Glynn-Barntown in O Sé tournament

GLYNN-BARNTOWN, last year’s beaten Senior football championship finalists, will make the big trip south west to compete in the Lidl Comórtas Peile Páidí Ó Sé 2017, the famed club Gaelic football tournament and festival which takes place on February 17-19 in Comórtas HQ at Páidí Ó Sé’s pub in Ventry and various G.A.A. venues across the Dingle Peninsula in Kerry.

Glynn-Barntown will compete in the Dermot Earley Senior men’s cup which also includes 2016 Laois Senior county champions Stradbally, Down’s Downpatrick who are managed by former inter-county footballer Conor Deegan, Dublin’s Fingallians, Kildare’s Sarsfields, and Kerry’s An Daingean (Dingle) and host club An Ghaeltacht of West Kerry.

A total of 32 teams in all will compete from 14 counties across all four provinces as well as teams from the UK and the United Arab Emirates in ladies’ and men’s Senior, Intermediate and Junior competitions

Pádraig Óg Ó Sé commented: ‘We are thrilled to have Glynn-Barntown who are competing at the highest level in Wexford.

‘For a team on the up, we hope the tournament will be a good yardstick as to their progress as footballers when they go up against successful Senior sides from other counties.

‘We are delighted to bring on board our new title sponsors Lidl who are already great supporters of Gaelic Games in Ireland, as well as Grant Thorton who are both helping to maintain one of the oldest club tournaments in the country.’

The football festival, which is also supported by Lee Strand Milk, Fáilte Ireland and Kerry County Council Tourism Unit, has attracted over 13,000 club players since it began in 1989 and is a big boost for tourism in the area with over 1,800 bed nights created over three nights.

This year, as well as nightly music and entertainment in Comórtas HQ at Páidí Ó Sé’s pub, there will also be a special excerpt from a John B. Keane play hosted by the late playwright and author’s son, Billy Keane, on Sunday evening in the pub.