Decisive win in first game of round-robin section
Castletownroche 2-20 Gleann na Laoi 1-09
Castletownroche played their first game of the round-robin section of the County Junior B Hurling Championship on Saturday last, May 4th. The game was played in lovely early summer conditions in Blarney in front of a nice sized crowd. This was an important game for our lads, who wanted to register an early win to aid qualification hopes for the knock-out stages.
Right from the off our lads were at it, registering the first three points of the game and leading the opposition 0-06 to 0-03 at the end of the first quarter. We did have some wides but the lads were creating chances and only for a great save from the Gleann na Laoi goalie, Muiris would have had a goal to copper-fasten our advantage. This did not deter our lads and they continued to pick off some lovely points. Just before half-time, we registered our first goal when an accurate puck-out from Podsie made its way to the free-roaming Mark, who spotted Dane in space. The early ball in to Dane was expertly controlled and he finished emphatically to the net for a great goal. At half-time we lead 1-12 to 0-05.
Any hope Gleann na Laoi had of getting back into the contest disappeared straight from the throwin when Castletownroche played the ball in early for Dane to come in along the end line and as he was being closed down, he spotted Diarmuid isolated on the edge of the square. The accurate pass was well taken by Diarmuid, who made no mistake to register a decisive second goal. From thereon, it was a case of our lads continuing to pick off points, but more importantly, the work rate of all the backs and the midfield ensured Gleann na Laoi got nothing easy. They did register a goal from a penalty late in the game as a consolation. By the end, Castletownroche emerged deserving winners on a scoreline of 2-20 to 1-09.
This was a performance with a lot to admire about it and sets us up in good stead for the rest of the competition. Thanks to Gleann na Laoi for a sporting game, referee Paddy O’Sullivan for managing the game well and the Blarney club for having their venue in excellent order.
Team: Podsie O’Mahony, Pat Madden, Will Madden (C), Adrian O’Donovan, Seamus Sheehan, Thomas Barrett, Billy Batterberry, Aidan O’Leary (0-03), Niall Hazelwood (0-01), Liam Sugrue, Muiris Browne (0-04), James Linehan, Mark O’Callaghan (0-08), Diarmuid Fisher (1-00), Dane O’Neill (1-04). Subs:
Robert Quirke for Niall Hazelwood, Wesley Walshe for Pat Madden, Jonathan O’Callaghan for Seamus Sheehan, James Ladd, David Relihan, Chris Relihan.
CLUB LOTTO
The latest lotto draw took place on Monday night, May 6th, in The Castle Arms. The numbers drawn were 1, 10, 12 and 21. There was no winner of the €9,300 jackpot and the five €20 lucky dip winners were Kathy O’Neill, Denis Canavan, Jack and Noah Browne, Tom Murphy and Betty Casey. Congratulations to all the prize winners.
The next club lotto draw takes place on Monday night, May 20th, in The Rockforest Bar, with the jackpot now standing at €9,400. Tickets are available through local retail outlets in the village, from your usual sellers or through any club officer. Tickets can also be purchased online by logging in to Clubforce and searching for Castletownroche GAA. Details on how to access this link can also be found on the club social media page. The club would like to express our appreciation to everybody who continues to support our draw.
REBELS’ BOUNTY 2024
The latest draw in the Rebels’ Bounty took place on Thursday night last. The winner of the €20,000 April jackpot was Dan McSweeney from the Kilmeen/Kilbree club. Unfortunately, there was no winner from Castletownroche in this draw. The next draw will take place towards the end of May.