Published: Wednesday, 20th January, 2010 11:07am

Carr launches Virginia College careers evening

Students of Virginia College who attended the launch of the careers evening, which is to be held this evening.

Having tasted so much success on the football field in recent years, it was appropriate that Virginia Community College had the current Cavan senior team manager Tommy Carr to launch its annual Career Guidance Evening, which takes place in the college tonight (Wednesday).

Mr. Carr officially launched the evening in the college last Thursday afternoon. The school captured the All-Ireland Vocational Schools title in 2006 and 2007 and has produced players that have played both for local clubs and the county team.

Current teacher Niall Lynch has been heavily involved with the GAA for many years and coached the school to its All-Ireland success. Current and former students have played with local club Ramor United as well as Killinkere, Knockbride, Castlerahan, Munterconnacht, Maghera, Cuchullains, Lavey and Mountnugent.

Introducing Mr. Carr to the students, Seamus Greene, deputy principal, said Mr. Carr was a former county player with Dublin, with whom he won two National League titles and was awarded an All-Star in 1991. He managed Dublin from 1999 to 2001 and later became manager of Roscommon with whom he reached an All-Ireland final.

At present he is the GAA analyst with RTE Radio 1 and is the current manager of the Cavan senior team. "We wish him well in the coming months." He came from an army background and is current managing director of a freight company, Pallet Express.

Mr. Carr said: "I have a daughter who is 14 years old and she has not listened to anything I have said to her about her career for the past two years." Earlier Mr. Greene spoke eloquently about him and what he had achieved, but Mr. Carr didn't feel he had achieved that much as he had muddled his way through life.

"I ended up in the army at 18 years of age because I was useless at everything else." However, he was always interested in the army and while there he gained a third level education and got involved in sport.

Through sport he became involved with the Dublin football team, as a player and manager. This resulted in him entering the media through writing for newspapers as well as appearing on television and radio. Now he's here in Cavan.

"When I left the army I went into business and I'm now on my second company. I look back and say it may not have been the way I planned it but it was interesting and an adventure."

The career evening tonight (Wednesday) is something you have to keep in mind, he said, and it was important that students make the right decision on the careers they choose and don't just float.

"There are groups of people who know exactly what they want to do with their lives." If students had an interest and were not sure about it, go for it. "Don't be afraid to change halfway through a course if you are not happy with it, for another one, but whatever you do give it 100%."

"Give it everything you have got for as long as you are doing it as the benefits are great. We would all like to make a lot of money but whatever course you choose make sure it is one you love. At the end of the day what ever career you go for you have to get satisfaction from it and you need to be happy in what you are doing.

"I would like to see everyone going to college because once you are qualified you can travel, not alone across Ireland, but the world. I wish you the best with your career night and I advise you all to embrace and enjoy it."