IF you take a journey through the heart of West Belfast, make a small detour at the Falls Road Translink bus station and then head up the Glen Road, you could reach the Roddy McCorley Heritage Centre and because you blinked ten seconds before it you'd miss the current home of St Teresa's GAC.
Despite its exploits on the field, the club has been overshadowed in recent years by its close neighbours St Paul's, Rossa and Sarsfields. However, the thought of having a brand-new state-of-the-art facility overlooking the city is what gives many involved with the club hope for the future.
St Teresa’s GAC at Glen Road Heights had submitted a planning application for an extension to the existing clubhouse to provide an indoor sports hall, changing rooms, reception, a fitness suite, and a new pitch.
The plans also includes a proposed relocation of a grass pitch and the creation of a new 3G training pitch with integrated ball walls, as well as a new building to be used as a club store and match day shop. Other site works will include increased parking, new fencing, catch nets, floodlighting, dugouts, and paths. It was given the green light by Belfast City Council in March.
"We've been involved in this process since before Covid," explained club chairman Liam McGoldrick.
"It started in 2018 and we were hoping to get this planning permission approved in the years that followed and the housing development that was in progress back then we thought it was ideal to look at our options for the future.
"Despite obviously the Shaws Road clubs, we really are the only club in our area and we as a club decided that with the development going on around us that we wanted to plan for our future and that meant that despite being a GAA club we wanted to be a community club too and involve the new families set for those homes.
"We were aware of the first phase of 90 new homes, and then 250 homes in the second phase, so this has been apart of our planning knowing that the area is set for a big development and we plan on making them part of our future too."
On the sporting side, St Teresa's have been desperate to make their return to the big-time since they last won an Intermediate Championship in 2013. And have had an appearance in the final as recent as 2024.
"We want to allow our club to develop and bring the community in with that, that is our key goal," added Liam.
"We want to improve the club and to compete once again at the top level in Antrim, it's always been our aspiration and to get there we need a base-line facility to try and give us a chance at breaking into the top-tier once again."
Just last week the first spade hit the dirt as the expected £43 million housing development in the Glen Road began, and with 140 new families headed for the area, that is something that Liam will hope to breath new life into St Teresa's youth development programmes.
"Hopefully, that is part of the process," continued Liam. "As we develop as a club and enhance our facilities, yes we want children and adults to come along and play our sports, but we also want our facilities to available to the community.
"We are not a selfish club, we are aware that given our location on the Glen Road that there are very few opportunities for this size of a development in our area, we want to open up the site to everyone whether it be a school or a youth club.
"At the minute we have facilities too like changing rooms and clubrooms and of course the pitches. If we really were centre-focused on developing the club then we'd earmark this funding just to improve that but we want to be a presence in our home area, we know the Glen Road has had its problems and we want to be a solution and have offered that to the community since the club formed in 1963."
Liam hopes the new facilities can be used as an olive branch to the local community.
"We used CBS, St Mary's and Cross and Passion back in those days, so we have looked at that and want to re-establish that connection with the schools in the community with St Teresa's and St Oliver Plunkett Primary School on our door-step and multiple youth clubs.
"We want them to feel at home with the new facilities and open our doors to them.
"I know the primary schools especially have a limited amount of facilities for sport and that is where we can come in and offer that hand of friendship.
"The club is set to build a new Sports Hall and a 3G pitch to facilitate smaller games and we are not silly, we know we won't use this every day of the week but it can be a chance for the Glen Road to have a hub for all sports and we hope that everyone can look forward to the development in the area.
"It will be great to have a home pitch where we can train all year round, and that is often a big barrier to competing I think.
"These knew facilities will keep us on the Glen Road at our home pitch and training facilities whether it be rain, sleet or shine and we really look forward to that aspect of the development, truly making Glen Road Heights a home for St Teresa's GAC."
Liam hopes the new facilities will give his club a chance to tap-in to developing the next generation of GAA stars, and the facilities will improve their chances of hosting a Cúl Camp or a summer scheme of their own.
"During the summer months it will be key to have a chance to host more summer schemes and Cúl Camps at the club," he said.
"Parents work and need a childcare option when the schools are off and we can hopefully look to be that outlet for them and become an affordable spot for children to develop their Gaelic and hurling skills when the books and pens are put away.
"This development is more than just for the club, but it shows how we as an area are set to get a major improvement which is great news."
