affected by racism, and also shows past and present League of Ireland players such as current Sligo Rovers midfielder Joseph Ndo and ex-Dundalk striker Darren Mansaram. Then following the video there is a question and answer session, with the classes giving their thoughts on what they saw while they also quiz the two guest first-team players on their own experiences in the modern professional game.
“The class responded very well to the video and had lots of input after it,” Arrowsmith added. “It was the first time I was at a presentation with a group of that age and they all had lots of questions about our own club policies and their thoughts on what they saw in the video. A couple of the students won prizes for the questions they asked. It was also very good for the lads on work placement from DKIT to get a glimpse of the work that Paul and the club does to promote the club and the campaigns we support.” The talk ended with a question and answer session with Peter and Nathan.
Speaking on the visit, Johnson said: “Going out into the community to meet with groups is a very important part of our community programme. We are delighted to visit O’Fiaich College during their Intercultural Week to present the ‘Show Racism the Red Card’ programme, which we believe further educates our society and community to the Ireland we live in today. I would like to thank the lecturers and teachers in O’Fiaich College who have always been very receptive to us visiting them and their school to roll out coaching and educational-based programmes.
“I think it is a very valuable experience for the students to see the programme,” the former Dundalk and Derry City striker added, “and in this case to get a chance to see how damaging racism can be in sport and what are the effective ways to combat it. By bringing this to the next level and actually inviting the students to ask our professional players what their experiences have been gives them an insight into their lives and experiences and shows how we can all learn from different circumstances. I know the Dundalk FC players really enjoy getting out into the community and we hope to roll out many more of these visits with schools in our locality.”
