Nenagh gardaí loving their role encourage others to consider joining the force

Two gardaí in Nenagh Garda Station are encouraging other men and women to consider joining the force, saying it can be a very rewarding career.

Inspector Aiden Lonergan has served in the force for almost 20 years and trainee Cormack Boyle joined up last September.

“What I find about working in the force is that no two days are ever the same,” said Aiden.

“You build up a great sense of community and camaraderie with you colleagues, and also in the community you work in because you can see how you can making a difference in solving local crime or tackling anti-social behaviour and other problems in the community.”

Aiden said there are many different specialist career paths available within the force.

“You start off in the front line, but then over time opportunities open up to specialise into different areas, depending on previous training that you have had or interests you have developed as a result of being in the job.”

Areas within the force to specialise in include investigating scenes of crime, roads policing, fraud and much more.

“There is also the opportunity to travel overseas with the United Nations,” says Aiden, who is a familiar figure in the Nenagh District Court where he prosecutes cases on behalf of the State.

He adds: “I really enjoyed the opportunities the job has given me for additional training. I have availed of third level courses sponsored by the force and I got to travel to Bruges in Belgium where I trained in tackling cybercrime.”

Skills learned along the way for those joining the force include areas such as First Aid and driver training. The knowledge gained in these areas have come in handy in his personal life, Aidan reveals.

TRAINEE

Cormac Boyle (29), from Ardcroney, joined the force in September last year as a trainee in the Garda College in Templemore.

An electrician by trade, he previously spent 10 years driving around the country spending long days in a van working in servicing and maintenance in the coffee industry. He was looking for a change and was tempted by the positive stories of some of his friends who had already joined the force.

Cormac is currently on release from the training college and undertaking a ten week placement in Nenagh Garda Station where he is learning the skills of being a fulltime member.

“I get to shadow and experienced garda in his daily duties. This is giving me the opportunity to see all the different aspects of the work of a fulltime garda who has been in the force for 18 years”.

Cormac says: “I absolutely love it. I should have joined years ago. There are so many different aspects to being a garda and many opportunities available.”

According to the force, joining An Garda Síochána will change your life, and the lives of others. From the moment you join, it will be a mix of challenges, rewards, new skills and new friends.

Garda Headquarters say being a Garda is a tough job, but it’s a job worth doing. “Your personal impact on people and the community will give you a sense of achievement like nothing else,” they say.

The 2025 Garda trainee recruitment competition opened in early February and the deadline for making applications is this Thursday, February 27 at 3pm.

HOW TO APPLY

If you are interested in being a Garda you can apply now on www.publicjobs.ie/en/garda-trainee.