Mal Gilbert got together with his brother in law and founder committee member, Daniel Micmacher and Val Giber, one of the original partners in 'Princes' and a long-time supporter of the club, to see what could be done. Victoria Maccabi Snooker Club is now one of the most successful clubs of the Australian Maccabi movement and was the recipient of the first Maccabi Incorporated 'Club of the Year' award in 2003. The club had again outgrown its home at Princes Entertainment Centre due to a refusal by the owners to allow the club any more tables on a Thursday night, but what could be done. One cold and dark Thursday in June 2005 members were directed, not into Princes to play, What is a billiards club but on to two buses for a mystery tour. The patrons included members of football teams, scouts, F.C.A., Gardaí and men from businesses in the town. Canon McMullin's idea was that the boys of the town would play snooker while table tennis (which had a separate committee) would be available to both girls & boys. The life of a professional is a very hard life in the way of work, and though a sound batsman, who is of steady habits, like poor Shrewsbury, can play for a long while, the fast bowlers are overweighted with the constant labour of bowling on too perfect wickets, and they cannot keep their pace and skill for much more than six or seven years.

It may not be obvious what difference this makes to English cricket, but nevertheless on more than one occasion there has been friction, and it is notorious that the bone of contention is to be found in the fact that the English professionals have a somewhat well-founded idea in their minds that the Australian cricketers are really professionals like themselves, and they should in both countries stand on the same footing. But in many counties are to be found gentlemen who like to have first-class cricket in their county, and a county cricket club is founded. Now I ask you, gentlemen, if these things are to be tolerated? That is all that you, as a stranger, will see; as to the Paris of work and self-denial, it will be hidden from you. George T. Gallagher of Gallagher & Harvey was hired as the contractor and work began around 1950/51, although the exact date is uncertain.

Neil Gillespie of Malin Rd., Moville was commissioned on November 14, 1951 by Mr. Gallagher to supply the oak front door and frame, plus five other doors. This suggests that the clubrooms were completed sometime in the winter of 1951. My thanks to Patricia McCalliog for locating this information from her father's records. The clubrooms were opened and blessed one Sunday after Mass in 1952 by Canon McMullin and Fr. Canon McMullin died on Wednesday, October 27, 1954 and such was the esteem in which the man was held that his funeral made the front page of the Donegal Democrat. Mickey arranged for a team from Ballyshannon to play in Donegal and the visitors won well. It ought to be possible to lay out links where each style of play should have its turn. Sean Muldoon and John McGettigan were two guys who seemed to only play each other! John Hanna's father played both table tennis and tennis and even won the table tennis County Championship. Many of the members of the snooker club also played table tennis. Packie Hanna played table tennis in Strabane and in other venues. John Hanna, Packie Hanna and Jack Keeney recall playing around the foundations of the Water Street venue when it was being built.

It was 3d a game when John Hanna started in the fifties. It has provided the club with its only written record from the fifties and solves the puzzle as to when the club was built. An impossible dream of Mal and others in the club was to have its own venue, but the limited finances always held them back. Sadly, no other records have been found, either in the parish records or the diocesan archive. In this feature, you have a free lucky shot to win prizes. He recalls Canon McMullin telling the committee to go away and decide what they wanted and they did; a second storey on the building which could host fundraising functions was mooted but rejected on the grounds that it would cost too much. A proposal to build a snooker venue was put to the local clergy at the time and after protracted discussions, the parish (administered since 1937 by Canon McMullin) agreed to construct it on the grounds made available with the demolition of the cottages at the bottom of Water St. and Church St. Patsy Meehan remembers playing and attending fairs on the site of the new club.