Mar than a player

As the curtain comes down on another memorable weekend for Cliftonville Ladies, all at the Club take this opportunity to congratulate Marissa Callaghan on a stellar career.

The 40-year-old midfielder formally announced her retirement in the aftermath of the Reds’ Irish Cup Final victory over Linfield Women on Saturday evening and was the recipient of the NI Football League’s inaugural Special Recognition accolade at last night’s Women’s Football Awards, where she also claimed the Goal of the Year prize for her stunning strike against the Blues on the opening night of the Premiership campaign.

Though suspension ruled her out of Saturday’s game, her team-mates ensured she was at the forefront of the celebrations as her incredible 27-year association as a Cliftonville player ended with yet more silverware.

It says everything about Marissa’s longevity that her time with the Club pre-dates the keeping of any official statistical records but, as a scorer of more than 100 goals – including one particularly notable effort in a 2023 Champions League encounter with BIIK Kazygurt in Portugal – it goes without saying that she has more than earned her place as a modern day Reds legend and remains an inspirational figure for so many, especially the young players within our Girls Academy.

Part of three Irish Cup-winning squads, Marissa tasted Premiership title joy in both 2022 and 2024, the latter of which was achieved with invincible status as part of a trophy treble that also saw the VBet League Cup and County Antrim Cups paraded at Solitude.

Indeed, the League Cup has been in residence in BT14 for three consecutive years, with the County Antrim crown having also been claimed on more than one occasion during the last decade of Marissa’s career, which also saw her named 2023/24 Ulster Footballer of the Year.

The most capped player in the history of Ireland’s Oldest Football Club, Marissa’s first appearance for Northern Ireland came in a friendly against Scotland in May 2010 and she marked her maiden outing as skipper by scoring twice in a European Championship qualifying victory over Georgia six years later – two of eight goals she recorded on international duty.

As well as being one of six Cliftonville players in the squad at Euro 2022 – the highest Club representation in the NI panel – and contributing to the Reds providing more players at the competition than the likes of AC Milan, Ajax and Liverpool, Callaghan also had the distinction of skippering the side through their landmark first steps at a major tournament.

Her last Northern Ireland appearance came in a goalless draw with Malta at Windsor Park in April of last year and, though she is now also stepping away from the Club stage, there is little likelihood of her being too much of a stranger at Solitude, where she has played an integral, trailblazing role in the development of our Ladies team and Girls Academy set-up.

In thanking Marissa for everything she has done and congratulating her on a remarkable career, we are all too aware that her story with Cliftonville is not finished and we look forward to what the future brings.