GRASSROOTS
ÉIRE ÓG GREYSTONES
Two very important events are in the pipeline for the coming week, one sporting and one social.
The former, Éire Óg v Rathnew in the Renault Senior Football Championship in Joule Park at 5p.m. on Sunday has about it, on form to date, the air of lambs being led to the slaughter with the predicted outcome for Éire Óg being nothing less than a comprehensive defeat.
However hope springs eternal and going on the drawn match against Kiltegan in the previous round, one expects that Na Clocha Liatha will give Rathnew a better run for their money than is forecast by the pundits.
In am an gátar aithnítear cáirde (true friends show solidarity in times of lagging fortunes). Are you a friend?
Support for the team during the championship campaign has, to say the least, been discouragingly poor so think about lending them your support for this do-or-die contest.
The latter occasion – there are those who might say that the order of priority here is out of kilter! – is the marriage of Junior C manager John Wynne on Friday.
Everyone in the club extends every good wish to John and his future bride, Aoife, and hopes that they will have a long and happy life together. Beannacht Dé orthu beirt agus go raibh saol fada sona acu le chéile.
IOMÁINT - Éíre Óg and Carnew faced off in the Dacia Cars Senior Hurling Championship on a recent Saturday evening in the home of St. Pats in Dunbur.
A strong wind which favoured Carnew in the first half blew directly from goal to goal. At the end of the first quarter Carnew were 0-8 to 0-0 ahead and so great had been their superiority throughout the field that it seemed that there could be only one outcome, a humiliating defeat for Na Clocha Liatha.
During that 15 minutes one got the impression that the Carnew lads could not put a shot astray and while the wind did not help the Éire Óg cause the responsibility for the yawning scoring gap could not be placed solely at its door.
Over the period our lads seemed to have been invaded by a lethargy which prevented them from becoming fully engaged and this had allowed the opposition forwards to shoot at will.
A glimmer of hope appeared a few mins. into the second quarter when Chester slotted over a point from a free.
This injected a modicum of energy into his colleagues and they upped their game significantly.
Greystones were thrown a lifeline when Andrew Walsh got in for a goal just before the break to leave the score at half-time, 0-14 to 1-4.
The momentum that Éire Óg had gained in the final minutes of the opening half continued its build-up into the second and after 10 minutes they had reduced the deficit to just two points, thanks to 4 unanswered points (Pooch 0-2, Chester 0-1 all from frees and a point from play by Andrew Walsh).
In the next 10 minutes, neither team gained further advantage on the scoreboard. Then disaster struck for the seasiders when county player Peter Keane received a questionable red card.
One has always contended that refs must judge the act, not its apparent (often exaggerated by theatricals) consequences.
Peter jumped over two Carnew players, maybe a bit over-enthusiastically, but in a totally honest effort to catch the sliothar and knocked over a Carnew player.
As a result some of the steam was knocked out of the Éire Óg drive.
Nevertheless they fought gallantly to the end and had Carnew on the rack for the last few minutes. Final score: Carnew 0-18, Éire Óg 1-13.
PEIL - The Junior Cs passage to last Thursday’s quarter final game against Annacurra in the Arklow Bay Championship which was played in Ballinakill could not be described as smooth. They were heading into the game on the back of a draw against Blessington and a loss against Donard which was headlined in the Bray People as “Donard run riot against Éire Óg”.
However, these setbacks did not seem to have dented the lads’ confidence as they started the game in whirlwind fashion and had stamped their authority on it by the 10 minute mark when they led 1-6 to no score.
They continued in the driving seat from then to the end of the game. The team’s performance deserved a headline akin to that above for Donard.
A great team performance overall in which the contributions of Willie O’Hagan, Luke Bradley, Gary Elliott and Brandon Byrne deserve special mention.
Scorers: Gary Elliott (1-03), Ciarán McDonald (1-0), Brian O’Sullivan (1-0), Luke Bradley (0-9), Brandon Byrne (0-5), Kurt Stark (0-2) and Eoin O’Neill, James Smullen, Seán Minogue (0-1) each. ‘
AUGHRIM
Our adult team had a comfortable win over Rathnew last week in the last game of the group stage of the championship.
This leaves us top of our group and through to the knockout stages of the competition.It was great to see all the support there for this game.
Congrats to Ciara Connolly who represented her club and county at the interval match during the All-Ireland Senior hurling final last week. Playing for Galway and scoring 1-4 in the match she done her family,club and county proud.
Clubman and secretary John Keenan took charge of the All-Ireland Under-21 hurling final last Sunday in Limerick and continues to referee at the highest level.
He refereed the All-Ireland Minor hurling final two years ago and an opportunity to take charge of the Senior final cannot be too far away.
Best wishes to one of our long serving and stalwart members of our club John O’Shea who was recently in hospital. We wish him a speedy recovery and look forward to see him out and about the complex shortly.
ENNISKERRY
Due to an issue with lighting in Ballinakill last Thursday evening, the men’s JBFC semi-final against Hollywood was unable to be played. The current proposed date is for today, Wednesday 5th in Ballinakill at 7.30pm but this is to be confirmed, please check our Facebook page or contact a club member for confirmation before travelling to the game.
Ladies - The Clan na Gael ladies have a must win match against St Pats of Wicklow this week (Tuesday, September 2), if they secure a win they will progress to the Intermediate semi-final but if a loss, that match will be the final game of the year for the girls.
Lotto – winning numbers were 2, 10, 14, and 28. No jackpot winner, the jackpot now stands at €6,800.
The big 21 – happy birthday to men’s senior player Luke Dalton who turned 21 last Sunday!
ASHFORD
Ashford and Glenealy GAA lotto results from Monday, August 27. Jackpot: €6,000. Numbers drawn were: 2, 4, 5, and 14. No jackpot winner.
Match 3s: Catriona Hatton c/o V Hatton; Marie Phelan c/o M Phelan; Josie Byrne c/o S Driver; Mickie O’ Neill c/o S Driver; Ben Meade c/o Kings; John Glynn c/o J Glynn; Jasmine Campion c/o S McDermott; Georgia and Alfie c/o N Reynolds. (€38 each).
Next draw: Monday, September 3, in the Woodpecker. Jackpot: €6,300.
The Intermediate team, in preparation for their last Group game next Saturday in Roundwood against Donard-The Glen, played Ballinteer St. John’s last week in a friendly. Match this Saturday is timed for 6.00 pm.
Fifteen Under-10 girls travelled to Portlaoise to partake in a Leinster LGFA Blitz on Sunday last. Leia Doyle was the principal organiser. Mentors would like to thank parents who went with the team.
All had a brilliant time.
For more information on Ashford GAA activities please visit our Facebook page.
ST PATRICK’S
St. Patrick’s GAA Club will host the 5K/10K Autumn Challenge walk/run fundraiser on Sunday, September 23, from Dunbur at 10.30am. Registration starts at 9am. Under-13 €5, 5K - €10 and 10K €15. Please support.
Congratulations to our Under-14 ladies on winning their championship county final against St Nick’s on Saturday in Bray.
Having lead at half-time with the score reading St Pats 1-4 to 0-3, the girls turned on the style in the second half in an entertaining game and were deserving winners with the full-time score St. Pats 5-08, St. Nick’s 0-05.
All the supporters enjoyed the game and applauded captain Kirsty Dunne who accepted the shield on behalf of her team mates. Well done to all involved
Congratulations to all involved with our Sen- ior hurlers who took on Kiltegan on Saturday afternoon in Joule Park Aughrim on Saturday.
At half-time in Joule Park Aughrim and despite carrying an obvious injury Andy O’Brien bagged 2-5 to help Pat’s lead Kiltegan by 3-5 to 1-8 at the break.
The lads continued the second half where they left off in the first and were deserving winners with the full time score St. Pat’s 4-11, Kiltegan 2-12. The lads now look forward to the championship quarter final where they will meet Éire Óg Greystones with Glenealy and Bray Emmets awaiting the winning quarter-finalists in the semis.
On Monday evening, the game of the night was the battle of the Saints in Dunbur in the Under-17 football league where St Pat’s welcomed the visitors St Kevins.
It had everything with two evenly matched teams. A goal for St Kevins on the stroke of half time meant we trailed 1-03 to 1-08.
In the second half, St Kevins started brightly and went ahead by nine points. Our lads dug deep and were not going to disappoint with everything to play for with 15 minutes to go on the clock we worked our socks off till the final whistle went and thoroughly deserved the win on a full time score line of St Pats 6-5, St Kevin’s 3-13.
The lads can be very proud of themselves and their management team as they played with pride, passion and hunger
Team: Pat Sammon, Mark Evans, Cian Kelly, Caolann Mooney, Niall Delahunt, Ken O’Grady, Padraig Cahill, Mark Whelan, Dylan Byrne, Callum Kelly, Aaron Byrne, Cian O’Brien, Matthew Ryan, Craig Anderson, Dylan Kavanagh. Subs: Cathal O’Briain, Frankie Reynolds, Marc O’Brien, Ciaran Byrne, Ryan Kavanagh, Liam Connolly.
Scorers: Dylan Kavanagh 2-4 (3F), Cian O’Brien, Mark Whelan, Craig Anderson and Frankie Reynolds 1-0 each, Callum Kelly 0-1.
Thank you to Neil Barrett from Horeswood Wexford who presented a signed hurl from their Under-11 team who visited us for a practice game on Sunday. An excellent work out for all involved with the result just shaded by Horeswood at the finish.
Well done to our Under-11 hurlers who put in a great evenings hurling with wins over both Carnew and Kilmac on Wednesday - well done, boys!
A superb team performance and win by the St. Pats U13 football blue team over St. Nicks in the Division 1 league away in Ballinakill on Monday.
That win puts us into a very strong position to qualify for this year’s championship ‘A’ final in October.
Hard luck to the under-13 white football team who gave table toppers St Mary’s a big fright on Monday night in Ballinakill. A great first half performance saw Pats leading at half-time but unfortunately a bigger and stronger St Mary’s got on top in the second half and ran out winners in the end.
Well done to the under-13 football White team who bounced back on Friday evening and finished off this year’s league campaign with an impressive 11-14 to 1-3 win over Bray Emmets. Best of luck to the team in the forthcoming championship.
Congratulations to globetrotting referee Stephen McNulty who officiated at the USA GAA finals at the weekend.
Our indoor bowls starts back next Monday 3rd in the hall at 8pm all new members welcome. If you require further information please contact 087 260 5156
Our ‘Little Warriors’ will continue on Saturdays at 10am for boys and girls age 4-6. Fun games, getting to meet new friends and learning new skills, are what our nursery is all about. We look forward to welcoming those back from last year and meeting our new recruits!
Thanks to Gallagher’s Super Valu for their continued sponsorship of our club nursery.
Bus going to camogie final in Croke park on Sunday, September 9 leaving at St Pats at noon. Any interest contact Margaret on 087 7827881 before this Sunday, September 2.
Ladies Gaelic football continues on Saturday’s.
Let us all get snapping! Can all managers start taking team photos in hurling, football, ladies football and camogie and send them via email to: Pro.stpatricks.wicklow@gaa.ie.
Thank you to all our local businesses who have sponsored signs for the pitch, we still have free slots if you’re interested in promoting your business, please pm the page or contact the club treasurer Treasurer.stpatricks.wicklow@ gaa.ie #keepitlocal.
Final draw of St Patrick’s Club fundraiser will be held this Saturday, September 8, at 9.30pm in Fitzpatrick’s Bar, Wicklow.
First draw results are as follows: 1st - €1,000 - Nicholson family, 2nd - €700 - Eugene Dooley, 3rd - €400 - Paul Earls, 4th - €200 - Paul and Catherine O’Brien, 5th - €100 - Jason Watson, 6th - €50 - Egan Barron family, 7th - €50 - Fox family
Second draw results: 1st - €1,000 Roy Conway, 2nd - €700 Alan Lawlor, 3rd - €400 Dunlop Family, 4th - €200 Don and Pat Sammon, 5th - €100 Billy O’Rourke, 6th - €50 John Crennan, 7th - €50 Susan Lavelle
Thank you to all who supported our club fundraiser.
Congratulations to James Phelan who won the option to buy two tickets to All-Ireland football final and Joanne Kavanagh who won the option to purchase one All-Ireland football final ticket in the St Patrick’s GAA Club members draw on Thursday, August 30.
Our development committee now have the Greenhill Road Playing Pitches Planning Application drawings on view for all members in the Clubhouse. Committee members will be available on Saturday mornings to discuss the application. All members are welcome to view the club’s future!
Thank you to everyone who supports our club lotto. Results from August 27, numbers drawn: 4, 5, 10 and 17. Bonus: 27. No jackpot winners for €10,000. No jackpot winners for €1,800.
Five match three winners: Phil Fox c/o T. Byrne, Karen and Michael c/o M. Humby, Christine Reid c/o Malone’s, Mary c/o J. O’Brien and Stefan c/o J. O’Brien.
This week’s match four is €1,900. Please send any information for club notes to Pro.stpatricks.wicklow@gaa.ie before 9pm on Sunday evenings.
You can contact St Pats at Facebook St Patrick’s GAA Club Wicklow Town or Twitter @ StPatsGAAWick.