Final round of group games this weekend
This coming weekend, the group stage of the Munster Winter League will be completed. We have many of our teams in a good position to qualify, and better still - three teams have already secured their place in the knockout stages of the competition.
The men’s grade 2 team, the men’s grade 5 team and the ladies grade 6 (Paper) team have qualified from their groups. Both men’s teams have one game remaining to play while the ladies team completed their fixtures last Saturday with a fine 4-0 win away to Limerick Lawn to finish top of their group. The grade 6 ladies (paper) team, captained by Laura Manning, have shown real character in their group games and will take great encouragement from their strong performances heading into the knockout stages. Well done Laura, Marie, Barbara and Lindsey.
WINTER LEAGUE FIXTURES
This weekend, we have six teams in action, all playing their final group games of the competition on Sunday 13th.
The grade 2 men’s team, who have already qualified, are playing at 12 noon away in Lower Aghada. The ladies grade 4 team are finishing their group campaign with a home tie against St Michael’s (orange) at 10am. The ladies require one win on the day to see them through to the next round. The men’s grade 5 team, qualification assured, will be making the trip to Cork to play Sunday’s Well (navy) at 12 noon. The ladies grade 6 (Scissors) team will play Rushbrooke (Gold) in Mitchelstown at 2pm. The ladies need to win, and depending on the scoreline, could see themselves go through at the expense of their opponents. The ladies grade 6 (Rock) team are playing their second and final group game away at Roscrea (Red) at 1pm. This is a winner takes all fixture, so the stakes couldn’t be higher! Finally, the men’s grade 6 team travel to Limerick to take on The Catholic Institute (Green) at 11am. This is another match where the winner takes it all, so game faces at the ready for Sunday morning!
It sure is exciting times for the club and we wish all our teams the best of luck in their matches and hopefully we will be celebrating more qualification success after the weekend.
The Winter League teams are as follows:
Grade 6 Ladies (Rock); Clair Nolan (capt), Liz Cotter, Edel Fitzgibbon and Ann Milward. Result: Mitchelstown 3-1 Kilfeacle Kickers. Fixture: Sun, 13th Mar Mitchelstown v Roscrea Red at 1pm in Roscrea.
Grade 6 Ladies (Paper); Laura Manning (capt), Lindsey Graham, Marie O’Neill and Barbara Pigott. Results: Mitchelstown 2-2 Sunday’s Well; Mitchelstown 4-0 Nenagh, Limerick Lawn 0-4 Mitchelstown. Mitchelstown qualify for the next round.
Grade 6 Ladies (Scissors); Aideen O’Brien (capt), Karen Keane, Lorna O’Brien, and Sharon Shields. Result: Mitchelstown 0-4 Monaleen Fixture: Sun, Mar 13th Mitchelstown v Rushbrooke Gold at 2pm in Mitchelstown.
Grade 6 Men; Colm Baker (capt), Shane O’Neill, Paddy Leonard and Dermot O’Donovan. Result: Mitchelstown 1-3 Crosshaven Fixture: Sun, Mar 13th Mitchelstown v Catholic Institute at 11am in Catholic Institute.
Grade 5 Men; Sean Keane (capt), Cillian Dollian, Paddy Hanley and Liam O’Grady. Results: Mitchelstown 3-1 Limerick Lawn, Whitechurch 0-4 Mitchelstown. Fixture: Sat, Mar 5th at 12 noon Mitchelstown v Sunday’s Well Navy at 12 noon in Sunday’s Well. Mitchelstown already qualified to the next round.
Grade 4 Ladies; Marie Therese O’Kennedy (capt), Ber Downey, Olive Kenneally and Catherine O’Keeffe. Results: Lower Aghada 1-3 Mitchelstown; Mitchelstown 4-0 Tralee. Fixture: Sun, Mar 13th Mitchelstown v St Michael’s Orange at 10am in Mitchelstown.
Grade 2 Men; Denis Linehan (capt), Ciaran O’Kennedy, Alan O’Meara and Michael Waldron. Results: Mitchelstown 3-1 Lakewood; Douglas 0-4 Mitchelstown. Fixture: Sun, Mar 13th Mitchelstown v Lower Aghada at 12 noon in Lower Aghada. Mitchelstown already qualified to the next round.
COACHING
This week, we welcomed coach Donal Neary to the club for a five week term of coaching for both juniors and adults. Donal is a level 3 coach and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role so we are delighted to have him on board. There are still places available for U7s and U10s on Mondays and Wednesdays. For information or to register, visit our website mitchelstowntennisclub.com.