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Best wishes to Ballinagore & Westmeath GAA, from
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Rising star Brandon Carey
“Even allowing for the knee injuries that sidelined both Stewart Gavin and I, I thought we should have done better last year. We had Thomas McDaniel back from Australia and the young lads were a year older. But the team pulled out the big performance when they had to, and you have to give them credit for that.” Outside of the performance against Kilbeggan in the relegation playoff replay, other highlights from the year included the Ballinagore GAA Gathering on December 14 and the success of the St. Malachy’s/Ballinagore U16 team. Under the tutelage of Liam Glennon, they defeated a fancied Mullingar Shamrocks by 1-12 to 1-8 to claim Division 2 championship honours, with Paddy Doody scoring 0-8 from centre forward. The same team were also Feile Shield champions in 2011.
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The Ballinagore team which defeated Kilbeggan to retain their intermediate status was: Cathal Daly; Mark King, Marty Linnane, Kieran Deegan; Dan Gavin, James Sheerin, Enda Claffey; Ian Seery, Michael Ennis; Paul Maloney, Rory Tynan, Frankie Deegan; Cathal Ennis, Thomas McDaniel, Ciaran Carey. Subs used: Brandon Carey, Brian Sheerin and Shane Heraty.
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The victorious St. Malachy’s/Ballinagore U16 team: Paul O’Sullivan; Joseph Fagan, James Bermingham, Brendan Heeney; Shane Meehan, Pauric Kincaid (captain), Eoghan Mullarkey; Conor Kane, James Murphy; Michael Creegan, Paddy Doody, Brian Pidgeon; Naoise McKenna, Ben Glennon, Cormac Deegan. Subs: Willie Hayes, Cathal Clarke, David Boyne, Stephen Clarke, Ciaran O’Brien, Fiachra Heeney.
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MARYLAND
MARYLAND KEEN TO BOUNCE BACK
County star Callum McCormack
H
aving reached the county senior football championship semi-final for the first time in 68 years in 2012, Maryland entered last year’s campaign with high hopes of emulating that achievement. However, nothing can be taken for granted as they found out to their cost. Since winning the intermediate title in 2008, the Drumraney-based outfit have comfortably retained their top flight status, but last year will go down as a very disappointing campaign for them. Maryland were placed in a group alongside The Downs, Mullingar Shamrocks, Bunbrosna, Castletown Finea and Athlone. Their exploits the previous year made Maryland and defending champions Mullingar Shamrocks the favourites to fill the two top spots in the group. Club assistant secretary and player
Anthony Reynolds admits to Maroon & White that the 2013 campaign was a bitter disappointment, but stressed that all the players were keen to make amends this year. “We definitely went into last year’s campaign with high hopes. Having reached the county semi final the previous was a huge boost for us and we wanted to build on that but for some reason, we just never really got going,” said Anthony. “We were doing hard training from early in the year and the fact that the championship is so drawn out, I think lads just got fed up, which showed in our performances.” Despite this Maryland began the campaign with a win against The Downs in their opening match as they won by 1-08 to 0-06. “We beat The Downs in the first game, but we didn’t play that particularly well. It was good to get the win, but then there was a break of about six weeks to the next
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match and that didn’t help us at all.” The second match of the group stages saw Maryland take on Mullingar Shamrocks, a side they had beaten at the same stage 12 months earlier. Another close contest ensued, although it was Shamrocks that came out on top on this occasion as they recorded a 1-09 to 0-08 win. “We actually played a lot better in this game and had we taken our goal chances we would have won. There was two occasions in the second half when we were through on goal, but neither effort was converted and that cost us.” The blues then met Bunbrosna in the third round and having lost their previous match, a win was essential to keep their hopes of reaching the knockout stages alive. However, it was the blues of Bunbrosna that were celebrating at the final whistle as they won by 1-10 to 108. “I was on holidays for this game and I couldn’t believe when I rang to
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Bryan O’Donoghue
see how the game was going as we were well behind at half time. We fought back in the second, but it wasn’t enough.” Athlone then produced a gritty performance to run out winners by 014 to 0-10 in the penultimate group game and this meant unless a win against Castletown Finea/Coole/Whitehall was obtained then a relegation play off was a distinct possibility. “It was another poor performance against Athlone, but we had the chances to win the match too and once again the fact that we couldn’t convert
John Reilly
Ronan Moran
our goal chances meant we lost. “It was disappointing to be in the position that we were in heading into that last group game. Nonetheless, there was a job to be done and none of us wanted to be facing into a relegation play off.” If Maryland had trouble finding the back of the net in their previous games, then they rectified that problem by the last game as they hit four goals past Finea to help them ease to a 4-10 to 2-08 win. “It was a relief all round to get the win. That was our last match of the year as we had all our league games played
Darren Malynn
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Christy Grimes
and even though it was only the first of September, I think we were glad of the break. It had been a long year having started heavy training in early January and then with the break between games as well, it just seemed very difficult to get the momentum going. Despite 2013 being a year to forget at senior level, the club’s underage structure continues to flourish as they are competitive at most grades, which has seen a steady flow of youngsters come through to the senior ranks. “We do get one or two through from the minor ranks most years. I think this year it could just be the one though as
maryland designed_Layout 1 27/03/2014 15:19 Page 3
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Liam Reilly
John Reilly
Thomas Moran
James Ganley
Kenny Kincaid
Keith Malynn comes through, while last year Brian O’Donoghue was part of the squad. Numbers are tight enough at underage, but every few years, we seem to get a few coming through. Fortunately, we have had some success joined with Tang and hopefully we can have some more in the near future.” Anthony believes that 2014 can be a progressive year for the club as they begin their preparations for this year’s campaign. “Brendan Clarke has been appointed manager and we have started back training, but we are only doing one night a week, which is probably enough at this time of year. “We will be without Joe Harte again as he is gone back to Abu Dhabi but we have Eoin Farrell back with us after four years and he will be a huge boost to us, although we certainly won’t be taking anyone for granted in this year’s championship. I think that could have been some of our problem last year.” Maryland have been placed in a group defending champions St Loman’s, 2012 champions Mullingar Shamrocks, Castledaly, The Downs and Killucan. Anthony feels that all teams in the group will be quietly confident of progressing to the knockout stages. “Obviously, St Loman’s and Shamrocks will be favourites to come out of the group, but any team in that group is capable of beating the other. Castledaly were county champions in 2008, The Downs shortly before that while Killucan were in the semi-final only a few years ago. Their all good teams, while we want to get back to where we were two years ago and hopefully even push on further. “But, I think it will be a case of taking it one game at a time this year and see what happens. Castledaly is the first game of the championship and that is what we will be focusing on.”
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Kieran Martin
Trevor Farrell
Ronan Farrell
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ST. MALACHY’S David Lynch raises the IFC trophy
T
NOTHING BUT THE BEST FOR LEAHY
wo-thousand-and-thirteen proved to be a momentous year for the St Malachy’s and Castletown Geoghegan clubs as they achieved the coveted ‘double’ of football and hurling titles. For St Malachy’s this meant a return to the senior ranks after a one-year absence, but if anyone thought their rise back to the top table would be a forgone conclusion then they were very much mistaken. Following their relegation in 2012, the club moved swiftly to appoint a new coach/manager for last year’s campaign. The players were unanimous in their thoughts on who they wanted to lead them into the intermediate campaign and the club agreed as former Westmeath ladies joint manager Peter Leahy was approached to take the role.
Peter had worked with Alan ‘Buddha’ Mangan as part of the Westmeath Ladies’ management team, while through his previous work with Westmeath hurlers, a lot of the dual players also know what the Galway native could bring to them and an agreement was made for Peter to manage the side, while Mick Reynolds and Tommy Lynch were appointed selectors. However, there were a few eyebrows raised when Peter informed the players that they would start training in November, 2012 as they embarked on 12 weeks training on the club’s astro turf pitch. However, first and foremost Peter had to address the ‘issue’ of training so many dual players, but he revealed that this was something that was cleared up in no time. "Hurling is the number one sport in
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Castletown; always has been, always will be. Malachy's were always pushed to the side. It wasn’t so much an issue, but it was something that had to be discussed," stressed Leahy. "We came to a great compromise. Pat O'Brien saw the benefit of it, I'm a qualified strength and conditioning coach and he saw that we could get the hurlers a lot fitter to be able to play a more expansive game. Pat's a genius with hurlers and he saw the benefit of it. “Like I said I am a fully qualified strength and conditioning coach with a lot of experience in ‘on the field training situations’. As well as being a conditioning coach I am a trainer and a manager and coach of both rugby and GAA and hold all the relevant badges in both codes. I have also trained individuals in Athletics and MMA. I have estimated that I have
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The Intermediate Football champions, front l/r: Mick Heeney, Niall Gunning, Sean Whelan, Eamonn Og Clarke, Johnny Bermingham, Adam Kerroum, David Lynch, Conor Keegan, Darren Ruane, Neal Kirby, Robert Burge, Sean Fallon, Joe Clarke, Shane Clavin, Kieran Glennon. Back: Mark McDermott, Jordy Cassidy, Alan Mangan, Eddie Bouabbse, Dean McDermott, Alo Geoghegan, Gary Jackson, Johnny Tuite, Paddy Maloney, Luke Cassidy, Liam Varley, David Langan, Sean Mullarkey, Stephen Fagan, Alan Kincaid, Niall O Brien, David Sheahan, David Lynam
trained over 1,200 sports people in all sporting activities over the last six years. Field sports are my speciality.” Some of the roles that Peter has held down through the years include Head Coach of Mullingar RFC, Westmeath senior hurling team trainer, manager of UCD O'Connor Cup Team. Specialist set piece rugby coach and forwards rugby coach as well as specialist front row coach. “When we started off in November, we had 30 lads out training and gradually the players bought into what we were trying to achieve,” added Peter. St Malachy’s went in to the competitive campaign in top form and confidence was high as their league form would reflect as they went on a winning streak. Then the first round of the
championship came and Shandonagh provided the opposition. Leahy’s charges were firm favourites to get off to a winning start, but it was not to be the case on the day as they received a shock when the sky blues recorded a 1-11 to 0-12 victory. “We had started the league very well, but I think the Shandonagh match was the making of our lads. It really brought it home to them that if they were going to achieve their goal of winning the championship that they were going to have to work even harder.” Their next outing saw them play a Tubberclair side that are always thereabouts at the business end of the campaign, so a stiff test was expected, but St Malachy’s had certainly learned from their opening round defeat and they recorded a 0-15 to 0-08 win. “I definitely feel that this was their
best performance of the championship, they really hit top form and everything went right on the day. We knew we had to win and the players showed great determination.” With the campaign up and running, the Castletown-Geoghegan based outfit were brimming with confidence as they tore Ballymore to shreds in a 4-12 to 0-08 win. Everything seemed to be going smoothly and already one eye was on a place in the knockout stages. Nonetheless, the performance against Ballynacargy in August brought everything crashing back to earth with an almighty thump as Leahy’s troops suffered a 4-11 to 1-08 loss. Peter revealed that there was many questions asked after this defeat. “We found out that some of the lads weren’t properly prepared for the
St. Malachys/Ballinagore U16 Division 2 Championship winners, front l/r: Brendan Heeney, Stephen Clarke, Ciaran O'Brien, Brian Pidgeon, Paddy Doody, Naoise McKenna, Paul O'Sullivan, Eoin Mullarkey, Shane Meehan, Fiachra Heeney. Back: William Hayes, Conor Kane, Cormac Deegan, Padraig Kincaid (Captain), Joseph Fagan, James Murphy, James Bermingham, Ben Glennon, David Boyne, Michael Creegan, Cathal Clarke
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St Malachys/Ballinagore, U14 Division 2 Championship Runners Up
David Lynch
Ronan Whelan
game. We ended up having a meeting with the two clubs, which Pat O’Brien and I chaired. “It was ironic that two tea-totalers would be preaching to young lads. So with the help of some of the more experienced lads like Alan Mangan and Joe Clarke we agreed to there
Joe Clarke
Niall O’Brien
Jordy Cassidy
would be a drinking ban put in place, which lasted 15 weeks. “We just put it on the line to them what they could achieve if they prepared properly and in fairness to them, they knuckled down after this and worked even harder.” Peter admits that dealing with so
Liam Varley
Darren Ruane
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Padraig Kincaid accepts the U16 ttrophy
many young players means that you have to take a different approach to coaching and in particular player management. “You have to show younger lads what they can get out of it. There is no substitute for hard work and even us as coaches learn from every game
Sean Whelan
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that’s played. “I suppose one of the problems for the younger lads was that they had won so much at underage, they probably thought that it was a natural progression to continue that at adult level, but as we all know, there is a huge step up from underage to senior.” St Malachy’s recorded a facile 5-19 to 0-10 win over neighbours Kilbeggan Shamrocks in their last group game to secure their place in the quarterfinal where another team with genuine designs on winning the IFC, Tang provided the opposition. Another stellar performance by the men in red and black saw them emerge victorious on a scoreline of 011 to 0-08, which earned them a place in the semi-final where Milltownpass were waiting. Once again St Malachy’s had to dig deep to see off the challenge of their opponents, but they eventually did get to grips with the match in the second
The cream of the intermediate grade in 2013
half to lead by 0-11 to 0-07 at the final whistle. The final itself pitted Caulry up against Leahy’s side. Both sides were evenly matched throughout, but Caulry needed a last gasp point to earn a draw after Alan Mangan had hit 1-05 in the (his goal from the penalty spot in a 0-14 to 1-11 draw. The replay was played six days later and this time around it was St Malachy’s who proved too strong for the men from Mount Temple who must wait at least another year before they join the senior ranks. While only a goal separated the sides at the finish, The Saints led by eleven points at one stage in the second half. Amazingly Peter O’Leary’s side failed to raise a flag for the final 26 minutes and should have been more comfortable winners than the final score-line suggests. The final score was 1-13 to 0-13. “We learned a lot from the drawn
The players and management celebrate their success
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game. In it we were totally dominated at midfield, both on our own kickouts and theirs. But, in the replay we won 80% of the possession at midfield and this was the key to our victory. We were well on top in the replay and should have won by more.” Peter pointed out that at the start of the year he felt that the team was capable of winning a Leinster title and even going on further. “Definitely I was aiming to win the Leinster title and if we got to an AllIreland semi-final, who knows what could have happened. The lads went a bit crazy after they had won the double though and we didn’t get to prepare right for the Leinster club.” St Malachy’s were defeated by Louth outfit Geraldines and both they and Mount Leinster Rangers (who defeated Castletown Geoghegan in the Leinster club SHC) went on to win their respective provincial championships.
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St Malachy’s had achieved their goal of returning to the senior ranks at the first attempt and to say that this was a team effort would be a huge understatement. “Throughout the championship, we had 31 players take to the field, which is a huge number of players to feature. At times during the year we had 40 lads out training, which I believe would be unheard of for St Malachy’s.” As we head into the 2014 campaign, Peter acknowledges the fact that the players have just had a long year and he knows that they needed a well-deserved break. “We were more or less at it for the full 12 months from training the previous November, so the lads definitely needed a break and that is why we didn’t go back until February. We have a tough year ahead of us, but my aim would be to get to a senior semi-final. “Apart from the top four of St Loman’s, Tyrrellspass, Mullingar Shamrocks and Garrycastle, the rest of the sides are very evenly matched and on our day we are well capable of beating any of them. If we can make it out of the group then anything can happen in the knockout stages. We have some extremely talented footballers and there’s no reason why we can’t reach the last four.”
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RAHARNEY
DEELSIDERS EAGER TO MAKE AMENDS
Brian Connaughton
A
t first glance, some might say that Raharney had a bad year, which would be true of their senior campaign as they succumbed to Castletown Geoghegan at the quarterfinal stage. The pessimists were soon stating that Raharney were a spent force and that the current side would break up. However, winning the county minor championship suggests something different altogether. Manager of that minor side was Johnny Greville who guided the club to senior success in 2010 and he speaks to the Maroon & White about the title win and his return as senior manager for the coming year.
Johnny was a selector with the county hurlers in 2013 also and he admits that he has learned a lot from that experience, although he stressed that coaching at minor and adult level are two totally different roles. “I was involved with the under-16s a few years back, while I was also with the club’s camogie team for a few years before I took over the senior hurlers,” revealed Johnny. “You learn something different from each of them, while being involved with the county was also a different experience. You have to take a different approach to coaching an underage team compared to an adult team. “At underage, there is a lot more to take into consideration as young
213
players have their studies, while parents are dropping them and collecting them from training, so you’re programme has to suit that timeframe,” added the new Westmeath minor hurling manager. Johnny revealed that the minors began their campaign back in February when training started, but the year was very much stretched out as exams, senior games and other events conspired to leave the final being played in November. “The championship actually didn’t start until August, but we had the league and challenge matches to keep us going. The exams meant we had a break around then as well, while the final itself was pushed back due to St Malachy’s and Castletown
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The county intermediate semi-finalists, front l/r: Dylan Raleigh, Darren Brady, Cian O'Connor, Derek Conroy, Padraig Connaughton, Shane Conroy, Jason Gorman, BJ McKeogh, Mikey Boyle, Johnny Greville. Back: Dave Flanagan, Peter Mullen, Stephen Lynam, Loughlin McHugh, John Sheils, Jack Carroll, Shane Gorman, Pierce Byrne Colgan, Wesley Doyle, Alan Giles, Gordon Greville, Niall Flynn, Jack Kennedy
Senior Camogie Champions 2013
Robbie Greville
Teresa Lynch lifts the senior camogie cup
Fiona Leavy
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Minor captain Pierce Byrne Colgan
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The senior camogie side for 2013
Jason Gorman
Sean Quinn
Geoghegan’s involvement in their respective Leinster club championships. “But we played a number of challenge matches in the lead up to the final and they proved very beneficial. We went down to Kilkenny to play Lisdowney. That was a great game, I think they may have won by a couple of points, but on the day we switched our regular midfielder James Goonery in corner forward and he scored 1-06. We decided to play him there in the county final against Castletown and he scored 1-02, so it just proves that you can learn from challenge matches.” Raharney defeated Brownstown/Delvin and Clonkill while receiving a walkover from the combination side St Brigid’s/St Oliver Plunkett’s in the group stages of the championship. And they cruised through to the final where they faced old rivals Castletown-Geoghegan in the decider. Despite the wet, damp, miserable
Barry Aughey
Declan Mullen
weather, these two young teams served up a fine hour’s hurling full of endeavour, commitment, determination and skill to give the spectators full value for money. However, at the end of it all, Raharney were the better side and deservedly brought home the cup, having held off a spirited comeback by the boys in
black and amber on a number of occasions. It appeared as though Raharney would ease to this championship success when they led by 2-6 to 0-4 after the first quarter, but three goals in the space of five minutes propelled Castletown back into a one-point lead by the 25th minute. Raharney then
Minor Camogie Champions 2013
215
Darren Giles
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216
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Minor Champions 2013
The U14 Feile finalists
The U16 finalists
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Sean Brady Would Like To Wish Raharney GAA All The Best In 2014 218
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Brian Smyth
Mark Glennon
Gary Greville
finished the half the stronger to go in leading at half time by 2-9 to 3-4. Despite Castletown scoring the opening point, the Deelsiders were more clinical early on and led by 1-4 to 0-2 after ten minutes. They added another goal in the nineteenth minute to lead by 2-6 to 0-4, and looked as if they would 'run away' with the game. Castletown pulled a goal back from a 20 metre free to give them a lifeline. They followed up two minutes later with another goal and then their third major came after twenty five minutes, Castletown had turned an eight point deficit into a one point lead. Raharney were undeterred however, and they reeled off three unanswered points to lead by two at half time. After ten minutes of the second half the margin between the teams was the same, both teams adding two points to their tally. Raharney scored a wonderful point from a sideline cut in the eleventh minute to extend the lead to three points. Despite the efforts of the Castletown players, it was Raharney who were more clinical in front of goal, and they added three further points to lead by 215 to 3-6 after twenty five minutes of the second half. Goals were desperately needed now on the black and amber side, and they got one in the twenty seventh minute. Raharney had done enough however, and led by three points at the final whistle to run out deserved winners on a scoreline of Raharney 2-15, Castletown 4-6. “It was a great win and the lads showed great character to hold on after Castletown had come back into the game. I do think we were the better team on the day and the lads can be proud of their performance. They put in a huge amount of work this year and they deserve the success that they have achieved.” This minor title win can be the platform for future senior success, but Johnny stressed that even though he is back as manager of the club’s senior team, he won’t be fast tracking the minor players into the adult team. “It is a big step up from minor to senior. A few of them will be on the panel, but you have to be careful how you use them. That is not to say if they are performing well enough at training, they will get their chance. They are very eager and willing to learn, while they are full of enthusiasm, which are great attributes to have.” As noted, the 2012 campaign ended in disappointment for Raharney in the
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senior championship, but Johnny believes that if they knuckle down and work hard they can do well in the campaign again. “There is a new format in the championship this year which sees one group of the eight teams, meaning every side will get seven games. This means that you have to hit the ground running in the championship, which is a good thing. The championship will certainly be more competitive this year and any one of six teams could probably win it, if they put in the right effort. “We have Frank Boyle, Brian Smyth and Paul Greville back with us this year and they are three big additions to any team. We’re fortunate to too have a good underage structure in place and there are lads coming through on a regular basis, so the competition for places should be fairly keen. “Our aim is to win the championship, we know that to do that, we have an awful lot of work to do, but if the lads give the right commitment then I’d be confident we can achieve our goal over the coming months.”
Dan Riggs
Stephen Morley
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CASTLETOWN GEOGHEGAN
CASTLETOWN END NINE-YEAR DROUGHT Joe Clarke raises the SHC trophy
F
or the first time since 2004, Castletown Geoghegan were crowned the Westmeath senior hurling champions when they defeated St Oliver Plunkett’s in the county final. Their success did not stop at senior level as it turned out to be one of the most successful year’s in the club’s history. Not only did the seniors win the championship, but they added the Feis Cup to their tally also. Add this to the under-21, under-16 and under-14 titles that Castletown Geoghegan won and one can see why 2013 will live long in the memory of the club’s Gaels. The year got off to a great start when the under-14s won the Feile na nGael and championship finals when they defeated old rivals Raharney (5-04 to 0-02) and Clonkill respectively. In the championship decider, Castletown recorded a 5-10 to 2-02 victory over the Loughegar based outfit. Having annexed the Feile na nGael title for the fourth time in the club’s
history, Castletown headed to Limerick to compete in the National Feile finals. They played their first game against Doon (Limerick) and had a good win by 3-08 to 2-00. Their second test was also against Limerick opposition when they defeated Adare by 3-10 to 2-01. St Rynagh’s of Offaly had too much for Castletown in their last group game, winning by 3-11 to 1-03. Confidence may have been a little dented after that setback but there was still a semi-final to prepare for on the Saturday evening. The Castletown Geoghegan team battled from start to finish, but in the end had to give way to a superior O'Donovan Rossa (Antrim) team, who went on to win the final. The under-16s also had a memorable year as they had little difficulty in annexing the county title. They cruised through most of their games and defeated Raharney in the final on a scoreline of 4-16 to 2-04. The Deelsiders were to gain some degree of revenge later in the year when they
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won the minor title, defeating Castletown in an excellent game of hurling. In the under-21 championship, a resounding 3-24 to 2-12 win over Clonkill in the semi final, set Castletown Geoghegan on their way to another county final appearance. On this occasion, the amalgamation side of Cuchulainns (Lough Lene Gaels/Crookedwood/Turin) would provide the opposition. County senior regulars Aonghus Clarke bagged 1-6 and Niall O'Brien hit 0-6 in a Black and Amber outfit boasting the experience of Liam Varley, Paul and David Fennell, and Westmeath minor dual star Shane Clavin. Ciaran Glennon, another recruit to the Westmeath setup this year, notched up 1-4, while Darren Ruane contributed 1-2 in a solid day at the office for Castletown. Cúchulainns simply couldn't make up a 1-11 to 1-4 deficit at half time, and a tremendous second half tally of 1-5
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The U21 hurling winners, front l/r: Frankie Deegan, Kieran Glennon, Dean McDermott, Diarmuid Garvin, Liam Varley, Niall O’Brien, Paul Fennell, David Fennell, Neal Kirby, Darren Ruane. Back: Niall Gunning, Liam Cassidy, Alan Geraghty, Eoin Quinn, David Lynch, Niall Kelly, Kieran McDonald, Sean Mullarkey, Aonghus Clarke, Shane Clavin, Mick Heeney, Alan Clarke
from Clarke secured the title for Castletown as they ran out winners on a scoreline of 3-21 to 3-11. For the record the Castletown Geoghegan under-21 team was: Niall Kelly; Paul Fennell, Dean McDermott, Diarmuid Garvin (capt.); Eoin Quinn, Liam Varley, Michael Heeney; David Fennell, Shane Clavin; Darren Ruane, Niall O’Brien, David Lynch; Neal Kirby, Aonghus Clarke, Ciaran Glennon. Subs used: Liam Cassidy for Quinn (52), Frankie Deegan for D Fennell (60). Many of these players were involved with the club’s intermediate side, which made the last four of the championship, losing just one match in the group stages, but in a tight match, they lost out to Ringtown in the semifinal by 2-14 to 2-12.
The senior campaign saw Pa O’Brien’s charges take on Delvin in the opening round and as expected, the black and ambers recorded a rather comprehensive victory. Delvin played with a strong breeze in the first half and it aided their long range point taking, which was very effective for the first thirty minutes. Delvin got the first point of the game which was responded to through a Niall O'Brien effort after three minutes of play. Castletown took a three point lead after seven minutes through Kieran Glennon and Niall O'Brien (2), before Delvin responded with two points of their own. Castletown then had a run of scores from Blaine Lehart, Ronan Whelan, Niall O'Brien and Neal Kirby, but their opponents responded with four consecutive points, to reduce
The 2013 Westmeath senior hurling champions
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the deficit to two, 0-11 to 0-9. The teams once again traded points before Barry Kelly called time on the first half, leaving the score at the interval 0-12 to 0-10 in favour of Castletown. Kieran Glennon scored a great goal after thirty seconds of the second half and the game was effectively over. It was Delvin who needed that goal to keep the pressure on Castletown, but they failed to score for the first fifteen minutes of the second half, in which time Castletown scored 1-6, to lead by 1-18 to 0-11. Castletown scored four further points to Delvin's one in the time remaining to leave the final score Castletown Geoghegan 1-23, Delvin 012. The second of the group games resulted in an even more comprehensive victory than the first
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The U14 championship winning side
Blaine Lehart
Aonghus Clarke
Conor Kane (U16 Championship)
outing as surprisingly Castlepollard offered little resistance to a Castletown sign that really showed their full potential. Castletown led at half time by 1-11 to 1-4, and although Castlepollard started the second half much better, they did not have the scoring power up front,
Sean Keegan, Niall O’Brien, Kevin Marshall
Diarmuid Garvin with the U21 trophy
and a much sharper and more clinical Castletown took complete control of the game to run out easy winners by 523 to 2-7. Kieran Glennon gave a man of the match performance on this occasion by scoring 3-04 from play. The last game of the group stages was always going to be tough as
Ciaran O’Brien (U14 championship)
Ronan Whelan
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Pat O’Brien and Kieran Glennon
Castletown faced defending champions Clonkill. The winner of this match would go through to the semifinal, while a quarterfinal place was guaranteed for the loser. An early goal by Blaine Lehart was the perfect start for Castletown and they kept their noses in front
Kieran Glennon
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throughout the first half, leading by 110 to 0-08 at the break. As the clocked ticked down, the black and ambers held a four-point lead, but the defending champions were level following a goal and a point with the space of two minutes. A few moments later and a lucky goal for Clonkill put them on the way to victory, which they held on to until the final whistle, final score Clonkill 3-16 Castletown Geoghegan 1-19. And so on to a quarterfinal meeting with a Raharney side that had struggled to find their form all year. Despite this, Castletown knew that they would be in for a real battle against a side that have had their fair share of success in recent years. Castletown started well and 0-8 to 04 up by the 20 minute mark and a David Fennell goal helped them to a 1-10 to 0-07 lead at half time. Raharney took the game to their opponents in the second half and it took a Niall O’Brien converted free in the 42nd minute to get Castletown off the mark after the short whistle. With ten minutes remaining, the gap was five points, but the Deelsiders scored a goal. Points from O’Brien and the mercurial Derek Gallagher settled Castletown as they held on to win by 1-15 to 1-11. Another battle ensued in the semifinal as Lough Lene Gaels provided the opposition, but on this occasion, CTG had a little more breathing space as they won on a scoreline of 1-19 to 2-09. And so on to the county final and a meeting with St Oliver Plunkett’s.
Feis Cup winners
Castletown got off to a great start when man of the match Aonghus Clarke grabbed a well-taken goal in the third minute. As it turned out, this proved to be the crucial score in what was a tough, physical game. Clarke turned in a fine first-half performance as Castletown went in leading 1-6 to 0-3. They increased their lead to eight points soon after the restart but by the 48th minute Plunkett’s had cut the deficit to four points. However, Castletown’s stern defence of Paul and David Fennell, Liam Varley and Emmett Dalton stood tall and denied Plunkett’s the goal they needed. Castletown-Geoghegan 1-12 St Oliver Plunkett’s 0-11 For the record the Castletown Geoghegan team and scorers were: P Maloney; P Fennell, E Dalton, E Óg
The U16 team
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Ciaran O’Brien lifts the Feile Shield
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The club’s minor team
U14 championship winning team
The senior team before county final
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Clarke; L Varley, R Whelan, D McDermott; J Clarke, D Fennell; A Clarke, N O’Brien, D Lynch; B Lehart, A Mangan, K Glennon. Subs: N Kirby for D Lynch (inj, 37), D Gallagher for K Glennon (46), P Clarke for A Mangan (51). Scorers: A Clarke (12), N O’Brien (0-5, 0-4 frees), J Clarke, D Fennell, K Glennon, B Lehart, N Kirby (0-1 each). Castletown then competed in the Leinster club SHC and faced experienced Carlow champions Mount Leinster Rangers. In a fiercely competitive match, it was MLR, who made it to the All-Ireland final, that came out on top on a scoreline of 1-15 to 1-13. However, the club was not finished yet as they added the Feis Cup title to their list of accolades when defeating Lough Lene Gaels in the decider. Played in late November, both sides served up gritty displays. Castletown led by three points at the break and come the final whistle the gap was four as they finished the year on high, final score 0-17 to 1-10.
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SOUTHERN GAELS
T
BRILLIANT YEAR FOR GAELS
he year 2013 will live long in the memories of all involved in Southern Gaels hurling club as they annexed the junior B hurling championship title and made their long awaited return to the intermediate ranks in the same year as their 40th anniversary.
Since Southern Gaels was founded in 1973, the club has worked hard to keep hurling alive in the Athlone area. Many felt that dropping down to the junior B ranks four years ago was a bad decision for the club, but the Gaels have been proven correct in their decision to regroup and work ahead for the future. The championship success was the culmination of a lot of hard work within the club’s underage structure that has been ongoing for a few years now and club chairman Kevin Jordan admits that they are reaping the rewards for
the work being done. Kevin was also manager of the adult team alongside trainer Enda Dowd and selectors Vera Corcoran and Brendan Kehoe. The long serving clubman admitted to the Maroon & White Yearbook that right from the start of the year, the signs were positive as there was a great emphasis placed on ensuring that all players were available. “At the start of the year we went around and asked a few lads that hadn’t hurled over the last few years for a variety of reasons, would they consider putting in the effort this year and thankfully they did,” said Kevin. “We had a panel of around 30 training with us all year, which was great. We had our set nights and the lads knew we trained on these nights and it just went from there. Another reason for keen interest I believe was the training that Enda did with the lads.
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Jason Ryan
It was brilliant and between games and training we had 105 sessions, which is a lot for any club, let alone a small one like ours. “Brendan and Vera also did an incredible job during the year. Vera is also the medical assistant for all the club’s teams and she has been excellent in that role also.” The junior B campaign did not get off to the best of starts as Cullion defeated Southern Gaels in their opening match by 2-06 to 0-08. However, they were soon back on track with wins over Ringtown (5-12 to 2-04) and Fr Dalton’s (1-20 to 1-06). They then met Brownstown’s second string and it was the Archerstown blues that came out on top by 3-13 to 3-11. The nature of the final group standings met that these two sides would meet once again a few weeks later in the semi final and Southern Gaels knew that they had to be at their
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Junior B hurling champions, front l/r: David Johnson, Kieran Duncan, Ronan Farrell, Jason Ryan, Declan Finn, Patrick Flynn, Michael O'Connell, M.J. Kelly, Sean Kilgarriff, Peter Muldoon, Killian Coyle, Ciaran Connolly, Alan Kennedy and Kevin Jordan (Manager). Back: Enda Dowd (Trainer), Colin Larkin, Shane Galvin, Adrian Garvey, Tony O'Keeffe (Captain), Dermot Whelan, Eoghan Cronin, Jamie Anders, John Stapleton, Jonathan Keogh, Frank Kelly, Sean Carey, Vera Corcoran (Selector), Trevor Farrell Ciaran Cleary, Conor Foley and James Larkin. Missing: Kieran Mc Carthy, Eoin Jordan and Brendan Kehoe (Selector)
best to get through to the final. Brownstown looked to be in an unassailable position when they led by nine points at half time 2-08 to 0-05. Southern Gaels had showed little appetite for the game in the first half. However, the Athlone side scored 1-10 without reply in the third quarter to turn the game on its head. They went on to seal victory when captain Tony O'Keeffe pointed a 70m free in injury time to claim a deserved victory. This saw the Gaels through to their first adult county final in eleven years. In the final, Cullion would provide the opposition and having lost to them in the opening game of the championship; it was once again, a case of all to play for. The hard work put in by Southern
Gaels junior hurlers paid off when they were crowned Junior B champions thanks to well-deserved six-point win over Cullion (1-13 to 1-07). Adrian Garvey got the all-important goal for the Gaels while Jason Ryan and the evergreen Tony O’Keeffe each chipped in with four points for the winners. It is good timing for the club to win this piece of silverware as they prepared to mark their 40th year in existence with a range of activities in Pairc Ciarain that weekend. The win is just reward for the hard work that has been put in by the backroom team. With plenty of good young hurlers in the mix and the underage side of the club going well; Southern Gaels will be hoping to be competitive as they make the step up
to intermediate ranks next year. “It was a marvellous win and with so many young players in the squad, we would be confident of doing well in the intermediate championship. Of our panel of 30, there is 21 of them under25, which bodes well for the future. “It is very important to keep the lads together and that is concern that we always have. If the club is to progress to the next level then we need a settled team. We have one there now, but it is essential to maintain that for a few years.” Kevin revealed that their underage drive is continuing to be a success and he feels that the involvement of a lot more parents has played a significant part in this. “There is great work being done in the underage and we are
The U14 squad, front l/r: Andrew Kennedy, Chulainn Dowd, Brian Dolan, Myles Duffy, Jor Reidy, Stephen Lonergan and Conor O'Driscoll. Back: Stephen O'Connor, Kevin Dolan, Sean Dowd, Gary Fitzpatrick, Diarmuid Martin, Owen Mc Carthy and Ian McCauley
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Kieran Duncan, Pat Flynn, Sean Carey, Eoghan Cronin, Jamie Anders, Jason Ryan, Alan Kennedy, John Stapleton, Adrian Garvey, Tony O'Keeffe, Sean Kilgariff, MJ Kelly, Ronan Farrell. The club held the presentation of the Junior Championship medals won in the Prince of Wales on Friday 13th of December and it turned out to be a great night for all involved.
competing well at most grades now. We run our own summer camps and they have been a great success. We have good parental backing now and more of them are getting involved which is great to see. “There are a few people that are driving the underage on and the likes of Dermot Whelan, Danny Monagle, Martin Geary, Diarmuid O’Lochsin and Ciaran McCarthy deserve a special mention for the work that they have put in.” Just before Christmas the club A.G.M. was held in Athlone G.A.A club. The review of the year noted the success of the junior side in winning the Junior 'B' Championship and securing the return to Intermediate hurling after a four year absence. The Under-10's won the Frank Young Cup and the Knockcroghery Tournament and the Under-8 side won the Darren O'Donnell Tournament. The following officers were elected for 2014: President Artie Pyke, Hon. Life President Paddy Mc Cormack, Hon. Vice Presidents Mick Pender, Liam McEvoy, Eddie Martin, Finbar Martin Chairman Kevin Jordan, Vice Chairman Enda Dowd, Secretary Dermot Whelan, Assistant Secretary Vera Corcoran, Treasurer Martin Geary, Assistant Treasurer Kieran McCarthy, P.R.O Dermot Whelan, Youth Officer Enda Dowd, Registrar Patrick Flynn, Offigeach Gaeilge Gearóid O Dubhair, Alcohol Drugs Misuse Officer Vera Corcoran, Child Protection Officer Tony O'Keeffe, Players Representative Kieran Duncan, Co. Board Delegate Trevor Farrell, Hurling Board Delegate Artie Pyke, Minor Board Delegate Enda Dowd, Committee Paul Kehoe, Michael O'Connell, Oliver Seery, Ronan Farrell, Peter Muldoon and Ciaran Muldoon.
Michael John Kelly
For the record the Southern Gaels team that lifted the Junior B title was as follows: Dermot Whelan, Declan Finn,
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www.seerysofathlone.com 229
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ST. LOMAN’S
T
LOMAN’S ARE LIBERATED!
he Flanagan Cup returned to its spiritual home of St. Loman’s last October when the Mullingar club bridged a 50-year gap with victory over Tyrrellspass in the county final. It was the highpoint of a near perfect season for the ambitious Lakepoint Park outfit who also claimed All-County League Division 1 and Feis Cup honours, and were seconds away from beating Athlone in the U21 decider. Half a century of frustration and heartbreak came to an end for St. Loman’s on October 13 last when Declan Rowley’s young side were crowned senior football champions for a fourth time. There were euphoric scenes at Cusack Park when joint-captains Paul Sharry and John Heslin raised the Flanagan Cup after Loman’s 1-16 to 015 victory over Tyrrellspass. Fittingly, the club’s most famous son – Paddy Flanagan – had the honour of handing over the coveted silverware to which
he lends his name. It was certainly a long road back to the summit of Westmeath football for the club formerly known as Mental Hospital. After almost going out of existence in 1980, St. Loman’s became a club for the whole community and gradually built itself back up again by placing a strong emphasis on underage coaching. After their first senior final appearance in 41 years in 2009 ended in defeat to Garrycastle, Loman’s refused to lose hope. They were very close in 2012, with their only defeat all season coming against Mullingar Shamrocks after a replay in the county semi-final. They needed one final push to get them across the line, and it was Declan Rowley who provided it. The Longford man also delivered the All-County League Division 1 title and Feis Cup in a memorable first season as manager. In their maiden Leinster club championship campaign, the Delvin Road club recorded an historic win
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Receiving the Flanagan Cup are joint captains Paul Sharry and John Heslin
over Carlow champions Old Leighlin. But if Loman’s have one regret from the year, it must surely be their failure to take the scalp of St. Vincent’s, who were there for the taking after Dublin centre back Ger Brennan was sent off after only seven minutes of their provincial quarter-final clash at Cusack Park. That proved to be one of only two defeats in an otherwise incredible year for the blue half of Mullingar. They now have a senior championship to go with their superb playing facilities. And you wouldn’t bet against the Flanagan Cup becoming a regular visit to Lakepoint Park in the years ahead. With Rowley and his selectors James Davitt, Robbie Kenny and Aidan Canning guiding their fortunes, St. Loman’s reached the Holy Grail on the back of six victories and one loss. They started the campaign as they finished it by beating Tyrrellspass 1-17 to 1-12 in their opening group match. That was followed by a hugely impressive 1-16 to 1-6 victory over former kingpins
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The St Loman's senior squad, front l/r: Shane Canning, Garrett Hickey, Conor Cochrane, Conradh Reilly, Gary Glennon, Kelvin Reilly, David Whelan, Shane Dempsey, Eoin Price, Michael Gleeson, Paul Sharry, Paddy Dowdall, Willie McGovern, Conor O'Donoghue. Back: Jonathon Plunkett, Gerry Farrell, Brian Murphy, Jason O Toole, Steven Gilmore, John Heslin, Ciaran Kilmurray, James McKenna, Adam Carroll, David Rushe, Shane Flynn, Darragh O’Keeffe, Timmy Murphy, Paul McGann, Tom Lambden
The U14 Feile champions, front: Shane Broughan, Max Bannon, C Molloy, Diarmuid Cahill, Tristan Graham, Mark Maloney, Daire Mc Loughlin, Mark Moran, Ben Starr, R Fagan, Oisin Hogan, K Fagan, TJ Cochrane, Sam McCarton, G Wallace, Shane Derham. Back: Adam Kennedy, Jack Cahill, Alex Dinu, Tristan Johnson, Fola Ayorinde, Nathan Woods, Adam Lynch, Eoin Fox, Frank Kavanagh, Josh Duncan, Michael Cahill, Jack Daly Devine
At the U8 Play and Stay games in Cusack Park, front: Conor Kilmurray, Eoin Meehan, Dion Le Bault, Sean Daly, Ross Killalea, Oisin O’Hara, Artur Kumpin, JJ McNamee, Nathan Sleator. Back: Jamie Ronan, Daniel McCann, Adam Brady, Kyle Maleady, Mark Newman, Darragh Egerton, Sean Bracken, Shane Muldarry, Riley Sheahan, David Geoghegan
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The U14 Championship final squad, front l/r: G Wallace, R Coade, S McCarton, R Fagan, M Maloney, M McNamee, B Starr, O Hogan, M Bannon, C Molloy, TJ Cox. Middle: J Duncan, T Graham, M Moran, M Cahill, S Derham, E Fox, D Mc Loughlin, N Derham, S Sheridan, J Daly Devine, D Cahill, M Reilly. Back: J Cahill, D McCrohan, J Brady, C Clarke, C O Hara, A Kennedy, A Dinu, F Ayorinde, A Lynch, K Kavanagh, N Woods, S Whelehan, T Johnson, M Cahill, S Broughan, J Maleady, J McDonnell, C Shaw, J Lynch
Joint Captains Paul Sharry and John Heslin receive the Feis Cup from County Board Chairman Sean Sheridan
Kelvin Reilly
Garrycastle. The blue and whites dished out another heavy defeat, 1-18 to 1-5, to Killucan before qualifying directly for the semi-finals with one round remaining following a 2-10 to 0-10 win
Declan Rowley
Gavin Hanevy, John Heslin, Michael Scally
over Coralstown/Kinnegad. The game was closer than the scoreline suggests with Loman’s needing a late goal from Shane Dempsey to seal the victory. With county stars John Heslin and Paul Sharry both missing, Loman’s
surrendered their unbeaten record to Castledaly in their final group match. In contrast to the champions-elect, Castledaly had everything to play for and they snatched a 0-11 to 0-10 victory courtesy of Brendan Kelly’s
U21 championship finalists, front l/r: Cathal McKinley, Jason O’Toole, Niall Dowdall, Mark Browne, Kelvin Reilly, Steven Gilmore, David Whelan, Ben Kilmurray, Conor Matthews, Cormac Corroon. Back: Darragh O’Keeffe, Odhran Martin, Cian Burke, Daniel Sheridan, Cathal Burke, Ben Mc Cabe, Neil O Toole, John Heslin, Kyle McGurran, Barry McEntee, Seanie Dinnegan.
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Feis Cup Winners, front l/r: Conor Cochrane, Robbie Kenny, Brian Murphy, Kelvin Reilly, David Whelan, John Heslin, Adam Carroll, Shane Dempsey, Paul Sharry, Conor O'Donoghue, Michael Gleeson. Back: James Davitt, Daniel Sheridan, Gerry Farrell, James McKenna, Tom Lambden, Darragh O’Keeffe, Steven Gilmore, Stephen Gallagher, Conradh Reilly, Neil O'Toole, Timmy Murphy, Ciaran and Cathal Kilmurray, Willie McGovern, Garrett Hickey, Shane Flynn
injury-time free. It earned the south county outfit a playoff for a quarterfinal spot with Garrycastle, which they latter won by four points. Garrycastle’s subsequent quarterfinal defeat of The Downs set the scene for a repeat of the 2009 county final. In what proved to be one of most dramatic games ever seen at Cusack Park, St. Loman’s showed true grit to pull off a sensational 2-19 to 5-9 victory. Declan Rowley’s men looking to be facing heartbreak when Gary Dolan’s penalty in the third minute of injury-
U14 Championship winners, l/r: Tristan Graham, Eoin Fox, Tristan Johnson, Adam Lynch
time propelled Garrycastle into a twopoint lead. By then, the two minutes of allotted stoppage-time were up, but referee Declan Keena allowed play to continue and in one last devastating raid, Conradh Reilly and Willie McGovern combined to tee up John Heslin for the winning goal. It capped an astonishing performance by the former Aussie Rules recruit whose haul of 2-16 (0-12 from frees) may well be a national record. At half-time, Garrycastle led by 3-4 to 0-11 after Gary Dolan (penalty) and
Feis Cup Final winners, front l/r: Conor O'Donoghue, David Whelan, Conor Cochrane, Kelvin Reilly, Jason O’Toole, Conradh Reilly, Neil O’Toole, Michael Gleeson, Paul Sharry. Back: Tom Lambden, Shane Flynn, Timmy Murphy, Brian Murphy, Shane Dempsey, Adam Carroll, Stephen Gallagher, John Heslin, Darragh O’Keeffe, Daniel Sheridan, Willie McGovern, Gerry Farrell, James McKenna, Steven Gilmore.
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Senior champions after a 50-year wait. Front l/r: Tom Lambden (Alfie Lambden mascot), Shane Flynn, Garrett Hickey, Timmy Murphy, Conor O'Donoghue, Conradh Reilly, Jonathon Plunkett (Sean Og Mascot) Jason O'Toole, Kelvin Reilly, Gary Glennon (Lochlann mascot), David Whelan, Ciaran Kilmurray (Katie and Cathal mascots), Eoin Price, Paul Sharry, Michael Gleeson. Mascots sitting in front... Tadgh Kenny, Cillian Plunkett, Eoghan Kenny. Back: Shane Canning, Conor Cochrane, Gerry Farrell, Brian Murphy, Darragh O’Keeffe, Steven Gilmore, John Heslin, James McKenna, Stephen Gallagher, Adam Carroll, Shane Dempsey, Willie McGovern, David Rushe, Paul McGann, Paddy Dowdall
James Dolan had scored late goals. A Heslin goal in the 40th minute put Loman’s back in the driving seat, but Michael Monaghan’s major handed Garrycastle a slender 4-8 to 1-16 lead after 54 minutes. Loman’s fought back to level before a fisted Heslin point edged them in front at the end of normal time. But amid incredible late drama, Dolan’s second successful penalty looked to have won it for Garrycastle, only for the masterful Heslin to snatch it away from them at the death.
After the semi-final, many felt that Loman’s name was on the cup and they were proved right. Heslin was once again to the fore, scoring 0-8 (04 from frees), as the Mullingar club ended their long wait with a deserved victory over Tyrrellspass in the final. The blue and whites set the tempo from the off, racing into a 0-6 to 0-0 lead thanks to scores from Heslin and Shane Dempsey. But Tyrrellspass - for whom Ger Egan posted 0-10 (0-9 frees) - had narrowed the gap to 0-5 to 0-10 at the break.
Cllr. Michael Dollard
A trio of points from Egan and one each from Martin Flanagan and Dean McNicholas had Tom Coffey's charges level on 0-10 apiece before Heslin got the next score to steady Loman's.
The winners added three more unanswered points before delivering the decisive blow in the 47th minute when the impressive Shane Dempsey set up wing back David Whelan for the only goal to push the winners into a 114 to 0-10 lead, and there was no way
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SUMMER CAMPS
The club's senior ladies, front l/r: Sarah Keegan, Katie Heslin, Stephanie Kilmurray, Amy Newman, Chantelle Lynam, Ciara Scally. Back: Eimear Donoghue, Katie Layde, Aoife Dempsey, Laura Flanagan, Amy Matthews, Grainne Ward, Claire Coyne
back for Tyrrellspass after that.
A key factor in St. Loman's success was the outstanding display of their young corner back Steven Gilmore, who restricted Denis Glennon to a solitary point. But the performances of Whelan, Paul Sharry, Kelvin Reilly and Heslin shouldn’t be overlooked either. “It’s fantastic,” victorious Loman’s manager Rowley enthused. “We moved the ball very well. We were very pacey, and we set up our back line to stop what happened in the semi-final. So in many ways, it was a blessing in disguise that we conceded those five goals. “We spent two weeks figuring out how we were going to handle them. We knew that the same threat was there with Denis Glennon and Martin Flanagan inside, and that they were going to bomb in some ball. But at the end of the day, we handled that very well.” The Killoe man continued: “Character was the key. We always knew St. Loman’s play nice football, but nice football doesn’t necessarily win championships. When they had to buckle down – when they conceded those
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Fergal Reynolds, Ken Maleady, Dwayne Egerton, Joe Maleady Jnr, Children: Cian Reynolds, James Reynolds
Christy Martin (Team Co-ordinator), Declan Rowley (Manager) and Nicole Rowley
St Lomans designed_Layout 1 28/03/2014 15:18 Page 7
U14 Feile Peil Na nOg: Eoin Lynch (captain) and Ben Starr
five points in-a-row, and then slipped back up the pitch and got three points in-a-row – it showed we had great character. It showed that they didn’t want to let go, and that somebody had to take it on.” Long-serving defender Gary Glennon declared that “the drought is over” after finally winning major silverware with his club. “It’s been a long time coming. I’m a very happy man now,” the 2000 Leinster MFC medallist smiled. “They had a game plan for John Heslin, but we had a plan to eliminate the mistakes we made the last day that gave away goals. Overall, we came out on top around the middle third and that was vital. But David Whelan’s goal really dampened any hopes that Tyrrellspass had of putting in a charge near the end. It came at a vital time for us.” St. Loman’s were also masters of all they surveyed in the league, winning the Division 1 title after coming up from Division 2 the previous year. They completed a hat-trick of senior
Paul Sharry
Ciaran Kilmurray
Shane Dempsey
successes when overcoming Garrycastle by 0-19 to 1-9 in the Feis Cup final at the Lakepoint Park in November. Other notable achievements during the year were the second team’s JFC semi-final appearance and the third team’s unbeaten Division 7 campaign. But Loman’s hopes of landing the U21FC title were dashed when they conceded a last-minute goal to Athlone in the final, which was played in Kinnegad just six days after the senior decider. St. Loman's SFC winning line-up was: Stephen Gallagher; Steven Gilmore, Shane Flynn, Adam Carroll; Gary Glennon, Paddy Dowdall, David Whelan (1-0); Ciaran Kilmurray (0-1), Paul Sharry (0-1); Eoin Price, Willie McGovern (0-1), Conradh Reilly (0-1); Kelvin Reilly, John Heslin (0-8, 4f), Shane Dempsey (0-3). Subs used: Gareth Hickey (0-1), Jason O'Toole, David Rushe and Brian Murphy. U21FC runners-up to Athlone: Ben McCabe; Cathal McKinley, Steven Gilmore, Cian Burke; Neil O’Toole,
Conradh Reilly
Shane Dempsey
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Kelvin Reilly
Jason O’Toole, David Whelan; John Heslin, Cathal Burke; Niall Dowdall, Kelvin Reilly, Seanie Dinnegan; Mark Browne, Shane Dempsey, Cormac Corroon. Sub used: Daniel Sheridan.
Club stalwarts, Ken Eades and Paddy Flanagan
John Heslin
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RINGTOWN
SILVERWARE ELUDES RINGTOWN
Darren Kilcoyne surges forward
R
ingtown can look back on the 2013 campaign with a degree of pride as the club contested two finals during the course of the year. Their under-14s lost out in the Shield final while the intermediate side came undone in the county final against a very strong Clonkill outfit. Despite the disappointments of losing these two finals, Ringtown P.R.O Eamonn Doyle believes that there were many positives to take from the campaign. For the last few years, the club have placed more of an emphasis on their underage structure and this has certainly begun to pay off as they have won titles during the course of recent campaigns. “There has been a big push on in the underage section and this has been ongoing for a number of years now, but it is something that takes time to
develop,” Eamonn told the Maroon & White Yearbook. “We have good numbers at under-12 and under-14 and even the younger age groups, while this year we will be fielding an under-16 team, which we couldn’t do last year. Our minor team will be struggling for numbers, but hopefully we can field a team.” Eamonn revealed that the club was fortunate to have good numbers looking after the various teams, which helps ease the workload for others. “You could also do with more people being involved, but we are fortunate to have different people involved with the various teams. More parents have got involved in the last couple of years, which is a great thing. I suppose like a lot of clubs have done in the past, the underage was neglected a bit for a few years and this is something that cannot be allowed to happen again. “It is essential to keep bringing lads through to the adult team. The work is
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being done in the schools, while the lads are back with their various teams doing a bit indoors at the hall.” As stated Ringtown reached the under-14 Shield final, which was played at Cusack Park. The green and golds went in as slight favourites as they had defeated Pollard in an earlier round, but to their detriment they found out that counts for very little in a final where anything can happen. The sides were evenly matched throughout the first half, but two Castlepollard goals helped them to a 2-03 to 0-06 lead at the break. Ringtown reduced the gap to just a solitary point with ten minutes to go, and it looked as if they had the momentum to go and win, but Pollard hit an unanswered 2-01 in the remaining minutes to claim the title on a scoreline of 4-05 to 1-06. Even though a defeat was the outcome, reaching the final was a huge achievement for a club that just
ringtown designed_Layout 1 27/03/2014 15:29 Page 2
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a few years before had struggled to field a team at this level. “You have to look at the positives and the fact that we are fielding teams and being competitive is a huge plus for us, but we know that the work has to be done to make sure it stays that way and hopefully we can become even more competitive.” The terrific facilities at Whitehall continue to improve and the addition of a bar in the clubhouse is a source of extra revenue for the club. A lot of work has been carried out at their grounds over the years and they can boast of having one of the finest pitches in the county. In 2013, as they do every year, the main aim of the intermediate side was to win the county title. With such a talented bunch of hurlers in their ranks, Ringtown are annually one of the favourites for the title and to their credit they have made the step up to the senior ranks on a regular basis, but have failed to reach the heady days of the eighties when they won the senior hurling championship twice (1980 and ’87) during that period. Eamonn knew that they had the material to do well in last year’s campaign and he felt that once the players were focused, he knew that they would be there or thereabouts. “We would have a panel of around 30 for the intermediate. At the start of the year, it was difficult enough to get lads out training. We would have a fairly young team and there is a good few away in college. However, we knew that we would be a match for most teams in the championship.
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Tel: 086-8237280 “The intermediate grade is very competitive so it is important to start off well and luckily for us we did.” Ringtown begun the campaign with a 3-14 to 1-10 win over Turin and followed this up by comfortably defeating a Brownstown side that would be another side fancying their chances of winning the title, by 3-13 to 0-12. In round three, yet another of the strong teams, St Brigid’s were put to the sword on a scoreline of 3-15 to 1-11 to continue their perfect start to the campaign.
The intermediate finalists, front l/r: Keith Melia, Frankie Boyhan, Feidhlim Burke, Conor O'Grady, Aiden Daniels, Thomas Daniels, Evan Cunningham, Colin Murtagh, Ian Kilcoyne, Pat Burke, Martin Burke, Martin Blacoe, John Macken, Johnny Hardman. Back: Kevin Nea, Gordon Maxwell, Derek Cheevers, Damien Moran, Paul Smith, Garry Nea, Mickey Connors, Darren Kilcoyne, Jeff Nea, Brian Brophy, Shane Brophy, Aaron Corrigan, Paddy Nea, Shane Moran, Stephen Sullivan, Emmett Corrigan, Shane Murtagh, Adrian Moran
The squad that went under to Castlepollard in the U14 Shield Cup final at Cusack Park
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Thomas Daniels (green helmet), Stephen Sullivan (white helmet)
Derek Cheevers
Emmet Corrigan
“Winning the opening three round by the scores that we did was great. Both Brownstown and St Brigid’s have won the intermediate in the last few years and we knew these could be difficult games, so to win by so much gave the lads a lot of confidence, particularly the young lads in the team.” A 2-12 to 0-11 win over Fr Dalton’s
Jeffery Nea
Ian Kilcoyne
Colin Murtagh
made it four wins from four and already Ringtown were on the verge of qualifying for the knockout stages of the championship. Nonetheless, they came undone in their next outing when CastletownGeoghegan inflicted their first defeat of the campaign on them as the black and amber recorded a comfortable win
Martin Burke
Keith Melia
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James Boylan (in front) and Frankie Boyhan (behind)
by 1-14 to 0-10. Cullion were then easily disposed of in round six (2-18 to 3-03), but a second defeat was recorded when Raharney came out on top in their contest, 0-13 to 0-12. However, Ringtown saved their best till last when they took on an undefeated Clonkill side in the last
James Boylan
ringtown designed_Layout 1 27/03/2014 15:30 Page 5
Dermot Cafferty
group match of the campaign. Michael Lynch’s charges produced an excellent display to run out winners by 4-13 to 213. In the semi-final, they would once again face Castletown/Geoghegan and a more focused Ringtown took to the field. On this occasion, the north Westmeath side outshined their opponents to come away with a 2-14 to 2-12 win. “The lads played very well against Clonkill in the last group game and in the semi-final against Castletown. To their credit, they had put in a big effort at this stage and they deserved to get to the final.” The final itself was against Clonkill and for some reason Ringtown failed to reproduce the form that had got them to the decider as the Loughegar outfit claimed victory. As a second team of a senior team, Clonkill were not permitted to be promoted to the top flight and so Ringtown had the option of doing so, an offer they declined.
Emmet Corrigan
Ian Kilcoyne
“The club felt as they hadn’t won the championship, there was no point in going up senior. What’s the point in going up and coming straight back down? It doesn’t benefit the younger lads.” Ringtown must plan without the influential Aaron Corrigan as well as Shane Brophy and Stephen O’Sullivan
for the coming year after they went travelling for the year. “The lads will be a big loss to us. Aaron has been outstanding for us over the last few years and his experienced will be greatly missed, but I still believe that we have the players there to compete for the intermediate title.”
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CAULRY
LEAGUE AND CUP CONSOLATION
The Intermediate Cup winners celebrate
T
he disappointment of losing a second successive intermediate championship final was tempered for Caulry by their All-County League Division 2 and Intermediate Cup successes. Experienced full back Gary Flanagan believes the Mount Temple outfit can only improve from plying their trade in the top division of the league this year. It was a case of déjà vu for Caulry last October when they left Cusack Park without the Peter Geraghty Memorial Cup for the second year ina-row. A 0-13 to 1-13 replay defeat to St. Malachy’s meant the red and whites came up just short in their quest to attain senior status for the second time in 12 months, having also lost the 2012 decider to CastletownFinea/Coole/Whitehall by the minimum. But the year still had a silver
lining as Caulry’s hard work and consistency was rewarded with success in the Intermediate Cup and Division 2 of the All-County League. By winning Division 2, Caulry can look forward to playing in Division 1 for the first time in their history this year. And surely there is no better place to be for a club that won’t feel contented until it is up among the big boys competing for the Flanagan Cup. “It was a great achievement to get promoted to Division 1 for the first time,” Gary enthuses. “Playing against the best teams week in, week out should bring us on and be of huge benefit to the club in the long run. Hopefully it will be a step towards us going senior because that’s where we want to be. “Our objective last year was to win the intermediate championship, and it was obviously a huge disappointment when we didn’t achieve that. It’s going to be difficult to pick ourselves for a
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third time, but our younger players will be a year older and wiser, and will have been exposed to Division 1 football in the meantime. “No-one will want to face us. We’re a coming team with plenty of talent. But for now, we’re just focused on trying to get over the final hurdle and win an intermediate championship.” Caulry secured their ticket to Division 1 thanks to a 2-12 to 0-10 last round victory over senior championship quarter-finalists The Downs. And they also defeated senior opposition in Coralstown/Kinnegad by 1-11 to 0-10 to lift the Intermediate Cup. Flanagan, who has won three junior championships over the past decade, is convinced a bright future beckons for the south Westmeath club. “We are well set up for the future,” the teacher at Moate Community School contends. “For the past number of years, there has been great work done at underage
caulry designed_Layout 1 31/03/2014 11:58 Page 2
The Caulry intermediate squad, front l/r: Andy O'Sullivan, Robbie Hickey, Brian Mullarney, Ben Moran, Ben Kenny, Johnny Dolan, Kevin Maguire, Eoghan Grennan, David Brooks, Jack O'Kelly Lynch, Ernie Buckley, Liam Muldoon, James Petit, Harry Hughes, Alan Rigney, Eoin Fox. Back: Alan Daly, Shane Nugent, Alan Carroll, Ryan Brown, Mickey Fitzpatrick, John Maguire, Joe McMahon, Gary Flanagan, Alan Fitzpatrick, Damian Dolan, Peter Smith, Stephen Woods, Keith McMenamin, Darren O'Connor, Evan O'Rourke, Michael McMahon, Killian Nagel, Killian Healy
level and we are now beginning to reap the rewards at adult level. The club has just bought a parcel of land to develop a second pitch and has plans to build a new gym. We are currently using a temporary gym. “You would think that everyone is down in the dumps after losing the last two intermediate finals, but it’s actually the opposite. We’ve a very positive outlook.” Last year, Francie Grehan replaced Brendan Clarke as manager, with Jody Malynn, Enda Malone and John Higgins acting as the former Roscommon centre back’s selectors (the same management is in place for 2014 with the exception of John Higgins who has been replaced by JJ Hanrahan). Caulry were on course to qualify directly for an intermediate semi-final after four straight wins in Section B, but a one-point loss to Milltownpass in their last group game meant they had to settle for a quarterfinal place instead. Caulry opened their campaign with an impressive 1-13 to 1-5 victory over
Tang in Tubberclair. The Mount Temple men had eased into a 0-7 to 0-0 interval lead before Peter Smith’s goal just after the restart ended the game as a contest. Incredibly, Tang didn’t register a score until the final quarter, by which time Caulry’s thoughts had already turned to their next championship game. That was against Ballinagore in Lakepoint Park and yielded another big win. David Brookes’ early goal helped Caulry to a 1-7 to 1-2 lead at half-time. It continued to be one-way traffic in the second half as points from Damien Dolan, Peter Smyth and Johnny Dolan steered the red and whites to a 1-15 to 1-4 victory. Rosemount provided Francie Grehan’s charges with their first serious test in Ballymore. The Roses held a slender 0-5 to 0-4 lead at the break and it wasn’t until eight minutes from the end that Caulry got their noses in front through Johnny Dolan. The game remained in the balance until the 55th minute when two of Caulry’s rising stars, Rob Hickey and
Andy O’Sullivan, combined for the latter to score the only goal and seal a 1-9 to 0-8 win. Caulry maintained their 100 per cent record thanks to a 1-15 to 1-12 victory over St. Mary’s in Cusack Park. Boosted by an early David Brookes goal, the winners led by six points midway through the second half, but the concession of a Kieran Geraghty goal with eight minutes remaining made for a nervous finish. Caulry’s unbeaten run was finally ended when a controversial Andy Devine free in the dying moments handed Milltownpass a 1-8 to 0-10 victory at Cusack Park. Before that, Caulry had reeled off three unanswered points to draw level, but there was one final twist which meant that Francie Grehan’s men missed out on top spot on the head-to-head rule. In the quarter-final, Caulry racked up a facile 1-20 to 0-12 victory over Tubberclair. That set the scene for a semi-final joust with a bang-in-form Ballynacargy side at Cusack Park. Declan McGuinness’ 28th minute goal
The intermediate finalists, front l/r: Alan Daly, Harry Hughes, Ryan Brown, Liam Muldoon, Alan Rigney, David Brooks, Johnny Dolan, Eoghan Grennan, Damian Dolan, Ben Moran, Ernie Buckley, Michael Donohue, Brian Mullarney, Keith McMenamin, Eoin Fox, Andy O'Sullivan. Back l/r: Philip Dully, Stephen Woods, Ben Kenny, Robbie Hickey, Shane Nugent, Killian Nagel, Darren O’Connor, Michael Fitzpatrick, Kevin Maguire, Gary Flanagan, Alan Fitzpatrick, Alan Carroll, Joe McMenamin, Peter Smith, James Petit, John Maguire, Jack O’Kelly Lynch, Michael McMahon, Evan O’Rourke
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Eoghan Grennan accepts the Intermediate Cup
helped Bal’ to a 1-6 to 0-4 interval lead and they looked to have one foot in the final when extending their advantage to 2-11 to 0-9 with five minutes to go. But in an amazing finale, substitutes Alan Rigney and Rob Hickey grabbed goals before David Brookes fired over two late points to tie up the scoring at 2-13 apiece and earn Caulry a replay. And they made no mistake at the second time of asking when county minor Hickey’s tally of 2-6 from play inspired them to a 2-14 to 1-10 victory. The never-say-die attitude Caulry had displayed in pegging Ballynacargy back the first day was once again evident in the final against St. Malachy’s. Trailing by 1-6 to 0-7 at half-time, they battled back to take the lead for only the second time in the game when Peter Smyth converted a free with 11 minutes remaining. Alan Mangan twice edged St. Malachy’s back in front from placed balls, but Caulry refused to yield and forced a replay thanks to a late Smyth free after Ernie Buckley was fouled. The final score was 0-14 to 1-11. Sadly for Caulry, the replay didn’t go
Alan Fitzpatrick
Johnny Dolan
Ernie Buckley
according to plan as they left themselves with too much to do after Ronan Whelan’s 25th minute goal had propelled Malachy’s into a 1-9 to 0-5 lead at the break. When the Castletown-Geoghegan/Dysart outfit surged 11 points clear by the 37th
Robbie Hickey
minute, Caulry appeared to be down and out, but their character once again shone through as they outscored their opponents by eight points to nil in the time remaining. However, the goal they so desperately sought never materialised,
Damian Dolan
Manager Francie Grehan
John Maguire
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Eoghan Grennan
caulry designed_Layout 1 31/03/2014 11:58 Page 4
David Brooks
with the best chance falling to Andy O’Sullivan six minutes from the end. “As disappointing as it was to lose our second final in-a-row, I would take positives from the fact that we played a lot better than we had done the previous year when we really let ourselves down,” reflects Flanagan, who has represented Westmeath at every level and won a Leinster minor medal in 2000. “To be fair to them, Malachy’s had their homework done for the replay and their experience of having played
Andy O’Sullivan
Peter Smith
senior over the previous 10 years or so proved decisive. Having said that, it might have been a different outcome if our captain Eoin Grennan and Rob Hickey hadn’t been ruled out through injury, and Damien Dolan hadn’t been forced to play with a heavily strapped leg.” He concludes by saying: “I’m hopeful that we can bounce back this year. We’re after bringing really good young players likes Andrew O’Sullivan, David Brookes, Rob Hickey, James Pettit and Harry Hughes through over the past
Sean Doyle
two years, which bodes well for the future.”
Caulry lined out as follows in the IFC final replay: Joe McMahon; Michael McMahon, Gary Flanagan, Ben Moran; Damien Dolan, Kevin Maguire, Ernie Buckley; Alan Fitzpatrick, John Maguire; Jack O’Kelly-Lynch, Alan Rigney, Ben Kenny; David Brookes, Peter Smyth, Andy O’Sullivan. Subs used: Harry Hughes, Johnny Dolan and James Pettit.
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BALLYCOMOYLE
MORGAN OUTLINES UNDERAGE VISION
Roy Smyth brushes past the Delvin challenge
B
allycomoyle have developed a five-year plan aimed at putting the right structures in place at underage level. The plan is being implemented by Ballycomoyle’s new coaching officer Noel Morgan, who points to last year’s historic North Westmeath U10 success as an example of the potential that exists within the north county club. Noel, who combined the roles of U10 mentor and underage chairman last year, is relishing the challenge of addressing the key issues which will enable Ballycomoyle to fulfil their potential at underage level, and ultimately lead to a successful adult team. “What we’re trying to do is make sure the right structures are in place going forward,” he says. “We are very lucky in Ballycomoyle to have a fantastic underage set-up, which is the result of years of hard work and dedication by a number of
people, but the problem is there is no real structure to it. The challenge is to put those structures in place and to make sure we have a steady stream of players coming through to the junior team ever year. “If we can get our underage structures right, I’ve no doubt that success will follow at adult level. To win a junior championship would be huge for a club like us.” Noel insists Ballycomoyle have no regrets about their decision to ‘go it alone’ at underage level after being amalgamated with neighbours Castletown-Finea/Coole/Whitehall for a number of years. “We were joined with CastletownFinea as St. Michael’s up until three years ago,” he explains. “The upside of that was our stronger players were being exposed to a higher level of football, but the downside was others weren’t getting games. Since going back on our own, we’ve been playing at a lower level, but at least everyone is getting games now
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and that’s the most important thing. In 10 years’ time, the players who might be the weakest now could be the strongest. “Since the amalgamation ended, we’ve also attracted back people to the coaching side of things. They can identify more with Ballycomoyle than St. Michael’s, and that’s why they’ve come back.” Along with the ladies football team’s capture of a second junior championship in four years, the U14 and minor girls teams’ county final victories, and Blathnaid Daly’s participation in the All-Ireland Scor na nOg Recitation final in Derry, the aforementioned North Westmeath U10 triumph provided the year’s highlights for the small but hugely active club which is based a few miles outside Castlepollard. Under the tutelage of Noel, Paul Dolan and Ollie Boylan, the U10s defeated Delvin/St. Paul’s in the final at Lakepoint Park on September 7 thanks to Kian Kennedy’s late winning point.
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“It was a great achievement to win the North Westmeath for the first time. We had a great campaign which augurs well for the future,” enthuses Noel, whose son Kaellum was part of the 19-strong panel which travelled to the home of St. Loman’s. 2013 was another hugely successful year for Ballycomoyle’s ladies football section. In May, Tomas Blake guided the junior team to a 5-9 to 3-8 county final victory over Loughnavalley. Two more county titles followed later in the year when the U14s overcame Garrycastle by 2-9 to 1-9 to complete a two-in-a-row, and the minors defeated Tyrrellspass. Both finals were played in Rochfortbridge. The U14 final was the proverbial game of two halves with all of Ballycomoyle’s scores coming in the first half and all of Garrycastle’s coming in the second. In the dying moments, Garrycastle were awarded a penalty to draw the game, but put the ball wide and Ballycomoyle held on for a dramatic win. “Tomas did a great job with our junior ladies team. He has handed over the reins this year to Enda Sheridan who will hope to have a good run in the intermediate championship,” Noel says. In contrast, Ballycomoyle’s flagship men’s junior team found the going tough in both the league and the championship. Early defeats to
Milltown (2-7 to 3-9) and Delvin (2-6 to 3-8) left them facing an uphill task to reach the knockout stages of the junior championship, though their hopes were briefly raised by a superb 1-10 to 2-6 victory over Multyfarnham and a 310 apiece draw with St. Joseph’s. The boys in blue and white hoops produced their best performance of the year in beating a fancied Multyfarnham outfit in Whitehall. After taking a slender 0-6 to 0-5 lead into the break, Ballycomoyle extended their advantage to six points early in the second half thanks to an excellent John Coyle goal and a brace of points from midfielder James McHugh. That lead was wiped out when Leo Blake and substitute Max Brady scored quick-fire goals for Multy, but after the sides traded points, former Shandonagh player and well-known referee Roy Smyth popped up with the winning point for the charges of Marius Reilly and Ray Dobson. Ballycomoyle lost to Moate All-Whites (1-4 to 1-15) and beat Loughnavalley (1-7 to 1-5) before giving a walkover to St. Paul’s in their final game, by which stage they were out of contention for a quarter-final spot. In early October, Ballycomoyle faced St. Joseph’s in the Junior Shield final at Lakepoint Park. Just like their championship encounter, this was another close affair which Joseph’s shaded on a 1-9 to 2-5 scoreline. The
Vincent Reynolds keeps an eye on the ball
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Streamstown side had led by 1-4 to 11 at half-time, but John Egan’s second goal in the 40th minute reduced the deficit to the minimum before Roy Smyth equalised. St. Joseph’s surged three points clear again before Smyth pulled back a couple to leave it a one-point game again. Sadly, Ballycomoyle weren’t able to regain parity as Joseph’s held on for the victory. Ballycomoyle have a new jointmanagement team of Michael McNamee and Michael Leech from Rhode in place for the coming season, and Noel is confident they can make their mark. “They met the players for the first time just after Christmas and 40-odd players turned up,” he explains. “The two lads have put a big backroom team in place and are determined to leave no stone unturned. We retained our Division 5 status and won a couple of championship games last year, but we should be aiming for more than that. The goal is to reach the junior championship semi-final. We know it’s in us to achieve that.” Ballycomoyle ran successful fundraisers last year in the guise of the Fore Village 5K Road Race and the Soapbox Derby in June and July respectively. The third annual staging of the 5K Road Race has been confirmed for Wednesday, June 25
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Prior to the 2013 Junior Shield final, front l/r: Arron Fagan, Andrew Leahy, P. McKenna, F Tiernan, C. Fagan, John Coyle, Adrian Leahy, M Charles, A Fitzsimons, N McKenna, S Reilly, K Gavigan, Brian Gavigan. Back: M. Gilsenan, A Jennings, T Bracken, T Gallagher, I O’Neill, C Dermody, D Clougher, R Fagan, J McHugh, R Smyth, B Doyle, K Daly, R Cooney, J Egan, Jack Coyle
and that’s certainly something to look forward to! The Ballycomoyle team which contested the Junior Shield final was: Niall McKenna; Darragh Clogher, Robert Cooney, Colm Dermody; Brendan Doyle, Stephen Reilly, Killian Daly; James McHugh, Vincent Reynolds; Max Charles, John Egan, Kevin Gavigan; John Coyle, Roy Smyth, Adrian Leahy. Subs used: Ciaran Fagan, Fergal Tiernan, Ronan Fagan and Alan Fitzsimons. North Westmeath U10 champions: Oisin Dolan, Kevin Hogan, Jack Buckley, Daniel Buckley, Kevin English, Tjaye Higgins, Shane Manley, Cian Shryane, David Williams, Naoise McCabe, Kian Kennedy, Aaron
Young player Killian Daly gets the ball away
Recently returned from injury, Stephen Reilly is grounded by the Mullty duo
Fagan, Kaellum Morgan, Patrick D'Arcy, Alex McNicholas, Sean Hallisey, Evan Roddy, Rian Hannan, Ciaran English, Sam Carey and Daire Hannon.
The girls’ U14 team that retained their county title was: Ashleigh Mortimer; Yvonne Dobson, Rebecca Craig, Clodagh Williams; Lauren Fagan, Niamh McCarthy, Amaya Brannigan; Aoife Farrelly, Jane Nagle; Lorna Hilliard, Laura Kilcoyne, Jade Butler; Caoimhe Dermody, Shauna Miller, Clodagh O’Brien. Subs: Zara Geraghty, Aoife Earle, Niamh O’Connor and Emma Moran.
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Dual player Colm Dermody keeps his focus
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BUNBROSNA
Andrew Whitney soloes out of defence against Athlone
A
RAISING THE BAR
fter coming within a whisker of reaching the knockout stages of the SFC for the first time last year, Bunbrosna are eager to kick on according to centre back Andrew Whitney. Bunbrosna are looking to 2014 with renewed optimism after what was arguably their best season as a senior club. Last year was the first time since they first joined the senior ranks seven years ago that Bun’ made a significant impact on the top flight. Two wins and a draw represented their best return in any SFC group campaign they’ve ever been involved in, and they were within touching distance of an historic quarter-final appearance when leading Athlone by eight points midway through the second half of their final game, only to suffer a late fadeout and lose by a point. Despite the manner of that defeat, last
year’s championship campaign, coupled with their continued involvement in Division 1 of the All-County League, has given the Longford-border club renewed belief as they gear up for the new campaign. “We have never made it to the knockout stages of the senior championship before, but we came very close last year and that has given us the confidence and belief to push on this year,” former county player Whitney says. “For a few years, we were happy just to be a senior club, but I don’t think that’s the case anymore. A lot of people would say it was a good season, but at this stage we should be aiming higher and expecting more of ourselves. With the exception of 2010 when we went back down to intermediate (they bounced straight back by winning the Peter Geraghty Cup at the first attempt), we’ve been senior since 2007 and have gained a lot of experience in that time.
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“It’s a pity that we didn’t reach the knockout stages because I think we would have given a good account of ourselves. The Downs, who were lucky to draw with us, should have beaten Garrycastle in the quarter-finals. We drew with Garrycastle in 2012, so who’s to say that we wouldn’t have beaten them.” As in 2012, Bun’ were managed last year by Edenderry man Declan Farrell who had Paddy McCormack and Seamus Kiernan as his selectors. Having narrowly avoided the relegation playoff the previous year, they were tipped to struggle again, but a battling performance against reigning champions Mullingar Shamrocks in the first round was a sign of things to come from the north county outfit. In a poor game, Shamrocks were never allowed to get into their stride against the determined blue and whites. They eventually prevailed by 0-12 to 0-5, but Bun’ could have been closer if Fintan
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Barry O'Mara
Kevin Tormey
Padraig Walsh
Noel Yourell
Peter Tormey
Liam Mitchell
Finnan hadn’t missed a guilt-edged goalscoring opportunity in the 17th minute. “Even though we lost, we took a lot of belief from that game,” remembers Andrew, who is a member of the teaching staff at St. Mary’s Primary School in Mullingar. “We could have folded after losing our full back Simon Moorehead – who we had flown home from London for the game – to injury after only five minutes, but we stuck to our task and made things difficult for Shamrocks.” Bunbrosna secured their first victory against CastletownFinea/Coole/Whitehall on their return to Cusack Park for their second round game in early June. In what was billed as an early season relegation battle, Declan Farrell’s side had to withstand a late rally from the 2012 intermediate champions before they could celebrate a 1-12 to 110 victory. Leading by 0-7 to 0-5 at half-time, Bun’ increased their advantage thanks to a 11 salvo from Liam Mitchell at the start of the second half. Further scores from Barry O’Mara, Fintan Finnan and Ken Conroy had eased the boys in blue into an eight-point lead, 1-12 to 0-7, before
Castletown-Finea/Coole/Whitehall scored an unanswered 1-3 in the closing stages to leave just two in it at the final whistle. The standout performance of Bun’s year came against Maryland in round three. 2012 semi-finalists Maryland came into the Ballymore fixture as strong favourites, but were no match for an inspired Bunbrosna team who were more convincing winners than the 1-10 to 1-8 scoreline suggests. An 11th minute goal from Peter Tormey helped the underdogs to a commanding 1-7 to 0-4 interval lead. Tormey extended the lead to seven points after the resumption and despite only managing two further points, Bun’ remained in complete control until Kenny Kincaid scored a Maryland goal with the last kick of the game. “We probably played as well as we ever did that day. If we could play like that in every game, we’d be a match for anyone,” 25-year-old Whitney enthuses. Sadly for Bunbrosna, that was as good as it got as a draw with The Downs and a last-gasp defeat to Athlone cost them a quarter-final spot. They had to settle for a share of the spoils (0-10 each) against
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Fintan Finnan
The Downs after Barry Conroy equalised from an injury-time free, but the expectation was that Bun’ would still reach the knockout stages. Going into the final round of games, Bunbrosna knew that victory over Athlone would be good enough to see them through. And even if they lost, The Downs would still have to beat Mullingar Shamrocks. But much to their dismay and disbelief, Bun’ lost to Athlone by 3-8 to 3-9 after surrendering an eight-point lead, while The Downs caused a major upset by beating Shamrocks 2-11 to 1-10 in the second part of the Cusack Park double-header. These results saw both Athlone and The Downs leapfrog Declan Farrell’s charges and join Shamrocks in the knockout stages. “It was very frustrating because we had a quarter-final place in our grasp with 20 minutes to go against Athlone,” Andrew explains. “And then to see The Downs go out and beat Shamrocks… It was a major advantage for them to play in the second game because they knew the result of our game and knew exactly what they had to do. But it was still a big surprise to see them beat Shamrocks.”
Ronan Scally up against The Downs' Jack Hogan
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For long stages of the Athlone game, it looked as though Bunbrosna would run out easy winners. They led by 2-5 to 0-5 at half-time thanks to a brace of goals from Fintan Finnan, and appeared to be home and hosed when Sean Walsh added a third major to leave them perched on a 3-5 to 0-6 lead early in the second half. But panic set in when Ray Connellan’s 45th minute goal brought Athlone back from dead. Further goals from Mickey Greene and John Stapleton quickly followed as the Shannonsiders powered into a two-point lead. Bunbrosna dug deep to level through points from Aidan Finnan and substitute
John Casey
Kenny Conroy
Ken Conroy, but their hearts were broken when Greene fisted over in injury-time to hand Athlone an unlikely 3-9 to 3-8 victory. Bun’ are determined to put that disappointment behind them and are focused on building on last year’s progress under their new manager Declan Gorman, who won four Offaly SFC medals during his playing career with Rhode before going on to manage Ballyfore to an Offaly IFC final appearance in 2012. Both Paddy McCormack and Wexford native Seamus Kiernan have been retained as selectors. “We’re eager to push on,” continues the powerfully-built Whitney, who has
Ronan Scally
Barry O'Mara
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represented Westmeath at minor, U21 and senior level. “Having come so close to reaching a quarter-final last year, we want to get into one this year. We’ll get a lot of tough games in Division 1 over the next couple of months, and they should stand us in good stead for the championship.” Bunbrosna lined out as follows in their SFC victory over Maryland: John Casey; Conor Newman, Simon Moorehead, Finian Newman; Ronan Scally, Andrew Whitney, Liam Mitchell; Aidan Finnan, Padraig Walsh; Sean Walsh, David Newman, Conor Lyons; Ken Conroy, Peter Tormey, Fintan Finnan. Sub used: Barry O’Mara.
Aidan Finnan
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BROWNSTOWN
T
BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
wo thousand and fourteen is set to be a momentous year for the Brownstown hurling club as they embark on a major development on their grounds. The Brownstown Community Development is a joint partnership between the local hurling club and the community at large. In the autumn of 2013, they welcomed the news from the Department of the Environment, that it had approved €433,553 in funding under the Rural Development Programme for a community facility on the grounds of the Brownstown hurling club in Archerstown. The announcement of the funding granted to the Brownstown Community Development was made by Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government Phil Hogan and was greeted by great delight from all involved as they had been campaigning for the grant for some time. The funding is to go towards the
development of a facility on the Archerstown grounds that will cater for all the community. As well as dressingrooms, referee’s room and other facilities necessary to accommodate for the GAA club, there will also be a large hall, stage and dressingrooms available for other activities such as the local drama club who run a very successful show every year. The granting of funding to Brownstown Community Development, through the Westmeath Community Development Ltd for the development of a multi-purpose community facility in north Westmeath, under the Basic Services for the Economy and Rural Population measure of the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013, will provide a great boost locally. Everyone involved put in a lot of hard work to provide the community’s application. A lot of hard work and dedication is needed to see an application from inception to attaining
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Michael Travers
funding. The level of funding granted is indicative of the strength of the local community in the area. The development of this facility will provide a crucial focal point for community groups and events. The committee’s work is completely voluntary and ensures that the community has a space to host various events and fundraisers. The project must be completed by September 2014 to ensure that all the grant is made available and it will replace the existing dressingrooms that have been there since the early 80’s. All work was put on e-tender before it was allocated to local tradesmen with former players Eamonn Kelly and Georgie Beggan acting as Project managers, while another club stalwart Jody Davis is the main contractor. This year sees Alan Reilly take over from the long serving Miko Henry as chairman, who is now chairman of the development committee charged with the task of raising the rest of the
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The Brownstown/Delvin under-14 squad that captured the Division 3 championship title
In the final Crookedwood provided the opposition, a side that they had defeated by 25 points in the group stages and there was to be no surprise this time around either as the Brownstown/Delvin combination produced an outstanding display to win the title.
funding needed to complete the project. The club are to engage in a number of fundraising initiatives throughout the year, but there is no question that this hard working committee will achieve their goal. This year saw the club amalgamate with Delvin at most underage grades and the under-14 combination proved to be the most successful as they claimed the division 3 championship title. Placed in a group alongside St Oliver Plunkett’s, Turin, Southern Gaels and Crookedwood, the Brownstown/Delvin side had little trouble in easing through the early rounds. The campaign started with a 7-11 to 2-01 win over Crookedwood. They followed this up by hammering Turin by 10-21 to 4-09. That was 17 goals in two matches and the youngsters were not about to ease up yet. A 10-07 to 1-00 win over St Oliver Plunkett’s kept their 100% record intact before the finished the group stage with a 5-17 to 2-07 win over Southern Gaels. At this stage, it was probably thought that they should have been in a higher division, but there was still a county title to be won.
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Dara Brady
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From the word go, the amalgamation side dominated throughout and some of the scores they got were worthy of the Cusack Park venue. Brownstown/Delvin went on the attack right from the throw in, but it took six minutes for them to get their first score and it came from a Lonan Mannyn point. Josh Coll then hit three points, along with two from Aaron Reid and one from Luke Dalton to open a seven point lead. Then the first goal of the game came along when Dalton blasted a 21-yard free to the net. Brownstown/Delvin continued to ply the pressure and the
Daniel Dugdale
Crookedwood goalkeeper was called into action on a number of occasions, making some excellent saves in the process. But after another Dalton point, the impressive Danny Henry opened his account for the afternoon when he flicked the sliotar to the net after another good save by the Wood goalie Robert Connolly. Henry’s confidence was now high and he doubled his tally just moments later when he fired an unstoppable shot to the back of the net. Aaron added a further two points before Crookedwood got their only score of the half with a point. The second half continued in the same vein as Brownstown/Delvin took seven minutes to get their next score when Coll pointed, but the wood responded with a goal. Nonetheless, their opponents were relentless in their quest for honours. A Coll goal and Reid point got Brownstown/Delvin back on track. Then Dalton scored his second goal of the match. Reid was on target with another fine point and seconds later Dalton completed his hat-trick of goals when he blasted to the net from another 21-yard free. The last goal of the game was a thing of beauty as Mannyn fired an exquisite goal before the last score of the game came from midfielder Dean Ennis who sent over a long range effort in the closing stages. Brownstown/Delvin had many fine performers on the day with Dalton, Coll, Henry, Reid and Mannyn topping the scoring charts while captain Adam Ennis was outstanding at centre back as was midfielder Dean Ennis.
Niall Leonard
Conor Shaw
Frank Reid (manager)
Robbie Dugdale
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Conor Shaw
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SHANDONAGH
Representing the club in the intermediate championship, front l/r: Alan Hickey, Kevin Duffy, Sean Reville, Tommy Barry, Barry McWade, Darragh Conway, Phillip Smith, Kevin Boyle, Eoghan Conway, Barry McVeigh, Luke Tynan, Sandi Ndebele. Back: Kevin Hickey, Alex Gilmore, Kenneth Rabbitte, David Duffy, Stephen Hickey, Pat Duffy, Aaron Craig, Alan Hughes, Darragh Murray, Declan Barry, Donal Liddy, Danny Foster
T
MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
he 2013 campaign could be described as a satisfactory one for the Shandonagh GAA club as their intermediate side reached a quarter-final play off, while at underage level, the club continues to place a great emphasis on developing teams. With the help of newly-appointed secretary Declan Quinn, Maroon & White reviews the club’s campaign. First we took a look at the underage section and Declan revealed that despite the lack of silverware, the enjoyment factor for coaches and kids was fantastic. “A hugely successful one if, measured in terms of enjoyment. Those who have been involved with the club throughout 2013 have strived to develop the club, ensuring that our club will continue to grow in to the future,” stated Declan. “A number of new people became involved in different aspects of the club’s affairs and this was one of the very positive developments that occurred in 2013. The club wants to acknowledge the contributions that were made by those who got involved with the individual teams. Apart from training and the playing of games/matches, there were other related activities that took place during the year. These other activities are
intended to build a bond between the parents of our young players and the supporters of the club.” From under-6 right up to minor, Shandonagh cater for all and each team had a very productive year as they build for the future, while Declan stressed that without the help and commitment of the coaches, none of this would be possible. “Our U6’s ABC group had a great year and the club would like to thank the coaches, for their commitment during the year also thanks to all the young players, and to the parents for supporting and helping out with the activities every Saturday morning. “During the year the under-8 players were encouraged to play games and learn the skills of football. The highlight being the games held in Cusack Park. A huge thank you to the coaches, for ensuring that the U8 players were looked after and they deserve great credit for their efforts.” At under-10, the team played a number of blitz games during the year. Participating in the finals played in St Lomans was the culmination of many months hard work. Both the under-12 and 13 teams were competitive throughout the season with the latter topping the table in the league ahead of teams like Millmore Gaels, Mullingar Shamrocks and Garrycastle to name but a few.
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The under-14s also faired very well as they lost only one match in the division Three league to leave them top at the end of the campaign. “The lads reached a final this year which was an eventful one which saw the venue been changed at the last minute and a last minute score ending what was a great game of football and a great year for this team. Thank you to the many parents that helped out on the days of games and at training and who came along to the matches and supported the team. “The under-16 and minor was somewhat a mixed year for these two age groups with a lot of effort just trying to put teams together, regarding the minor team, the deaf ear was shown to us by the county board in regards to us been allowed to be put in a 13 a side league, however that said the structures and future regarding these age groups will have to be worked on from a different angle and we hope to structure this a little differently this year. “All said, the team’s managements and backroom staffs made huge sacrifices so as to ensure that these teams were properly prepared and trained throughout the year and must be complimented for the efforts that they made. The players deserve great credit for the efforts they made with regard to training and playing throughout the year, they have shown
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The U14 squad were championship runners-up, front l/r: Conor Hayden, John Rabbitte, Daniel Bolger, Fionn O’Cuill, Ronan Ward, Gareth McCoy, Zane Carroll, Darragh O’Donoghue, Enda Connaty, Eoin Carey, Keelan Patel. Back: Cathal Lynn, Eoin Gavigan, Conor Kavanagh, Eoin Casey, William Quinn, Stephen Bane, Aaron Flanagan, Lee Kelly, Shane McLoughlin, Cathal Bane, Cormac Coyne, Adam Dodd, Kevin Ennis
a huge commitment throughout this year, and there is no doubting that with the same commitment and desire that was shown this season, that the teams will dust themselves off and start again next year, and with the support of the club they will continue to build and develop in to the future.” A coaching and development committee was set up by the club in 2013 and the aim of this was develop all aspects of the club over a period of time. In the intermediate championship, Shandonagh were placed in a group alongside St Malachy’s, Ballymore, Tubberclair, Ballynacargy and Kilbeggan Shamrocks. The Sky blues could not have asked for a better start to the campaign when they defeated eventual winners in the opening Shandonagh’s Foundation Level coaches, front l/r: Natashia Byrne, Gordon Carey, Niall Sugrue, Danny Mulvihill, Ciara Kelly, Declan Quinn, Michael Maguire, Linda Carey. Back: James match by 1-11 to 0-12. That win was a huge Heffernan (Westmeath Coaching and Development), Roy Smith, Kevin Hickey, Pat O’Donoghue, Susan Donnelly, Stacey Lynn, John Casey, Pat Egan, Aidan Shannon boost for morale and they carried that into their next match when Kilbeggan were put to the sword on a scoreline of 0-19 to 1-08. Best Wishes to Shandonagh GAA from Two wins out of two were just what the doctor ordered for Shandonagh and a place in the knockout stages was already on the horizon. However, they were brought down to earth with a bang in their third outing of the campaign. In an entertaining and close contest, Ballynacargy inflicted a 3-10 to 1-14 on Shandonagh. In the majority of cases, 1-14 PROP: MARTIN HOPE would win a game, but not on this occasion, but there was still plenty of positives to take from the match. PANEL BEATING The outcome of the group stages was still very much in their CRASH REPAIRS own hands, but a second defeat to Tubberclair (1-10 to 0-09) RE-SPRAYS was a huge setback to the side. A win was then needed in the last group game against OPEN 5 DAYS Ballymore to force a play off and Shandonagh showed great Ennell View, Lough Ennell spirit to come through this match 2-13 to 0-10. Tel: 044-9347094 Mobile: 087-2989182 Even though Tubberclair won the group clash between the
MARTIN HOPE CRASH REPAIRS
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Kenny Rabbitte
The U10 squad and mentors, front l/r: David Scahill (Coach), Ethan Mills, Fintan Duffy, Kieran O’Brien, Jamie Lynch, Cathal Duffy, Ben Leavy, Willam Scahill, Daniel Scahill, Harry Shannon, Carson Hanlon, Stephen Cleary, John Webster, Kelton Hanlon, Jamie MacGillcuddy. Back: Aidan Shannon (Coach), Alan Loughlin (Coach), Tony Staunton, Luke Geraghty, Eoin Quinn, Mark Kerrigan, Daniel Mimnagh, Donal Mulvihil, Katie Conlon, Katie Whiston, Ben Shaw, Joe Cahill, Darragh Casey, Darren McWade, Jack Molloy, Christy Geraghty (Coach), Pat McWade (Coach)
David Duffy
The U12 team, front l/r: Brendan Killian, Jenson Sweeney, Jack Curran, Adam Treanor, Evan Molloy, Dylan mills, Joshua Byrne, Adam Quinn, Cian Molloy, Ryan Donnelly, Michael Conlon. Back: Odhran Mulvihill, Adam Cronin, James Kerrigan, Sean Quinn, Johnathon Donoghue, Kevin O Donnell, Darragh Tully, Owen Treanor (Coach), Lee Lyons, Alex Ongnambu, Muhammad Anwer, Temolou Ongnambu, Darragh Ruane, Ollie Donnelly
sides a few weeks earlier, it was still all to play for when the sides met in the play off. Nonetheless, it was Tubberclair that showed the greater hunger and desire as they earned the right to play Caulry in the quarterfinal following this
Michael Gordon (Chairman Referees Committee) and Mattie Morgan (Ladies Secretary)
1-14 to 1-08 win. Shandonagh’s quest for their first championship title win since the junior success in 1987 goes on, but as ever the club enter the 2014 campaign full of optimism.
A new management team has been appointed for the 2014 campaign as Des Doolin comes in as manager and he will be assisted by his selectors Ned Tynan, David Scahill, Martin Scally, Frank Conway and Ned Hayden.
The Girls U10 panel, front l/r: Shauna Nimmo, Michelle McDonald, Katie Conlon, Aine Cole, Ella Carey. Back: Eileen Lynn (Coach), Sophie Dalton, Abbie Sheerin, Ava Nimmo, Rachael Lynn, Rebecca Maguire, Cait Bates, Aishling Casey, Ann Conlon (Coach)
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CASTLEDALY
CASTLEDALY NOT LOOKING BACK IN ANGER
Lorcan Dolan takes on Garrycastle’s Gary McCallon
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hey may have lost a number of key players to emigration in the past few years and been left in limbo with regard to their league status last season, but Castledaly are staying positive according to star forward Paul Kelly. 2013 was one of those years when everything seemed to conspire against Castledaly. Not only did they lose four of their top players to emigration, they (along with several other clubs) were misinformed in relation to the process which was used to determine qualification for the knockout stages for the SFC, and were then shocked to discover they had been relegated to Division 2 of the All-County League because one team gave another a walkover! Whatever about the confusion over the championship format, Castledaly had every reason to feel aggrieved at the decision which resulted in the loss
of their top-flight league status after more than two decades. To cut a long story short, Bunbrosna were handed a walkover by Garrycastle which meant they finished their league campaign third from bottom, ahead of Tang and Castledaly. But had the Bunbrosna v Castledaly game gone ahead as it was meant to on at least three occasions, and if Garrycastle had won, then both Bun’ and Tang would have finished level on points at the foot of Division 1, with Castledaly ahead on score difference. When Castledaly requested that they should at least be granted a playoff against Bunbrosna, which would afford them the opportunity to salvage their Division 1 status, it was refused by the county board. This prompted the Offaly-border club to take their case the Leinster Council, which proved unsuccessful. “We were messed around in both the league and championship,” an unimpressed Paul Kelly says.
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“After beating Loman’s in our last group game in the championship, we were full sure we were through to the quarter-finals, only for the county board to turn around and tell us we would be playing Garrycastle in a playoff instead. “Then, later in the year, we had the whole fiasco surrounding the league. It only came to light after we lost our last game to Athlone by a point. There was a few of us missing for that one, including myself, but I can tell you noone would have been missing if we had known then that we needed a result and that Garrycastle would end up giving Bunbrosna a walkover. “There’s no way that should have been allowed to happen when our league status was depending on it. We’ve been in Division 1 for the best part of 25 years, and it wasn’t fair that we were relegated in those circumstances…” Eager to leave last year’s controversies behind them, Castledaly
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The Castledaly squad that took on Tubberclair in the U21 championship. Front row (left to right): Jamie Andres, John Warburton, Darragh Kelly, Niall Young, MJ Kelly, Owen Fleming. Back row (left to right): Lorcan Dolan, Damien Stone, Paul Costello, Enna Duffy, Paul Henson, James Larkin, Liam Fitzpatrick, Alan Stone, Patrick Holloway, Aaron Sheerin, Norman Coffey.
are looking ahead with renewed optimism following the appointment of their new manager Seamus Clogher and his selectors Sean Kavanagh and Denis Fanning. Clogher, who takes over from Eddie Bouabbse, has managed Ballinasloe (Galway) and Padraig Pearses (Roscommon) in the past, while Kavanagh and Fanning have both been involved before. “We can’t wait for the new season to get underway,” enthuses Paul, who won a National League Division 2 medal with Westmeath in 2008 and is a first cousin of fellow Castledaly players Brendan and Enda Kelly. “Seamus is highly regarded and Sean, who is doubling up as a selector and trainer, had a lot of success with us at underage level. Denis is a former
club chairman and was a selector when we won the senior championship in 2008. I’ve no doubt that they will get a positive reaction from the players. “The older lads like ‘Chopper’ Henson and Gordon Duffy are eager to give it another lash. This will ensure we have a nice mix in our team. We were the only team to beat St. Loman’s in last year’s championship, so we know we’re not that far off the mark. When you see Loman’s coming up from Division 2 and winning the championship, it gives you hope. The championship is wide open and we don’t fear any of the other teams. We never did for that matter.” Castledaly’s 2013 championship campaign began as it ended – with a defeat to south county rivals
The successful U10 squad which won the Coughlan Shield
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Garrycastle. After 22 minutes, Eddie Bouabbe’s charges led by 1-5 to 0-3 with Lorcan Dolan accounting for the goal. But a James Dolan goal brought Garrycastle back into it and they went on to lead by 1-8 to 1-5 at the break. Dolan raised a second green flag early in the second half to make it 2-9 to 1-5 and leave Castledaly with a mountain to climb. A brace of Paul Kelly points and another from his cousin Brendan narrowed the gap, but Garrycastle sealed a 2-12 to 1-8 victory thanks to late scores from Paddy Mulvihill and James Duignan. Castledaly bounced back to record an emphatic 0-16 to 0-5 win over Killucan in their second outing at Rochfortbridge. The winners were always in control, having opened up a
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five-point lead before Killucan finally opened their account in the 24th minute. Castledaly led by 0-6 to 0-2 at the interval and tagged on a further 10 points in a one-sided second half. The green and golds made it two wins from two when they got the better of Coralstown/Kinnegad in their third outing at Moate. The losers held a 0-6 to 0-3 lead at half-time, but Castledaly were much improved after the restart with Lorcan Dolan’s 38th minute goal putting them on the road to a 1-9 to 0-10 victory. The St. Kieran’s Park outfit now had a place in the knockout stages in their sights, but a 1-10 to 2-13 defeat to Tyrrellspass at Cusack Park meant they would have to beat St. Loman’s in their final group game in order to stay in the championship race. With four straight victories behind them, Loman’s couldn’t be caught at the top of the group and were already assured of a semi-final spot. But Castledaly still faced a massive task to end their unbeaten record. They set the early pace and led by 0-5 to 0-2 before the champions-elect scored three unanswered points to go into the break on level terms, 0-5 apiece. Further scores from Kelvin Reilly, Shane Dempsey and Shane Flynn pushed Loman’s into a 0-8 to 0-6 lead early in the second half, but Castledaly refused to wilt and after Brendan Kelly’s fisted point levelled it up at 0-10 each, the same player scored a magnificent point from close to the sideline to give the green and golds a dramatic victory. Despite finishing level on six points with Tyrrellspass, it emerged that Castledaly and Garrycastle would have to play off to see who would progress to a quarter-final meeting with The Downs. Both teams went at it hammer and tongs, but in the end Garrycastle had four points to spare, 1-15 to 1-11. It looked as though Garrycastle would run away with the game when they led by 1-3 to 0-1 after 10 minutes. But Castledaly rallied to trail by just two points, 0-6 to 1-5, at the break. Garrycastle grabbed the first three points of the second half, only for their neighbours to hit back with a goal from a MJ McLoughlin penalty after Paul Kelly had been fouled. There was nothing between the sides until the closing stages when Garrycastle finally gained the upper hand with scores from Gary Dolan, James Dolan and Damien Rushe. Lorcan Dolan got one back to leave just a goal in it before Dessie Dolan landed the insurance point for the winners, who finished the game with just 13 players. “We lost it in the last 10 minutes,” corner forward Kelly ruefully reflects. “We were unfortunate not to go straight through to the
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Patrick Holloway and Brendan Kelly
quarter-finals because six points would usually be enough. We were also unfortunate with the number of absentees we had. In the past few years, we’ve lost a massive amount of players through emigration. Last year alone, we lost the Warburtons – Tommy and John – Michael Gavin and Eoin Fleming to the US. “Tommy and John came back at different stages, but we needed them for every game. It’s very difficult
because we’re one of the smallest parishes in Westmeath and don’t have huge numbers to pick from.” Paul, who is teaching in his alma mater of Marist College, Athlone and is involved in the school’s senior football team management along with Con O’Meara and John Parker, concludes by saying: “We are trying to get the balance right with the players we have. A lot of it comes down to belief, and that seems to be coming back again.
Paul Kelly
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Gordon Duffy
We’re going to give the championship a good rattle this year and see where it takes us.” The Castledaly team which lost the SFC quarter-final playoff to Garrycastle was: Paddy Golden; Ciaran Henson, Liam Fitzpatrick, Enda Kelly; Alan Fitzgerald, Derek Heavin, John Warburton; Patrick Holloway, Alan Stone; Lorcan Dolan, Niall Duffy, MJ McLoughlin; Brendan Kelly, James Galvin, Paul Kelly. Subs used: Eamon Fleming and Niall O’Neill.
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BALLYMORE
Alan Slevin is challenged by Fergal Fox of Kilbeggan
WALKER’S RETURN CAN LIFT BALLYMORE
A
fter a disappointing 2013 that saw Ballymore narrowly avoid a IFC relegation playoff, long-serving defender Darragh Rooney is confident that Gerry Walker’s return to the manager’s role will lead to a change in fortunes this year. During his previous spell in charge in 2011 and 2012, the former county star steered the green and golds to their first IFC quarter-final appearance in five years where they suffered a twopoint defeat to his native Tubberclair. Now, after taking a year out, he’s back at the helm and his return is being warmly welcomed by Darragh. “It’s a big boost to have Gerry back,” he enthuses. “Last year we never really got going and the results were very disappointing, but everyone is excited about what’s in the store for this year. We just want to forget about last year and start afresh. When Gerry was last with us, we reached an intermediate
championship quarter-final in 2012 and that’s what we’ll be aiming to achieve again this year. “Gerry’s selectors will be Ciaran McCormack, Louie Meares, Pat Connaughton and John Cunningham. Ciaran and Louie were selectors with him before, so it will be just like old times.” Rooney, who captained Ballymore to a JFC ‘B’ and All-County League Division 5 double in 2011, attributes last year’s poor showing to a combination of injuries, retirements, emigration and a lack of interest on the part of some players. “We were late going back to training after the previous year’s campaign had carried over into 2013 owing to our involvement in the junior ‘B’ final,” he remembers. “We beat Moate in the final in the middle of the January, and took a few weeks off after that. Gary Daly from Offaly was appointed manager, with Willie Finerty as his selector, but the thing never took off. The interest just
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wasn’t there. Because we were getting poor numbers at training, fitness became a problem. “In the manager’s defence, he had a number of injuries to contend with and Denis Eivers didn’t come back, having been coaxed out of retirement the previous year.” As in 2010, Ballymore were relieved to avoid a relegation playoff. They finished level with Kilbeggan Shamrocks on two points each, having registered their only victory of the group phase against the 2012 junior champions, but avoided a playoff against Ballinagore by virtue of the fact that the head-to-head rule was used to decide the final positions. “Our only championship win of the year came against Kilbeggan and, as it turned out, it was enough to keep us up. But we didn’t know we were safe until we received clarification from the county board that the head-to-head rule was being applied. Up until then, we weren’t sure if we would have to play Kilbeggan again to determine who
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would go into the relegation playoff. “There was a lot of confusion,” recalls Darragh, whose brothers Shane and Declan have also worn the green and gold jersey. Ballymore’s 2013 IFC campaign started as it had ended in 2012 with a defeat to Tubberclair in Moate. The Suedysiders were always chasing the game after Tubberclair had opened up a 0-5 to 0-1 lead inside the first quarter. Tubberclair still held a four-point advantage, 0-6 to 0-2, at half-time, but a Ballymore comeback looked to be on when David ‘Daley’ McCormack cut the gap to three early in the second half. Despite having wind advantage, however, Ballymore’s challenge faded after Jack Byrne netted for Tubberclair in the 41st minute. Alan Coffey added a second goal late on to consign Gary Daly’s men to a 0-9 to 2-10 defeat. Another slow start cost Ballymore dearly in their second round clash with Ballynacargy at Tang. The green and golds had it all to do after Bal’ took a 25 to 0-5 lead into the break, but a ‘Daley’ McCormack goal and a point from veteran Paddy Martin left just two in it within minutes of the restart. Ballynacargy responded with their third goal, but Ballymore dug deep and four unanswered points from McCormack, substitute Brian Finerty (two) and Derek Molloy left it a twopoint game again. However, Ballynacargy outscored their opponents by 0-3 to 0-1 in the dying moments to take victory on a 3-9 to 111 scoreline. Things went from bad to worse for the Suedysiders when they crashed to
a 0-8 to 4-12 defeat to championselect St. Malachy’s in their next outing in Rosemount. After going into the break level (0-6 apiece), Ballymore were blown away in the second half by goals from Alan Mangan (two), Niall O’Brien and Adi Kerroum. The losers’ only scores of a torrid second period came from Derek Molloy in injury-time. At this juncture, Ballymore were in deep relegation trouble. Nothing less than a victory against Kilbeggan Shamrocks – who had beaten Ballynacargy in the opening round – would be enough to keep them safe from the relegation playoff. In what was the proverbial game of two halves, the green and golds produced an outstanding first half display to lead by a massive 14 points, 3-10 to 1-2, at the interval. Barry McDermott, Ciaran Finerty and Derek Molloy all raised green flags as a wind-assisted Ballymore ran riot. But the shoe was on the other foot in the second half when Kilbeggan staged a stirring comeback to leave Ballymore hanging on for a 3-12 to 1-14 victory. Ballymore and Kilbeggan both lost their final group matches to Shandonagh and St. Malachy’s respectively, but there was relief for Ballymore when it emerged that the head-to-head rule would apply. Ballymore were never at the races against Shandonagh, trailing by 0-4 to 1-9 at the break before eventually losing by 0-10 to 2-13. Darragh, who has been a key part of the Ballymore backline since returning from his studies in Paris in 2004 (the year after the Peter Geraghty Cup last returned to its spiritual home), is
confident that Ballymore can give a much better account of themselves this year. “The signs are encouraging,” he says. “We’re expecting three or four young players to come through and give the team a lift. In addition, Barry McDermott, ‘Ching’ Molloy and Paddy Martin are set to give it another year, while John Gilligan is back on board after being in America last summer. John has broken into the Westmeath team and he’ll be a big help to us this year. He’s actually doing a weights programme with us as part of his (third level) course in Limerick. “Our main objective for this year is to get out of Division 3 of the league. Whereas our second team only lost two games in their first year up in Division 4, our first team struggled in Division 3. We need to get up into Division 2 where the stronger intermediate teams are. It’s hard to win an intermediate championship from Division 3.” At underage level, Millmore Gaels, which is an amalgamation of Ballymore and Milltown, claimed U14 Division 3 championship honours in September thanks to a dramatic 5-12 to 5-8 victory over Shandonagh. After having a 10-point lead wiped out, Millmore steadied themselves to produce one final surge which yielded a goal from Joe Kincaid and an insurance point from Aaron Kennedy in stoppage-time. In December, Ballymore GAA club was plunged into mourning following the tragic death of Aisling Maguire in a road accident. Aisling, who was
Ballymore 2012 junior ‘B’ championship winning squad (the final was played in January 2013 against Moate All-Whites in Moate). Front row (left to right): Stephen Meares, Ben Greenwood, Mike Slevin, Barry McDermott, Sam Moran, Frank Eivers, Andy Slevin, Dave Hannon, Padraig Harrington (captain) Owen McCabe, Stephen Rooney, Colm O'Roarke, Bobby McDermott and Louie Meares. Back row (left to right): Paddy Martin, Alan Slevin, David Slevin, Ben Maxwell, Derek Molloy, Anthony McKnight, Brendan Maguire, Eanna Keena, Ciaran Finnerty, Liam Gilligan, Michael Reilly, David McKnight, Darragh Rooney, Liam O'Roarke and Conor McNeill
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Millmore Gaels - U14 Division 3 champions
Padraig Harrington accepts the Junior ‘B’ shield from Liam Gavin
Paddy Martin
assistant secretary of Ballymore’s sister club Fr. Dalton’s and played ladies football for Loughnavalley, was a brother of Brendan Maguire who had played at all levels for Ballymore before emigrating to Australia a few years ago. the Ballymore team that secured its solitary IFC win against Kilbeggan Shamrocks was: David Hannon; Eanna Keena, Paddy Martin, Seamus Keena; Barry McDermott, Liam Gilligan, Darragh Rooney; Derek Molloy, Andrew Slevin; Sam Moran, Brian Finerty, Ciaran Finerty; David ‘Daley’ McCormack, Alan Slevin, Michael Slevin. Subs used: Ben Maxwell, Paddy Harrington and Stephen Rooney. Millmore Gaels’ U14 Division 3 champions: Adam Kearney; Michael Byrne, Daniel Ennis, Oisin Ryan; Colin Murtagh, Jack Kearney, Mark McCaughey; Dylan Rabbitt (captain), Leon Hynes; Shane Mahon, Aaron Kennedy, Matthew Gunning; Luke Gunning, Joe Kincaid, Sam Maxwell.
Centre back Liam Gilligan
Ben Maxwell
Derek Molloy jumps for possession
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David McKnight
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ROSEMOUNT Joint Minor Captains: Andrew McCormack and Theo Watts with the Division 2 trophy
T
ROSES READY TO BOUNCE BACK
he 2013 intermediate football championship campaign may not have gone according to plan for Rosemount, but the club did enjoy success at minor level when they annexed the Division Two title. That win has set the tone for this year’s campaign as the club look to make yet another assault on the intermediate championship and return to where they feel is their rightful place in the senior ranks. There is a proud tradition in Rosemount and who can argue with that as the club have won the senior championship title on no fewer than nine occasions, leaving them joint third on the roll of honour list. However, the last of those wins were in 1989 and the South Westmeath side are keen for those heady days to return to the club sooner rather than later. And what better way to lay the foundations for that than to win a minor title.
That minor success was achieved when Rosemount came out on top against Garrycastle in the decider played at Cusack Park. The Black and Ambers proved much too strong on the day for their opponents. Their ability to get scores from most of their attacks, including goals from Aran Farrell (2), Cormac Palmer, Boidu Seyeh and Cathal Daly was key to their comfortable win. Another thing that Rosemount has on its side is the average age of the intermediate team which stands at 2223 at the moment. A new management team has been put in place for this year’s campaign as Frank Lynam returns to the club and he will be assisted by Tom Darcy, Mike Geoghegan, Damien Kelly and Willie Byrne. All the structures have been put in place and club PRO Michael King tells Maroon & White that there is an air of optimism in the club this year. “Winning the minor was a big achievement for the club and it was
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also a huge boost for us. A few of that team will be with the intermediates this year and with the new management team in place, there is a great deal of confidence that we can do well this year,” said Michael. Last year’s campaign saw Rosemount fail to get out of the group as they lost their opening match to Milltownpass by 1-08 to 0-09. They followed this up with a 0-12 to 1-09 draw against St Mary’s before Caulry inflicted their second defeat of the campaign when running out winners by 1-09 to 0-08 also. Rosemount did make a late charge and wins over Tang (2-06 to 1-06) and Ballinagore (011 to 0-10) saw them end the campaign with five points, but it was a case of too little too late and they were championship was at an end. “Two years ago, we did well in the intermediate, but for whatever reason we couldn’t push on last year. Eamonn Gallagher (manager) had done a great job during his time here, but everyone concerned including Eamonn felt that
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Minor Division 2 champions, front l/r: Eoin Fagan, Damien Carroll, Ross Daly, Aaron Farrell, Boidy Sayeh, Andrew McCormack, Padraig Fox, David Fox, Cathal Daly, Niall Hanevy. Back: Damien Carroll, Darragh Healy, Neil Kelly, Conor Byrne, Darren O Connell, Stephen Malone, Matthew Lynam, John McHugh Dolan, Tommy Longworth, Theo Watts
there needed to be a change. “Frank has come back into the club and even though he’s a clubman, the younger players on the team wouldn’t be that familiar with him and personally I think that’s a good thing.” The draw for this year’s championship has seen Rosemount placed in a group alongside Tang, Ballymore, Castletown Finea, Ballinagore and Ballynacargy. Two of the sides Tang and Ballinagore were in the same group as Rosemount last year and the black and yellows were victorious against both and they will be confident of repeating those victories
this year. One of the fears facing Rosemount like all clubs is some of their players heading off for the summer and Michael admits that this is a concern that they need to address. “There is talk that there might be a few of the younger lads heading off for the summer, and if they decide to go, there’s not a lot you can do about it, but hopefully it won’t affect us too badly.” In the league, Rosemount retained their Division Two status and Michael believes that it is important for them to be plying their trade at this level in
The Division 2 winner champions celebrate, front row l/r: Padraig Fox, Darren O'Connell, John McHugh Dolan. Second row: Darragh Healy, Damien Carroll, Andrew McCormack, Cathal Daly, Boidu Sayeh, Conor Byrne, Shane Molloy. Back row l/r: Neil Kelly, Eoin Fagan, Cormac Palmer, Ross Daly, Theo Watts, Stephen Malone, Damien Carroll, Matthew Lynam, Niall Hanevy. Back: Tommy Longworth, Aaron Farrell, David Fox
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order to prepare properly for the championship later in the year. “We stayed up in division two and that is good as there are some very good teams in the division including some from the senior. To be playing the likes of them is good preparation for the championship, whereas if we were relegated we would be playing teams from the junior grade and with all due respect to them that wouldn’t really help us.” The club may well be focused on the intermediates doing well this year, but they are also concentrating on developing their underage structure, a situation that is not easy according to Michael. “Obviously, we are strong enough at minor level, but from under-16 down, we wouldn’t be as strong. We are only picking from one school in the parish and it is a big concern. One of the classes in the school has no boys in it, so what can ya do there. “If the kids are not there, unfortunately there is not a lot that we can do about it, but we are making a big push in that area and trying to promote the game to the children. We have had a good response and hopefully we can unearth some more youngsters along the way. “The underage is not something that you can develop overnight and it can take years to actually bring a team through, but it is an area that can’t be ignored and the work has to be done.”
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The U14 squad that lost out to Mullingar Shamrocks in the Division 1 Shield Final at Cusack Park
Eoin Carberry
David Tone
Off the field, the club are embarking on a community development that will see an extension to their community centre constructed which will see a gym incorporated into it. “The planning has gone in and hopefully we will be getting a grant to do this. We are always going looking for gyms to use at the start of the year
David Malynn
Declan Mullen
and it would be great to have our own for all club members to use.” For the record the successful Rosemount minor team that defeated Garrycastle in the Division Two championship final was as follows: Panel: Darren O’Connell,
David McCormack
Cormac Palmer, Damien Carroll, Damien Boland, Padraig Fox, Daragh Healy, Thomas Longworth, Andy McCormack, Cathal Daly, Niall Hanevy, Shane Molloy, Mathew Lynam, David Fox, Aran Farrell, Boidu Seyeh, Neil Kelly, John McHughDolan, Stephen Malone, Eoin Fagan, Ross Daly, Conor Byrne, Theo Watts.
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CLONKILL
PRICE: WE’LL BE BACK Anthony Price
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wo-thousand-and-thirteen may not have ended the way that Clonkill would have wanted as their quest for a third consecutive county title came undone at the semifinal stage when St Oliver Plunkett’s caused a surprise to qualify for their first ever senior hurling championship final.
The club did taste success in the intermediate grade when Ringtown were put to the sword in the decider, however, the Loughegar based outfit are always eyeing the ‘big one’ and the semi-final defeat would have hurt them greatly. This year, they were forced to play the earlier rounds of the championship without one of their talisman, Eoin Price, who was ruled through injury, but the county star did return for the business end of the campaign. There were a few rumblings following their defeat to Plunkett’s that Clonkill are a side on the way down, but Eoin is adamant that is certainly not the case and the enforced break may stand to
them in the 2014 campaign. “Of course, it was disappointing to lose the semi-final and would have loved to have gone on and defended our title again, but it wasn’t to be. People seem to forget how good a team that Plunkett’s are, they have been knocking on the door for many years now and we had beaten them in a good few semi-finals and I knew their day would come,” stated Eoin. When asked if complacency played a part in the defeat, Eoin stressed that it was something that they never discussed, but he did admit that maybe sub-consciously it was a factor on the day. “That’s a hard one to answer; I don’t think we were complacent on the day, but I suppose maybe it could have played a part. We played Castletown in the last game of the group stages and the winner of that match went straight through to the semi-final. At the time, we had a few injury concerns including myself and we felt that if we could beat them, the break would do us good, but in
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hindsight, maybe it was too long of a break as Plunkett’s had a game before they played us, but look they were the better team on the day and deserved their win. “They were unlucky in the final against Castletown and all that was between the teams was the early goal that Castletown got. It is actually good for club hurling to see the likes of Plunkett’s come through as the more teams competing for the title, the better in my opinion. “You have Castletown, Plunkett’s, Raharney, ourselves and Lough Lene Gaels all pushing for the title now and that is great for the club scene and hurling in the county in general. It was ourselves and Raharney there for a few years, but that is not the case anymore.” Eoin is adamant that Clonkill will be back as strong as ever next year, despite what their critics think. “This is a still a young team, even though a lot of people would think otherwise. We have been together a long time now and we have a lot of hurling played, but I’d be certain that there will be no retirements for this
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Senior championship semi-finalists, front l/r: Alan Dowdall, Jamie Kelleghan, Anthony Price, Niall Dowdall, Shane Power, Michael Heffernan, Alan McGrath, Luke Folan, Paddy Dowdall, Thomas Egan, Brian Murray, Adam Price, Kelvin Reilly, Eoin Price. Back: Pat Walsh, Gary Healy, Jack McGrath, Christopher Austin, Ciaran Crentsil, Steven Nulty, Mark Keegan, Enda Loughlin, Brendan Murtagh, Andrew Mitchell, Luke McGrath, Finbar Thompson, Niall Folan, Enda Morrison, Conrad Reilly, John Fagan
year’s campaign. We were in six consecutive county finals up until this year and people tend to forget that. I really believe that we can benefit from the few months off and come back stronger. We are an experienced team and we know what it takes to win a county title. In saying that we also know that it will be that bit harder to win them now given the level of competition that we will be facing. Nonetheless, I am already looking forward to year ahead and hopefully we can go all the way and win the title again.” As county champions, CastletownGeoghegan represented Westmeath in the Leinster club senior hurling championship where they face Carlow’s Mount Leinster Rangers in the opening round. Defeat was the outcome for the
black and ambers in a close fought affair as MLR went on to win the provincial title for the first time ever, but Eoin believes that it may not be too long before a Westmeath club could do likewise. “There is not much between the standard of club hurling in Westmeath and the rest of the counties. I think whoever has represented the county has shown that in recent years. We have played Mount Leinster Rangers a few times over the years and they are a good team, but we’ve also done well against them. “I thought out best chance of reaching the Leinster club final came in 2009 when we lost to Tullamore. We could and probably should have won that game, but it just goes to show that Westmeath clubs are right up there now. I would love
to get the opportunity to play in it again. I think if we went in with the right attitude then we could do very well in it.” Having missed over three months of the season through injury, Eoin was raring to go when he returned to action, but the defeat to Plunkett’s ended their championship run. However, he did get another outlet in the form of the Shinty and lining out for his country. “It was great to be involved in the Shinty again. Not only is it an honour to represent your country, but to play with players the calibre of Brendan Maher, ‘Bonner’ Maher, Jackie Tyrrell and Richie Hogan is also something special. You realise when you are with them that they are just ordinary blokes and it is a great experience to be around them.” The St Patrick’s Drumcondra teaching
Feile finalists, front l/r: Killian Doyle, Conor Dunne, Matthew Glynn, Liam Moran, Ryan Mannering, Darragh McLoughlin, Kenneth Reilly, Jordan Smyth, Adam Conneely, Jamie Coffey and Cathal Doyle. Back: Eoghan Egerton, Paul Mulligan, Dara Monaghan, Oisin Dowdall, Ciaran Nolan, Ryan Moran, Stephen Sheridan, Michael McGrath, Joseph Moran, Luke Kenny, Conor Coloe, Lee Mulligan
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Clonkill U8 squad, front l/r: Adam Brady, Odhran Donoghue, Conor Daly, Ben Bose, Jamie Kelleghan, Cory O’Brien, Eoin McGrath, Nathan Sleator, Joe Daly. Back: Tommy Keegan Manager, Michael Kenny, Dara Mullen, John McGarry, Reilly Sheehan, Billy Moffatt, Broc Inguana, Ben Mulligan, Jake Muldoon, Cillian Colgan, Ross Murray
Fergal Fagan holds the Junior Championship Cup
Larry Donoghue receives the Adrian Murray Cup from Pat Slevin proud Clonkill clubman and sponsor, watched by county chairman Sean Sheridan
student revealed that Clonkill will have a new manager in place for the 2014 campaign as the long-serving Pat O’Toole has decided to take a break from the role and Eoin was wholesome in his praise for Pat. “Pat is a great man and has done great work with us over the years. He has
Luke Loughlin
Andrew Mitchell
been coaching a lot of us since we first started hurling and he has brought great success to the club, but he felt that the club needed a change of voice and he has decided to step down from the role. He deserves great credit for what he has contributed to the club down through the years.”
Shane Power
As mentioned earlier, Clonkill lifted the intermediate title when they defeated Ringtown in the final by 2-19 to 2-10 with their two goals coming from the hurl of centre forward Philip Dowdall. The sides were on level terms 10 minutes into the second half, but at that stage Clonkill pressed on the accelerator and left
On duty against Raharney in the IHC, front l/r: Sean Loughlin, Philip Dowdall, Paul Poynton, Jack McGrath, Liam Farrell, Ciaran Crentsil, Conrad Reilly, Enda Morrison, Conor Thompson, Brian Murray. Back: Pat Walsh, John Egan, Mark Healy, Cian Quinn, Luke McGrath, Larry Donoghue, Gerard Fagan, Dan Sheridan, Steven Cleary, Niall Murray, Niall Folan, Luke Loughlin
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Intermediate Champions 2013, front l/r: Luke Loughlin, Enda Morrison, Pat Walsh, Jack McGrath, Conrad Reilly, Ciaran Morrison, Brian Murray, Jamie Kelleghan, Liam Farrell, Rebecca Healy, Conor Thompson, John Egan, Paul Poynton, Packie Kelly. Back: Philip Dowdall, Luke McGrath, Ciaran Crentsil, Cian Quinn, Fergal Fagan, Finbar Thompson, Gerard Fagan, Paul Kelleghan, Steven Cleary, Dan Sheridan, Niall Folan, Mark Healy, Larry Donoghue, Niall Murray
Alan Dowdall
Junior Hurling A Champions, front l/r: Pat Walsh, Rebecca Healy, Conor Thompson, Enda Morrison, Finbar Thompson, Brian Murray, John Egan, David Reilly, Jamie Kelleghan, Michael Heffernan, Liam Farrell, Ciaran Morrison. Back: Christy Austin, Ciaran Crentsil, Mark Healy, Jack McGrath, Larry Donoghue, Niall Folan, Philip Dowdall, Steven Cleary, Fergal Fagan, Luke Folan, Cian Quinn, Luke McGrath, Dan Sheridan,
Ringtown in their wake, outscoring the Whitehall men by 2-7 to 1-1 in the remainder of the game. Two goals in a two-minute spell proved decisive as the Loughegar men won with a bit to spare and it was Dowdall, who supplied both majors, the second a brilliant strike that gave capable custodian, Pat Burke, no chance. Burke came forward to blast home an injury-time penalty in emphatic fashion,
Finbar Thompson
but it was nothing more than consolation and for Ringtown, defeat was a shattering blow. “It was great to win the intermediate title as we have a lot of young players on that team coming through and the experience of winning the championship will stand to them and help them push for places on the senior team. I’d be quietly confident that we can do well this year,” he concluded.
Tom Egan
Luke McGrath
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Larry Donoghue
Micheal Heffernan
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MULTYFARNHAM
The U14 Division 4 winners celebrate as the trophy is held high, front l/r: Jack Moran, Andrew Hogan, Sean Rock, Stephen Sweeney, Luke Nangle, Eoghan Kelly, Eoin Walsh. Back: Noel Barden, Lee Mulligan, Dylan Wright, Rian Kelleher, Aaron Whelan, Frank Tighe
I
A MULTY-TUDE OF PROGRESS
f there was an award for the most improved team in the junior grade over the last few years, then Multyfarnham would come out on top as the continue to make great progress. Not only is the club’s junior team now a permanent fixtures in the knockout stages of the championship, but they also ply their trade in Division 3 of the league; one of the few junior clubs to do so. At underage level the club is also making strides and a massive recruitment drive has seen their numbers swell, while off the field, the club and community’s centre is regarded as one of the finest facilities in the county. So what has awoken this sleepy rural club that has seen them make a great surge to reach their potential both on and off the field? Club P.R.O Gary Guilfoyle speaks to this year’s Maroon & White about the recent success that they have achieved. Pride of place on the field in 2013 went to the club’s under-14 side that won the Division 4 county title after they defeated Tyrrellspass in the final last September. Multyfarnham captain Stephen Sweeney sent the club’s supporters into raptures when he raised the Shield after the match. “Winning the under-14 title was a
huge boost for the club. A lot of work and effort has been put in at underage level and it is great to see it pay off,” said Gary. “Our minors reached the championship semi final where they lost to Milltownpass, while the under16s did well also, so we have to pleased with the progress that is being made there.” Gary revealed that they made a conscious decision a few years back to try and attract more youngsters into the club and they came up with a novel way of doing so, which has certainly paid off. “There has been a lot of work done over the last seven years. On any Saturday morning, we would have between 80 and 100 players from between eight years of age and 14 down in the park. “In all age groups, there would be a squad of between 20 and 25 players and for a rural club to produce that is something else. We decided to entice kids to come play with us by offering them footballs when they came, while also guaranteeing them games. “By this I mean that they would actually be guaranteed of playing. We are not far from Mullingar and you see kids go in there and they could join one of the clubs in the area, but there is no guarantee that they will get playing there, but here they will and that’s what
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I think has been the main attraction to us. “Everyone wants to play whether it be a youngster or adult, no one wants to be stuck on the sideline all the time and this is one of the reasons that a lot of youngsters turn their back on the GAA.” The work being done at underage is beginning to pay off at adult level as there is a steady stream of players coming through from minor level to the club’s junior team. This can be reflected in their results over the past couple of years which has seen them compete at the business end of the championship consistently. Two thousand and thirteen was no different as Multy finished fourth. They started the championship campaign with a 1-07 to 0-08 win over St Joseph’s in a hard fought battle. They then really showed their championship credentials by putting up a huge battle against pre-championship favourites Moate before going down by the narrowest of margins, 2-10 to 1-12. Despite playing so well in that match, Multy failed to produce anything like that performance in their next outing as they surprisingly lost to Ballycomoyle by 1-10 to 2-06. Two defeats from three games was not the ideal start, but to their credit they came back with two excellent wins over St Paul’s and Milltown.
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The U14 Division 4 winning squad, front l/r: Colin Pantry, Christopher Feerick, Eoghan Kelly, Robbie Connolly, Brendan McCarty, Aaron Whelan, Sean Rock, Jamie Coffey, Ciaran Bawle, Jack Moran, Stephen Sweeney, David Gillispie. Back: Gerry Bawle, Paul Mulligan, Noel Barden, Emmett Hope, L Monaghan, Rian Kelleher, Dylan Wright, Eoin Walsh, Kevin Tighe, Frank Tighe, Andrew Hogan, Luke Nangle, Lee Mulligan, Joe Kelly
First up were the Clonmellon based club and Multy with Noel Kiernan in fine form were worthy winners in this contest as they recorded a 1-12 to 108 victory. Confidence was high going into the next match as Milltown were defeated by a single point (1-10 to 1-09), while they received walkovers against Loughnavalley and Delvin, neither of who had troubled any of the other sides in the group. This put Multy through to the quarterfinal and a meeting with Mullingar Shamrock’s second string. Town teams are very unpredictable in the junior grade and Multy headed into something of the unknown. It proved to be beyond them on this occasion as Shamrocks won by 1-09 to 1-07 as they went on to clinch the title. “To be honest, it was disappointing to
James Carey
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Stephen Moran
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SUMMER CAMPS
Ciaran McCabe
lose out in the quarterfinal, but the fact that Shamrocks went on to win the final, shows that we are not far off doing the same. “I think this year we have to push on. John Gordon is manager once again and he is getting a good response from the players. There is a big panel there and with the young lads coming through, the competition for places is fierce. “The junior championship is very competitive and any of about five or six teams could win it and we would include ourselves in that. The talent is certainly there and it’s just a case of pushing on from here.” Gary admits that Multy have an
edge over some of the other junior teams as they play their trade in Division Three of the league, which sees them play many intermediate teams ahead of the start of the championship. “It is great achievement for ourselves to hold our own in division 3, which is predominantly made up of intermediate clubs. Playing such teams is great preparation for the championship and we have certainly benefited from it over the last few years. “This year our aim is to maintain our place in that division and go on and win the championship. We know it won’t be easy, but we know we can push on this year.”
Cris Cannon
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MILLTOWN
T
MILLTOWN END YEAR ON HIGH
he 2013 campaign was the 10th anniversary of Milltown’s last junior football championship success. The Rathconrath outfit completed the double the same year by adding the Junior Cup title to their list of accolades and it was fitting that a decade later they would once again win the latter competition. Annually, Milltown are one of the favourites for the junior championship title and 2013 was no different as they went into the campaign with high hopes of achieving their goal. Under the managership of Martin Lynn and his selectors Michael Kiernan and Ned Sommers, the club began their preparations early on in the year. Their league form ensured that they comfortably stayed in division 3 and had fortune been on their side, they could easily have been battling for promotion. In the championship, the progressed to the quarterfinals where on the day St Loman’s proved too strong, a major
disappointment for the club. However, redemption was sought and gained in the Junior Cup as they lifted their first piece of silverware this decade. Newly appointed club chairman Ned Sommers revealed to the Maroon & White that they can use that title win as a stepping stone to greater things in 2014. Ned is confident that they have the players to bring the junior championship cup back to Milltown in the not too distant future and he has not ruled out that happening this year. “We have a great bunch of lads here and they are very committed to the club and they always put in a big effort. It would not be unfamiliar to see up to 30 lads in the park training,” said Ned. “To be honest we went into the 2013 championship with high hopes and we did start well, but we seemed to falter a bit midway through the year.” Milltown kicked off the championship with a 3-09 to 2-07 win over Ballycomoyle and followed this up by drawing 1-08 to 1-08 with St Paul’s.
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Paul Mahon raises the Junior Cup
Loughnavalley were put to the sword on a scoreline of 2-10 to 1-06 before Milltown easily accounted for Delvin by 3-15 to 0-04. However, the unbeaten run of four games came to an end when Multyfarnham inflicted their first defeat of the campaign as they recorded a 1-10 to 1-09 win. Martin Lynn’s charges got back on track with a resounding 2-17 to 1-04 victory over St Joseph’s, but another defeat to Moate (0-16 to 1-09) saw them finish in fourth place in group A and thus a place in the quarterfinals beckoned. “Our aim was to finish in the top two and go straight into the semi finals, but we were confident enough going into the quarterfinal where we would play St Loman’s.” On the day, Milltown entered the game without three key players as Michael Connell, Sean Sommers and Conor O’Farrell were all ruled out through injury, but Ned feels that even without these players the team didn’t play anywhere near their full potential on the day as Loman’s recorded a 3-10 to 2-05 victory.
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Junior Cup champions, front l/r: Mark Geraghty, Bunty Geraghty, Conor O’Farrell, Bernard Glynn, Paul Heduan, Diarmuid Maguire, Gary Byrne, Frank McLoughlin, Paul Mahon, Bernard Kiernan, Tom Dillon. Back: James Walsh, Michael Connell, John Mahon, John Duncan, Louis Fagan, Conor Duncan, Paddy Somers, Brendan Lynn, Damien Byrne, Paddy Gavigan, Joe Kenny, Willie Keegan, Conor Reilly, Alan Geraghty, Joe Boyce, Paul Mulvaney
Millmore Gaels’ U14 Division 3 champions. Front l/r: Matthew Gunning, Mark McCaughey, Luke Gunning, Colin Murtagh, Colm O’Rourke, Eoin McCabe, Wayne Smith, Dylan McCaffrey, Adam Molloy, Ben Greenwood, Shane Mahon. Back, l/r: Michael Byrne, Aaron Kennedy, Oisin Ryan, Sam Maxwell, Leon Hayes, Dillon Rushe, Joe Kincaid, Daniel Ennis, Jack Kearney, Harry Pendred, Jason Molloy
At the U8 blitz in Cusack Park, front l/r: Gerard Martin, Nathan Creagh, Adam Keegan, Jack Smith, Charlie Mead, Henry Duncan, Noah Smith, Mark Scally, Niall McLoughlin, Harry McCormack. Back: Evan Brennan, Max McCormack, Brian McCabe, Jack Duncan, Peter Ballesty, Sean Dillon, Riley Mead, Patrick Kiernan, Oisin McGurren, Ivan Smith, Alan McLoughlin, Katie O’Connor
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Milltown welcome the New york Ladies at their grounds
Paul Mahon
Tracey Dillon
St Loman’s got off to a good start and opened the scoring with a point which was soon followed by a goal in the opening couple of minutes. Milltown got their first point after six minutes but it was St Loman’s who were to dominate the first half. The St Loman’s defence were rock solid. Further points extended St Loman’s lead. Then the town team registered a quick fire goal
Sinead Boyce
Joe Kenny
and a point to give St Loman’s a commanding lead at half time. Milltown started the second half in search of a goal and when Alan Geraghty buried a shot on target it seemed certain to hit the net only to be denied by a wonderful fingertip save from Paul Mc Gann. Paddy Somers added a point from a free for Milltown before Loman’s cancelled it out with a
Alan Geraghty
score of their own. Milltown were determined to get back into the game and Paddy Somers converted a penalty to reduce the margin. The St Loman’s defence came under huge pressure but they managed to keep the damage to a minimum. Loman’s pointed two frees before Milltown's Jarlath Boyce fisted to the net but it had no bearing on the outcome as St Loman’s finished eight
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The Minor’ B’ champions, front l/r: Katie Smith, Megan Devanney, Sarah Dillon, Rachael Halligan, Rachael Dillon, Trisha Jordan Flaherty, Annya Jordan Flaherty, Gemma Keena, Leanne Slevin. Back: Louise Kiernan, Grainne Byrne, Kelly Molloy, Tracey Dillon, Debbie Kennedy, Leonie Keena, Tamara Keena, Anna Pendred, Chloe Murtagh, Hannah Jackson, Ursula Maher, Orlaith Boyce
The Ladies squad that reached the Leinster club intermediate final
Another successful Milltown ladies squad, front l/r: Hannah Jackson, Jennifer Keena, Annya Jordan Flaherty, Gemma Keena, Gemma Geraghty, Rachael Dillon, Katie Smith, Sarah Dillon, Anna Pendred, Clodagh Dillon, Grainne Byrne, Leonie Keena. Back: Tom Dillon, Bernie Kiernan, Trisha Flaherty Jordan, Sinead Byrne, Tamara Keena, Rachael Halligan, Ursula Maher, Chloe Murtagh, Orlaith Boyce, Tracey Dillon, Leanne Slevin, Debbie Kennedy, Kelly Molloy, Louise Kiernan, Cathy Dillon
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Ladies U16 champions. Front l/r: Ursula Martin, Aoife Ballesty, Annya Flaherty Jordan, Grainne Byrne, Clodagh Dillon, Rachel Dillon, Sarah Dillon, Katie Smith, Chloe Murtagh, Rachael Halligan. Back: Gemma Geraghty, Kelly Molloy, Hannah Jackson, Annya Flaherty Jordan, Debbie Kennedy, Tracey Dillon, Louise Kiernan, Leanne Slevin, Orlaith Boyce, Anna Pendred
More celebrations for the ladies, front l/r: Trisha Jordan Flaherty, Sarah Dillon, Tracey Dillon, Louise Kiernan, Linda Somers, Rachael Dillon, Bronagh Beglan, Katie Somers. Back: Helen Walsh, Leonie Keena, Orlaith Boyce, Karen Walsh, Kelly Molloy, Anna Pendred, Celine Mahon, Sarah Pendred, Sinead Boyce, Aoife Mulligan, Maria Greer
point winners. “It was hard to pin point what happened on the day, we just didn’t perform at all. We went into the game in confident mood, but I’d be certain that we weren’t over confident either. Unfortunately for us, it was just one of those days and the disappointment in the dressingroom afterwards told its own story. The players were dejected and that defeat hurt them a lot.” Despite being knocked prematurely out of the championship, Milltown’s year was far from finished as league games and the Junior Cup had to be concluded. Their league form was decent throughout the year and they finished a respectable sixth in the table safe from relegation, while recording some notable wins. “I think it is very important for us to be
Milltown regained the senior ladies football title. Front l/r: Gillian Ballesty, Jayne Walsh Smith, Grainne Byrne, Lynda Somers, Faye Kearney, Leonie Keena, Laura Kiernan, Sinead Boyce (captain), Kelly Boyce Jordan, Bronagh Beglan, Tracey Dillon, Tamara Keena, Leanne Slevin, Rachael Dillon, Laura Halligan, Sarah Scally. Back, l/r: Kelly Molloy, Helen Walsh, Rachel Halligan, Chloc Murtagh, Hannah Jackson, Trisha Jordan Flaherty, Megan Devaney, Celine Mahon, Sarah Pendred, Louise Kieran, Karen Walsh, Niamh Mulligan, Ruth Kearney, Joye Kearney, Maria Green, Orla Boyce, Michelle Ennis Lennon, Aoife Mulligan, Anna Pendred, Katie Somers, Nicola Lennon
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Rachael Dillon
Leanne Slevin
that role and Peter Devine, who is in division 3 as you play a better originally from Tyrone is involved this standard of team in that division, most of year.” who are intermediate teams. We did play Ned admits that despite the lack of their and beat Mullingar Shamrocks in the own underage structure, the club’s league and they had a stronger team out amalgamation with Ballymore has been that day then they did in the county final a resounding success and something as they lost a few to the senior the week that will continue for some time to come. before. So it just proved that with a bit of “Millmore Gaels has proven to be a luck we could go all the way in the success over the years and if we are not championship. winning, we are still competing at all “But like I said, it is important to stay in grades. Both clubs work extremely hard division 3, if a few of the closer results to ensure that it works and we have had gone our way, we could have been reaped the benefits of it as there is a battling for promotion. Our aim this year steady progression of young lads coming would be to get a good start in the league through.” and carry that form into the Ned is confident that all this leads to an championship.” optimistic opinion on the 2014 campaign. In late November, early December, the “I’m confident that if the lads give the county board scheduled the Junior Cup same commitment that they have been and Milltown were fixed to play a Multy giving for the past few years then we can side that had defeated them in the go on and win the championship. That championship. Junior Cup win was massive for us and I Nonetheless, the Rathconrath based think the players will now realise that outfit gained a degree of revenge for that they can go on further and get back up loss when they recorded a to the intermediate grade.” comprehensive 3-09 to 0-08 win over the maroon and whites. This set up a meeting with old rivals St Paul’s in the final and Milltown had home advantage. Despite the time of year, both sides produced an exhilarating game of football and even extra time couldn’t separate the sides as the score finished 1-12 apiece. The replay was the following week in Clonmellon and this time around Milltown made no mistake as they ran out comfortable winners on a scoreline of 2-12 to 0-09; crowning them Junior Cup champions in the process. “It was brilliant to win the Junior Cup. To be honest, I thought we had lost our chance the first day as St Paul’s are always a hard team to beat at home, but fair play to the lads, they just clicked on the day and everything we had been working on seemed to come off. “This was a very important victory for Diarmuid Maguire the club as it gives the players the selfbelief and shows Best Wishes to Milltown GFC from them what it is like to win something, especially the younger lads. “We have to build on the Cup win, but we know that there is still a lot of work to be done. Martin is manager once again Dalystown, Moyvore, Mullingar. this year and Michael Tel: 044-9355311 Kiernan is staying on as selector, but I’ve stepped down from
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MILLTOWNPASS
THE WRIGHT STUFF
Ciaran Wright
T
he Westmeath intermediate football championship has proven to be a very tough grade in that any team in the middle tier can win the title. Unlike the senior and junior championships where there are the usual pretenders to the throne, there are about 10 teams capable of lifting the Peter Geraghty Cup in any given year. One such side that has genuine designs on lifting the Peter Geraghty Cup is Milltownpass and veteran midfielder Ciaran Wright tells Maroon & White that their aim for 2014 is to do just that. Nonetheless, Ciaran is experienced enough to know that this will not be achieved without the proper preparation, commitment and dedication to the cause. In 2013, Milltownpass laid down a marker when they reached the IFC
semi-final, gained promotion to division 2, won the Division 3 Junior Cup title and were also the junior ‘B’ finalists in a year that will have given the club great confidence heading into this year’s campaign. The fact that they achieved so much may have surprised many, but Ciaran admits that they were confident of doing well and felt that 2012 had been a disappointing campaign for them, even though they consolidated their place in the grade, having won the junior title the year before. “We were disappointed with the way 2012 went. We thought we were good enough to at least reach the latter stages of the championship, but we were very unlucky in some games, losing by just a point in a few. We knew though that we had the players to make an impact in 2013,” said Ciaran. “Every club has cycles when a good
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bunch of young lads comes through the ranks. We have had a few come through last year and the year before and they have fitted right into the side. The likes of Shane Corcoran and Liam Reilly were excellent for us, despite it being only their first year at adult level and the years’ experience will stand to them.” Ciaran revealed that there is a good blend of youth and experience in the side, which can be only a positive thing as they embark on the 2014 campaign. “I’d be the oldest on the team now at 35 and Paul Brady would be a couple of years behind me, but you have lads in their late 20’s right down to the two young lads I mentioned, so there is a very good mix there.” At the start of the year, a new manager was appointed as former Rhode supremo Gerry Hickey took over from clubman Jim Whelehan, who has given the club many great years’ service and
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Intermediate semi finalists, front l/r: Kevin Reid, Brian Clarke, Sean Whelehan, Stephen Riggs, Shane Gleeson, David Devine, Shane Corcoran, Fintan O'Reilly (Capt), Andrew Devine, Paul Brady, Seamus Faulkner, Darragh O'Connor Gary Nolan, Colm Grennan, James Grennan. Back: Adam Moore, Mark Gorman, Kevin Kelly, Shane Donoghue, Shane Gammell, Andrew Mullin, Liam O'Reilly, Noel O'Reilly, Dermot Faulkner, Gary Brady, Paul O'Reilly, Shane Flanagan, Ciaran Wright, Justin McDonald, Conor Flanagan, John O'Reilly, TJ Glennon, Jack Gorman
the main aim was to gain promotion from division 3. “Jim has been brilliant for the club and he did a great job in 2012, but as I said we had no luck in some of the games. Our chairman Sean Moran should take the credit for getting Gerry in. For some reason, Rhode decided to change manager, even though he had won the championship with them the year before and their loss was our gain. “We knew that we had to get out of division 3, with all due respect to the teams that are there, we needed to be playing at a higher level. Our first game of the league was against Ballynacargy, who have got the better of us comfortably in recent years. We went five or six points down early in that match and it looked as if it was going to be a case of the same old story, but we battled back and won that game by a
few points and I think it was then that lads started to believe that we could achieve something.” The confidence continued into the championship and an opening round victory over Rosemount on a scoreline of 1-09 to 0-08 was no more than Milltownpass deserved. This was the perfect start to the campaign, according to Ciaran. “I think Rosemount took us for granted a bit and it was a great result for us. It’s very important to start the campaign with a win and that’s the way it proved for them as they failed to make it out of the group, even though they would have been many people’s favourites to win the title.” However, Milltown suffered a surprise 1-10 to 1-08 defeat to Tang in their next outing meaning that there was a great deal of importance in winning against St
Mary’s Rochfortbridge in round three. They managed a victory as they won by 1-12 to 0-8. It was a big result for the club as they now had four points on the board. A narrow 0-10 to 1-06 win over Ballinagore ensured that Milltownpass were guaranteed a place in the knockout stages, even though they still had one game to play in the group and this turned out to be a cracking match against Caulry with Hickey’s charges just shading it by 1-08 to 0-10 on this occasion. “Winning the last two group games the way we did gave us great confidence, as the previous year we were losing those games. We headed into the semi final confident that we could beat St Malachy’s.” Milltownpass played in to a strong wind and blinding sun in the first half. At the
The Division Three Cup winners, front l/r: Frank Moran, Sam Maguire, TJ Glennon, Stephen Riggs, Darragh O'Connor, Andrew Devine, Fintan O'Reilly, Shane Gammell, Noel O'Reilly, Sean Moran, Jim O'Connor. Middle: Richard Gorman, Jay Faulkner, Paul Brady, Gerry Hickey, Ciaran Wright, John O'Reilly, Shane Flanagan, Kevin Kelly, Dermot Faulkner, Ned O'Reilly, Liam O'Reilly, Andy Mullin, Ruairi Coyne, Joe Loran. Back: David Gavigan, Brian Early, Adam Moore, Shane Corcoran, Gary Brady, Paul O'Reilly, Gary Nolan, Jack Gorman, Seamus Faulkner, Mark Gorman, Justin McDonald, Owen Loran, Jack O'Connor.
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Junior B finalists, front l/r: Brian Clarke, Sean Whelehan, James Grennan, TJ Glennon, Jack Gorman, Colm Grennan, Stephen Riggs, Shane Corcoran, Daragh O'Connor. Back: Adam Moore, Justin McDonald, Shane Donoghue, Andy Mullin, John O Reilly, Shane Gammell, Ruairi Coyne, Paul O'Reilly, Kevin Kelly, Gary Nolan, Ned O Reilly, Liam O'Reilly, Paul Brady
Andrew Devine
Liam O’Reilly
half time whistle it was 0-05 each and it was all to play for in the second half. Then disaster struck when Milltownpass lost two key players in the first 15 minutes as Paul Brady and his replacement Shane Gleeson had to leave the field of play through injury. This was a major setback and one that they failed to recover from as they were only able to score two points in the second half compared to their opponents, who raised the white flag on six occasions to run out winners on a scoreline of 0-11 to 0-07. “It was disappointing to lose to St Malachy’s. We were well in the game up until half time, but losing the two lads was a big blow and they just took their chances, while we didn’t.” Despite their championship exit, Milltownpass were still seeking glory on three other fronts. The league went according to plan and only one defeat in the entire campaign (a 2-09 to 0-14 loss to Mullingar Shamrocks). Some of the league games were doubled up as division 3 Cup matches and this saw the
Paul O’Reilly
Paul Brady
Milltown outfit through to the final where they would play Shamrocks in the decider. They overcame the challenge of 14man Mullingar Shamrocks in emphatic fashion, following an impressive display at Kinnegad. The victors led by nine points at half-time (1-10 to 0-4) and continued to dominate the second half as they gained some consolation for the season. Having reached the Intermediate Football Championship semi-final and the Junior ‘B’ decider, where they lost to St Malachy’s and Garrycastle respectively, this victory was tangible reward for a year of progress by the Milltownpass club, under manager Gerry Hickey. Mullingar Shamrocks, who were reduced to 14 men following the 28th minute dismissal of wing back, Paddy Joyce on a second yellow card, missed an early second half penalty and with that went their chance of mounting a comeback. After the game, Fintan O’Reilly accepted the cup from County Board Development Officer, Denis
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Noel O’Reilly
Coyne. “It was great to pick up some silverware, especially for the younger lads in the side. They will have learned a lot from last year and hopefully we can carry that through to next year. We have to hit the ground running this year if we are to do well.” Ciaran reveals that the players returned to weight training in early January, a concept that was a foreign notion to him when he first started out all those years ago. “I played the last year the club was senior and that time, it was a case of training twice or three times a week and that was it. I’d never even heard of strength and conditioning, but it is part and parcel of the preparation now and the fitness levels have increased a lot. They go on about the efforts that a county player puts in every year, but a club player puts in almost as much and they would certainly be training four or five nights a week. We know what we have to do and it is up to us to do it now.”
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ATHLONE
U21 SUCCESS KEEPS THE MOMENTUM GOING Ray Connellan goes past Bunbrosna’s Finian Newman
I
t’s a question that will be asked in years to come: what club denied St. Loman’s a clean sweep of the major adult titles in 2013? It was, of course, Athlone who pulled off a sensational victory in the U21 15-a-side championship final at Kinnegad. Having ended a 50-year wait by capturing the Flanagan Cup six days earlier, St. Loman’s were riding the crest of a wave and, with the likes of John Heslin, Steven Gilmore, Jason O’Toole and Kelvin Reilly on board, were expected to roll over a young and inexperienced Athlone outfit. But the Shannonsiders had other ideas and snatched a 1-12 to 0-14 victory from the jaws of defeat courtesy of substitute Conal Sheeran’s late, late goal. Sheeran had only been on the field a matter of minutes when he poked home the winning score following a goalmouth scramble in the
second minute of injury-time. “It was an amazing finish. Conal got the goal and the referee blew the final whistle from the kick-out,” remembers Richie Daly, who was joint-manager of the U21s along with Fergal O’Toole. “I was delighted for the lads because they put so much into it and had been written off going into the final. It’s always nice to win an adult title and it has given everyone in the club club a great lift. The success also made up for our defeat to Maryland/Tang in the previous year’s final.” The former goalkeeper, who won an U21 championship medal himself in 1996 before going on to claim senior honours two years later, admits the victory was an unexpected bonus given the team’s relative youth. “Most of them were minors,” he points out. “Only four of them have played senior, which is very few compared to Loman’s. Twelve are eligible for U21
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again this year. But I knew they would be there or thereabouts when I saw how committed they were. They were prepared to train at 7.30 every Saturday morning and they got their just reward in the end. “They stuck at it in the final. They stayed on their (Loman’s) coattails before nudging ahead at the end. It was our first U21 title since 2005 and augurs well for the future.” After receiving a bye in the first round, Athlone opened their campaign with a 0-17 to 1-10 quarter-final victory over The Downs in The Downs. New county senior panellist Ray Connellan accounted for 0-8 of the Athlone tally, while Brian Gill chipped in with 0-5. In the semi-final, the Shannonsiders survived a second half comeback from Mullingar Shamrocks to win by 0-18 to 2-11 after extra-time. That set the scene for the final against St. Loman’s in Kinnegad on October 19. Loman’s started brightly and led by 0-3 to 0-0
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U21 champions, front l/r: Patrick Melinn, Seamus Byrne, Glen Costello, Dylan Lynch, Aidan Byrne, Andrew Lynam, Dermot Piggott, Eoin Maher, Jay Boland. Front: Conal Sheeran, Charlie McMickman, Shane Galvin, Matthew Darling, Emmett Kiely, Michael Duddy, Daniel Lynam, Stephen Ward, Ray Connellan, Jordan Marshment, Luke Dully, Brian Gill, Jack Quinn
after 10 minutes. Ray Connellan got Athlone off the mark, only for John Heslin to immediately restore the Mullingar side’s three-point advantage. Further points from Kelvin Reilly and Heslin stretched the Loman’s lead before Aidan Byrne and Glen Costello reduced the deficit. After Connellan rattled the St. Loman’s woodwork, Luke Dully and Shane Dempsey exchanged points to leave the favourites 0-8 to 0-5 in front at the break. Stephen Ward and Connellan were both on the mark early in the second half, but it looked as Loman’s would pull away when they reeled off three
points without reply. The Pairc Chiarain outfit dug in, however, responding with three unanswered points of their own from Brian Gill (two) and Ward to leave just two in it. Loman’s continued to cling onto a two-point lead until the late drama unfolded. Charlie McMickan dropped a ’45 into the goalmouth, Loman’s failed to clear and Conal Sheeran emerged as an unlikely hero when he got the final touch to send the ball past Ben McCabe and into the St. Loman’s net. Cue the Athlone celebrations. Along with Joe Fallon, Jim Rigney and John Martin, Richie was also part of the U16 management that steered
Athlone to their third Division 1 club final in four years against The Downs in Rochfortbridge. The boys in the sky blue and white hoops had high hopes of retaining their crown, but The Downs were outstanding on the day and eventually prevailed on a 5-12 to 1-9 scoreline. After a shaky start, the holders scored a quick 1-3 to take the lead, but that was as good as it got as The Downs hit back with a brace of goals to lead by a point at the interval. The timing of the second goal – right on the stroke of half-time – seemed to have a demoralising effect on Athlone who conceded three more in the second
U16 championship finalists, front l/r: Michael Doolan, Jack Ruane, Fabian Cooke, Richie Greene, Conor Melinn, Sean Keenan, Benny Martin, Robert Teape, Diarmuid Martin. Back: Tadgh Prendergast, Cathal Stacey, Ryan Gaffey, Josh Dolan, Conor Devanney, Sam Omukoro, Fionn Dowd, Kieran Rigney, Sean Dowd, Daniel Reid, Dylan Temple, Conal Edmundson
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Michael Greene
Seamus Byrne
Stephen Ward (left), Jordan Marshment (right)
Celebrating the U21 win: l/r: Sean Dempsey, Glen Costello, David Prendergast
Fionn Dowd receives the U15 league cup
Brian Fogarty
Eoin Maher
Emmett Collins
half to the new champions. Having won the Feile and U14 Division 1 title in 2011, and the U15 championship in 2012, it was the first defeat of significance for this particular team, who will be hoping to make amends at minor level in the season ahead. Last year’s minors, who were managed by Fergal O’Toole, were unlucky to lose to two-in-a-row champions Moate All-Whites at the quarter-final stage of the championship. The U15s retained the
Davy Allen Memorial Cup – which is named after one of club’s greatest servants – following a victory over Ballycumber/Tubber in the final, which the U14s defeated Coralstown/Kinnegad to claim the U14 Feile Shield. “We were strong across all the underage grades again last year, which is encouraging,” Richie enthuses. “We’ve been competitive and consistent for the past number of
years. It’s all about building towards the future and having a strong senior team going forward. There are no guarantees that underage success will lead to senior success, but there is a far greater chance of senior success if the work is put in with the youngsters.” The appointment of Noel O’Brien – who guided St. Brigid’s to an All-Ireland club final appearance in 2011 – as manager led to heightened expectations for the Athlone senior team last year. The 2012 Feis Cup
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champions commenced their championship campaign with a 3-7 to 1-4 victory over newly-promoted Castletown-Finea/Coole/Whitehall. But that was followed by two losses on the bounce to The Downs (0-9 to 0-10) and Mullingar Shamrocks (1-4 to 114). A 0-14 to 0-10 victory over Maryland got the Shannonsiders back on track before they scored three second half goals to edge out Bunbrosna by 3-9 to 3-8 in their final group game and qualify for a quarter-final meeting with Tyrrellspass in Moate. As it transpired, two goals in the opening 11 minutes set Tyrrellspass up for a comfortable 3-12 to 0-11 victory. The Tidy Town led by 2-8 to 0-5 at the break and Athlone’s hopes of mounting a comeback were effectively ended when Paul Bannon had a penalty saved by Darren Quinn 12 minutes into the second half. Their misery was complete when the unfortunate Paul
The U15 league winning squad
McEnroe deflected the ball into his own net in the closing stages. For the coming year, Athlone have appointed former players Tom StuartTrainor and James Kilroy as their jointmanagers. “The two lads will hope to build on the progress Noel O’Brien made last year. I know reaching a quarter-final isn’t a big deal for a club of our history and stature, but it was still an improvement on the previous year when Mullingar Shamrocks blitzed us in the last round of the group stage. “As last year’s U21 success proved, we have good young talent in the club and I’d like to see us pushing on and maybe reaching a senior semi-final or final this year,” Daly concludes. Athlone’s U21 championship winning line-up was: Michael Duddy; Dermot Piggott, Eoin Maher, Daniel Lynam; Andy Lynam (captain), Stephen Ward, Matthew Darling; Brian Gill, Ray Connellan; Glen Costello,
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Jordan Marshment, Luke Dully; Aidan Byrne, Seamus Byrne, Dylan Lynch. Subs used: Jack Quinn, Charlie McMickan and Conal Sheerin. The U16 panel was: Fabian Cooke, Conor Devaney, Josh Dolan, Michael Doolan, Fionn Dowd, Sean Dowd, Conal Edmundson, Ryan Gaffey, Richie Greene, Sean Keena, Benny Martin, Diarmuid Martin, Kevin Martin, Conor Melinn, Sam Omukoro, Tadhg Prendergast, Daniel Reid, Kieran Rigney, Jack Ruane, Cathal Stacey, Robert Teape and Dylan Temple. The team that faced Tyrrellspass in the SFC quarter-final was: Michael Duddy; Eoin Maher, Paul McEnroe, Fergal Murray; Stephen Ward, Damien Kelly, Dermot Piggott; Paul Bannon, John Stapleton; Ray Connellan, Michael Greene, John Egan; Emmet Collins, Aidan St John, Shane KilroyGlynn. Subs used: Daniel Lynam, Jordan Marshment, Joe Fallon, Dylan Lynch and Andy Lynam.
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TANG
T
CONSISTENCY THE KEY
ang will need to show greater consistency if they’re to end a 21-year wait for Peter Geraghty Cup honours in 2014, according to their inspirational centre back Robert English. Despite plying their trade in Division 1 of the All-County League for the past few seasons, the Joe Fox Memorial Park outfit haven’t contested an intermediate championship decider since 2002 when they lost to local rivals Tubberclair. Last year, they bowed out at the quarter-final stage to eventual winners St. Malachy’s after a mixed bag of results in the group phase. “We scraped through to the quarterfinals,” remembers English, whose injury-time winning point against St. Mary’s got them there. “We won three and lost two of our group matches, so our form wasn’t hectic going into the Malachy’s match. They were a strong outfit at that level
and had the experience of playing senior as well. Having said that, it’s a game we could have won.” The former county player continues: “If we’re to challenge for the championship this year, our performances will have to be more consistent. We know we can compete with anyone on our day, but the problem is we don’t bring out those performances enough. We’ve been holding on our own in Division 1 and that should be standing to us.” The 26-year-old engineer-turneddairy farmer takes encouragement from the amount of young talent in the Longford-border club and the fact that they provided St. Malachy’s with one of their toughest games en route to winning the intermediate championship. “The age profile of the team is very low,” he points out. “Paul Conway did a fantastic job in blooding so many young players during his two years as manager. He got three or four off the minor team last
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Chris Connor
year and they are a year older and wiser now. We have a number of lads in our team who won U21 championship medals two years ago. They obviously know what it takes to be successful. We have also been lucky in that, with the exception of Denis Bannon, we haven’t lost anyone to emigration. “I think we can take a lot of heart from what Malachy’s achieved after they beat us last year. We now know the level we need to reach.” Under the guidance of former Westmeath star Conway and his selectors Damien Gill and John Lennon (all three enjoyed long playing careers with the club), Tang made a very poor start to their 2013 championship campaign when losing to south county rivals Caulry by 1-5 to 1-13 in Tubberclair. Amazingly, Tang didn’t score until the 45th minute, by which time Caulry were virtually out of sight. On a day when both teams seemed intent on stopping each other from
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The Tang IFC team for 2013, front l/r: Martin Rock, Christopher McCann, Niall Neary, John Rock (joint Capt), Alan Higgins, Chris Connor (joint Capt), Sean Coughlan. Back: Kieran Duncan, Fergus Farrell, Conor Marlow, Aidan Burke, Michael Galvin, Niall Bannon, William Flanagan, Dean Reddin
playing, the Mount Temple men led by 0-7 to 0-0 at the break. Aidan Burke eventually broke Tang’s scoring duck from a free before substitute Owen Couglan gave them hope with a fisted goal. But Caulry were able to respond with a goal of their own from Peter Smith and Tang’s misery was compounded by the dismissals of two players in the closing stages. The maroon and whites put that dismal display behind to edge out Milltownpass by 1-10 to 1-8 at a sweltering Shandonagh. Aidan Burke scored 0-7 (0-3 from frees) for the winners who were only briefly headed in a game which was overshadowed by a nasty facial injury to Milltownpass midfielder Ciaran Wright inside the opening two minutes. Despite being the better team, Tang didn’t put daylight between themselves and Milltownpass until 11 minutes from the end when Joshua Flanagan’s goal gave them a 1-9 to 1-5 lead. But a late rally by the losers left Tang needing an injury-time point from Aidan Burke to seal their first victory. Tang’s best performance of the campaign came against Ballinagore in Moate. A fast start laid the foundations for an emphatic 1-18 to 1-4 victory. Points from Martin Rock, Niall Neary, Alan Higgins (two) and Aidan Burke (five) propelled Paul Conway’s men into a commanding 0-9 to 0-1 after only 22 minutes.
Ballinagore had the margin down to six points, 0-3 to 0-9, at half-time, but were blown out of the water after the restart when a Martin Rock goal was sandwiched between points from William Flanagan, Rock, Burke and Dean Reddin. This flurry of scores left Tang sitting pretty on a 1-15 to 0-4 lead at the end of the third quarter, and there was no way back for Ballinagore after that. With two rounds to go, Tang were now in a strong position to reach the knockout stages, but a 1-6 to 2-6 loss to Rosemount at Tubberclair left them in danger of missing the cut. Tang left themselves with a lot of work to do after trailing by 1-2 to 2-4 at the interval. The concession of a soft goal on the stroke of half-time was a real hammer blow for the Longford-border side, but they dug deep in the second half, holding their opponents scoreless for 26 minutes. However, they couldn’t regain parity as late points from David ‘Dude’ McCormack and David Tone saw Rosemount repeat their 2012 quarterfinal victory over the maroon and whites. Everything now boiled down to the final group game against a St. Mary’s team who also needed a result to prolong their championship involvement. The Rochfortbridge men had wind advantage in the first half, but only led by a point at the break, 0-5 to
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1-1, after Martin Rock found the net just minutes after missing a penalty. On the restart, Tang took control by scoring four unanswered points, but they lost their way in the final quarter when the ‘Bridge fought back to level. However, Tang were not to be denied as Robert English’s superb last-gasp point handed them a 1-9 to 0-11 victory and a place in the quarter-finals. St. Malachy’s provided the opposition for Paul Conway’s side on a miserable early September evening in Cusack Park. The champions-elect took a slender 0-5 to 0-3 lead into half-time, but that advantage was quickly wiped out following the change of ends when the accurate Aidan Burke scored four points in-a-row to put Tang in a winning position. Tang’s chances appeared to be further boosted when St. Malachy’s half-time substitute Shane Clavin was shown a straight red card in the 40th minute but, as so often is the case when as team goes down to 14 men, St. Malachy’s upped their game and drew level with points from Ronan Whelan and Conor Keegan before three unanswered points from Alan Mangan (two) and Niall O’Brien between the 50th and 57th minutes steered them to a 0-11 to 0-8 victory. This year, Tang will be managed by Offaly man Eamon Mahon, with Damien Gill and Tom Keenan acting as his selectors. Mahon has managed a
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Christopher McCann
host of clubs around the midlands, including his native Shannonbridge, Ferbane, Padraig Pearses, Ballymahon and Moate All-Whites who, coincidentally, Paul Conway is now in charge of. “Eamon has a strong track record in management,” stresses Robert, who also plays hurling for Fr. Dalton’s and is an older brother of towering midfielder Trevor. “He has been involved with a lot of club teams as well as Offaly county teams. I’m quietly confident that we’ll have a good year. While we always set out with the intention of winning the intermediate championship, our policy
Niall Bannon
Robert English
will be to take each game as it comes. “We have a strong management team in place, and it’s up to the players now to do the business on the pitch.” It was with great sadness and disbelief that the people of Tang learned of the tragic death of 18-yearold Philip Ganly following a road accident in England on October 31 last. A precocious underage talent, Philip was tipped to be a future Maryland and Westmeath star after excelling for the Maryland/Tang underage club. “It was a massive shock to the system,” Robert recalls. “Everyone who knew Philip was
devastated. He was such a likeable fella and a great footballer to boot. I had the privilege of coaching him when Maryland/Tang won an U14 Division 2 championship a few years ago. He is a huge loss to the parish.” Tang lined out as follows against St. Malachy’s in the IFC quarterfinal: Michael Galvin; Christopher McCann, Conor Marlowe, Christopher O’Connor; John Rock, Robert English, Kieran Duncan; Trevor English, Niall Bannon; Joshua Flanagan, Martin Rock, Fergus Farrell; William Flanagan, Alan Higgins, Aidan Burke. Subs used: Niall Neary and Dean Reddin.
Trevor English and Conor Marlow in action against St Mary’s
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Martin Rock
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KILLUCAN
Chris Leech in action against St. Loman’s
T
KILLUCAN KEEN TO BOUNCE BACK
wo-thousand-and-thirteen will go down as a year to forget for the Killucan senior footballers who needed a relegation final win over Castletown Finea/Coole/Whitehall to avoid being demoted to the intermediate campaign for this year, while in the league they suffered relegation and must ply their trade in Division Three. It’s a far cry from four years ago when the side reached the county senior football semi-final, but club secretary Declan Carr is confident that they can bounce back. A culmination of problems were to transpire against the Saffrons and from early on they knew that it was going to be a tough campaign. “We were missing some key players last year like Brian Smith, Paul Greville, James Nugent and a few others and for a small club like ourselves, it was hard to cope with the loss of such quality players,” Declan
told Maroon & White. “Fergus Doyle was manager of the side last year and in fairness he did his best to rally the team, but for one reason or another, we never got going at all.” Killucan were placed in a group alongside Coralstown/Kinnegad, Castledaly, St Loman’s, Garrycastle and Tyrrellspass for the 2013 SFC Group stages. Their first match saw them pitted against near neighbours and rivals Coralstown/Kinnegad. It was the worst possible start for the Killucan men as their opponents cut them open time and time again on their way to a comfortable 0-18 to 1-05 victory. “The heads were down going into this match and we knew it was going to be tough, but there was always a feeling that lads would lift their game against Kinnegad, unfortunately, it did not happen for us.” There was to be no backlash from Doyle’s charges in the second round as Castledaly recorded a 0-16 to 0-05
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win and this was followed up by St Loman’s clocking up another big score in their 1-18 to 1-05 victory. The situation did not get any better against Garrycastle; in fact it was probably worse as the former Leinster club champions scored 5-17 to Killucan’s 2-06. In their last outing, Killucan succumbed to Tyrrellspass on a scoreline of 2-18 to 2-07 to complete their woes in the group stages and a relegation final against Castletown Finea was in store. Played on a wet September evening, the relegation final saw the two sides battle it out to retain their top flight status and it was Killucan that proved the stronger and as the old saying goes ‘goals win matches’ as they found the net on two occasion on the way to a 2-10 to 0-08 victory to ensure their senior status for another year. “The group stages were very disappointing and our performances throughout were nowhere good enough. As well as the few lads that
killucan designed_Layout 1 31/03/2014 14:03 Page 2
The Killucan U21 team that lost the 13-a-side final to Tyrellspass. Front l/r: Dylan Ralaigh, Liam Beddows, Dan Fox, Sean Quinn, Shane Farrelly, Robbie Greville, Conor Ralaigh. Back: Graham Flood, Darren Brady, Gary Greville, Jack Carroll, Shane Gorman, Sean Scally, Cian O’Connor, Jack Kennedy, Jason Gorman, Killian Duggan, Mark Glennon
were missing, other players picked up injuries during the year and nothing went right for us, but that’s the way it goes. “Thankfully, we got a few lads back for the relegation final including James Nugent and that was a big boost to us. It showed that when we were near full strength, we were a different proposition altogether. “Our league form mirrored the championship and that saw us pick up just two wins for the entire campaign, which meant that we were relegated and we are on Division Three this year.” Declan revealed that the senior team was determined to bounce back as a
number of key players return to the fold, while county duty is not as big as a distraction as it has been in the past for this dual club. “We have the likes of Jimmy Nugent back after he took the year out last year, while Brian Smyth has said that he would be willing to travel home for matches this year. Paul Greville is also around and so too is Frank Boyle. These are all very talented footballers and are they are massive players for us. “This year, we only have the Greville twins (Robbie and Gary) and Joey Boyle involved with the county hurlers. Some years there, we have five or six involved and it was very hard to plan
anything without them. “We have also brought back in Eamonn Gallagher as manager this year. Eamonn guided the club to a senior semi-final a few years ago and we’re delighted to have him back with us. “Last year was just one of those years and it was no one’s fault, but we feel that we can certainly bounce back this year and not only do well in the championship, but we have to be looking at promotion in the league also.” This year’s draw for the senior football championship sees Killucan in a group alongside, St Loman’s, Mullingar Shamrocks, Maryland,
The ladies section of the club is going from strength to strength. The U16 side were ‘A’ finalists, losing out to Milltown on a 2-10 to 2-11 scoreline
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Cormac Boyle
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Mikey Boyle
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The dual status of many of the players is a situation that both Killucan and Raharney have had to deal with over the years, but Declan stressed that there is a good working relationship between the two. “Ah look, you always have the odd problem with something clashing, but in general both clubs work well together. Raharney are using the pitch in Killucan at the moment, but Joristown should be ready during the summer. “We are catering for a number of teams in both clubs and we need as many pitches as possible to ensure that they all get their fair share of use. We are in the process of building dressingrooms at the pitch in Killucan and these should be finished later in the year.” It was not all doom and gloom for Killucan as a club in 2013 as their minor side clinched the Division Three championship title following a 3-13 to 2-12 win over Milltownpass at Shandonagh. This 13-a-side decider saw two evenly matched teams go head to head, but it was Killucan that held a half time lead of 1-06 to 0-05 after Milltownpass had missed a penalty during that opening period. In the second half Milltownpass started the better and were on level terms midway through the half at 1-08 each. The white and blacks then got a goal to go ahead, but Killucan responded with a goal of their own. They then took the lead back and in the closing stages of the game and although Milltownpass pushed forward, the Killucan defence stood firm
Dan Riggs
Conor Jordan and Mikey Boyle battle with Coralstown/Kinnegad’s Alan Giles
and they were victorious. “It was great to win the minor. A lot of work has been put in at underage level over the past few years and we are fortunate to be fairly strong numbers wise at all levels. There is a good few people involved with the various teams and a lot of parents have taken a keen interest. “We have our own minor committee within the club and things are going very well on that front. This year we should see four or five of that minor side coming through to the senior team, which is a good thing.”
Brian Smyth
Tony Doyle
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Cormac Boyle
Paul Greville
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MOATE ALL-WHITES The minor squad celebrates, l/r: Alex Ryan, Aaron O’Neill, John Corbally, Daniel Buckley, Ruairi Cunningham, Keith Byrne, Conor and Paul Sheridan, Eoin Kelly, Gavin Murray, Conor Claffey
H
MAGICAL MINORS RETAIN CROWN
aving waited 38 years to capture a MFC Division 1 title, Moate All-Whites have now won two in the space of 12 months. It certainly bodes well for the future of the once-mighty club whose main objective for 2014 will be to get its hands on the JFC crown. History was made on October 13 last when Moate All-Whites retained the minor football championship Division 1 title for the first time. This was a remarkable achievement for a very special group of players who have proven themselves to the best in their age group over the past two years and will carry the club’s hopes in the coming years. At the beginning of 2013, winning the junior championship had been Moate’s goal. But when they were beaten at the semi-final stage by champions-elect Mullingar Shamrocks for the second year in-a-row, it was left to the minors to lift the mood, and that they did thanks to a resounding 10-point county final victory over Coralstown/Kinnegad at Cusack Park. For the management trio of Pete
Gillivan, Cyril Gillivan and Tommy Gorman, it was the perfect way to sign off after a decade of involvement with this team. “We were over them since they were U10s,” explains Pete, who is a second cousin of Cyril’s. “It was an absolute pleasure to work with them and to see them improve and develop over that period. Don’t get me wrong, a lot of hard work went into it, but when you have a bunch of lads who are interested and keen to learn, it makes your task a lot easier. “When we started out with these lads, they were at ‘C’ level. The aim was to get them up to ‘A’ level by the time they reached minor. They won ‘B’ championships at U14 and U16 level and two minor ‘A’ championships. So there was constant progress being made. “We had a great run, our dream was to play ‘A’ grade football and not only did we achieve that, we also won two minor championships which was never achieved before by this club.” Despite being able to call on 10 of the previous year’s team which ended their 38-year for premier minor honours, Pete admits he wasn’t
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confident that the All-Whites could retain their minor crown. “To be honest, I didn’t think we’d be good enough to win it again. Even though we had beaten St. Loman’s, Rosemount and Caulry in our group, I was worried going into the quarter-final against Athlone. But we came out of it with a one-point win and then beat Mullingar Shamrocks by the same margin. Both games were away from home and were really the making of us.” As exciting as Moate’s 3-12 to 3-11 win over Athlone in Pairc Chiarain was, it failed to match the quality and sheer drama of their semi-final joust with Shamrocks at Springfield. In what was an unbelievable game of football that could have gone either, the champions showed incredible belief and character to edge victory on a 4-11 to 1-19 scoreline. Moate thought they had won by a point at the end of normal time, but when referee Sean Carroll checked with his umpires, it was clarified that the game had finished level, 3-8 to 114. The home side – for whom the brilliant Darren Keena scored 1-14 – proceeded to open up a four-point lead
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in extra-time, but the All-Whites dug deep as scores from Keith Byrne and John Corbally cut the gap before county minor Corbally converted a penalty to give them a two-point advantage with time running out. Keena slotted over a free to leave the minimum in it, but the Hogan Park outfit held on to win an epic contest that will be talked about for years to come. Only Coralstown/Kinnegad now stood between the All-Whites and a successful retention of the Darren Price Cup. The sides were level at 0-2 each after six minutes with team captain Corbally kicking points either side of efforts from Jamie Greville and Ryan Caffrey. But the champions then took control by scoring three goals to
The Moate All-Whites squad
leave themselves perched on a 3-5 to 0-5 lead at the interval. Keith Byrne got the first – his shot dipping over Coralstown/Kinnegad ‘keeper Christopher Doyle into the roof of the net. After a brace of points from Darren Giles had reduced the deficit to the minimum, Moate pounced for their second major through Aaron O’Neill, who finished clinically to the bottom corner. The corner forward raised his second green flag a minute later when he flicked the ball past Doyle and into the empty net. On the restart, Giles tried to rally Coralstown/Kinnegad with three points inside the opening nine minutes, but Moate’s advantage was never seriously threatened. With Alex Ryan excellent in goal, Sean Bracken and
Conor Claffey solid at the back and Byrne, O’Neill and Corbally leading the way in attack, they ran out comfortable 3-9 to 0-8 winners to spark joyous scenes at Cusack Park. “The experience of 2012 stood to them,” contends Pete, whose family business Moate Meats celebrated its centenary last year. “Compared to the previous year’s final against Athlone, there were no nerves. The lads knew what to expect. We were confident of winning after coming through the games against Shamrocks and Athlone. We knew we had the ability to get goals after scoring seven in those two games. As it turned out, we got three and they were the difference between the teams.” In what was a very successful year
The Moate ladies football minor ‘A’ championship winning panel. Front l/r: Emer Young, Stephanie Moran, Isabelle O’Neill, Rachel Gillivan, Sandra Nestor, Sarah McCormack, Alice Duffy, Jennifer Coughlan, Lorna Flanagan, Anna Lynam. Back: Louise Ryan, Niamh Geoghegan, Alison Hughes, Lisa king, Nicola Mullins, Emer Redmond, Mairead Fox, Kelly Lei Lowry, Lorna Henson, Michelle King, Brenda O’Brien, Jessica McCormack
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MOATE AGRI SUPPLIES
overall for Moate’s buoyant underage section, the U10s won the Community Games and went on to represent Westmeath in the Leinster competition, the U12s won the Jim McHugh Memorial tournament run by Garrycastle GAA, the U14s claimed the Shield, while the U16s won a Division 2 league title. The latter success was overseen by Niall Cunningham and Liam Claffey, who will attempt to keep Moate’s remarkable run at minor level going in the year ahead. “It would be something else if we could do the three-in-arow,” smiles Pete. “Because Niall and Liam have managed this year’s team all the way up through the ranks, it made sense for us (the outgoing minor management) to hand over the reins to them. Eleven of last year’s team are underage again, so there is plenty of talent to work with.” Gillivan agrees that the challenge for Moate now is to translate their underage success into adult success. For the past two years, the All-Whites have languished in the junior grade and the affable butcher doesn’t think that’s acceptable for one of the traditional powers of Westmeath football. “While the success we’ve had at minor level has been great, there are no guarantees when it comes to adult football. If we can get two or three minors through every year, then we’re doing well,” he says. “The big problem we have at the moment is the age gap between the young lads and the fellas in their early thirties. We have very few players in their mid-twenties, which goes back to the lack of underage coaching that was done after we last won the senior championship in 1997. We probably rested on our laurels a bit. “People will say we got caught by Shamrocks in the junior semi-final the last two years, but the bottom line is we weren’t good enough. We have to knuckle down this year and try to make amends.” Under the management of Ballycumber resident Sean Greville, the All-Whites registered wins over Delvin (5-17 to 1-5), Multyfarnham (2-10 to 1-12), St. Joseph’s (0-16 to 1-3), Loughnavalley (4-14 to 1-1) and Ballycomoyle (1-15 to 1-4) before losing to St. Paul’s (0-8 to 0-13) in the group phase of last year’s JFC. They bounced back to beat Milltown by 0-16 to 1-9 in their last group match to secure top spot and automatic qualification for the semi-finals. After 40 minutes of their clash with Mullingar Shamrocks, the All-Whites led by four points and looked to be on course for the final, but they failed to score in the last 13 minutes as Shamrocks scored a late goal through Efe Siode to claim a 1-10 to 0-10 victory.
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Alan Claffey
The All-Whites have appointed former Tang and Westmeath star as their manager for the coming season.
The MFC-winning team was: Alex Ryan; Andrew Gorman, Sean Bracken, Conor Claffey; Conor Sheridan, Daniel Buckley, Dylan Ennis; Ruairi
Moate All White’s Robert Gorman
Ruairi Cunningham and Dylan Ennis
Keith Byrne
Cunningham, Daniel Ledwith; John Corbally (captain), Gavin Murray, Keith Byrne; Billy Berry, Eoghan Kelly, Aaron O’Neill. Subs used: James Casey, Alex O’Riordan, Jake Fannin, Shane Claffey and Cameron Corbally.
The Moate All-Whites team that lost the JFC semi-final to Mullingar Shamrocks was: Niall Mackey; Alan Claffey, Daniel Buckley, Daniel Bracken; Robert Gorman, Jack Linnane, Colin Bracken; Ciaran Kelly, Ruairi Cunningham; Jamie Madden, Gareth Murray, John Corbally; Cian Bradley, Nigel Adamson, Jimmy Gillivan. Subs used: David Minnock, David Adamson and Paul McLoughlin. U12 Jim McHugh Cup tournament winners: O Higgins, J Malone, T Bradley, C Bracken, F Cunningham, D Nulty, G Cunningham, T Berry, P Heffernan, P King, J Simpson, R Jones, O Johnston, J Kelly, H Niall, E Curran, L Whitney, E Geoghegan, J Ravenhill, O Murray, J Moran, W Corcoran, D Rooney and F Phelan. U10 Community Games panel: Ben
Lorna Henson and Alice Duffy raise the minor ‘A’ cup
O' Connell, Toby Contae, James O' Brien, James Costelloe, Michael Henry, Eoghan Curran, Luke Whitney, Eoin Raleigh, Emma Seery, Shauni Doolin, Sam Fannin, Andrew Gillivan, Danielle Moran, Cara Johnson, Sean Mc Manus , Sean Fuery, Darragh Lowry, Stacy Rawlins, Dean O'Neill and Odhran Lawlor.
Anthony Malone
The minor champions, front l/r: David McGinley, Conor Sheridan, Conor Claffey, Billy Berry, Paul Sheridan, Ciaran Corcoran, Dean Corbally, Aaron O’Neill, James Casey, Shane Claffey. Back: Sean Bracken, Keith Byrne, Andrew Gorman, Gavin Murray, Daniel Buckley, Eoghan Kelly, Alex Ryan, Ruairi Cunningham, John Corbally, Cameron Corbally, Daniel Ledwith, Dylan Ennis, Jake Fannin, Alex O’Riordan
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ST. OLIVER PLUNKETT’S
The senior squad line up before the county final, Garry Geraghty, David Cornally, Bernard Bracken (behind), David Murray, Connaire Flanagan, Mickey Harris, Daragh Geraghty, Trevor Matthews, Paddy Kiernan, Tony Gain, Mickey McKnight, Seanie O’Leary, Johnny Dooley, Connor Bracken, Shane Donagher. Damian Kiernan, Sean Maguire, Dermott Curley, Colm O’Leary, Johnny Plunkett, Ross Brady (red bib), Daragh Carter, Clive Kenny (hat), Liam Dalton, Michael Coyle, Paddy Hassett
T
PLUNKETT’S FINALLY END SEMI JINX
hey say patience is a virtue and my how St Oliver Plunkett’s had to wait for their first senior hurling championship final appearance. In the last decade, St Oliver Plunkett’s reached and were defeated in seven county semi-finals, before they finally managed to end that hoodoo in 2013 when beating old rivals Clonkill at the penultimate stage of the championship. The final itself may have ended in defeat, but it proved to the Mullingarbased outfit that they are more than capable of winning their first ever senior hurling title. Club chairman Michael ‘Cosy’ Coyle believes that the Robinstown outfit can now go on to claim the Westmeath Examiner Cup after what can only be described as an incredible year for Plunketts. ‘Cosy’ admitted to Maroon & White that at the start of the year, a county final appearance was the furthest thing from their minds, certainly after a few bad results early in the season. “We would go into every campaign feeling that we can make the semi-final as we believe we are a top four team, but the year didn’t get off to the best of
starts as Clonkill gave us a bad beating in the league,” revealed Michael. “We then played in the Leinster League and we got a hammering from Dublin side Lucan Sarsfields, who actually went on to contest the Dublin county final, but it wasn’t a great start to the year at all. “In saying that the lads were doing a lot of heavy training, Paul Sharry (St Loman’s and Westmeath star) was brought in as strength and conditioning coach along with Shane Flynn. I think that we certainly saw the benefits of this later in the year. Plunkett’s wouldn’t generally be a physical team, but in the games against Clonkill and Castletown you could see they were stronger in the tackle and coming out on top in most cases.” Team manager Ciaran McKenna and his selectors Davy Cornally and Liam Dalton knew the talent they had at their disposal and knew what the side was capable of. The SHC campaign did not get off to the best of starts for Plunketts as Lough Lene Gaels recorded a 2-15 to 2-11 win in the opening match. However, McKenna’s charges showed their mettle in their next game when they
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defeated Raharney by 1-14 to 1-12 in a confidence boosting win. They then finished their group campaign by recording an expected win over Crookedwood (2-14 to 0-09). “The Win over Raharney was a turning point. The lads got a bit lift out of beating them and we knew we should beat Crookedwood in the last group game.” This set up a meeting with Castlepollard in the quarterfinal and the confidence gained from the win over Raharney was evident as they produced another good performance to run out winners on a scoreline of 2-16 to 0-14. And so to yet another semi-final and yet another meeting with Clonkill who were on a quest for their third title in a row. It was a tense and tough match and Clonkill struggled to breakdown a resilient town defence. The saints played some lovely hurling throughout, passing well in midfield and the forwards and working their players into good scoring positions. Clonkill must have thought they had gotten out of jail as a 21 metre free and a goal in the closing quarter saw them
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Senior hurling championship finalists, front l/r: Clive Kenny. Seanie O’Leary, Sean Maguire, Daragh Geraghty, Stephen McManus, Mickey McKnight, David Gavin, Greg Gavin, Aaron Craig, Peter Collins, Noel Gavin, Conor Lynch, Paddy Lynam, Connaire Flanagan, Paddy Kiernan, Daragh Carter, Luke Byrne, Paddy Laide. Back: Mickey Harris, Robby Reylands, Cian O’Leary, Donal Liddy, Dermott Curley, Sean Flanagan, Johnny Plunkett, Johnny Dooley, Terry Gavin, Kieran Gavin, Conor Bracken, Ross Brady, Stephen Conway, Shane Donagher, David Murray, James Duggan, Damian Kiernan, Tony Gavin, Trevor Matthews, Govinda Geoghegan, Colm O’Leary, Oisin Clinton
take the lead briefly. But Plunketts were in no mood to let it slip after playing the better hurling and an inspirational point from half back Paddy Laide and then Robbie Ryland crashed the ball to the Clonkill net to seal their fate. Plunketts had to dig very deep for the final few minutes and swarmed Clonkill all over the pitch, denying them any time and space. The referee blew the final whistle where there were scenes of jubilation from players, mentors and supporters alike. Final score 1-09 to 108. “There was a great sense of relief at the final whistle and to say we were delighted was an understatement. We then had a five-week break until the final and in fairness it probably suited us. “We generated a lot of interest around the area and we had a type of gathering where we invited a host of former
players back to play in a match. We had lads come from all over including Scotland and this created a great buzz in the area.” Pre-match favourites CastletownGeoghegan had to work hard to win their first senior hurling title in nine years when they defeated St Oliver Plunketts in a scrappy final in Mullingar. The challengers only managed one score from play in the opening half-hour, albeit a great point in the 12th minute from hard-working midfielder Greg Gavin. However, despite their marquee forward Niall O'Brien being way short of his best, Castletown-Geoghegan still kept the scoreboard ticking over and they were full value for their six-point lead at the interval (1-6 to 0-3). When the wind-assisted championselect rattled over a brace of points in the
The MHC Division 2 winning panel
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Sean Byrne accepts the MHC Division 2 trophy from Liam McDaniel
opening 70 seconds of the second half, a rout looked a possibility. But the Mullingar side refused to give up the ghost and might have got themselves back into it had goalkeeper Peter Collins not had a penalty saved. The Mullingar outfit showed that their shock semi-final win over holders Clonkill was no fluke and they fought tigerishly to stay in touch, with Davy Gavin leading their attack with great determination. Midway through the second half, a superb point from play by their main scoring threat Govinda Geoghegan left St Oliver Plunkett’s just four points in arrears (1-9 to 0-8). The goal Plunkett's so desperately craved never materialised as the black and ambers hung on. Tit-for-tat scoring in the closing quarter saw the 11-times champions hold on for the win. Scorers for St Oliver Plunkett’s: G Geoghegan (0-6, 0-4 frees), G Gavin (0-2), N Gavin (free), D Gavin, D Kiernan (0-1 each). Team: P Collins; S Conway, A
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The U8 squad
Aaron Craig
Dermot Curley
Craig, S McManus; P Layde, N Gavin, R Ryland; G Gavin, J Duggan; C Curley, D Gavin, O Clinton; C O’Leary, K Gavin, G Geoghegan. Subs: C Flanagan for O Clinton (inj, 15), D Kiernan for J Duggan (ht), J Dooley for C O’Leary (42). “I thought we were very much in the game for long periods, the early goal that they got was a huge setback to us, but after that I felt we were more than a match for them. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get the goal that we needed. “There was huge disappointment in the dressingroom afterwards as they lads knew that they were good enough to win it, but they also realise that this year is another year. “We have a good few lads coming through and with the experienced players that are already there then there is no reason why we can’t go a step further this year.” The club did manage to pick up some silverware as their minor side defeated Castlepollard in the 13-a-side final by 215 to 0-11 with Paddy Lynam, Sean
Cian O’Leary
Noel Gavin
O’Brien, Sean Kelly, Niall Kevin, Sean Byrne, Jack Quinn and Sean Flanagan all impressing on the day. For the first time in a few years, Plunketts fielded an under-21 side in the championship also and although their run ended in an opening round defeat to Clonkill, the fact that they fielded was a huge boost according to ‘Cosy’. “We had actually informed the county board that we were not placing a team in the under-21 competition as we had failed to field a team for a few years. We then got a fixture out to say we were playing Clonkill and I rang Ciaran (McKenna) to tell him. He rang around and found that lads were willing to play, so on the day we had 26 togged out for the game, which was great. “The fact that the match was scheduled for the summer made a big difference to us as the under-21 championship is usually played very late in the year when lads have no interest in hurling. There is talk that it will be played a lot earlier this year too,
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Connaire Flanagan
so we will be hopeful of doing well in that. “The minors had a great year and they had to win a lot of games to win the championship. A few of them will be on the senior panel this year and you want to see lads coming through like that. “The underage in general is going well. We have good numbers at most grades, although under-14 is very weak at the moment, but the work is being done to improve that. We held our summer camp and there was up on 70 kids there which was great and we will be doing that again this year.” Michael is confident that the senior team can push on this year and he feels that the new championship format will suit them. “The more games the better, although some of the matches could be meaningless depending on how the group pans out under the new format, but I know the lads are raring to go and keen to push on from last year,” he concluded.
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ST. JOSEPH’S
Wayne McCormack
S
REBUILDING CONTINUES
t. Joseph's are refusing to be disheartened, despite enduring another difficult season which saw them miss out on a place in the knockout stages of the junior championship for the fifth year in-a-row. In fact, their outlook is refreshingly upbeat with the over-riding feeling among members being that the worst is over. There is no doubt that emigration has had a devastating effect on St. Joseph's who were junior champions as recently as 2004 and subsequently spent two years in the intermediate grade. But they are a resolute lot in Streamstown and are looking forward to the day when they will be competing for championship honours once again. “From about the mid-nineties to about four years ago, we were very strong at junior level, but a few years ago we
were hit hard by emigration and we have been struggling ever since,” said club secretary Aidan Walsh. “We have been going through a transition period ever since, but we’ll keep battling away and in a few years we should be back as strong as we were before.” One positive for the club was the fact that some players that had gone away from football for one reason or another had come back to line out with them again. "Fellas who had drifted away from football over the last few years came back, which was great to see. If we can keep getting big numbers out for training, I'm sure things will turn for us and we'll make more of an impact on the championship. “We had an average year in 2013, but I definitely feel that with the players we have, we are more than capable of reaching the knockout stages of the
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championship.” Last year’s campaign began with a 107 to 0-08 defeat to Multyfarnham, but the Streamstown outfit soon had their first win under their belt when Loughnavalley were beaten by 0-12 to 1-07. Moate recorded a comfortable win over the Joes in round three as they won by 0-16 to 1-03 before a 3-10 to 3-10 draw against Ballycomoyle was the outcome in their next outing. Their best performance of the year came in round five as they pushed eventual finalists St Paul’s all the way before narrowly losing out to the north Westmeath outfit on a score line of 112 to 0-14. However, a rather flat performance by St Joseph’s against Milltown saw the Rathconrath outfit run out convincing winners by 2-17 to 1-04. St Joseph’s did manage to end the campaign on a high though as they routed Delvin by 4-24 to 3-06 as the
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On duty for the Junior Shield final, front l/r: Pat McCormack, Patrick Egan, Jonathon Cuskelly, Niall Moran, Don Scally, Andy Scally, Darren McCormack, Padraic Moran. Back: Jim Mc Cormack with son Ethan, Neil Keegan, James Kenny, Wayne McCormack, Ronan McDonnell, Daire Lynam, Aidan Lennon, Brian Fitzgerald, Brian Killian, Andrew McCormack, Stephen Shiel, Stephen Keegan
finished the group stages with five points, but it was too little to advance to the quarterfinals. “We had some good performances in the championship, but we also had some forgettable ones as well. In saying that another win or two would have seen us reach the quarterfinals and that is something that we will be aiming to achieve this year.” Their league campaign did not go too well either as the side were relegated from Division 4 and they must ply their trade in Division 5 this year, which Aidan admitted was a huge blow to them. “Being relegated to Division 5 was a big setback alright. A few years ago we played Castletown Finea in a Division 3 match and it ended a draw, but had either of us won, we would have went up to Division 2, so in the space of the few years, we have gone from being on the verge of Division 2 to playing
Michael Larrigy
division 5 football which is a fair fall from grace to be honest,” stressed the current Westmeath GAA PRO. St Joseph’s did end the year on a
Graeme Corcoran
Jonathan Cuskelly
Daire Lynam
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high as they claimed the Junior Shield title when defeating Ballycomoyle in the decider by 1-09 to 2-05. “Our aim will be to come straight back up out of that division and then make progress in the championship, if we can achieve those two goals it will be considered a successful year.” This year, St Joseph’s will be managed by one of their own as Jason Rabbitte returns to the helm. “Jason has worked with the players before and he is a good manager. We have started back training and there are good numbers turning out which is a positive sign. As I said, we have the players to do well enough and if they put in the right effort, which I’m sure they will, we will reap the rewards.” Aidan revealed that the club’s underage structure is going well as they continue their amalgamation arrangement with Kilbeggan Shamrocks.
Stephen Shiel
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“The clubs have been joined at underage level for the past 12 years and it has worked well for both clubs. We are at a stage now where we are producing more underage players. The local school has actually doubled in size in recent years which is only a good thing for us. “We are competing at all levels at underage and we are bringing a few new players through every year from
Jonathon Cuskelly
Ronan McDonnell
the minor grade. There are a few that will be there this year and in another two or three years we should have a good few more. “If we can keep all these lads together then I can see us winning the junior championship in the next few years and even holding our own at intermediate level.” Success may be eluding the club on the pitch, but off it they are still one of
Brian Killian
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the top sides in the county when it comes to Scór. Scór is a division of the Gaelic Athletic Association charged with promotion of cultural activities, and the name of a series of annual competitions in such activities. And the St Joseph’s club is one of the leading lights in Westmeath with 39 county titles in Scór Sinsear and Scór na nOg. The club has represented the county at provincial and All-Ireland level on a regular basis and last year the quiz team, which included Aidan in their ranks lost out by two marks in the All-Ireland final. The club’s Solo Singer Trevor Marshall reached the Leinster final where he performed admirably, while a group from the club performed on this year’s Scór Encore televised by Irish speaking channel TG4. “There has been great success for the club in Scor down through the years. It is something that we have been heavily involved in for many years and we must be up there with the best clubs in Westmeath when it comes to winning county titles in Scor.”
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LOUGHNAVALLEY
RIGNEY REALISTIC ABOUT CHANCES
Midfield powerhouse Sean Ruane
A
fter a winless 2013, the only way is up for Loughnavalley according to long-serving forward Darren Rigney. Devastated by emigration and the only club in the county without an underage structure, Loughnavalley tethered on the brink of folding this time last year. However, club members pulled together to ensure this small but proud club would continue to be represented on the playing fields of Westmeath. “There was talk of us disbanding because our playing numbers were so low,” remembers Darren, who has given well over a decade’s service to the ‘Valley. “Thankfully, it didn’t come to that and we were able to carry on. But our results weren’t good and we know we have an awful lot of ground to make up in the coming year.” The centre forward refuses to make excuses for a season which yielded no victories in either the league or
championship. As a result, Loughnavalley suffered relegation in the league for the second consecutive year and will ply their trade in Division 6 this year. “You can make all the excuses you want about players who were missing and so on, but the bottom line is that the commitment wasn’t what it should have been. When you don’t put in the work on the training pitch, you’re going to suffer,” he stresses. “The way I look at it is that things can only improve. The signs are already more encouraging for this year. We’ve got a few players back from injury and the numbers at training are up.” Loughnavalley had two different trainers last year, firstly Peter Kelly and then Frank Lynam, who had led the ladies team to a junior championship final appearance in May and has since been appointed manager of his native Rosemount. A 0-2 to 3-11 defeat to St. Paul’s on April 21 set the tone for a dismal championship campaign. One of Loughnavalley’s better
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performances came in a narrow 1-7 to 0-12 loss to St. Joseph’s in round two. After trailing by 0-3 to 0-8 at half-time, the ‘Valley resumed with points from Derek Glennon and Colm Ruane before full forward Glennon was taken down for a 52nd minute penalty. Darren Rigney showed a cool head to send goalkeeper James Kenny the wrong way and to bring Loughnavalley back onto terms for the first time since the 13th minute. It was anybody’s game at that juncture as sub John O’Brien missed a great chance to give the underdogs the lead for the first time. Ultimately, Loughnavalley were the architects of their own downfall as they conceded two needless frees in the dying minutes which Andy Scally tapped over from the 13-metre line to give Joseph’s the win. The green and golds also gave a decent account of themselves against their neighbours Milltown in the third round at Shandonagh. Goals from Darren Sloan and Frank McLoughlin in
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year’s JFC was: Tommy Colgan; Aidan Kilroy, Joe Kelly, Richard Gaye; Brian Buckley, Adrian Austin, Stephen McManus; Sean Ruane, John Masterson; John O’Brien, Colm Ruane, Derek Ruane; Bryan Tyrrell, Derek Glennon, Alan Clarke. Subs used: Johnny Hegarty, Derek Newman and Tadhg O’Sullivan for Tyrrell.
TRAGIC LOSS OVERSHADOWS SUCCESSFUL YEAR FOR LADIES
A successful year for the Loughnavalley ladies football club was overshadowed by the tragic death of Aisling Maguire, who was both a popular and key member of the junior team. The 23-year-old care assistant died the week before Christmas on the Ballymahon Road out of Mullingar after a tree fell on her car during strong winds. There were heartrending scenes at her Funeral Mass in Ballymore on Sunday, December 22 as hundreds of mourners paid their final respects to a young woman who had her whole life ahead of her. Aisling, who is survived by her parents Gerry and Geraldine, and her two brothers Owen and Brendan, was right half back on the Loughnavalley team which won the junior championship for the first time in 2010. She lined out at left half forward in last year’s junior final, which the ‘Valley lost to Ballycomoyle. As a mark of respect, the club has decided to stand down the number 12 jersey – which they presented to her family – this year. Aisling was also deeply involved with the Fr Dalton’s hurling club, of which she was assistant secretary.
Colm Ruane
the opening quarter propelled Milltown into a 2-7 to 0-3 interval lead. They had extended their advantage to 2-10 to 0-4 midway through the second half before Loughnavalley staged a late rally which yielded an unanswered 1-2. But they left themselves with too much to do as Milltown ran out winners on a 2-10 to 1-6 scoreline. A crushing 4-14 to 1-1 defeat to Moate All-Whites proved a huge setback to the ‘Valley in their quest to avoid the wooden spoon. The two games they had targeted for victories – Delvin and Ballycomoyle – also ended in narrow defeats. Loughnavalley’s final game in the group against Multyfarnham was never played. Rigney is realistic about the Valley’s chances this year under new manager and Wicklow native Ian Kinsella, noting how qualification for the quarter-finals would represent a successful season. “Let’s be honest about it, we’re not going to win the championship with the likes of Kilbeggan and Moate around, but there is nothing to stop us from aiming for a place in the quarter-finals. We’ve as good a chance as three or four others of achieving that,” he concludes. The Loughnavalley team which faced Milltown in last
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The ladies were runners-up to Ballycomoyle in the junior championship final
Derek Glennon
Frank Lynam managed both the men’s and ladies team
The junior team had a relatively successful year, despite the fact that numbers at training were quite low at times. Under the guidance of Frank Lynam, who was assisted by Christy Keenan, they reached the championship final, only to lose to old rivals Ballycomoyle on a 3-8 to 5-9 scoreline in Kinnegad on May 11. But Loughnavalley could still take plenty of positives from the performance. The emergence of several talented young players certainly bodes well for the future. Loughnavalley’s underage teams continued to show great potential under the tutelage of Colm McMahon, Ken Daly, Tina Ruane, Carol Keenan, Sarah Dromey and Maeve Ruane. The U12s claimed silverware when they overcame Clann Gaels to win the ‘C’ final. The U14s, U16s and minors all reached county semi-finals, with the U16s winning the county Mini 7s Blitz which was held in Lakepoint Park. The current well-being of
Fergie Kelly
U12Loughnavalley’s underage section was reflected in the involvement of five of its players with Westmeath. Niamh Mullarkey and Jessica Hennessy were part of the U12 squad that won a Leinster Blitz, Caoimhe ClarkeMcMahon and Andrea Kelly were members of the U14 team that reached the All-Ireland ‘B’ final, while Ashley Ruane won an All-Ireland U16 ‘C’ medal. Loughnavalley’s involvement with the county set-up didn’t end there as Colm McMahon, Ken Daly and Tina Ruane took on the massive commitment of training the minor team which ended the year as Leinster champions. Loughnavalley lined out as follows in the ladies junior championship final: Shauna Keenan; Aoife McNeill, Laura Elliffe, Niamh Fallon; Ciara Rigney, Carol Keenan, Brid Harrington; Fiona Ruane, Chloe Ruane; Ciara Garvin, Avril Corbett, Aisling Maguire (RIP); Anne-Marie Foran, Ashley Ruane, Orla Glennon.
U12 girls ‘C’ champions
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GARRYCASTLE
‘CASTLE STILL HAVE THE HUNGER
Neil Rattigan
G
arrycastle are determined to bounce back from their gut-wrenching SFC semifinal loss to St. Loman’s according to star defender John Gaffey, who insists there is life left in the old dog yet. It’s a measure of how accustomed Garrycastle have become to senior success that last year’s senior ‘B’ and junior ‘B’ championship victories failed to satisfy club members. Since 2001, the green and reds have dominated the Westmeath football landscape, winning the Flanagan Cup six times as well as becoming the first club from the Lake County to claim a Leinster senior club title (2011) and contest an All-Ireland club final (2012). But after falling short in their quest to regain the county crown in the past two years, many believe that Garrycastle’s
best days are behind them. But are they really? Anyone who witnessed their narrow defeats to Mullingar Shamrocks in the 2012 SFC final replay and to St. Loman’s in last year’s extraordinary SFC semi-final wouldn’t be so dismissive of the former Westmeath kingpins. Indeed, if the breaks had gone their way, we might now be looking at the first team since Athlone in the 1950s to win a five-in-arow of senior championships. “I don’t think we had much luck in either of those games,” John Gaffey contends. “I thought we were exceptionally unlucky against Loman’s last year. We lost to an injury-time goal scored by John Heslin who was in unstoppable form on the day. If Aidan Browne and Dessie Dolan hadn’t been injured, and James Dolan hadn’t gone off with concussion, we might have come
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through. “As difficult as the defeat was to take, I was delighted for Loman’s who deserved their bit of luck after all the near misses they’ve had in the past. They won the league, championship and Feis Cup last year, so nobody can say that they weren’t the best team in the county.” The full back continues: “While I can fully understand why some people may be tempted to write us off, we still have the hunger for success. That’s very important. As far as I’m aware, every player is keen to come back and try to make amends for what happened last year.” John puts the longevity of the senior players in the team down to their healthy lifestyles and remarkable dedication. He also takes encouragement from the fact that Garrycastle are bringing new players
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The senior football championship semi-finalists, front l/r: Emmet Keena, Alan Fox, Enda Keena, Mark McCallon, Gary McCallon, John Gaffey, James Dolan, Tom McHugh, Gary Dolan, Dessie Dolan, Shane O'Connell, Peadar Mulvihill, Damien Rushe, Alan Daly. Back: Paddy Mulvihill, Sean Brennan, Gary Mullery, Anthony Larkin, Paul Mulvihill, Doron Harte, Justin Barrett, Eoin Monaghan, Cathal Mullin, Enda Mulvihill, Alex Gardiner, James Duignan, Seanie O'Donoghue, Sean Carey
Killucan (5-17 to 2-6) before suffering a surprise 2-12 to 3-12 loss to Coralstown/Kinnegad. After initially thinking they were through to the quarter-finals, Garrycastle learned they would have to beat Castledaly for a second time in a playoff in order to progress. And that they did with four points to spare (1-15 to 1-11) to set up a last-six clash with The Downs. Playing in the unfamiliar surroundings of Rochfortbridge, Garrycastle struggled for long periods of the game with a second half injury to talisman Dessie Dolan not helping their cause. With seven minutes remaining and The Downs leading by a point, the underdogs had a chance to put the game beyond Garrycastle when they were awarded a penalty. But Luke Loughlin’s spotkick was kept out by Cathal Mullin’s outstretched leg. Following that let-off, Garrycastle showed all their know-how and experience by scoring the last three points to eke out a 1-12 to 110 victory. The semi-final against St. Loman’s provided Garrycastle with an opportunity to avenge their earlier defeat to the Mullingar side and to reach their 10th county final in 12 years. But after an incredible game filled with individual An underage ladies football selection, front l/r: Lauren Blair, Nicole O’Connor, Sarah Ruane, Katie Jameson, Chloe O’Neill, Rachel Emerson, Aoife Connolly, Nicola McCormack. Back: Lizzie Moran, Kate Brennan, Lauren Kennedy, brilliance, drama and Jane Henshaw, Aisling Flynn, Ellen Finucane, Aine Lynn, Laoise McDaid, Rebecca Nolan, Orla McGetrick, controversy, Micheal Jessica McCallum, Aisling O’Rourke
through every year, despite the club’s lack of recent underage success. “While it’s fair to say that the older lads have high mileage on the clock, they’re still serious footballers because they’ve always looked after themselves in terms of how they train and what they eat. It’s that mindset that has enabled them to play on well into their thirties,” says the man who captained Garrycastle to their historic 2011 Leinster triumph. “A lot has also been made of our lack of underage success, but we’ve two or three new faces through every year and they’re driving on the older fellas. Look at Michael Monaghan – he scored 1-3 in the semi-final and looked
like he had been playing senior for years. It’s important to have the youngsters coming through because the older fellas won’t always be around.” Under the guidance of former Clare and Kilmurry-Ibrickane manager Micheal McDermott and his selectors Aidan Dunning and Sean Connell, Garrycastle failed to set the world alight in the group stages of last year’s SFC. They defeated old rivals Castledaly by 2-12 to 1-8 in their opening game before losing heavily to St. Loman’s, 1-6 to 1-16. The Athlone-based club bounced back to register back-to-back wins over Tyrrellspass (1-15 to 1-14) and
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The minor team defeated in the Division 2 final by Rosemount, front l/r: Darragh McCormack, Cathal Mannion, Frank Farrell, Mark Duffy, Michael Monaghan (captain), Kenny Dolan, Terry Rushe, Cian Hayden, Adam Keena. Back: Sean Gunning, Liam Leahy, Eric McCormack, Darragh Brody, Emmet Brennan, Mark Curley, Eoghan Slevin, Eric Kearney, Evan Dalton, Donal Byrne, Conor McKiernan, Ben Kennedy, Conor Duignan
Gary McCallon
James Duignan
McDermott’s men were left crestfallen. When Gary Dolan netted a penalty in the third minute of stoppage time to put them two points up, Garrycastle looked to have done enough to qualify for their sixth successive final. But despite only two minutes of injury-time being signalled, referee Brendan Keena
Matthew Guiheen
Neill Rattigan
David O’Shaughnessy
allowed the game to continue and there was one final twist when John Heslin fisted home in the sixth minute of added time to give Loman’s a sensational 2-19 to 5-9 victory. Heslin accounted for an astonishing 2-16 of the winners’ tally, with 0-12 of that coming from frees.
Former manager Michael McDermott
Tom McHugh
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Tom McHugh
“We just have to go back to the drawing board now and see what areas we can improve on under our new manager Dessie Dolan Snr. Come the summer, we’ll be going all out to wrestle the Flanagan Cup back from Loman’s,” explains Gaffey, who is taking a break from the inter-county
Peadar Mulvihill receives the Junior B trophy from Co Chairman Sean Sheridan
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The 2013 Junior B champions, front l/r: Mark Fox, Enda Keena, Peadar Mulvihill (captain), Sean Carey, Shane O'Connell, Gary Mullery, Emmet Keena, Alan Daly, Sean Brennan, Paul Mulvihill. Back: Frank Doolan, Colman Gantley, Mark Curley, Anthony Larkin, Paul Gunning, Michael Monaghan, Ronan Donohue, Johnny McGuire, Noel Galvin, Padraig Cosgrove, Robbie Fox, Stephen McGuire, Brian McCormack
scene this year following the birth of his first child, Stephen. Garrycastle were also forced to settle for second best against St. Loman’s in November’s Feis Cup final at Lakepoint Park. Despite racing into an early four-point lead, the understrength green and reds were eventually reeled in by the county champions who prevailed on a 0-19 to 1-9 scoreline. Garrycastle’s capture of the senior ‘B’ and junior ‘B’ championships ensured they didn’t finish the year emptyhanded. In October’s senior ‘B’ final, Garrycastle’s seconds overcame
Tyrrellspass by 0-9 to 0-3 to win the title for only the second time. This team also finished in the top half of Division 2 of the All-County League, which was a fine achievement in itself. Not to be outdone, Garrycastle’s third team secured junior ‘B’ honours following a 4-9 to 1-15 victory over Milltownpass after extra-time. It was the club’s second junior ‘B’ success in three years and made up for the team’s disappointment in narrowly missing out on promotion to Division 5 of the All-County League. The closest Garrycastle came to
underage success was in the minor grade. This team reached the Division 2 championship final, only to lose heavily (1-8 to 5-9) to Rosemount. And there was also disappointment for the Garrycastle ladies who were surprisingly dethroned as senior champions by Mullingar Shamrocks at the semi-final stage. This year will see the opening of Garrycastle’s new training pitch which will cater for the club’s ever-increasing playing membership. Feis Cup runners-up: Cathal Mullin; Jack Donoghue, Justin Barrett, Mark
Garrycastle’s senior ladies team, front l/r: Siobhan Dunne, Lorraine Farrell, Elisha Hunston, Ciara McCormack, Aoife Dolan, Aisling Claffey, Vicki McEnery, Orla McGetrick, Chloe O’Neill, Nicole O’Connor. Back: Aoife McCormack, Lauren Kennedy, Anne Duignan, Laura Brennan, Aisling Flynn, Amy Duncan, Orla Connaughton, Lorraine Duncan, Kate Brennan, Aine Lynn
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The Feis Cup finalists, front l/r: Paul Mulvihill, Gary Mullery, Paddy Mulvihill, Dessie Dolan, Padraig Cosgrove, Tom McHugh, Mark McCallon, Shane O'Connell, Sean Brennan. Back: Eoin Monaghan, Michael Monaghan, Peadar Mulvihill, Anthony Larkin, Cathal Mullin, Jack Donohue, Justin Barrett, Enda Mulvihill, David O'Shaughnessy, Gary Dolan
McCallon; Tom McHugh, Enda Mulvihill, Anthony Larkin; David O’Shaughnessy, Neil Rattigan (0-1); Michael Monaghan (1-1), Eoin Monaghan (0-3), Peadar Mulvihill; Gary Dolan, Patrick Mulvihill and Dessie Dolan (0-4, 1f). Subs used: Sean Brennan, Padraig Cosgrove and Gary Mullery. Senior ‘B’ champions: Shane O'Connell; Gary Mullery, Alan Fox, Jack Donohue; Anthony Larkin, Tom McHugh, Gary McCallon; Neill Rattigan, Matthew Guiheen; Michael Monaghan (0-2), James Duignan (0-5, frees), Peadar Mulvihill (0-1); Alan Daly, Johnny McGuire, Eoin Monaghan (0-1). Subs used: Mark Keenan, Robbie Fox, Padraig Cosgrove, Terry Rushe and Mark Curley. Junior ‘B’ winners: Shane O’Connell;
Paddy Mulvihill
Sean Carey, Anthony Larkin, Gary Mullery; Emmet Keena, Johnny McGuire (0-1), Ronan Donoghue; Robbie Fox, Neil Rattigan (0-1); Peadar Mulvihill (01), Noel Galvin, Michael Monaghan (03, 3f); Paul Ginning (1-0), Padraig Cosgrove (0-1) and Enda Keena. Subs used: Alan Daly (3-2, 1-0 penalty), Mark Curley, Colman Gantley and Paul Mulvihill. Minor Division 2 finalists: Eoin Slevin; Adam Keena, Sean Gunning, Ben Kennedy; Frank Farrell, Mark Curley, Cian Hyland (0-1); Evan Dalton, Eric Kearney; Cathal Mannion, Michael Monaghan (0-3), Mark Duffy; Conor Duignan, Terry Rushe, Kenny Dolan (02). Subs used: Emmet Brennan, Darragh Brody, Liam Leahy, Conor McKiernan and Darragh McCormack.
John Gaffey
James Dolan
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Matthew Guiheen
James Duignan
clann gael designed_Layout 1 31/03/2014 14:07 Page 1
CLANN GAEL LADIES CONTINUE TO PROSPER CLANN GAEL
2
The Clann Gael U12 squad, front l/r: Eva Coughlan, Lauren Connolly, Maedhb Greene, Fiona Feerick, Johanna Naughton, Aoife O’Brien, Niamh Callaghan, Dearbhail McLoughlin, Amy Kelly, Ciara Molloy, Maeve Molloy. Back: Caoimhe O'Brien, Fiona Greene, Sarah Louise McCormack, Emer Molloy, Ava Jenkins, Karen Kelly, Ciara Maguire, Jenny Kelly, Maedhb McLoughlin, Aoife Ni Choiligh, Chloe Coffey, Katie Penrose, Roisin Sharry
013 was another successful year for Clann Gael, both in terms of football and raising awareness of the club. If 2013 is anything to go by, Clann Gael have proved that they are a force to be reckoned with and strong contenders for the upcoming Intermediate Championship. After
making their presence felt by contesting semi finals in both Division 2 of League and Intermediate Championship, there is a belief within this team that their day is not too far away. INTERMEDIATE Our ladies team trained hard throughout the year under the dedication and watchful eyes of Paul
Keena (trainer) and selector Mick Beglan. This team recorded credible wins in Division 2 of League against St. Lomans, Milltown, Shandonagh, St. Joseph’s and received byes over Loughnavalley and Athlone. These victories led to a semi-final place against Milltown in Bunbrosna on 10th November. Clann Gael were up against
The intermediate semi-finalists, front l/r: Ann Marie Browne (captain), Sinéad Tormey, Karen Keary, Aimee Barrett, Chloe Kelly, Julie McLoughlin, Jenny Hynes, Miriam Kearney, Anne Reynolds, Karen Browne, Aoife Lyons, Annie Dolan, Nikka Sule (mascot). Back: Aisling Boyhan, Olive Connaghton, Nicola Yourell, Vivienne Kearney, Emer Kearney, Emily Beglan, Selina Butler, Ciara Lyons, Rachel Shaw, Geraldine Corcoran, Caitríona urtagh, Alaine O’ Reilly, Caroline Kelly, Christina Kelly, Laura Molloy,Niamh Greene, Paul Keena (trainer).
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said that the girls did us proud, with both teams reaching semi finals. Our U14 team competed in a semi final against Tyrellspass. Again, numbers were low but credit must be given to the girls who put up a good fight against a strong Tyrellspass side which resulted in Tyrellspass winning narrowly. Similarly, our U16’s reached a semi final against St. Pauls, where it took a replay to separate the sides. St. Pauls went on to win the replay and progressed to the final. Unfortunately we did not field at minor this year. Hopefully this team will regroup next year with higher numbers at training.
a fit Millown outfit who had only recently won the Leinster Intermediate Championship. That said, our girls gave Milltown a worthy contest but came out on the losing side by a mere three points. The pinnacle of our season came when we reached a semifinal of the Intermediate Championship against Moate Ladies in Shandonagh on 8th September. On a day where the game could have gone either way, to our disappointment we were defeated by two points. We look forward to playing at this level again next year and hold our heads high in the belief that this team will be back with passion and enthusiasm in an attempt to win the title. Remember, well renowned basketball champion Michael Jordon once said “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” It is the way that we pick ourselves up from this defeat and refocus for next year that will determine the outcome of 2014!
THANK YOU Thanks and well done to all who were involved in training both underage and intermediate teams and to our much valued supporters. Your commitment and enthusiasm does not go unnoticed and we look forward to 2014 and hopefully bringing home some silver wear! ‘Winning isn’t everything, but wanting to win is!’
MArTIn TorMey
Best Wishes To Clann Gael GAA In 2014, from
U10 AND U12 Although our U10 were few in number this year they trained with our u12s and contributed greatly to this panel. Our U12s played many competitive games during the year, the ultimate being the U12 ‘C’ championship final against Loughnavalley in Tyrellspass. This was a closely encountered contest from start to finish with Clann Gael leading for the majority of the game. Unfortunately Lady Luck was not on our side on the day and we ended up losing by the narrowest of margins.
HeATInG & PluMBInG ConTrACTor Bunbrosna, Co. Westmeath. Tel: 044-9371169 Mobile: 087-2261381
U14 AND U16 Well done to our U14 and U16 sides who gave a good account of themselves and represented the club well. Unfortunately numbers were low in these categories but having
Westmeath celebrate their All Ireland U16 ‘C’ success in Banagher
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ST. BRIGID’S
Midfielder Bernie Kiernan
I
TOO MANY DEMANDS
f St. Brigid’s could put their best team on the pitch, their manager Ger Gill is convinced they would be a decent senior outfit. But due to a combination of football and work commitments, injuries and summer emigration, that hasn’t been possible of late.
In 2011, Gill guided St. Brigid’s to intermediate championship glory, but the past two years have been hugely frustrating for the Mayo native with relegation back to the intermediate ranks being followed by elimination from last year’s championship at the group stage. The Dalystown club’s demotion from the top flight in 2012 was the second time in two years they had been dealt such a fate and, not surprisingly, they found it difficult to bounce back last year. “We have underperformed in the last two years,” Gill says. “We have plenty of potential, but aren’t fulfilling it because we can’t get
our best team together. We were never at full strength last year and that’s something we’re going to have to change if we’re to have a successful 2014.” This problem is nothing new to St. Brigid’s. In fact, it has existed for most of their 58-year history. The club’s location in the heart of a football stronghold has meant hurling has nearly always played second fiddle to the big ball game. Ger doesn’t blame the players for giving football priority. Nor does he blame them for last year’s disappointing effort. “They’re all dual players which means the demands on them are huge,” the long-time Rochfortbridge resident points out. “They have to play 15 championship matches between both codes just to reach a county semi-final. It’s an awful lot to ask of them. On top of that, they have work and college commitments. They are committing to a lot. We also had a few injuries last year, while others
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availed of the J1 work and travel visa and went abroad for the summer.” Despite their difficulties, St. Brigid’s came within a whisker of reaching the knockout stages of the intermediate championship. A dominant second half performance paved the way for a 1-9 to 1-6 opening round victory over Fr. Dalton’s in Moate. After racking up eight wides in the first half, the Saffrons eventually found their range after the restart to see off the Ballymore men. The crucial score came with less than 10 minutes remaining when PhilipSheridan set up substitute Ciaran ‘Bomber’ Daly for the winning goal. Brigid’s good start to the campaign continued when they hammered Cullion by 4-20 to 1-11 in their second outing at Robinstown. The game was decided by a three-goal salvo from Ciaran Daly between the 14th and 23rd minutes, which knocked the stuffing out of Cullion. The Dalystown club took a commanding 3-10 to 1-6 lead into the break and wrapped up the two points early in the second half when substitute
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The squad that lost out to Delvin 1-6 to 1-5 in the Junior Camogie Championship decider at Cusack Park
Leonard Gavin added their fourth goal. Those early victories were forgotten about, however, following back-to-back losses to Ringtown (1-11 to 3-15) and Castletown-Geoghegan (0-9 to 5-10). The manner of the defeat to Castletown’s second string was a big setback, but Brigid’s put it behind them to beat Turin by 0-19 to 1-12 in their next game at Robinstown. At half-time, Ger Gill’s charges held a slender 0-7 to 0-6 lead, but within 13 minutes of the restart, they had eased eight points clear thanks to four Ciaran Daly frees, two Stephen Quinn points from play and another from Kieran Geraghty. Turin got the deficit back to four points when substitute Keith O’Callaghan netted with seven minutes remaining, but St. Brigid’s held on. Sadly, that proved to be their last win
Dermot Faulkner
of the campaign as Brigid’s could only manage one point from a possible six in their remaining group games. They suffered another heavy defeat at the hands of champions-elect Clonkill (1-6 to 1-25) before having to settle for a 011 to 1-8 draw with Brownstown at Cusack Park after Cormac Foley’s late free rescued the Archerstown men. Going into their last match against Raharney, St. Brigid’s knew that nothing less than a victory would be good enough if they were to reach the semi-finals. But an agonising 2-11 to 212 defeat ended their involvement in the championship. The participation of the second teams of Clonkill, Castletown-Geoghegan and Raharney in the intermediate championship has caused disquiet among some intermediate clubs. But
Ben Gavin
Kieran Geraghty
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despite seeing his side lose to all three in 2013, Gill doesn’t have a problem with them. “I’m in favour of the second teams of the strong senior clubs playing in the intermediate championship,” he reveals. “They have players who are entitled to playing hurling the same as everyone else. If they’re not making their senior team, the intermediate team is there for them. We can only learn from playing against these teams. While their players mightn’t be the strongest, their system of play is the same as their senior teams and, as such, would prepare us for senior if we were to go back up.” The highlight of St. Brigid’s year was undoubtedly their U16 team’s capture of the Division 3 (13-a-side)
Sean Judge
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Dermot Faulkner
Seamus Faulkner
Colin Gavin
Philip Sheridan
Michael Geraghty
championship. Having lost to St. Oliver Plunkett’s in the previous year’s final, the Saffrons made amends when powering to a 6-16 to 0-3 victory over Turin at Clonkill on the first Sunday in October. The game was never a contest with Eddie Whelehan’s first minute goal setting the tone. Evan Gorman, Joe Hyland and Conor Duncan also raised green flags to leave the Dalystown boys perched on a 48 to 0-1 lead at half-time. It continued to be one-way traffic in the second half when wing back Duncan scored two more goals to complete his hat-trick. Further encouragement was provided by the U21s who pushed Cu Chulainn – a combination of Lough Lene Gaels, Crookedwood and Turin – to the wire in their championship quarter-final at Rochfortbridge in July. Despite starting the game with just 14 players, St. Brigid’s were well in contention until three late points gave Cu Chulainn a 2-16 to 1-14 victory. “There has been a lot of good work done at underage level over the past number of years and last year’s U16 team had some fine hurlers on it. We’ll be aiming to get some of them through to the intermediate team this year,” concludes Ger, whose selectors will once again be Jay Faulkner and Jimmy Gallagher.
Lee Wallace
Stephen Quinn, Dermot Judge
Slevin; Paul Brady, Seamus Faulkner, Lee Wallace; Colin Gavin, Dermot Faulkner, Keenan Gill; Bernard Kiernan, Stephen Quinn; Sean Deegan, Michael Geraghty, Kieran Geraghty; Ben Gavin, Philip Sheridan, Eanna Gallagher. Subs used: Dermot Judge, Barry Murtagh and Ciaran Daly.
St. Brigid’s U16 Division 3 champions: Jude Keegan; James Quinn, Ned Cully; Conor Duncan, Cathal Moran, Sam Duncan; Niall Gavin, Roy Cleary; Evan Gorman, Joe Hyland (captain), Eddie Whelehan; Matthew Bradley, Finbar Coyne. Subs used: Jamie Rooney, Cian Gahan and Eoin Cleary.
Sean Judge
The St. Brigid’s team that overcame Fr. Dalton’s in last year’s IHC opener was: Conor
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Finbar Coyne heads for the Turin goals during the U16 Division 3 final
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CASTLEPOLLARD
BUILDING TOWARDS SUCCESS
Warren Casserly
N
ine years have now elapsed since Castlepollard last won the Westmeath Examiner Cup and for a club of its stature that is way too long. However, work is ongoing at underage level as the blue and golds strive to battle their way back to the top. For the past few years, ‘Pollard have placed a greater emphasis on developing their underage structure. This is something that takes a great deal of time and patience as it’s a situation that can’t be developed overnight. Club secretary Dermot Murphy has just completed his second year in the role and he speaks to this year’s edition of Maroon & White about the work that is being done both on and off the field. Two-thousand-and-thirteen saw the construction of a hurling wall within the club. A lot of clubs in the country have
hurling walls on their grounds, but the one in Castlepollard is unique in that 27 metres long and five metres high.
Darren McCormack
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“We opened the hurling wall in July and it has been a massive advantage to us when training the underage teams. At our opening day we had 127 children lined up along the wall, which gives you an idea of its length,” said Dermot. “We got Shay Murtagh from Shay Murtagh Precast down and he was very excited about doing this project. He designed and built it and it’s one of a kind in that both sides of the wall are smooth and can be used. It is a very impressive looking sight and one that we hope to get a great benefit out of for many years to come.” Of course, to build the hurling wall costs money and in this case it cost the club €30,000, which meant that they had to source the funding from various outlets, which in the current economic climate is not the easiest thing to do, but surprisingly Dermot revealed that they hadn’t to launch a specific fundraiser to help pay for the wall. “We got a grant of €10,000 from the
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On duty for the U8 Blitz at Cusack Park, front l/r: Patrick McCabe, James O'Neill, Michael O'Neill, Eoghan Kennedy, Ben Murphy, Ciarán English, Brian Gilchrist. Back: Seamus Sheridan, Conor Doran, Sean Óg Murray, Kyran Skey, Diarmuid Fagan, Conor Sheridan, Terry O'Reilly.
Sports Capital Programme, which was a big help, and we raised the rest through our weekly lotto and bingo nights. The only fundraiser we had, was when the players organised a Johnny Cash tribute night and that proved very successful. “Last September, National Hurling Coordinator Paudie Butler came down to do a session with the kids and he was very impressed by the wall. A lot of work and time went in to get this done. Much of our focus over the past year and half has been on constructing the wall and to see if finished is great for everyone in
the club.” Nonetheless, the wall will be of no use unless there are the players to use it and the club have been very active on this front as they have focused on this area in order to safeguard their future. “We held a registration day for under10s and 8s earlier in the year and we got great feedback from that. We gave every child that attended a free hurl and we have been coaching them every Tuesday since then. “The club also ran their own Summer Camp. Unlike, the Cul Camps that are run throughout the country, ours only
Kevin Brazil
cost €20 per child and a fiver off for every extra child from the same family. This was another big success and it is something that we will be looking at doing next year as well hopefully. “There is still a lot of work to be done at underage, we are very weak in some age groups, but it is hoped that if we continue doing the work that is being done, then we can strengthen at each age group in the next few years. “Our under-14s won the shield final this year. That was a great result over our neighbours Ringtown, who had beaten us comfortably in an earlier
The U14 Shield winners, front l/r: Brendan McMullen, Mark Leahy, Cian Smyth, Barry Dowdall, David Devine, Jake Mulvaney, Ben Gibbons, Brian Gavigan, Stephen Carroll, Óisin Gaffney. Back: Anthony Fagan, Ryan Haugh, Dean Gibbons, Michael Carroll, Eoin Fagan, Eoin English, Padraig McCarthy, Charlie McCormack, Luke Roddy
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Warren Casserly
round of the championship. This was a great win for the lads, and the aim next year would be to have more success at underage level.” At senior level, the club were dealt a blow early in the year when county star Andy Dermody was ruled out of action for the entire season and then another setback came when three of their young stars David Higgins, Glenn Flynn and Shane Fagan decided to spend the summer in the states. “Losing Andy was a big blow to us and then the three lads went to America for the summer, which was a huge loss to us. In fairness, you can’t blame the lads for going, but we have spoken to them and they will be around for the 2014 campaign, which
will be a great boost for us. “We went from running Clonkill very close in 2012 to a poor year last year, but hopefully we can bounce back and if we have all our players available I’d be confident that we can make more of a mark on the championship. “Morale was low this year, but that was through no fault of the management team, who did a great job with the lads that were there. Jody and the lads deserve great credit for the work that they have done. On our day, we would feel that we are as good as any team in the championship, but we have a small panel and we need everyone committed. We have proven over the years that we can match any team in the senior and the aim would be to get back there in 2014.” There is no doubt that Castlepollard are something of a sleeping giant at the moment, but like all clubs at some stage, they are going through a transition period, which has seen a number of young talented players come through the ranks in recent years and with a little more experience, it may not be too long before the lift the county title for a record equalling 15th time.
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Anthony Fagan raises the Feile Shield
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SPECIAL FEATURE Red Earth in Mullingar Business Park
I
RED EARTH - A LOCAL SUCCESS STORY
t’s hard to believe that Red Earth has only been in business for just over two years. Since opening in Mullingar Business Park, the lifestyle store and restaurant has added a new dimension to both shopping and fine dining in the county town. And it is also a proud supporter of the GAA as Business Development Manager Mairead Loughman explains. Proving that it’s possible for new businesses to grow and even prosper during the recession, Red Earth has been a wonderful success story and addition to Mullingar since first openings its doors in November 2011. Located at the Tullamore Road end of Mullingar Business Park (formerly Lynn Industrial Estate), Red Earth offers a retail and eating experience like no other. Everything from fabulous gifts, accessories, women’s fashion, jewellery, designer furniture to Red Earth’s own brand of foods, drinks and wines are all under
“The success of Red Earth has surpassed all our expectations,” Mairead enthuses. “I would put it down to the fact that we cater for everyone. This is complemented by our friendly and courteous staff, easy access and ample car parking. The people of Mullingar and the surrounding areas have really got behind us and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their continued support.” Having started life as a toolmaker, Tony Collins established Genesis Fine Arts in 1988. Having developed a product range of cold cast bronze sculptures of various themes, meticulously hand-crafted by a skilled team, the Genesis name has become synonymous with sculpture and fine arts in Ireland. Genesis products are available to buy from both Red Earth and the Genesis Gift Gallery in The Downs, which recently underwent major refurbishment The restaurant at Red Earth to create a fabulous showroom
the one roof. And if that wasn’t enough, there is a stylish and comfortable 5,000 sq. ft. self-service restaurant and food hall which caters for breakfast, lunch, evening meals and special occasions. Restoring the balance, fine food and lifestyle are the key ingredients which inspired husband-and-wife Tony and Jackie Collins, to create this unique store. Red Earth caters for their customers’ creativity, intelligence and individuality, while still delivering on great quality and affordability, creating a more contemporary feel, yet still imposing their traditional values.
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that is home to Mindy Brownes as well as Irish designers and brands. The success of Genesis prompted the Collins’ to add Mindy Brownes Interiors under the same umbrella. Mindy Brownes Interiors offers an extensive lighting, home interiors and accessories range which are high-end and luxury products. Again, Red Earth stocks a range of Mindy Brownes products. Described as a ‘lifestyle concept store’, Red Earth offers a new direction in lifestyle and giftware. Whether customers are looking for vaguely ethnic, floral, contemporary, shabby chic or retro in fashion, accessories, home interiors, or any gift item, Red Earth can cater for all with its range of distinctive products. The opening of Red Earth has also seen the Collins family extend into the food sector. With a strong emphasis and focus on food, the Red Earth brand delivers in excellence, commitment and a high standard of service in its food hall and restaurant. In Red Earth’s spacious food hall and restaurant, you’ll find a wide and varied menu to suit all food lovers! Catering for breakfast, lunch and evening meals, the Red Earth restaurant has an array of sumptuous hot and cold dishes, salads, pastas, gourmet sandwiches as well as an exotic selection of Suki teas, coffees and indulgent treats. The restaurant is open from 9.30am to 5pm from Monday to Saturday and from 12pm to 6pm on Sundays. The restaurant is also open from 5.30pm ‘til late every Friday and Saturday. Recently, a new bakery and outdoor dining area was opened at Red Earth. The in-house pattisserie chefs have just launched a range of bite size confectionary treats to complement their selection of large cakes, which include birthday and amazing bespoke wedding cakes. Red Earth also provides a corporate catering service, which means they can bring their delicious range of
foods to you! Red Earth employs almost 40 staff, many of who are involved with local GAA clubs. Mairead explains: “We have a large number of players, ex-players and club members working here. At the height of the GAA season, the rosters sometimes have to be changed! But we always try to accommodate them, especially as we get tremendous support from the GAA. We get a lot of GAA supporters coming in for dinner before and after matches, and that’s great to see.” Red Earth is proud to sponsor the Killucan footballers who, after beating Castletown-Finea/Coole/ Whitehall to retain their senior status last year, will be hoping to make a bigger impact this year and perhaps challenge for the Flanagan Cup. In 2012, the Red Earth logo replaced that of its sister company, Genesis, on the saffron jersey. “We decided to switch over because Red Earth is more of a local brand,” Mairead says. “The Collins family lives in Killucan, so that’s how the connection with the club came about. We are always delighted to support Irish, and you can’t get anything more Irish than the GAA. We wish Killucan and all the local club and county teams every success in the coming year.”
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The restaurance at Red Earth caters for breakfast, lunch and evening meals
The impressive food hall
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TYRRELLSPASS
Martin Flanagan is challenged by Coralstown/Kinnegad’s Killian Foley
T
SKY BLUES AWAKEN
yrrellspass returned to last year’s county final after a six year absence, but unfortunately for the three-time champions, the Flanagan Cup did not return home with them as St Loman’s annexed the title for the first time in 50 years. However, there were many positives for Tyrrellspass to take and they will go into the 2014 campaign in a positive frame of mind. Before that, though, the Maroon & White reviews the club’s senior championship run. Tyrrellspass were placed in a group alongside St Loman’s, Coralstown/Kinnegad, Garrycastle, Castledaly and Killucan in what many described as the group of death. Following months of preparation, the senior football championship begun in late April and first up for Tyrrellspass was a meeting with St Loman’s. Early scores from Ger Egan (2) and
the evergreen Martin Flanagan got Tyrrellspass off to the perfect start, but Loman’s showed their championship credentials early on and crept back into the game, but a Flanagan goal and a point by David Glennon was followed by another Egan point helped Tyrrellspass to a 1-06 to 0-06 lead at half time. Playing with the aid of a strong breeze in the second half, St Loman’s came back strongly and hit 1-02 in the opening five minutes of the second period. Nonetheless, points from the Glennon brothers David and Denis saw the sides draw level with 12 minutes remaining on the clock. The Mullingar outfit hit a purple patch late on to add another seven points to their tally while in reply Tyrrellspass could only manage two as the final score was 1-17 to 1-12 in favour of St Loman’s. There was a break of two months between the first round and second round of the group stages, but for
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Tyrrellspass a win was imperative against Coralstown/Kinnegad. The perfect start was made when Denis Glennon had the ball in the back of the net in the opening minutes before the sides traded points for the rest of the opening quarter with the aforementioned Glennon and Martin Flanagan both in outstanding form before the latter had to leave the field with a blood injury. His replacement Ciaran Daly got their second goal, as they began to dominate. Two cracking goals from each of the Glennon brothers had this match sewn up by half time as the scoreline read 4-06 to 0-05. Tyrrellspass picked up where they left off in the first half and they kicked three early points to push their lead out to 16 points. To be fair to Kinnegad, they pressed forward, but found that goalkeeper Darren Quinn was in excellent form on this occasion, making a number of fine saves. A converted penalty by David Glennon after Gavin
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Back-to-back U21 13-a-side champions. The Tidy Town defeated Killucan by 2-12 to 3-5 in the final in Kinnegad
Hoey had been brought down rounded off a fine day’s work for the winners who recorded a 5-14 to 0-11 victory to get their campaign back on track. In July, Tyrrellspass faced another big test, this time in the form of Garrycastle. This was billed as one of the games of the year and it didn’t disappoint. The sides were evenly matched throughout and at half time, only a point separated them, but it was Garrycastle that had the slender advantage, 0-07 to 0-06. Denis Glennon (2), David Glennon (2), Ger Egan, Philip Sheridan and David Jessop all on the score sheet in that opening 30 minutes. Garrycastle hit four point at the start of the second half to cancel out Dean McNicholas’ opener, but a good move involving Flanagan ended with Egan
firing to the net and this lifted the ‘Pass men. An Egan point levelled matters Tyrrellspass went ahead in the game with points from David Glennon and Martin Flanagan. Garrycastle then cut our lead to one with a point from play. Both sides were then reduced to 14 men when first Karl Henson was sent off for striking a Tyrrellspass player and then when all the pushing and shoving was over David Glennon was also given a straight red. Garrycastle seemed to respond better after the sending off to race into a three point lead with a goal and two points; the goal coming after a mistake in the Tyrrellspass defence. For the last ten minutes Tyrrellspass tried to get something out of the game and added on four points, one from Martin Flanagan and three frees from
Ger Egan but two more points from Garrycastle left one between the sides at the end on a final scoreline of Tyrrellspass 1-14 to Garrycastle 1-15. The pressure was now on not to drop anymore points and a win over Castledaly in their next outing was imperative. At half time, a Dean McNicholas goal helped them to a 1-07 to 0-06, but it was still all to play for in the second half. Castledaly hit back with a goal of their own at the three-quarter stage, but Ciaran Daly stepped up to slot home a second goal as their second win of the campaign was recorded, 2-13 to 1-10. The last group game was against Killucan and despite being short a number of first team players the team that took to the field were completely on
The Senior football championship finalists, front l/r: Valentinas Sizychas, Ciaran Daly, Philip Sheridan, Brian Slevin, Jamie Gonoud, Denis Glennon, David Jessop, Conor Slevin, David Glennon (Capt), Aaron O’Brien, Peter Glennon, Declan Feery, Shane Arthur, Cathal Daly. Mascot: Jack Arthur (Mullingar). Back: Ronan Dunbar, Brian Fitzpatrick, Ger O’Toole, Brendan Daly, Ben Gavin, Eoghan O’Neill, Dean McNicholas, Darren Quinn, Martin Flanagan, Ger Egan, Brendan Sheridan, Stephen Quinn, Sean Deegan, Jack Glennon
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Tyrrellspass before their SFC semi-final win over Mullingar Shamrocks, front l/r: Ronan Dunbar, Ciaran Daly, Declan Feery, Ben Gavin, Sean Deegan, Jamie Gonoud, Shane Arthur, Brian Slevin, Philip Sheridan, Aaron O’Brien, David Jessop, David Glennon (Capt), Stephen Quinn. Back: Ger O’Toole, Jack Glennon, Brendan Daly, Gavin Hoey, Denis Glennon, Valentinas Sizychas, Conor Slevin, Darren Quinn, Ger Egan, Dean McNicholas, Martin Flanagan, Eoghan O’Neill, Brendan Sheridan, Brian Fitzpatrick
Glennon goaled late on, it fired Tyrrellspass to a 3-12 to 0-11 victory. This set up a semi-final meeting with the defending champions Mullingar Shamrocks, and the 2007 SFC winners raced out of the blocks and goals from Gavin Hoey and Martin Flanagan helped them to a 2-05 to 0-03 half time lead. Shamrocks came back strong and indeed it took a late Ger Egan free to earn Tyrrellspass a draw and a replay was in store. And it was Tyrrellspass who emerged winners on a scoreline of
top in the first half and went in leading at half time 2-10 to Killucan 0-3 with their goals coming from Denis Glennon and Aaron O'Brien. Killucan did put up a bit more of a fight in the second half and with Tyrrellspass making some changes they got in for two soft goals to close the gap on the score board but Tyrrellspass were always too strong and won on a score line of Tyrrellspass 2-18 to Killucan 2-7. By virtue, of a better scoring difference, Tyrrellspass went through to the quarterfinal where they would face Athlone. Moate was the venue for this clash and the sky blues got off to a great start as goals from Aaron O’Brien and Denis Glennon helped them to a 2-05 to 0-02 after just 15 minutes of play. The sides exchanged points for the remainder of the half as Tyrrellspass led by 2-08 to 0-05 at the interval. Athlone were awarded a penalty midway through the second half, which would have brought them back into the game, but Darren Quinn made an excellent save and when David
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U21 captain Jamie Gonoud receives the silverware from fellow clubman Sean Sheridan
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Jack Glennon
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Division 4 finalists, front l/r: Nathan Foxe, Jamie Corcoran, Dean Harte, William Feery, Conan Feery, Evan Connell, Jack Gallagher, Sean Dowdall. Back: Ray Flanagan (Coach), Jack Langan, Lee Campbell, Fergal Walsh, Craig Coyne, Jake Halferty, Gary Farrell, Adam Flanagan, Thomas Ryan, Cormac Rigney
Players and staff from Tyrrellspass Castle at the official launch of the new sponsorship and jersey
2-17 to 0-18 with Denis Glennon finishing with a tally of 2-5. Tyrrellspass were boosted by a fourth minute from Glennon but Shamrocks scored seven unanswered points
between the 11th and 23rd minute to lead by 0-8 to 1-2. Tyrrellspass, with Ger Egan on form, finished the half strongly to go in at the break level, 1-6 to 0-9. A very even second half saw both
At the launch of the club's new sponsor and jersey at Tyrrellspass Castle, l/r: Mark Farrell (Asssecretary), Tom Coffey (Manager Tyrrellspass), David Glennon (Captain), Martin Buckley (Proprietor Tyrrellspass Castle), Gerry Sheridan (Chairman), Joe Daly (Treasurer)
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sides trade point for point before David Glennon set up his brother Denis for his second goal in the 51st minute to seal a surprise victory for Tyrrellspass. And so on to the final that was played just a week after the semi-final replay. St Loman’s got a flying start and led by 0-6 to 0-0 after 20 minutes. Tyrrellspass registered five points by half-time but by that stage; Loman’s increased their tally to 10, with points from John Heslin, Shane Dempsey and William McGovern to lead 0-10 to 0-5 at the break. The crucial scored arrived in the 46th minute when David Whelan scored the only goal to give St Loman’s a sevenpoint lead, 1-14 to 0-10. Tyrrellspass drew level by the 37th minute, but two points by John Heslin, and one each from Garreth Hickey and Dempsey gave the Blues another fourpoint lead, before David Whelan’s goal gave Loman’s what proved an unassailable lead as they secured a first title since 1963. Final score: St Loman’s 1-16 Tyrrellspass 0-15. For the record the Tyrrellspass team and scorers were: Scorers: G. Egan (0-10, 0-9 from frees), M. Flanagan (0-2), D. McNicholas (0-1), Denis Glennon (0-1), Ciaran Daly (01). Tyrrellspass: D. Quinn; E. O’Neill, J. Gonoud, B. Gavin; D. Jessop, P. Sheridan, S. Arthur; G. Egan, D. McNicholas; C. Slevin, David Glennon, B. Slevin; A O’Brien, M. Flanagan, Denis Glennon. Subs: Cathal Daly for A O’Brien (ht, Ciaran Daly for C. Slevin (45), S. Quinn for S. Arthur (51), R. Dunbar for P. Sheridan (54).
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MULLINGAR SHAMROCKS
JUNIOR CONSOLATION FOR SHAMROCKS
Donal O’Donoghue
I
n the space of 24 hours last October, Mullingar Shamrocks were dethroned as senior champions and crowned junior champions. With Bernard Flynn at the senior helm, everything will be geared towards wresting the Flanagan Cup back from local rivals St. Loman’s this year according to county star Denis Corroon. The disappointment of losing their SFC semi-final replay to Tyrrellspass was tempered for Mullingar Shamrocks by the club’s first JFC success in over 50 years on a weekend of mixed emotions at the beginning of October. No sooner had the Flanagan Cup left the trophy cabinet in Springfield than it was replaced by the Hugh Daniels Cup. The junior triumph means Shamrocks will have the distinction of being the only club to field teams in both the senior and intermediate championships in the coming year. While the junior final victory over St.
Paul’s wasn’t pretty, it was nevertheless a source of enormous satisfaction for the county town outfit after the previous year’s final loss to Kilbeggan Shamrocks. It also highlighted the strength in depth in the club – something new senior boss Bernard Flynn will be eager to tap into in his quest to bring the big prize back to the green half of Mullingar. “It’s not every weekend that you lose a senior championship and win a junior championship,” remarks senior team midfielder Denis Corroon. “We were down in the dumps after losing the replay to Tyrrellspass on the Saturday, but everyone’s spirits were lifted by what the juniors achieved the following day. It was a great win, especially after the disappointment of 2012 when they lost a high-quality final to Kilbeggan. It’s just a pity we weren’t able to win the senior as well.” The county man, whose cousins Gary and Adam Corroon were part of the successful junior team, laments Shamrocks’ inability to reproduce the
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form that saw them end a 12-year wait for senior honours in 2012. “We suffered from second season syndrome,” he explains. “Personally speaking, I was well up for it (retaining the Flanagan Cup), but some of the lads mightn’t have been of the same mindset after the high of the previous year. It’s very hard to come back down to earth and go at it again. That’s why I would have so much admiration for Garrycastle and what they’ve achieved. To win three-in-arow takes some doing. “It’s disappointing to think that we never recreated the sparkle that we had in 2012. Last year was a big, big learning curve for us.” Denis is hoping the appointment of Bernard Flynn as manager in succession to the colourful Ray Smyth will provide the spark that’s needed to restore Shamrocks to the summit of Westmeath football. The legendary Meath forward played alongside Denis’ father –also Denis – on the starstudded Shamrocks team that won a
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The 2013 Junior Championship winning panel, front l/r: Davy Noonan, Nathan Smyth, Ritchie Daly, Effie Siode, Ryan Blundell, Paddy Fagan, Calvin Kirwan (Capt) Davy Coyne, Robbie Ryan, Conor Twomey, Mark Hegarty, Ciaran Glennon, Niall Hannigan. Back: Davy Miller, Darragh Ryan, Stephen Noonan, Sean Maguire, Stephen Hassett, Mick McKnight, Conor McEntee, Ross Brady, Eoin O’Neil, Conor Bracken, Gary Corroon, Jordan Ward, Adam Corroon, Kyle Maguire, Sean Lee, Niall Kevin
four-in-a-row of SFC titles between 1992 and ’95. “I don’t remember seeing him play, but by all accounts he was an exceptional footballer and is hugely respected both inside and outside the club,” Corroon says of the new Shamrocks supremo. “Ray Smyth had four good years with us and Bernard will be trying to build on that. Having got a taste for success in 2012, we want to experience that again. With Loman’s winning last year, there will be a little bit of extra motivation there this year I’d say.” Drawn in what was considered to be the weaker of the two SFC groups, Shamrocks recorded four straight victories against Bunbrosna (0-12 to 0-
5), Maryland (1-9 to 0-8), Athlone (114 to 1-4) and CastletownFinea/Coole/Whitehall (5-13 to 0-12) to qualify directly for the semi-finals with one round remaining. In that final group game, Shamrocks suffered a surprise 1-10 to 2-11 defeat to The Downs which raised questions about their ability to retain the Flanagan Cup. It was hardly ideal preparation for their semi-final against Tyrrellspass, who had the benefit of a quarter-final win over Athlone and were hell-bent on avenging their 2012 quarter-final loss to Ray Smyth’s side. Shamrocks were well off the pace in the first half and looked to be facing certain defeat when they trailed by 0-3 to 2-5 at the interval. But the
champions made a terrific recovery after the restart when goals from Seanie Daly and Dylan McDermott propelled them into a 2-9 to 2-6 lead with eight minutes remaining. They couldn’t hold on, though, as Tyrrellspass grabbed the last three points to force a replay. The green and whites made another slow start to the replay, falling behind to Denis Glennon’s fifth-minute goal. But scores from Darren Keena, Seanie Daly and Paddy Joyce had helped Shamrocks to a three-point lead before Glennon and Ger Egan replied for Tyrrellspass to leave the sides level on 0-9 to 1-6 at the break. The champions had wind advantage in the second half, but it counted for
The Senior team, front l/r: Ronan Tyrrell, Dylan McDermott, Sean Daly, Kieran Gavin, David Miller, Calvin Kirwan, Aaron Purcell, Darren Keena, Eddie Moore, Ciaran Curley, Lorcan Smyth. Back: Killian Daly, Anthony Clinton, Conor Twomey, Denis Corroon, Davy Gavin, Donal O Donoghue, Eoin O’Neil, Mick McKnight, Darragh Daly, Aonghus Smyth, Paddy Joyce, Paddy Fagan, Philly Shaw
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The U14 Division 1 Shield final champions, front l/r: Bradley McEntee, Brian Reidy, John Whitelaw, Robert Bardon, Cormac Darby, Conor McHugh, Adam McCormack, Darragh White, Kenneth O’Reilly, Sean Mahon, Matthew Ryan-Maslin, Adam Duggan, Jack Kelly, Peter Bane, Missing from Team Photo Marc Eivers. Back: Brandon Lee-Heffernan, James Mahedy, Jack McCarthy, Cormac Hynes, Jamie Battle, Killian White, Dillon Matthews, Luke Carton, Dylan Murphy, Aidan Keena (captain), Cian Roe, Padraig McKenna, Sean Wiley
Calvin Kirwan raises the Hugh Daniels Cup
Denis Corroon
little as Tyrrellspass took control. The all-important score came 10 minutes from the end when David Glennon sent his brother Denis through for his second goal, which sealed a 2-17 to 018 victory for the ‘Tidy Town’. “The warning signs were there against The Downs,” Denis ruefully
Dual star Ciaran Curley
Darragh Daly has left for Australia
Aonghus Smyth
reflects. “Having cruised through the first four rounds, it was a big wake-up call for us. We weren’t as good as we thought we were and when it came down to it against Tyrrellspass, we didn’t have it.” The success of Adrian Keaveney’s junior team provided some consolation
Paddy Joyce
Killian Daly
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Denis Corroon
for one of the county’s strongest and most ambitious clubs. Recovering from a 10-point loss to St. Loman’s in their second outing, Shamrocks emerged from Section B of the JFC to set up a quarter-final meeting with Multyfarnham. In a tight game, Shamrocks prevailed by 1-8 to 1-6
Pearse Corroon makes a presentation to Mick O Dwyer
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thanks in no small part to Nathan Smith’s 43rd minute goal. For the second year-in-a-row, Shamrocks accounted for Moate AllWhites at the semi-final stage. This time there was no replay required as Efe Siode’s wonderful goal with five minutes remaining handed the county town side a 1-10 to 0-10 victory. Played in heavy rain, the final was a disappointing spectacle, but after their 2012 heartbreak, it was all about winning for Shamrocks. Scoring chances were at a premium as St. Paul’s took a 0-4 to 0-3 lead into the
Division 3 Junior Cup finalists
break. But the game took a decisive turn in Shamrocks’ favour when they reeled off 1-2 in the first three minutes of the second half. Rising stars Efe Siode and Paddy Fagan raised a couple of white flags before man of the match Conor Twomey – who wasn’t listed to start – rose highest to fist the only goal from Eoin O’Neill’s ’45. Conor Shaw replied with a free for St. Paul’s, but Shamrocks weren’t to be denied as two more converted frees by Twomey sealed the win. The Mullingar club could also take
encouragement from their first ever appearance in a senior ladies football final. After scoring a shock 2-13 to 010 victory over holders Garrycastle in the semi-final, Shamrocks lost the decider to Milltown on a 1-6 to 2-10 scoreline, but the experience will undoubtedly stand them in good stead going forward. At the latter end of 2013, Shamrocks enhanced their splendid facilities by opening a new state-of-the-art gym in Springfield. “It should be a great asset to the club, especially as strength and conditioning has such an important
U14 Feile runners up, front l/r: Bradley McEntee, Reece Coyne, Jack Kelly, Sean O’Keeffe, John Whitelaw, Conor McHugh. Middle: Sean Mahon, Robert Bardon, Dylan Murphy, Kenneth O’Reilly, Adam McCormack, Aidan Keena (Captian), Marc Eivers, Lyndon Quinn, Jamie Battle, Matthew Ryan-Maslin, Adam Duggan, Cormac Hynes. Back: Brian Reidy, Darragh White, James Mahedy, Padraig McKenna, Killian White, Jack McCarthy, Luke Carton, Sean Wylie, Dillon Matthews, Peter Bane.
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The Senior Ladies team reached their first county final, front l/r: Carole Finch, Kirsty Dunne, Linda Gilmartin, Gemma Kerrigan, Tara Fagan, Lorna Morris, Aine Melody, Karen Hegarty, Emma Morris, Casey McDermott, Ciara Morris and Oriana Quinn. Back: Elaine Faughnan, Lisa Burke, Michelle Buckley, Sophie Hegarty, Louise Begley, Cliodhna Spellman, Siobhan Kiernan, Charlene Brickland, Liveta Lazauskaite, Jean Kenny, Niamh Spellman, Chloe Swarbrigg, Aoife O'Brien and Jo-hanna Maher
The club’s Under 8 squad
The U16 team
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The presentation of 2012 Senior Championship Medals. Also in photo are some members of the Shamrocks 1986 and ’87 Senior winning teams.
part to play in the GAA nowadays,” concludes Denis, who is looking forward to a big year with both club and county. Mullingar Shamrocks’ JFC winning line-up was: Ronan Tyrrell; Conor McEntee, Robert Ryan, Calvin Kirwan (captain); David Coyne, David Miller, Efe Siode; Eoin O’Neill, Sean Maguire; Adam Corroon, Gary Corroon, Stephen Noonan; Paddy Fagan, David Noonan, Conor Twomey. Subs used: Paul Christie, Nathan Smith, Ryan Blundell and Sean Lee. The Shamrocks team that lost the SFC semi-final replay to Tyrrellspass was: Philip Shaw; Aonghus Smyth, Kieran Gavin, Aaron Purcell; Donal O’Donoghue, Davy Gavin, Paddy Joyce; Denis Corroon, Darragh Daly; Dylan McDermott, Seanie Daly, Killian Daly; Darren Keena, Ciaran Curley, Lorcan Smyth. Subs used: Anthony Clinton and Simon Quinn.
Shamrocks got a great start to the second half with an early goal from Gemma Kerrigan. From then on the girls stepped it up, chipping away at the scores and blocking out any attacks by Kinnegad. When Aoife O’Brien blasted the ball into the net for Shamrocks second goal midway through the second half there was no looking back for the home side. Our ladies team got their second win of the senior championship on a very warm Wednesday (17th July) evening in Killucan. The Shamrocks ladies got a great start with an early goal from midfielder Jo-hanna Maher. They then chipped over a couple of points from Gemma Kerrigan and Lisa Burke. While the end score line may not have reflected it, this game was a battle right to the end, with both teams taking some fine scores throughout the second half. The Shamrocks defense worked tirelessly, throwing their bodies on the line in many occasions to block out Killucan’s attacks. Our opponents were awarded a penalty right at the end which
2013 could be considered as our most successful in a number of years for our Senior ladies team as under the guidance of Niall Williams, Paul Christie and Paul Ahearne they reached our first senior county final. Unfortunately it was not to be on the day with Milltown taking the crown but our ladies team has taken another step further to that elusive title. Our championship campaign kicked off against Coralstown/Kinnegad on 7th July in Springfield. With a first half marred with sin bins (two for Kinnegad/ one for Shamrocks) the home side started brighter with some fine scores from the boot of free taker Emma Morris. Both teams down to 14 players Kinnegad got right back into the before half time by running at the Shamrocks defense and getting a well worked goal to see it 0-5 to 1-1 to Shamrocks at half time.
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Chairman Pearse Corroon making presentations to Mick O Dwyer, Ray Twomey and Johnny Corroon
was converted by Fiona Leavy, leaving the final score 6-10 to 3-5. The final game in the group stage set up a mouth watering encounter with our neighbors St.Loman’s in Lakepoint park on 18th August. The game drew a very large crowd as a tight exciting battle was anticipated. Both teams seemed a little nervous to start off as the result was going to have a huge barely on the overall standings in the group. St.Loman’s settled the quickest with a couple of well taken scores. Lisa Burke got on the end of a high looping ball to punch into the net and get
Shamrocks off the mark. After exchanging points St.Lomans stepped it up a gear and finished the half strongest with a four point lead. The second half was not for the faint hearted! From a spectators point of view it was a difficult but exciting half to watch. St. Loman’s powered on from where they left off and created a nice gap beside the sides. Shamrocks were really up against and had a mountain to climb as our neighbours went 10 points clear at one point. Midway through the second half Jo-hanna Maher was fouled in full flight and the St.Lomans full back Catie Heslin was sin binned. This seemed to drive the girls in green on who used the extra player (Aine Melody) to great effect. Aine played a part in almost every score that followed for Shamrocks. With a well worked goal from Karen Hegerty and fine taken points from Emma Morris and Jo-hanna Maher the comeback with on. The girls dug deep and managed to get the game to a draw thanks to corner back Lorna Morris and her sister Emma chipping away with points. A few tense moments the other end and a couple of missed opportunities by St. Loman’s saw the game Pearse Corroon and Michael ‘Spike’ Fagan end in a draw, with
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U14 Division 1 Shield final winners, l/r: Dylan Murtagh, Mathew Ryan Maslin, Aidan Kenna (Capt), Bradley McEntee 20. 21. Anthony Clinton
Denis Corroon
Dylan McDermott
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SUMMER CAMPS
then on Shamrocks were chasing the Mullingar Shamrocks topping the game. To their credit they never group and going straight into the stopped, but just couldn’t find that Semi final (to play Garrycastle). Final extra gear needed to pull it back. score Mullingar Shamrocks 2-12, Milltown finished the game very St.Loman’s 3-09. strong which sealed their victory. The senior semi final was played on While it was a great achievement to 31st August against Garrycastle in reach the county final it is never easy Rochfortbridge. Garrycastle settled to lose them. into the game quicker and took three On reflection it was another step fines scores before Shamrocks got further for the Shamrocks ladies. off the mark. After about 10 minutes Defeat on the day could be put down the Shamrocks girls found their form to inexperience in a county final. It and begin to chip away with some will be a matter of picking themselves fine scores from the boot of Jo-hanna up, digging deep and going at it Maher and Emma Morris. The again for 2014. Shamrocks backs were beginning to get the better of their opponents and ensured no easy scores were given. Half time saw us lead by 3 points. Knowing the 2012 champions would not lie down in the second half the Shamrocks girls had to up their game if they were going to come out on top. A fine taken goal from Karen Hegarty mid way through the second half was followed by an awarded penalty shortly after which hit the upright but was fisted in by the on running Jo-hanna Maher opened up a comfortable gap between the sides. When the final whistle went the Shamrocks girls Sean Daly takes a heavy tackle from and supporters were Bun’s Andrew Whitney elated as we had reached our first senior final. The final score was 2-13 to 010. The senior county final was played against Milltown in front of a huge crowd in Cusack Park on Saturday 14th August. For the most part the game was an exciting encounter between two young, fit teams that were very evenly matched for the first 30 minutes. With a few missed opportunities by Shamrocks in the first half it was a draw game at the break with everything to play for. The Milltown ladies stepped it up a gear with a couple of Former player Niall Breslin with Shamrocks early scores and from 2012 Player of the Year Ciaran Curley
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SPECIAL FEATURE
Kepak sponsored the Kilbeggan/St. Joseph’s U14 Leinster club winning team in 2011. From left: Joe Boyle, Michael Pettit, Hugh Boyle, Morgan Mealiffe, James Fox, Eamon Phelan (Kepak), Aaron McDonnell, Pat Mealiffe, Alan McDonnell
KEPAK GROUP PROUD TO SUPPORT THE GAA
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he Kepak Group – one of Europe’s foremost food processing companies – has always been proud of its association with the GAA. Here in the midlands, the links are particularly strong owing to Kepak’s presence in Kilbeggan. The Rostella site, which employs 50 people, sources about 85 per cent of its cattle supply from Westmeath and neighbouring counties Offaly and Laois. Similar to Kepak’s other seven sites around the country, its employs many GAA members, including site Procurement Manager Eamon Phelan who plays hurling with the newly amalgamated Ballyskenagh/Killavilla club in south Co. Offaly. “We had high hopes of marking our first year as a new club with a county intermediate championship, but Kilcormac/Killoughey caught us in the semi-final. Hopefully we’ll make amends this year,” the Killavilla man explains.
The Kepak Group and the GAA go back a long way. For over 15 years, the Clonee, Co.Meath-headquartered company sponsored the Meath football team and they have continued to support the GAA at local level, with Ballyskenagh/Killavilla, Kilbeggan/St. Joseph’s underage, Dunnamaggin (Kilkenny) and Belmont (Offaly) among the clubs who currently sport the iconic Kepak logo on their jerseys. Kepak also sponsor the Roscommon senior hurling championship and supported a Golf Classic in aid of Ballyskenagh/Killavilla last year. Three years ago, Kilbeggan/St. Joseph’s christened their new Kepaksponsored jerseys with victory over Ballyna of Kildare in the Leinster U14 club final in Tullamore. The purple and navy-coloured jerseys were presented to members of the underage club by Eamon Phelan and Alan McDonnell of Kepak. Alan is the current chairman of the Streamstown-based St. Joseph’s GAA club. Many Westmeath hurling followers
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will be familiar with the Kepak Group’s Livestock Procurement Manager Jonathan Forbes. Hailing from Jeffreystown, Monilea, he won a SHC medal with Clonkill in 2001 and played county hurling for three years before a combination of injuries and work commitments forced him to hang up his hurl in 2007. Jonathan became Group Livestock Procurement Manager three years ago after working for Liffey Meats in Ballyjamesduff, Co. Cavan for 10 years prior to that. “Kepak’s association with the GAA can be traced back to the early 1990s when they became Meath sponsors. The Group’s founder, Noel Keating, who died at the age of just 51, was a fanatical Meath supporter and a great friend of the then Meath manager Sean Boylan. Kepak is still owned by the Keating family and Noel’s children Stephen, Liam and Niamh are involved in the day-to-day running of the business,” Jonathan explains. Kepak is a young, professional and
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Kilbeggan/St.Joseph’s looking resplendent in their Kepak-sponsored jerseys
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DELVIN
Alan Clune
O
U14 SUCCESS FOR ‘VALLEY’
nce again Delvin retained their senior status as they head in to the 2014 campaign for their fourth consecutive year in the top tier. But pride of place goes to the club’s under-14 side that captured the Division 3 championship title. This year saw the club amalgamate with Brownstown at all underage grades and the under-14 combination proved to be the most successful as they claimed the division 3 championship title. Placed in a group alongside St Oliver Plunkett’s, Turin, Southern Gaels and Crookedwood, the Brownstown/Delvin side had little trouble in easing through the early rounds. The campaign started with a 7-11 to 2-01 win over Crookedwood. They followed this up by hammering Turin by 10-21 to 4-09. That was 17 goals in two
matches and the youngsters were not about to ease up yet. A 10-07 to 1-00 win over St Oliver Plunkett’s kept their 100% record intact before the finished the group stage with a 5-17 to 2-07 win over Southern Gaels. In the final Crookedwood provided the opposition, a side that they had defeated by 25 points in the group stages and there was to be no surprise this time around either as the Brownstown/Delvin combination produced an outstanding display to win the title. From the word go, the amalgamation side dominated throughout and some of the scores they got were worthy of the Cusack Park venue. Brownstown/Delvin went on the attack right from the throw in, but it took six minutes for them to get their first score and it came from a Lonan Mannyn point. Josh Coll then hit three points, along with two from Aaron Reid and
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one from Luke Dalton to open a seven point lead. Then the first goal of the game came along when Dalton blasted a 21-yard free to the net. Brownstown/Delvin continued to ply the pressure and the Crookedwood goalkeeper was called into action on a number of occasions, making some excellent saves in the process. But after another Dalton point, the impressive Danny Henry opened his account for the afternoon when he flicked the sliotar to the net after another good save by the ‘Wood goalie Robert Connolly. Henry’s confidence was now high and he doubled his tally just moments later when he fired an unstoppable shot to the back of the net. Aaron added a further two points before Crookedwood got their only score of the half with a point. The second half continued in the same vein as Brownstown/Delvin took seven minutes to get their next score
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Delvin defeated St. Brigid’s in the junior camogie final, front l/r: Aoife McGrath, Eimear Dolan, Triona Shaughnessy, Orla Brady, Niamh Horan, Saoirse O’Neill, Edel Briody, Jenna Clune, Traci Forde, Eadaoin Dolan. Front: Deirdre Barry, Jenny Smith, Sinead Lynch, Karen Gaffney, Sarah Jenkinson, Sarah King, Linda Jenkinson, Linda Williams, Mary Clune, Karen Clune, Nicola Clune, Claire Dugdale. Missing from photo Niamh Barry
when Coll pointed, but the wood responded with a goal. Nonetheless, their opponents were relentless in their quest for honours. A Coll goal and Reid point got Brownstown/Delvin back on track. Then Dalton scored his second goal of the match. Reid was on target with another fine point and seconds later Dalton completed his hat-trick of goals when he blasted to the net from another 21yard free. The last goal of the game was a thing of beauty as Mannyn fired an exquisite goal before the last score of the game came from midfielder Dean Ennis who sent over a long range effort in the
closing stages. Brownstown/Delvin had many fine performers on the day with Dalton, Coll, Henry, Reid and Mannyn topping the scoring charts while captain Adam Ennis was outstanding at centre back as was midfielder Dean Ennis. In the senior championship, Delvin were placed in a tough group alongside Clonkill, Castletown-Geoghegan and Castlepollard. The first game of the campaign was played on July 21st and it pitted the Valleymen against a Castletown side that would go on to claim their first title in nine years later in the year. Thirteen points may have separated
the sides at the final whistle as the black and ambers recorded a 1-23 to 012 victory, but Delvin performed well in the match and had they taken more of their chances, this game could have been a lot closer on the day. The next game of the campaign was played on August 5th and this was equally as tough for Delvin as they faced a Clonkill side that were seeking their third consecutive title. On the day the Loughegar men ran out comfortable victors on a scoreline of 3-21 to 1-08. In their last game they faced a Castlepollard side that had struggled in the campaign to date and it was all to play for as the winners of this match
The U8 football squad at Cusack Park, front l/r: Liam Forde, Dan O'Keefe, Shona Williams, Conor Sherwin, Simon Greville, Gavin Drumm, Sean Cassidy. Back: Keelin Mc Keogh, Darragh Mangan, Billy Kelleghan, Cathal Williams, Luke Coll, Rian O Farrell, Adrian Conway, Karl McCormack, Killian McGrath
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The U16 Delvin/Brownstown hurling squad
Darragh Clinton
Killian Murphy
went into a quarterfinal, while the losers had to contend with a relegation playoff. Surprisingly ‘Pollard ran out comfortable winners on this occasion in a game that was played just a week after the defeat to Clonkill. Delvin performed poorly on the day and they
Olive Leonard presents Linda Jenkinson with Junior Camogie Cup
Barry Williams
John Cogan
will have been bitterly disappointed by their display as ‘Pollard advanced to the knockout stages on a scoreline of 3-18 to 2-08. Not for the first time, Delvin were staring relegation in the face as they prepared to take on old rivals Crookedwood in the relegation final,
Billy Cruise
Conor Dolan
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Patrick Clune
which was played at Cusack Park on August 24th. The match was tit for tat all the way through, but it looked as if the Wood were going to pull through, until a late flurry by Delvin earned them a win by the narrowest of margins with the final score being 2-08 to 1-10. It was a huge relief to all involved
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when the final whistle went as Delvin showed great determination and character to ensure their safety for yet another year. Subsequently, the Wood managed to stay in the top flight as well after Clonkill’s second string had won the intermediate title. This year’s senior championship sees a change in format as the two groups of four will be changed to one group of eight with all teams playing each other. This should benefit Delvin as they will learn even more from playing extra games in the senior championship. Granted the club are still a bit off winning a county title, but with a bit of luck they are certainly capable of reaching the knockout stages of the senior championship this year. On minor camogie duty, front l/r: Eadaoin Dolan, Olivia The amalgamation with Kelleghan and Karen Gaffney. Back: Aoife Mc Grath, Saoirse Brownstown may not be McGrath, Niamh Horan, Ruth Fitzsimons, Anna O’Farrell everyone’s cup of tea as all clubs would rather field on their own, but the important factor is that their The 2013 junior football championship youngsters are afforded the opportunity campaign saw Delvin finish with two to compete in all grades and indeed as wins from their seven outings. On paper in the case of the under-14s; win some that might not look that impressive, silverware. when each game is scrutinised, their season could have been a lot different if they had a bit of luck on their side. CRUISE CONTROL They ply their trade in the far down reaches of Division 7, which is the Delvin footballers have lived in the shadow of the club’s hurlers in lowest in the adult leagues and two recent years, as they continue to ply divisions below their nearest rivals in their trade in the junior grade, but the junior championship. football secretary Billy Cruise “For some reason we never seem to believes that they can make strides do well in the league,” said Billy. in 2014. “Playing in Division 7 is not good
The junior football squad
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enough and we need to put more of an emphasis on getting out of that and up a couple of divisions. “We’ve never taken the league seriously and always struggle to get full teams out in it, but that is something that we will have to try and change this year. “Playing at a higher level in the league would help us prepare better for the championship as well, but we have a good reaction to training this year, so hopefully we can kick on from here.” As stated, hurling is the number one sport in the area, although the club has in the region of nine or ten dual players, which can cause its own problems. “You have to balance the training between the two as it’s not fair on the lads that play both codes if they are expected to train three or four nights a week. “The hurlers and footballers do all the pre-season work together and then it is worked out as best as possible between the two management teams.” Delvin kicked off their 2013 campaign against pre-championship favourites Moate and right from the start the AllWhites laid down a marker as they ran out comfortable winners on a scoreline of 5-17 to 1-05. However, Delvin bounced back in their next game and they defeated Ballycomoyle by 3-08 to 2-06 in round two to get their campaign up and running. “We always knew the Moate game was going to be a tough one and I
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SUMMER CAMPS
suppose when you go into a match thinking like that, you are on the back foot straight away. “In fairness, every year we would pick the games that we could win, but if we are to move on to the next level then we have to start winning a few more.” Delvin faced neighbours and old rivals St Paul’s in round three. This clash was played in Clonmellon, but even though they had home advantage, the blues struggled for long periods of the game as a dogged Delvin side pushed them all the way and a late goal helped St Paul’s pull away near the end, final score 208 to 0-06. “We can always put it up to St Paul’s and they were beaten in the final last year. So it proves that if we put in the right effort, we could get to the knockout stages and who knows what could happen after that. “We were right in that match until they got a late goal and they pulled away after that, but it was a game that we played well in.” Delvin should have been full of confidence after their previous two performances and they faced a Milltown side that they lost to by only four points in the previous year’s junior football championship. But, if they thought that they could have sprung a surprise over Milltown, then they were badly mistaken as the Rathconrath outfit to a 3-15 to 0-04 victory. “We were really disappointed by the performance against Milltown. Having pushed St Paul’s so close and the same with Milltown the previous year, we thought we could do well and actually beat them, but we never got going at all.” This performance was a major setback for Delvin, but to their credit they bounced back against Loughnavalley and recorded their second victory of the campaign by winning by 0-13 to 2-05. “We actually played poorly against Loughnavalley and it was a game that we were fortunate to win. Loughnavalley actually missed two penalties, so there was relief all round when the final whistle went.” Delvin were scheduled to play Multyfarnham in their penultimate
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group match, but the match was fixed for a Saturday, the day before Westmeath minor footballers were due to play in the Leinster championship meaning that the club side would be forced to field without the talented Darragh Clinton, who was a member of the Westmeath squad. “The club looked to have the game put back as Darragh was not allowed play with us, but the county board refused, so a decision was made not to field in that match and Multy got the game. “We thought it was very unjust as Moate were in the same boat as they had players involved with the minors as well and their game was called off, but ours wasn’t. “There are only a small panel of players here and for us to not be able to field without a good player like Darragh was very unfair we felt.” Delvin still had one game left in the group and that was against St Joseph’s. The fact that progression to the knockout stages was beyond them obviously played a part in this fixture as the Streamstown outfit handed out a comprehensive (424 to 3-06) beating. “That was another disappointing result for us. St Joseph’s are a team that we would be looking at beating and we have done in recent years, but to get such a hammering from them was a huge blow.” Even though, the campaign ended in disappointment, Billy stressed there was enough positives to suggest an air of optimism ahead of the 2014 club. “I would be optimistic within reason. We know who we are capable of beating and we have a few young lads starting to come through as well. We lost Andrew Reilly and Jonathan Duggan last year, but hopefully everyone else will be there this year. “The club is joined with St Paul’s all the way up at underage, but in a few years, Delvin would be hoping to go it alone as there is quite a few younger kids coming up. We had a meeting to discuss more coaching in the schools and hopefully that will get more kids interested.”
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SPECIAL FEATURE
L
CORCORAN REMINISCES
adies Gaelic football has been played for many years in Ireland, but the Ladies Gaelic Football Association was only founded in 1974, and since then it has enjoyed phenomenal growth throughout Ireland and abroad. The opinion that Gaelic Football was considered a man’s game in every sense has long evaporated and these days the top ladies footballer enjoy a very high profile. The growth of the ladies game really took on a new meaning after the millennium as sponsorship deals and television coverage elevated the game to national prominence. Westmeath ladies football is at an alltime high over the last few years as in 2011 they claimed the All-Ireland intermediate football title when they defeated Cavan in the decider at Croke Park. They now ply their trade in Division Two of the Ladies NFL and promotion to the top flight looks a distinct possibility this year. However, Westmeath ladies football has been prominent for many years and a small core of players kept the flag flying for the county during the nineties when the game wasn’t receiving the same coverage it does today. One of those players was The Downs’ native Sarah Corcoran who lined out for the county from 1995 to 2008 and was one of Westmeath’s most outstanding players to have ever graced the game. For this year’s edition of Maroon and White, we speak to Sarah about her GAA career and she reveals that since retiring, putting her feet up and having a well-earned break are the last thing on her mind. Sarah certainly made history in 1995 when she lined out for Westmeath at under-14, 16, minor and senior all in the one year, a remarkable achievement for a 14-year-old girl and one that has not received the recognition that it should have. “I first started off playing for The
Westmeath-All-Ireland ‘B’ senior ladies football champions, 1995. Sarah is fifth from the left, back row
Downs’ boys’ team and played with them at under-8, 10, 12 and 14. I just loved playing Gaelic football and that carried throughout my entire career,” stated Sarah. “At school, I played for Rochfortbridge, but I joined Mullingar Shamrocks before going on to play for Coralstown/Kinnegad. There was only the three senior teams in Westmeath at that time and Rochfortbridge dominated for long periods, but it is great to see so many clubs emerge over the last few years and the game really has taken on a new lease of life. “At county level, I played for the
A youthful Sarah receives the Westmeath Colleges junior ladies football cup from Aine Feely in 1995
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seniors for 13 years and I have some great memories from that time. The highlight would probably be winning the Leinster title and All-Ireland ‘B’ in 1995.” Sarah also has the distinction of winning an All-Star Colleges award and O’Connor Cup with Sligo IT in 2000. Following this, she worked in Cork for a period and during this time, she trained with the Cork ladies’ footballers just as they were about to embark on a dominant period in the game. “I trained with the Cork team when I was down there and I learned a lot from that time. I could have made the transfer at the time, but I didn’t, so who knows I could have won an All-Ireland with them, but I don’t have any regrets on that front.” To say the ladies’ game is not as physical as the men’s game would be an insult to those who take part and Sarah has the battle scars to prove this. “I broke my ankle three times, while I’ve also dislocated my shoulder. It was because of these injuries that I decided to retire in 2008.” Another three years in the maroon jersey and Sarah would have been part of the squad that won the AllIreland ladies intermediate title, so is there any regrets? “No none at all, I was right to retire when I did and it was great to see the girls go on and win the All-Ireland. A lot of work has been done at underage in recent years and that has paid off.
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Winning the intermediate was something special and then you see our under-14s getting to an All-Ireland final last year and it just proves that the work is being done.” During Sarah’s inter-county career, she also found time to represent Leinster and Ireland at basketball and even though she has retired from both, she is still very much physically active. “I’m a member of the Piranha Triathlon club in Dublin and it is something that I love doing. It is totally different from football training, but it is still very enjoyable.” Away from sport, Sarah finds time to also do some part-time modelling and acting, while following the untimely passing of her father Michael last year, Sarah has taken up the mantle of running the family farm Sarah was part of The Downs boys under 14 side that won the Feile na nOg Shield final in as well. 1995. Future county player John Smyth receives the shield from Michael McHugh Throw in the fact that she is an EHS Sarah is responsible for all EHS matters in the company Specialist at Bord Gais Energy and one wonders where this headquarters, which includes the home services/retail and Westmeath lady finds the time do all this. facilities department. “I love being on the farm. I live in Dublin, but it’s only an hour “I’m also responsible for managing all contractors both in the down in the evenings and my brothers help out when they office environment and externally such as contractors can, but there is nothing better than getting home at the responsible for the installation of gas boiler systems in homes weekends and being out on the land looking after the cattle. throughout the country. “As you can imagine I’m not one for sitting around and I like “My role typically involves formulating and developing health to keep busy,” she exclaimed. In her role as EHS specialist, and safety policies, not just for existing activities but also new processes, promoting a positive health and safety culture and ensuring the effective implementation of health and safety policies and procedures.”
Sarah in action for Westmeath against Dublin in the 1995 All-Ireland ‘B’ final in Athlone
Best wishes to Sarah and the team, from all at the Chris Mee Group. www.cmse.ie
1850 315 415 377
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LOUGH LENE GAELS
Derek McNicholas takes on the Raharney defence
GAELS KEEP KNOCKING ON THE DOOR
L
ough Lene Gaels may not have lifted the Westmeath Examiner Cup since 2002 and it could be said that they have become the ‘forgotten’ team of the senior hurling championship. However, their record over the past 11 years suggests otherwise as this sleeping giant continues to compete at the business end of the championship. Four county final appearances and numerous semi-finals proved that the Gaels are not far off the mark. The 2013 campaign saw them lose out to eventual winners CastletownGeoghegan at the penultimate stage once again and club secretary Eamonn Potter is confident that the breakthrough can be made sooner rather than later. Eamonn revealed that the club was very pleased with the adult management team that was in place for the 2013 campaign. “Our senior, under-21 and junior team management for 2013 was Joey
Williams (manager), Frank Aughey (physical trainer and selector) and Tommy 'Jogger' Doyle (Selector). The club, players and members were extremely happy with the management in 2013 and the club is extremely appreciative of the dedication these men gave throughout the year.” The club secretary stated that every year it is their intention to go all the way in the championship and 2013 was no different in this respect. “We had the full intention of winning a senior hurling championship. The current squad is very much capable of winning a senior hurling championship. There's very little between the senior clubs in Westmeath and anybody can beat any other team on any day once the preparation and work is done. In 2014, it will be 12 years since the club last won the SHC, but Eamonn is adamant that the club does not dwell on that sort of statistic. “We are not concerned with figures since previously championship titles.
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We take each year on its merits and prepare with diligence and hard work for every game.” The format of the 2013 Senior Hurling Championship was retained as per 2012 in which an open draw was conducted to form the two groups of four teams. The teams in the two groups played each other once with the first placed teams in each group reaching the semi-finals. The second and third placed teams in each group qualified for quarter-finals. Lough Lene Gaels opened their account in this competition in Cusack Park versus St. Oliver Plunkett’s on July 20th and they got off to a perfect start with a 2-15 to 2-11 win over the Mullingar-based club, who went on to compete in the county final for the first time ever. Up next in this competition was Crookedwood on the August 4th, again played in Cusack Park. As expected, the Gaels followed their opening win up with another victory as the ‘Wood
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Senior championship semi-finalists, front l/r: Dan Carty, Daragh McCormack, Philip Reilly, Brian Conaty, Derek Healy, Noel Conaty, Brendan Doyle, Derek McNicholas. Back: Francis Kennedy, Jimmy Boyle, Steven Bardon, Mark McNicholas, Thomas Jogger Doyle, Martin Williams, Fergal Moran
were put to the sword on a scoreline of 1-22 to 0-09. The final game of the group stages was played in Cusack Park a week later on the 10th of August against Raharney. This was set to be their toughest match of the group stages but LLG produced a magnificent display to see off the Deelsiders by 2-14 to 1-08. These results meant Lough Lene Gaels finished at the top of the group resulting in qualification for a semi-final place. This semi-final encounter took
place in Cusack Park on the 15th September 2013 against Castletown Geoghegan. This game ended in a disappointing result and exit from the competition as the black and ambers won by 1-19 to 2-09. The club also contested the Feis Cup final and once again CastletownGeoghegan came out on top in this decider. At underage level, the club have been busy working on their underage structure. “There is huge work being
done at underage. In January 2014, a new Underage Committee was formed under the stewardship of Club Chairman David O’Rourke,” said Eamonn. “Out of this a new structure was put together for U6, U8 and U10 training. Great credit is due to all involved here as this is the building block of the club for the future. “At U12 and U14 John Kennedy took lead role here and great credit is due to him here. At U16 and Minor Noel
U14 Division Two finalists, front l/r: Stephen Wheatley, Oisin Sheil, Ian Dobson, Steven Kennedy, Jason Malone, Thomas Kennedy, Shane Williams, Aaron Hill, Aaron Kennedy. Back: John Kennedy, Luca Mulcahy, Nathan Aughey, Joe Gilsenan, Jamie Battle, Shane Lynch, Jordan Williams, Eric Fitzpatrick, Matthew Doyle, Eoin Daly, Killian Hogan
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Junior Championship finalists, front l/r: Kevin Sheil, Jamie Nolan, Eamonn Potter, Niall Conaty, Micheal Daly, Michael Walsh, Johnny Molloy, Fergal Moran, Francis Kennedy, Podge Fitzsimons, Paddy Fleming. Back: Fergal Tiernan, Daragh McCormack, Damien Conaty, Keith Fitzpatrick, Steven Grace, Philip Reilly, Seamus Carroll, David O'Rourke, Peter McGuigan, Martin Williams, Gary Kelly, Steven Bardon, Noel Conaty, Team Manager Joey Williams
Club Chairman, David O'Rourke and Matty Conaty, Conaty Electrical
Noel Conaty
Conaty and Seamus Carroll took the reins. After a long year, which went on into December, great credit is due to these lads for work done in 2013. A similar structure has been developed for 2014 with the involvement of more
Manager Joey Williams
Seamus Carroll
coaches at all levels.” The Gaels did achieve some success this year as their under-16s won the division 2 title. “At U14 we reached the Division 2 final and were beaten by an older and more experienced Fr.
Francis Kennedy
Dalton’s team. At U16 we won the Division 2 title and at Minor we reached the Division 2 Semi-Final stages.” The club has been forced to amalgamate at some levels in
Feis Cup finalists, front l/r: Brian Conaty, John Egan, Michael Daly, Dan Carty, Fergal Moran, Noel Conaty, Francis McDermott, Daragh McCormack, Francis Kennedy, Michael Walsh. Podge Fitzsimons, Seamus Carroll, Jimmy Boyle, Brendan Doyle, Thomas Jogger Doyle, Damien Conaty, Mark McNicholas, Philip Reilly, Eamonn Potter
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U16 Division Two champions, front l/r: Shane Lynch, Marcus Kennedy, Johnny Dermody, Daragh Qamar, Conor Lynch, Jordan Williams, Aaron Kennedy. Back: Conor McCrossan, Daragh Daly, Lee Craig, Ciaran Lynch, Dan Reilly, Warren Williams, Mark McCormack, Paul Murtagh, Dan Higgins, Jack Coyle
underage, although they do field on their own in the division 2 championships. “We are amalgamated at U16 and minor also however individual Club Championships are also played (13a-side). 2014 may bring a new strategy here though.” Eamonn stressed that there are a number of people working very hard with the club’s underage teams in order to build for the future and obtain further success. “Great credit is due to Chairman David O’Rourke who has taken a lead role here. At the various levels
Warren Williams and Daragh Qamar, U16 Division 2 Championship winners with Michael McHugh
Senior camogie championship finalists
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we outstanding individuals putting in tremendous work. U6, U8, U10 John Kennedy, Paul Isdell, Damien Mulcahy and all parents who help out throughout the year. U12 and U14 John Kennedy. U16 and Minor Noel Conaty and Seamus Carroll. We will be fielding in all grades in 2014. Eamonn revealed that there are major fundraising drives coming up in 2014. “We expect to host another fundraising concert at some stage over the year. “In early 2013 we established the
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The Gaels were runners-up to Raharney in the minor camogie decider
aim of completing a Pitch Drainage Project. We employed an excellent consultant who guided us through the process. “At the moment, we have completed
Daragh McCormack and Seamus Carroll in action against the ‘Wood
work done by former chairman Matt Phase 1 of the project with the aim of Kennedy during his term in charge. “At completing Phase 2 in the spring the end of 2012, Matt Kennedy did not (depending on finance). Other seek re-election for Chairman after development work completed tremendous work done over a good included: Net Poles and Nets erected few years and David O’Rourke was at the Pitch & Putt End of the Pitch. elected.” Concrete fencing removed on two Best Wishes to Lough Lene Gaels GAA from sides. Tidying-up Clubhouse Storage areas. “These were funded by a large number of fundraising events Glenidan, Collinstown, Co. Westmeath throughout the year which were all very MUSIC • PooL • DARTS • ALL PARTIES CATERED FoR well supported by ProPS: SeAn & MAry Doyne the local Tel: 044-9666392 community.” Eamonn was keen Also FARM & STUD RAIL FENCING to point out the hard
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ST. MARY’S, ROCHFORTBRIDGE
The U14 championship winners from 2012 receive their medals, front l/r: Frank Duffy (Coach), Cian Gahan, Jordan Ajani, Cathal Jessop, Enda Cully, Paul Carpenter, Matthew Rowden and Sean Downey. Middle: Aussie Bradley (Coach) Jack Hall, Eddie Whelehan, Matthew Bradley, Francis Duffy Captain, Karl Lacey Donegal, Ned Cully, Jamie Rooney, Mark Hyland, Sean Robinson (Coach). Back: Eoin Fallon, Aidan Robinson, Jerry Byrne, Anthony Brady, Adam Bradley, Davin Colgan, Sean Lyster, Ian Bradley (Coach)
S
COYLE CONFIDENT OF IMPROVEMENT
ince returning to the intermediate ranks in 2009 after a season at junior level, St. Mary’s have failed to mount a serious challenge for Peter Geraghty Cup honours. This has been a source of huge frustration for the ambitious Rochfortbridgebased club who are hoping the appointment of Meath man Eugene Coyle as manager will lead to an upswing in fortunes this year. A member of the teaching staff at St. Mary’s CBS in Mullingar, Eugene knows the club inside out. During his spell as youth officer a decade ago, he worked with many of the current intermediate players and served as a selector under former Offaly and Rhode star Ken Kellaghan last year when the ‘Bridge managed just one win and a draw in the championship. Coyle’s selectors are Thomas ‘Chuck’ McDonagh – who fulfilled a similar role last year – Tom Judge and club chairman Ernie Alford. Having
failed to feature at the business end of the championship for the past couple of years, that is something the new management are determined to put right in the season ahead. “I coached a number of these lads at underage level and I know there’s plenty of football in them,” the Oldcastle native enthuses. “We have the talent, but the challenge is to get the spirit right. If we can do that, I’d expect to see a big improvement on last year. Another challenge is to try and bridge the age gap that exists between our younger players and the older ones. “Because we have very few players in their mid-twenties, there is quite a gap between the youngsters and the likes of Damien Gavin, Adam Nolan, Alan Gavin and Ian Cunningham, who have been playing for a long time. But that’s something we’re going to have to try to overcome.” Last year, the ‘Bridge were disappointed to take only three points from a possible 10 in Section B of the
385
IFC. They drew with Rosemount when they should have won, and also came close to claiming the scalps of Caulry and Tang. Their league form was slightly better with two of their four wins in Division 2 coming at the expense of senior clubs Killucan and The Downs. “We let a couple of games get away from us,” the new manager ruefully reflects. “The ones in the championship against Rosemount, Caulry and Tang spring to mind. The only championship game we lost by more than three points was to our neighbours Milltownpass. So there wasn’t a lot in it. This year we’re aiming to reach the knockout stages of the championship and to retain our Division 2 status. We’ve been very lucky in the sense that we haven’t suffered too badly with emigration. But we won’t improve unless the spirit is right.” The 2013 championship started promisingly for St. Mary’s who recorded a double-scores victory, 0-12 to 0-6, victory over Ballinagore in their
st marys designed_Layout 1 31/03/2014 15:51 Page 3
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The successful U14 coaches, l/r: Ian Bradley, Aussie Bradley, Frank Duffy, Sean Robinson and Ray Lyster Juvenile Chairman. In front is Donegal star Karl Lacey who presented the medals
opening game at Lakepoint Park. Favoured by the wind in the first half, Ken Kellaghan’s charges led by 0-6 to 0-3 at the break and were never threatened after Ciaran Geraghty, Colin Gavin and Robbie Kenny posted the first three points of the second half to push them six clear. The ‘Bridge had a second victory in their grasp against Rosemount at Kilbeggan, only to let it slip in a frenetic finish. Heading into the final quarter and with St. Mary’s holding a slender 0-8 to 0-7 lead, the game exploded into life when Eoin Gorman scored a fortuitous goal and Rosemount were then reduced to 14 players after Andrew McCormack was shown a straight red card. But the dismissal of veteran substitute Alan Gavin with five minutes to go provided Rosemount with a way back and they reeled off the last three points to earn a 0-12 to 1-9 draw.
Robbie Kenny
Sadly, it was all downhill from there for St. Mary’s who lost their remaining three group games. In their local derby clash with Milltownpass at The Downs, the green and whites took an early lead through Colin Gavin, but the ‘Pass gradually got on top with points from Noel O’Reilly, Andy Mullen and Shane Flanagan to lead by 0-8 to 0-4 at halftime. St. Mary’s had the wind to their backs in the second period, but couldn’t make any headway against a fired-up Milltownpass side who continued to dominate. Rochfortbridge’s fate was sealed when Darragh O’Connor scored the only goal with five minutes remaining to give Milltownpass a 1-12 to 0-8 victory. The dropped points against Rosemount and Milltownpass meant that St. Mary’s needed to take something from the games against Caulry and Tang if they were to stay in
Michael Geraghty
Paul Carey
387
the championship. After Robbie Kenny fired them into an early two-point lead against Caulry at Cusack Park, the Mount Temple men hit back with an unanswered 1-3 to take control. They had extended their advantage to five points before St. Mary’s responded with three-in-a-row from Michael Geraghty, Kenny and Eoin Gorman. Caulry, who were fortunate to lead by 1-7 to 0-8 at the break after Kenny’s 26th minute shot rattled the crossbar, added four points without reply at the start of the second half to regain the upper hand. However, two points from Colin Gavin and Kieran Geraghty, and a goal from the latter, left the ‘Bridge just two points adrift, 1-10 to 1-12, with eight minutes remaining. The 2012 and 2013 runners-up responded with three unanswered points to move five clear once again. The Geraghtys, Kieran and Michael, pulled back a couple of late points, but they weren’t enough as Caulry held on for a 1-15 to 1-12 win. St. Mary’s had one last chance to secure a quarter-final berth when they faced Tang in Ballynacargy. With Tang in the same boat, it was all to play for as the ‘Bridge began brightly with points from Niall Cully, Eoin Gorman and Robbie Kenny. St. Mary’s extended their lead to 0-5 to 0-1 before they had a major let-off when Martin Rock sent a penalty wide. However, Rock made amends for that miss on the stroke of half-time when he beat Thomas Byrne to leave the minimum in it, 1-1 to 0-5. Tang resumed by scoring four unanswered points to lead by three. With their season now hanging by a thread, Rochfortbridge dug deep to level with scores from Robbie Kenny and Michael Geraghty. But their hearts were broken when Robert English sent
Joe Bradley
st marys designed_Layout 1 31/03/2014 15:51 Page 5
SUMMER CAMPS
Ken Delaney
over a last-gasp point to hand Tang a 1-9 to 0-11 victory. “The beauty of the intermediate championship is that it’s wide open. We’ve as good a chance as most teams of winning it,” Eugene adds. There is likely to be just as much interest in St. Mary’s U16 team this year as the intermediate side. That’s because the same group of players made history in 2012 by bringing the U14 Division 1 championship to Rochfortbridge for the first time. Indeed, it was St. Mary’s first time to win a
‘premier’ championship since the club’s last senior triumph in 1962. An interesting season awaits. The St. Mary’s team which defeated Ballinagore in the opening round of last year’s IFC was: Thomas Byrne; Tommy Conroy, Adam Nolan, Dermot Judge; Dwayne Leavy, Michael Geraghty, Luke Gallagher; Colin Gavin, Eoin Gorman; Joe Bradley, Robbie Kenny Joe Guiden; Eddie Alford, Damien Gavin, Ciaran Geraghty. Subs used: John McNamara and James Neale.
Adam Nolan with Rosemount’s David McCormack
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KILBEGGAN SHAMROCKS
PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE
Young Nigel Scally established himself in the half back line last year
F
or a club that suffered the bitter disappointment of being relegated back to the junior ranks after just one year, the mood in Kilbeggan Shamrocks is surprisingly upbeat as the new season dawns. This can be attributed to the emergence of some exciting new talent and the launch of a club plan. A meeting of committee members with Leinster Council Marketing and Commercial Manager John last November paved the way for the preparation of the club plan. The purpose of the plan is to guide the continued development of the GAA in Kilbeggan and to ensure that it remains a vibrant community-based organisation serving all its members, and to devise a
blueprint which will enable the club to address key issues going forward. Invited at the request of the club, John discussed how the plan should be implemented. He also revealed that Kilbeggan is the first club in Westmeath to seek the Leinster Council's assistance in preparing such a plan. The key areas of club planning are: coaching and games development; communications and PR; club structures and administration; finance and funding; facilities and development. Five focus groups, each consisting of five people, have been established to examine, review and report on these key areas. The focus group leaders/steering group members are Donal Fox, Randal Scally, Pat Lynagh, Emma Pidgeon and Christine Deegan. It was recommended
389
that each focus group meet three/four times per year and collate ideas with the steering group. On Marchj 23 last, the club held a public forum where the views of the wider community will be sought. The steering committee will now put the ideas on paper and whittle them down to make up what will become the club plan. The launch of the plan comes at a time of great transition on the field of play. Last year, the Shamrocks were relegated back to the junior ranks after just one season in the intermediate grade. But with excellent young players such as James Claffey, Brendan McMahon, Morgan Mealiffe, James Finnegan and James Fox ready to make their mark, coupled with the return of John Brennan and the O’Neill
kilbeggan designed_Layout 1 01/04/2014 11:39 Page 2
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The Kilbeggan Shamrocks senior ladies football team wearing their new KPDA-sponsored jerseys. Back row (from left to right): Orlaith Heeney, Joanne McCormack, Lorraine Claffey, Jill Draper, Stephanie Meehan, Eimear Fox, Catherine Lynam, Deirdre Robbins, Aisling Reid, Laura Hannon, Triona Durkan. Front row (from left to right) Aoife Finn, Orla Daly, Grace Kiernan, Niamh Durkan, Nicola McDaniel, Edel McCormack, Gillian Heeney, Debbie Ennis, Sharon Heeney (captain), Edel Nannery, Ciara Dunne. Missing from photo: Mairead McCormack, Sandra Lynam and Anne-Marie Kelly
brothers, Jason and Simon to the fold, hopes are high that Kilbeggan can bounce back in the coming year. After guiding the team to junior championship glory in 2012, Damian McLoughlin opted to step down as manager. He was replaced by former Clara and Offaly star James ‘Ginger’ Stewart whose selectors were PJ Ward and Robert Dunne. The new management’s objective was to consolidate Kilbeggan’s position in the intermediate ranks, and they appeared to be well on their way to achieving that when the team pulled off a surprise victory against Ballynacargy in the first round of the championship. But sadly, that was to prove the year’s highlight. After losing their four remaining group matches, Kilbeggan faced Ballinagore in a relegation playoff to determine who would make the dreaded drop. Ballinagore came from five points down to draw the original
James Brennan kicks forward
between the teams just after the restart, the underdogs seemed poised for victory, but Ballynacargy rallied and hit 1-3 without reply to move two ahead, 19 to 1-7. However, Kilbeggan’s battling qualities then came to the fore as a David Fennell point left the minimum in it before Dalton fielded a high ball and fed David Keenan for a crucial second goal with 10 minutes remaining. The centre forward nailed a difficult free to push Kilbeggan three clear before David Fennell had a great chance to put the result beyond doubt, only to be denied by a brilliant save by the Ballynacargy ‘keeper. In a nail-biting finale, Bal’ threw everything at Kilbeggan, but some heroic defending restricted them to a solitary point as the men in maroon held on for a magnificent win. Having struggled in Division 3 of the All-County League beforehand, Kilbeggan now finally had the chance to build up some momentum, but a seven-week gap to their next championship game against Shandonagh meant that wasn’t possible. On a sweltering afternoon at Lakepoint Park, the Shamrocks trailed by just two points at the interval, 0-6 to 0-8, but were overrun in the second half as county midfielder David Duffy inspired Shandonagh to a 0-18 to 1-8 victory. Kilbeggan were dealt another blow when they crashed to a 05 to 2-14 defeat to Tubberclair Emmett Dalton retains possession in Rosemount. While a place in against Shandonagh
fixture before making no mistake in the replay. Frustratingly for Kilbeggan, it was the second time in four seasons they had been relegated by their neighbours. “After a great start to the championship, we never pushed on,” Kilbeggan chairman Ken Scally ruefully reflected at the club’s AGM before Christmas. Kilbeggan’s 2-9 to 1-10 victory over Ballynacargy in their championship opener at Lakepoint Park was a result few had saw coming. Goals from man of the match Paul Fennell and David Keenan in either half proved the difference. Fennell’s 20th minute major came moments after Ballynacargy’s Tony Doran had struck the upright at the other end. James Stewart’s men went on to lead by 1-6 to 0-6 at the interval, despite having playing against a strong breeze. When Emmet Dalton put four points
Paul Fennell on the charge
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kilbeggan designed_Layout 1 01/04/2014 11:44 Page 5
Full forward Emmett Dalton holds off his Ballynacargy opponent
The long-serving Mattie McCormack won an All-Ireland minor medal in 1995
the knockout stages was still achievable at this juncture, avoiding relegation had suddenly become the Shamrocks’ priority. The most disappointing aspect of the Tubberclair defeat was the team’s failure to score in the second half. Kilbeggan’s fourth round clash with Ballymore at Cusack Park was a mustwin game for both sides. The first half was nothing short of disastrous for Kilbeggan who allowed their windassisted opponents to build up a 3-10 to 1-2 lead by half-time. To be fair to
Midfielder James ‘Bud’ Brennan
James Stewart’s men, they didn’t give up the ghost and made a real fight of it in the second half. But despite some impressive point-taking by David Marshall, David Fennell, Mattie McCormack and James Brennan, they came up short with Ballymore holding out for a 3-12 to 1-14 victory. Things went from bad to worse for the St. James’ Park outfit when they suffered a humiliating 0-10 to 5-19 defeat to local rivals St. Malachy’s in their final group outing. That left them
Kevin Smith weighs up his options
facing a do-or-die clash with a Ballinagore team that has made a habit of surviving relegation battles in recent years. In the original game at a rain-soaked Shandonagh, Ballinagore made the early running to lead by 0-4 to 0-1 after 14 minutes. But their opening quarter advantage was wiped out when Paul Fennell fisted the game’s only goal to help Kilbeggan to a 1-4 to 0-4 half-time lead. Following the change of ends,
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SUMMER CAMPS
Mary Marshall and Patricia Gannon of Kilbeggan Preservation & Development Committee (KPDA) present a set of jerseys to Kilbeggan Shamrocks ladies captain Sharon Heeney and vice-captain Triona Durkan
Kilbeggan twice held five-point leads, but they couldn’t put their dogged opponents away. With 12 minutes remaining and Kilbeggan leading by 1-7 to 0-5, Ballinagore looked doomed, but they dug deep to outscore the 2012 junior champions by 0-6 to 0-1 and force a replay on a 0-11 to 1-8 scoreline. Determined not to find themselves playing catch-up again, Ballinagore came flying out of the blocks in the Rochfortbridge replay. It was like the Ballymore match all over again for Kilbeggan as they couldn’t stop their wind-assisted opponents from building up a commanding 3-8 to 0-5 lead at the break, with man of the match Tommy McDaniel bagging two goals and Paul Maloney accounting for the other. To their credit, Kilbeggan rallied in the second half, but they couldn’t get closer than four points and Ballinagore eventually won out on a 3-12 to 0-17 scoreline. As already stated, the emergence of fresh talent has given rise to renewed optimism in the south Westmeath town and, with James Stewart once again at the helm, every effort will be made to regain intermediate status in the months ahead. Among the highlights from 2013 were a reunion for Kilbeggan’s 1965 and ’72 junior championship winning teams. Organised in conjunction with the Kilbeggan Knighthood Festival, the event was well attended at Kilbeggan Racecourse over the June Bank Holiday weekend. On the same weekend, a GAA Skills Day featuring Kilbeggan/St. Joseph’s underage teams – both boys and girls – from U6 up to minor
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took place. It was called the Ray Fox Memorial in honour of one of Kilbeggan’s greatest ever clubmen who passed away in 2011. Having worn the maroon and white jersey, Ray went on to become an outstanding administrator, serving nearly every position on the club executive, including chairman. In addition, he was a key member of the club lotto committee, unselfishly giving of his time to sell thousands of tickets over the years. One of his proudest moments came in 2000 when he formed part of the management team, along with former Westmeath manager Pat Flanagan and Tommy Carberry, which guided Kilbeggan to an intermediate championship success. Fittingly, Pat was on hand to present medals to each child. Kilbeggan Shamrocks may well be unique in that it currently provides selectors to two senior inter-county football teams. Philip Kiernan is in his third year as a Westmeath selector, while Michael Stones has taken up a similar role with New York, who are preparing to welcome beaten AllIreland finalists Mayo to the Gaelic Park for the first round of the Connacht championship. The Kilbeggan Shamrocks team which defeated Ballynacargy in last year’s IFC was: Shane Keenan; Shaun Pidgeon, Fergal Fox, Tadhg O’Gorman; David Conroy, Niall O’Brien, Nigel Scally; James Brennan, Alan Fennell; David Fennell, David Keenan, Paul Fennell; David Marshall, Mattie McCormack, Emmet Dalton. Sub used: Robbie Dalton.
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AIT - WESTMEATH GAA ACADEMY LAUNCHED
A
thlone Institute of Technology (AIT) and Westmeath GAA have launched an academy to nurture and develop highly skilled young players. Up to 80 players will be selected annually to participate on a development programme which will run for five years. The initial focus for 2014 is on young hurlers and footballers playing at U13 level. The players will receive high quality coaching and sport science support on a weekly basis from experienced coaches and professionals. Recruitment for the AIT-Westmeath GAA Academy took place by way of trials which were held across the county in February. This was followed by a training and testing session in AIT in March, following which the boys participating in the academy were selected. Emmett Egan, sport scientist at AIT, explained the rationale for developing the academy: “Understanding the changing needs of the young player at each stage of their development is crucial towards helping produce a talented, successful and injury-free player. It is important to understand that the development of the player is paramount in this regard. “They must be schooled in all the necessary skills in their formative
Martin McCabe recording scores for accuracy as part of the tests for U13 players hoping to be chosen for the AIT/Westmeath GAA Coaching Iniative
years to have the right set of tools – both physical and technical. Young players must be able to pass, tackle, block, kick and catch correctly, as well as learning how to improve speed, stamina, flexibility, agility and balance in a safe and progressive manner.” Egan added that AIT’s expertise in sport science and coaching will be a key feature of the academy. “The approach of the coaching staff will be completely player-focused and absolutely everything associated with the project will be in the best interests of these young hurlers and footballers. The coach is crucial to the development of each player, and our coaching approach is based on sound
U13 hurlers having their height measured as part of tests ran in March in AIT by way of selecting players for the AIT/Westmeath GAA Coaching Iniative
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scientific principles,” he said. Westmeath GAA chairman Sean Sheridan said: “Investment in youth is a must and without it success will always be a step away. Our U13 squads this year start a process that will ensure that the right steps are taken in their development and also in Westmeath’s development plan at underage into the future for both football and hurling. “The Westmeath County Board and AIT enjoy a very good working relationship and we appreciate all the help and assistance provided to us. We continue to work together always looking to improve, so we are delighted to partner with AIT on what is a new initiative for the GAA in general, and, in particular, for Westmeath. We recognise that it will take a huge effort from all, but with the facilities in AIT, which are second to none, along with sport science expertise, we believe it’s well worth the effort.” The players participating in the AITWestmeath GAA Academy will be profiled according to their agility, reaction, speed and power using stateof-the-art equipment. Training sessions will involve a combination of physical development, player education and pitch-based skills. The Academy launch comes after AIT hosted both the Sigerson Cup and European GAA finals last year.
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CORALSTOWN/KINNEGAD Ronan Foley battles it out with St. Loman’s John Heslin
R
GOAL REMAINS THE SAME FOR REDS
eaching the knockout stages of the senior football championship is a must for Coralstown/Kinnegad who haven’t achieved that objective since returning to the top flight after winning the intermediate championship at the first attempt in 2011. After four years as manager, Jack Cooney has taken up a new challenge with Celbridge in Kildare and has handed over the reins to another local man, Thomas McDonnell, who returns to his home club after managing Offaly intermediate side Durrow last year and the Westmeath U16s the year before. A brother of Offaly football manager Emmet McDonnell, Thomas and his selectors Alan Plunkett and Anthony Gorman will be hell-bent on leading Coralstown/Kinnegad out of a group
that comprises last year’s beaten finalists Tyrrellpass along with Garrycastle, St. Malachy’s, Bunbrosna and Athlone. “While we’ll be taking each game as they come, the aim is to reach a quarter-final,” full back Killian Foley explains. “Since winning the intermediate championship in 2011, that has been our goal but we haven’t succeeded, despite having beaten some very good teams over the past two years. It’s a tough group again this year, but if we can find a bit more consistency, we should be there or thereabouts.” Killian, whose brother Ronan and sister Maud-Anne both play for Westmeath (their uncle is Meath legend Kevin Foley), cites the third round defeat to Castledaly as the result which cost Coralstown/Kinnegad their place in the knockout stages last
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year. He also laments the fact that they weren’t able to attain promotion from Division 2 of the All-County League with Caulry – who defeated them in the Intermediate Cup final – pipping them for top spot. “Castledaly knocked us out of the championship in 2012 and they were a thorn in our side again last year,” he ruefully reflects. “That was one of the games we had targeted for a win, but they beat us by a couple of points and that cost us in the long run. If we had won that game, we would have gone through. “We were also disappointed to miss out on league promotion. We lost to Caulry and St. Malachy’s, and drew with The Downs. Losing the Intermediate Cup final wasn’t a huge disappointment because it was end-ofseason stuff and we had stopped training by that stage.”
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U14 Division 2 champions: front l/r: Ruairi Gildea, Ben Kirwan, Leroy Kelly, Conor Kelly, Dan Leech & Sean O’Reilly. Middle: Liam Waldron, Dean Kiernan, David Giles, Kyle McCann, Lee Keane, Owen Bracken, Ciarán Daly, Shane Fleming, Sean Donegan. Back: Jim Rock, John Fleming, Warren Larkin, Adam Woods, Aaron Dowling, Conor Gildea, Karl Briscoe, Kevin Ohakewe, James Maxwell, Kian Flood, Patrick Leydon, Gerry Browne, Declan Leech, Niall Leydon
out by a 38th minute Lorcan Dolan goal which provided the catalyst for Castledaly’s victory. With difficult games to come against St. Loman’s and Garrycastle, the odds were stacked against Coralstown/Kinnegad prolonging their championship involvement, but they dug in and put it up to Loman’s before
Under the guidance of Jack Cooney and his selectors Niall Leydon and Joe O’Keeffe, Coralstown/Kinnegad got off to a flying start in the championship when they recorded an emphatic 0-18 to 1-5 victory over local rivals Killucan. At halftime, the winners led by just two points, 0-6 to 0-4, but seven unanswered points between the 38th and 52nd minutes saw them take complete control. Rising star Darren Giles made a big impact when he came on by scoring 0-5 (0-4 from frees) as Killucan were restricted to just two second half scores. The Reds’ ambitions were dealt a serious blow, however, when they slumped to a 0-11 to 5-14 defeat to Tyrrellspass in their second outing. The Glennon brothers, Denis and David, and the evergreen Martin Flanagan, racked up 4-9 between them on what was a torrid evening for Coralstown/Kinnegad. It was all over bar the shouting at half-time when goals from Denis Glennon (two), David Glennon and Ciaran Daly propelled the ‘Tidy Town’ into an unassailable 4-6 to 0-5 lead. With confidence low, Jack Cooney’s charges desperately needed a pick-me-up against Castledaly, but they were made to pay for a lack-lustre second half display as the south county outfit came from behind to win on a 1-9 to 0-10 scoreline. Coralstown/Kinnegad saw a 0-6 to 0-3 half-time lead wiped
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The U16 squad that lost the Division 2 final to Tubberclair, front l/r: Kevin Ohakewe, Sean Moran, Neil Carty, Kevin Giles, Kieran Bracken, Dylan evans, James Maxwell, Ronan Bracken. Back: Owen O’Brien, Michael Browne, Bradley Keane, Frank Ward, David echeri, Lee Kilbane, John Fox, Kevin Mcewan, Conor Twomey
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shocking Garrycastle in their last game. They matched Loman’s stride for stride until John Heslin’s 26th minute goal gave the champions-elect a 1-6 to 0-6 interval lead. Heslin extended the Mullingar side’s advantage on the restart before two Ger Leech frees and an Alan Giles effort from play left the
Jamie Greville
Darren Giles
minimum in it entering the final quarter. However, after both sides were reduced to 14 men, Loman’s kicked for home with points from Shane Flynn and Heslin before Shane Dempsey reacted quickest to a Heslin shot which had come back off the post to find the net and give Loman’s a flattering 2-10 to 0-10 victory.
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The U8 squad that took part in the football blitz at Cusack Park
Adam Browne
Alan Giles
A goal from substitute Alan Daly had Garrycastle back in front early in the second half, but Coralstown/Kinnegad responded with their third goal from midfielder Niall Kilmartin in the 47th minute, and two late points from Ger Leech sealed an excellent win, which resulted in the Athlone side having to meet Castledaly in a playoff to
Niall Kilmartin
Clive Kiernan
determine which team would progress to the quarter-finals. The Meath-border club had an opportunity to finish the year with some silverware, but a second defeat of the season to Caulry in a low-key Intermediate Cup final at the end of November denied them. Despite operating at senior level and having
home advantage, Kinnegad succumbed to a late rally from the beaten intermediate finalists after the sides had been level with eight minutes remaining. David Brookes had edged Caulry ahead before John Maguire’s goal in the final minute copper-fastened their 1-11 to 0-10 success.
James Maxwell raises the U14 Division 2 championship cup at Cusack Park
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SUMMeR CAMPS
In the U21 championship, Coralstown/Kinnegad chalked up wins over Tubberclair and holders Maryland/Tang before losing heavily to a star-studded St. Loman’s in the semi-final. In the junior championship, the highlights were wins over Tubberclair, Killucan and St. Mary’s, and a draw with Caulry. Coralstown/Kinnegad contested no fewer than three underage finals, but had to settle for just one victory at U14 level after the U16s and minors lost out to Tubberclair and Moate All-Whites respectively. Coached by John Fleming, Niall Leydon and Gerry Browne, the U14s defeated St. Malachy’s/Ballinagore by 2-6 to 16 in the Division 2 championship decider at Cusack Park thanks to goals in either half from Kevin Ohawaska and Owen Bracken. Coralstown/Kinnegad lost the U16 championship final to Tubberclair, but avenged that with a one-point victory over the same opposition in the minor championship Division 1 semifinal. With Ryan Caffrey and Darren Giles – who were part of the Westmeath minor team that reached the Leinster final (Caffrey captained the side) – in their ranks, the Reds came into the Cusack Park final against holders Moate with high hopes, but were undone by the concession of three first half goals which ensured the All-Whites of a
commanding 3-5 to 0-5 half-time lead. Giles scored two points in the opening three minutes of the second period to give Corlastown/Kinnegad hope, but they would only manage one more score as Moate retained the Darren Price Memorial Cup thanks to a 39 to 0-8 victory. Corlastown/Kinnegad’s U14 Division 2 champions were: Sean Donnegan; Aaron Dowling, Karl Brisco, Ciaran Daly; David Giles, Kevin Ohawaska, Lee Keane; James Maxwell (captain), Patrick Leydon; Owen Bracken, Cian Flood, Shane Fleming; Declan Leech, Adam Woods, Ruairi Gildea. Sub used: Dan Leech. Minor Division 1 championship runners-up: Christopher Doyle; Ryan Fox, Tadhg Flynn, Enda Kenny; Dylan Powell, Darren Leech, Eoin Maxwell; Ryan Caffrey, Jack Cully; Jamie Greville, Darren Giles, Aaron Glynn; Craig Tallon, Evan Toner, Kyle Fox. Subs used: David Etcheri, Shane Giles, Sean Sweeney and Brian Cole. The Coralstown/Kinnegad team which defeated Garrycastle in last year’s SFC was: Damien Molloy; Jason Lynch, Killian Foley, Ronan Doyle; Clive Kiernan, Ryan Caffrey, Ronan Foley; Stephen Bracken, Niall Kilmartin; Jason Cully, Mark Gorman, Fergal Dardis; Ger Leech, Enda Leonard, Alan Giles. Subs used: David Cole, Adam Browne and Darren Leech.
evan Toner in minor final action against Moate All-Whites
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Paul Sharry in Leinster’s colours
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Aonghus Clarke takes Westmeath forward
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Kieran Martin can find the goals with his eyes closed
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