Midleton GAA Club

19 August, 2018

Intermediate Hurling
In the proverbial game of two halves we almost pulled off a dramatic victory over Ballincollig last Friday evening in Ovens in Round 3 of the Championship. Ian Kennefick got us off to a great start with a fantastic solo goal after which we added a few points but that’s when it fizzled out for us. It took all of twelve minutes for any free to awarded but unfortunately for us it was the first of many awarded to Ballincollig, they scored most of their opportunity’s and as a result we were behind by 1-10 to 1-04 at the break. Credit to our lads they asserted themselves immediately after the restart and when they had a player dismissed all the momentum was with us. A well worked goal from substitute Kevin Finn reduced the deficit to four points with minutes remaining and within minutes a point from Kieran Mulcahy and a cracker from Garan Manley left the sides level.
The referee shortly afterwards blew the final whistle and after some confusion it was confirmed that no extra time would be played. Referee Cathal Egan of Glen Rovers.            
Well done to all the players and management on this battling performance, we can look forward to the replay with confidence, final score Midleton 3-11 v Ballincollig 1-17.
Team: Byran Rossiter, Billy O’Shea, Finbarr O’Mahony, Adam Daly, Cillian Hurley, Shane Ryan, Padraig O’Keeffe, Cian Farmer (0-01), Kieran Mulcahy (0-01), Garan Manley (1-05, 4 frees), Jake Hegarty (0-01), Ian Kennefick (1-00), Ross O’Regan (0-01), Peter Dowling (0-02) & Tommy O’Connell. Subs used Shane Finn & Kevin Finn (1-00).    

Minor Hurling
At Ballygarvan last Monday evening we overcame a tough challenge from Inniscarra in the Premier 1 Championship quarter final by 3-16 to 2-12. We were very tentative in the first half and goals from Ross O’Regan and Cian Crowley kept a very determined Inniscarra side at bay, at halftime it was 3-03 to 1-08 in our favour.
In fairness in the second half our lads really upped their performance and mid way through we struck five points without reply, with some very good defending also we closed out the game. We now face Na Piarsaigh in the semi final, well done to all the players and the management on this deserved victory.
Team: Alan Power, Cormac O’Brien, Christian Murphy, David Scanlon, Sam Quirke, Sean O’Sullivan, Ciaran Evans, Kevin Finn (0-01), Tommy O’Connell (0-01), Aaron Mulcahy, Gary Carroll (0-01), Evan Rowlands, Ross O’ Regan (2-06, 5 frees), Cian Crowley (1-01) & Cian Farmer (0-04). Subs used Arthur Nganou (0-01) & Jake Shanahan.

Senior Hurling
We played Na Piarsaigh away last Sunday morning in our penultimate game in the League and disappointingly we were defeated by 1-24 to 2-15. Our final game in the League is at home to Douglas on Tuesday evening before we play Glen Rovers in Round 3 of the Championship on Saturday week the 1st of September in Pairc Ui Chaoimh.  

Fe 21 All Ireland Hurling Final
Best wishes to the Cork players and management in the All Ireland final on Sunday next in the Gaelic Grounds, Limerick against Tipperary @ 5.30pm ET. Good luck to our own Seanaidh Smyth and Sean O’Leary Hayes both whom are part of the panel.    

Fixtures
Tuesday 21st Fe14 Premier 2 Football League v Ballincollig away @ 7pm
Wednesday 22nd Fe16 Premier 1 hurling League v Sars at home @ 7.30pm
Wednesday 22nd Fe13 Premier 2 Football League v Kinsale away @ 7pm
Thursday 23rd Junior Hurling League v Castlelyons away @ 7.30pm
Friday 24th Intermediate Hurling Championship replay v Ballincollig in Ovens @ 7.30pm ET 
Sunday 26th Fe21 All Ireland Hurling final v Tipperary in Limerick @ 5.30pm ET
(Please note these games may change and will be updated on our website.)  

Camogie (Camógaíochta)
 U8:  On Saturday the 18th August we travelled to Carrigtwohill for an U8 Blitz. Our opposition were two home teams and two teams from Valley Rovers with our two teams primed and ready to take on the other teams in conditions perfect for an afternoon of camogie. Over the course of the blitz each team played four games, so all our players saw plenty of game time. Once again, all our players showed great work ethic, team spirit and determination in all their games. It was very satisfying to see the development of our players and some very high skill levels on display. Everyone performed brilliantly and we really enjoyed the well organised afternoon of camogie fun. Well done again to all the young magpies and coaches on a super effort. Thanks to Carrigtwohill for hosting.

U13:  We met Youghal in the U13 Imokilly A cup semi-final in Ballinacurra on Tuesday evening 14th Aug.  Our team consisted of many U12 girls to bring us to the starting 15 and we got off to a great start with an early goal to settle us down.  The remaining first half was tightly consisted and we  led  by 1-1 to 1-0 at the break.  We got off to an unlucky start in the second and conceded an early goal to put us in arrears and a strong Youghal team never looked back and ran out deserved winners 4-3 to 1-2.  Many thanks to all our supporters on the night and to our U12 girls who got a first taste of a full size pitch action. Now we look forward to getting back into U14 championship action in the coming weeks.

U15:  We took on Castelyons in the semi-final of the Imokilly Plate competition on Thursday evening last, on what was a brilliant evening for Camogie.  The girls played with the wind for the first half, they took some fantastic scores none more so than Chloe Garde, Leah Hogan and Vivienne Gleeson, unfortunately we left a lot of scores after us in the first half which would have made us a lot more comfortable at half time. We finished the first half two point up.   During the second half we were holding their own against an ever improving Castlelyons taking some great scores, but two fortuitous goals towards the end of full time gave our opposition a lead of four points that we couldn't get back. Well done to all the girls who put in a tremendous effort and a lot will have been learned from this game as we head into championship next week.
UPCOMING FIXTURES: 
U16 Round 1 Championship v Rockban Monday 20th August 7.30pm Ballinacurra
U12 ‘whites’ V Douglas Wednesday 22nd August 7pm in Douglas.
U9 Blitz Saturday 25th  August  11am in Rockban. Players to be at Whitechurch for 10.45am.
Congratulations to the Cork Intermediate and Senior Camogie teams both winning their Semi-Finals on Saturday last to claim a place in the All Ireland final on September 9th.

Ladies Football (Peil na mBan)
Training schedule for the coming week: U8’s will return to the Tech Pitch from 6-7pm. U10’s,16’s and minor will train from 7-8pm at the Tech Pitch. For tomorrow night only the U12’s will train at the Gaa Club main pitch from 7-8pm to prepare for their League Final Next Sunday. A text will be sent to all, parents to confirm the change of venue.
Best of Luck to our Minor team who take on Mayfield on Tues evening in the Minor League. Please ensure girls have Gum shields and water at all training sessions.  

Lotto (An Lató)
Our Lotto Jackpot was €3,400 and there was no winner, the Lucky dip winners were Jim O’Brien, Niamh Cooley, Olivia Roche, Catherine Noonan & Brian Smyth, next week’s Jackpot will be €3,600.
Tickets are on sale at the Club Bar, O‘Neills Bar, Linehan’s Bar, Maple Leaf Bar, O’ Farrell’s Butchers, Frank Murphy Butchers, Pat Walsh Paints, Chadwicks, Teach Beag, Niall Mac’s Bar & Wallis’s Bar. Our Online Lotto is now available, logon to the Club homepage www.midletongaa.com to purchase your ticket.

BINGO – Next session is Friday at 8 pm. everybody welcome.

Juvenile

Fe 7
On Saturday morning we travelled to Riverstown to take on Sars in a challenge game.
32 young and enthusiastic Magpies took to the field in what was a great morning for hurling. Throughout the games there was an abundance of skill and determination on display. We are looking forward to the next few weeks where we have a number of challenge games lined up.

Fe 11
On Saturday morning last we were back in Rebel Og League action. After our mid season break we took on Carrigaline ( 2 teams ) and Fr O’Neills ( 1 team ) in football. On a great morning for football the boys gave a very good account of themselves. Having to dilute the team to try and compete with first teams is difficult. Some very good Football was played at times. In some cases though, stern words were spoken to some players to up their performance which seemed to work !!!  Unfortunately we did not get the wins but we battled to the end which is very important. We are at home this Saturday v Éire Óg and Lisgoold in hurling. Training continues this week when we go back to the small ball. Thanks to our young refs for allowing the game to flow and for helping us out once again.

Fe 13
On Saturday we travelled to Na Piarsaigh for the Pat Kelleher Memorial tournament in what proved to be a very entertaining day for all involved. There was four teams represented Na Piarsaigh, St Finbarrs, Ballygunner and ourselves. First up for us was the Barr’s , the magpies made a flying start slotting home three goals in the first ten minutes and with a couple of fine points saw them lead at the break 3-2 to 1-0. It was a replica of the first half after the break with two quick goals from our lads putting us well and truly out of sight of a depleted Barr’s team, final score Magpies 5-7 to 1-0. The second game saw us up against a very fancied Ballygunner team whom had just defeated the home side by over twenty points. Credit to our lads who were well up for the challenge and rattled off four quick points in the opening half which saw a score line of 0-4 to 0-1 at halftime. Ballygunner came out fighting in the second half and things got a little heated. This game ended in a draw with Ballygunner getting a goal in the dying seconds of the game leaving us feeling very hard done by. Final score 1-02 to 0-5.
The  third game was a must win game for both sides to qualify for the final. We were playing the home team Na Piarsaigh and our lads came out of the traps like lightning and took some fabulous scores with a healthy halftime lead of 3-7 to 1-1. It was much the same in the second half again with our forwards putting in a sublime performance which ended up on a score line of 6-8 to 3-1 to qualify for the final. 
After a well deserved rest and a fine feed in the clubhouse we were due to face our old foes Ballygunner, this proved to be a magnificent game of hurling. The standard was well above par with both teams willing to put their bodies on the line. At halftime we were behind 0-06 to 0-01. A strong team talk from the mentors at the break saw our lads lift it and they came out with serious fight in their belly’s scoring the first five points. The Magpies were on a roll and had the Waterford lads rattled, a goal with a minute to go surely had it won for us but the never say die attitude of Ballygunner saw them score a goal with the last puck of the game. Extra time was going to decide this thriller again we started strongly leading by two points at halftime in extra time and when we scored first after the break the lads fought for everything like their lives depended on it. The scenes of joy when the final whistle was blown was a sight to behold, final score Midleton 1-10 v Ballygunner 1-08. This was a tremendous effort by the entire panel, it was a day when boys became men, a credit to each and every one of them. Na Piarsaigh must be thanked for providing a great days entertainment.
The Fe13 mentors would like to express their thanks to all parents who travelled on the day also a special thanks to our captain Adam Collins for a fine speech on receiving the Cup. Panel: Rory Lester, Oscar Brennan, Adam Collins, Eoin Higgins, Sean Cronin, Alex Moloney, Darragh Scanlon, Tadgh Bohane, Alex Howard, Zach Smith, Eoin Fraser, Tom Dunlea, Oisin Berdassa, Yohannis Mehigan, Carthaigh Cronin, Tadgh O Leary Hayes, Darragh Fitzgerald, Niall Lang, Evan Mc Grath & Cian Lambe.

Fe 14
On Wednesday evening last we played at home in the Premier 1 Hurling Championship game against St. Finbarr’s. The conditions were dry. St Finbarr’s have always been a strong team over the years at this level, so we knew that this was going to be a tough match. We had the breeze in the first half, but we got off to a slow start and we were down by a goal and three points within the early stages of the game. Our opponents were winning a lot more ball than we were. Even though we created scoring chances we couldn’t capitalise and put the chances away. At halftime we trailed by seven points. In the second half we were now playing against the breeze and this meant that we were going to have to defend from the full forward line all the way through the entire team and stop our opponents from capitalizing from the breeze. Every player put in a fantastic display in the second half as they battled for every ball and supported each other, always looking to have a man to pass the ball to and help move the ball up the field and into scoring positions .In the second half we kept our opponents to just three points while we scored seven points from frees and open play from Mikey Finn (8) and Dave Cremin (2). Going into the final few minutes we were trailing by a goal and although the lads tried their best we couldn’t get the score that would have levelled the match. We hit the post from a Mikey Finn free and we also had a ball cleared off the line after a goal mouth scramble. Final Score Midleton 0.10 v St. Finbarr’s 1.10
The entire panel for this game gave their all and although the result didn’t go our way this time the players can be very proud of the commitment and performance that they put into this game. We now go into the challenge cup playing Na Piarsaigh in mid September. Our next game is a football game away to Ballincollig on Tuesday 21st.
Panel for the game was, Mikey Finn, Ben Kenneally, Tiarnan Roche, Rian De Barra, Michael Roe, Odhran Prenter, Brian O’Connell, Fionn Dalton, Cathal Beausang, Dara Scanlon, Alex Moloney, Tadgh O’Leary Hayes, Darragh Fitzgerald and Zach Smith, Evan McGrath, Kamil & David Noack, Tadgh Bohane, Daniel Coffey, David Cremin & Rory Lister.

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