ULSTER rugby has paid a touching tribute to a teenage victim of the 2022 Creeslough explosion with the renaming of a trophy in her honour.
The sporting body said the Ulster Girls’ Youth U-14 trophy is to be named after 14 year-old Leona Harper.
Leona was one of victims who died when a suspected gas explosion caused a retail and apartment complex to collapse in the west Donegal village in October 2022. Ten people, including three children, died in the tragedy. Leona was the last victim to be retrieved from the rubble on the day following the explosion.
A keen rugby player, Leona played for Letterkenny Rugby Club. In a moving tribute to the teenager, Ulster Rugby’s Paula Stewart and Mollie Davies travelled to Letterkenny this week to unveil the new Leona Harper Cup and meet her family.
Letterkenny RFC’s girls’ youth coach, Colin Farrell said the re-naming of the competition meant a great deal to the community in the town.
Mr Farrell, who coached Leona, said: “It’s very important. When Leona passed, her family took great strength from her having been part of a team within the club.
“That closeness and that friendship, they got some strength out of that during a very difficult time. To have the cup named after Leona is a lovely gesture for the family.”
Leona was “still very much talked about” by her teammates. As new generations joined Letterkenny rugby club, they would be told about the teenager, Mr Farrell said. He said future generations would be told about Leona’s story.
The Creeslough families are demanding an independent investigation into what happened. Following a meeting with the Minister for Justice in the Republic last month, the families said serious questions about the explosion remained.
A separate inquiry by Gardaí is continuing with the intention of submitting a file to the Republic’s Director of Public Prosecutions.
