Éire Óg Greystones
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Weekly Notes - 13th July 2005

Our intermediates are scheduled to play Blessington in the 2nd round of the championship at the week-end. The time and venue, at time of writing, are still up in the air, a not altogether desirable situation. A further spanner has been thrown into the fixtures works with the arranging of the Murphy Cup match v Longford for Saturday night. While we would be glad to see the county advancing in this competition, one would hope that this progress would not be allowed to have the same disruptive effect on the fixtures that the pursuit of the Sam Maguire had. It is difficult to sustain interest if games are being postponed.

Our ladies, who are well used to the vicissitudes of football life and who are not given to complaining, were, to say the least, not very happy with the circumstances surrounding their last two outings. The first, a league game against Kilbride, involved their having to travel from the scheduled venue, Kilbride, to an incipient meadow in Lacken - you should have heard the protests of the displaced sheep as they watched their lush grazing being trampled beneath the cogs of these female usurpers. The pollen released did nothing for air passages of our hay-fever sufferers. Despite the inauspicious conditions, the ensuing game proved to be highly competitive and enjoyable with Éire Óg shading it by the narrowest of margins. Laurie Ahern, Jade Coffey and Caoimhe Ní Shúilleabháin were among the better servants of the Éire Óg cause on the night.

The other game was in the championship against Donard in Donard at 8pm on a Wednesday. For the Éire Óg girls the whole evening had an air of unreality about it. Tired from the journey and the labours of the day they entered a dreamlike state from which even the most bizarre of refereeing decisions could awaken them. It is not surprising, then, that it was the more experienced members of the squad who were the most prominent – Laura Mitchell, Niamh Sherlock, Lorna Fusciardi and Leslie-Ann Long.

Congratulations to two of the players, Maria O’Neill and Míde Ní Shúilleabháin, who last week were conferred with degrees in Civil Engineering. This brings to three – Áine McCarthy (Chemical) the number of engineers in the squad. Is this a record?

In order to keep the interest of their charges alive, the management of the u-16 boys have been foraging here and there for practice matches to fill the lacuna in their competitive calendar. A game against St.Judes, Templeogue was one of the outcomes of this search. The trauma of crossing into another jurisdiction must have affected our players as they were soon 6pts in arrears. At this stage their pride was dented and they fought back gallantly to have a one goal lead with a minute to go. On the stroke of time, a goal from St. Judes ; a judicious time for blowing the full-time whistle? No!! With a punctiliousness born, no doubt, from working under the strict Q.C. regime in the breads of the Marriot, referee Alan Keating played the full quota of extra time. St. Judes won and the G.A.A. were denied a fat pot from a replay.

Unfortunately, Dicey has had to return to nursing care – "youth and folly" and all that. But is olc an gaoth nach séideann maitheas do dhuine éigin (it is an ill wind………) and Barry’s situation evinced a show of solicitude from his pious ward-mates in Naas who showered him with their prayers and the waters from many holy places. Maybe those blessed waters will direct him along the path to sideline sainthood.