Na Piarsaigh veteran Mark Prendergast on his love of hurling and returning to his club

The return of Cork and Na Piarsaigh stalwart Mark Prendergast to his club after a 14- year absence has brought plenty of positivity back to the northside club.

When Prendergast donned the colours of his beloved club his no-nonsense approach was widely appreciated by his teammates and club officers.

“It all started for me as a young boy when I was introduced to the club by my late cousin Gary Prendergast and from there I played from a young lad right up to senior level,” said Mark.

From an early age, Prendergast represented Cork from U14 level to senior and he was also an accomplished footballer where he mixed both codes with his club.

“I have U21 and Intermediate All-Ireland hurling medals but with the senior I was on the fringes. Look, when you are giving your all and game time is non-existent it was time for me to step away after giving it my best shot."

For the last 23 years, he has resided in Bandon where he played with the club when he first moved down west.

“I coached Bandon in 2012 for a couple of years and logistically it made sense to continue my coaching in West Cork where I had spells with Arigideen Rangers and a few other clubs that I really enjoyed including a camogie spell with Valley Rovers where my daughter played.” 

The call from Paul McCarthy saw him do some coaching when Seandún last competed in the Premier SHC before this season and after defeating Muskerry, they were knocked by a very talented Imokilly side.

A move to Innsicarra followed and they were successful leading them to win the Premier Intermediate hurling championship in 2022, a spell that was really enjoyed by the management team.

“I was with Paul McCarthy and Ken St Leger and although it was a struggle when promoted to Senior A, you can see now the difference once they got some younger blood into the squad and they are back competing with the best as their recent championship win over Carrigtwohill proves.

“To be honest, Inniscarra are a great club with excellent people and facilities and to me, once you leave a club in a better place, you have done your job.” 

Regarding his return to Na Piarsaigh, it was the perseverance of the current manager of their Junior A hurling side Colin Hourigan that convinced him to end his 13-year exile.

“I never fell out with the club, it’s just that logistically it was tough to make a commitment but from attending long pucks and social evenings over the years, the lads were on to me for me to get back involved with some team.

“Colin thought I would have a lot to contribute to the lads on the coaching side and I decided to give a commitment to one night a week. I was also open to two sessions when I was available and to be honest I have got the feel of the club back in my bones.” 

The dedicated Prendergast is also helping Ken O’Sullivan with the junior footballers and life back in his beloved club is all good.

“I think players, no matter what grade they are, need attention and coaching and in fairness to our chairman Colin O’Sullivan and his committee, they are putting in some serious work to keep the club functioning in all departments.” 

The perception that Na Piarsaigh are struggling is something that needs to be erased and he is confident that will change in the coming years.

“Look, we all know the senior team are in transition as we have a mixture of experience and playing coming through the club programme so I think once we stay afloat for a couple of years things will change.” 

Big challenge

Relegation from the Premier Senior Championship deeply saddened Prendergast but all the club is doing its best to get back competing with the elite.

“As Seán Óg said to me before 'we are not the club we were anymore', and maybe getting relegated was inevitable. The Senior A grade is very difficult as all clubs are chomping at the bit to get back up so the lads have a challenge on their hands.

There is very little to choose between any of the teams and I know we will have some players coming back for our next game against Killeagh and we will need them as it’s a crucial one for us to get a result.” 

The return of Ross O’Sullivan will give Na Piarsaigh more artillery and Prendergast believes getting out of the group would give the club much-needed confidence.

“I know the lads will give their all and let’s hope we get the rub of the green for the remainder of the season as you can see by our minor team this season there is some decent talent coming through the club.”